Questions tagged [software]
Computer programs intended for writers. Questions involving the use of particular programs, or requesting recommendation for software that will help in a particular task.
258
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How can we make images with (necessary) text more translatable mechanically?
Our documentation set includes some diagrams, such as entity relationship diagrams and flowcharts, where text is integral and cannot reasonably be handled in callouts. Our documentation is translated ...
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6
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Is there a writing software that you can sort scenes like slides in PowerPoint?
I generally use PowerPoint for outlining my scenes (prose, not script). I put a general description of what the scene is on the slide, and then give more details in the notes section. I like that I ...
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3
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Podcast Transcripts: suggested collaborative tools?
I love accessibility, so any show that is 100% scripted, my script = the transcript, and I'm happy to share it.
For podcasts with a cohost, there's no easy transcription software, and fiverr is ...
- 4,642
5
votes
1
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Adding tags to documentation built in Flare?
Our software documentation set (for a SQL analytics database platform) is large, because SQL and databases have many pieces. Often a single statement, function, or feature will be highly related to a ...
- 21.5k
4
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1
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Autocapitalize after colon for dialog?
I write my dialog in this format:
Joe: Why are you wearing a shoe on your head?
Sam: Mind your own damn business!
What's annoying here is that it doesn't automatically capitalize the word following ...
user23083
4
votes
3
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446
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How can I highlight changes in HTML output from Flare, based on branch diff?
We use Madcap Flare for a large documentation set, with HTML output. (Flare source is a very HTML-y XML with some Flare-specific additions.) We use git for source control and new work is done on ...
- 21.5k
3
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2
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1k
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How to do a global find and replace in Ulysses
I use Ulysses 15 for my writing. The tool has a robust global search but, to my knowledge, it does not provide a replace function (only the sheet search has a "find and replace" function).
Does ...
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Problems with picture alignment in Microsoft Word - which other DTP software can I use?
I have been struggling to write a book on my 14 years research. I have used Microsoft Word exclusively, but I have a problem that the book uses lots of pictures, sometimes six per page and this is ...
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Tool for editing dialogue of each character
I would like to edit all of the dialogue of a specific character in my book.
Then I want to repeat this for other characters.
I think this would help to give each of them a unique voice.
Of course I ...
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12
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2
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Scansion tool for checking my meter
Are there any software tools available that will help me dissect my meter? I have always been extremely poor at scansion and while my writing doesn't suffer terribly for it, it makes writing strict ...
- 4,461
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Mariner Software for writers
I'm boring and just use Word and Excel for writing my novel and keeping track of stuff. I've tried a couple others, including Scrivener and Evernote, but never got into it. I like the idea of ...
- 32.4k
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Map-making software
I'm looking for free software, preferably open-source, that would allow me to create maps for my story. I guess what I need is a tool that would allow some measure of 3D modeling.
Features I would ...
5
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3
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Coloured comments in a word processor [Word/Libre/OpenOffice] - is it possible?
Is there a way to have comments in different colours, in Microsoft Word, Open Office Writer, or Libre Office? (I am currently using Open Office, and I'm happy with it, but I am open to making the ...
4
votes
1
answer
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How to convert APA style citations (Coley et al 2004) to IEEE format [1]?
I have a journal article with citations in APA format (e.g. Coley et al 2004) and I need to convert them to the IEEE format (represented with numbers, such as [1]), which are then listed at the bottom ...
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Is it possible to use version 3 Scrivener documents in both Mac & Windows?
Does anyone use Scrivener cross OS? I just got my first MacBook and installed Scrivener, but then because it's a newer version (3) it wants to update the Scrivener files. Which would be fine, but I ...
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Show outline or table of content using presets in Scrivener?
Google Docs has this neat feature, where an outline is generated based on the text you've set to a specific style, such as title or heading:
Word has a similar feature. Is there a way to generate an ...
user23083
2
votes
1
answer
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Show applied preset where the cursor is?
In Word, if the cursor is in a part of the text that has some style applied to it, such as Title, the format will be highlighted in the ribbon to let you know:
Scrivener, however, is lazy, and doesn'...
user23083
6
votes
7
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2k
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Creating and keeping track of characters
I admit to finding this an insurmountable task.
My novel has dozens of characters. My first problem wasn't keeping track of them, but creating them.
Modern Day:
My 20th century characters were ...
- 32.4k
4
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1
answer
657
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How can I keep dialogue attached to character names in a Pages play script?
I'm formatting a play using Pages on macOS. I cannot figure out how to get character names to be associated with their dialogue. I'm formatting like
[centered] JOHN [\centered]
Yes, that’s me.
...
12
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5
answers
681
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How best to recover from catastrophic text loss?
This morning I had an accidental select all delete followed by auto save, which prevented me from just hitting undo. My novel became an empty file. I use MS Word.
I had emailed a copy of it a few ...
- 12.3k
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1
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Where to put a description of software tools used in a thesis?
At the moment I'm writing my master-thesis in the area of information systems. Because I developed some code to demonstrate my approach, I also mention some software tools in my proof-of-concept ...
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2
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Git plugins for MS Word?
Is anyone aware of a plugin for MS Word that allows me to keep my documents in a git repository (gitlab compatibility would be even better)? I'm aware that git diffs won't be very meaningful, merges ...
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119
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Best writing app for phone?
I'm currently using Google doc for writing, but I've noticed recently that it is very slow to use (it takes a few seconds for my words to appear on screen) It is very frustrating. My book has reached ...
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102
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How to change gears with changing technology?
My tablet/notepad recently died. I can't afford a new one. So I basically have to use my phone to write, which I'm not comfortable with. I now have writer's block because I don't enjoy writing on ...
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Can the Final Draft 11 software handle foreign screenplay formats?
I am considering buying Final Draft 11. Of special interest to me is that this version can handle 95 foreign languages, including Japanese. My question is, can FD11 handle foreign (read: non-...
5
votes
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325
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organising complex networks
I've decided to experiment with mystery novels and went for the type I most like: Miss Marple kind of tale.
I set the story in a small town (about 2000 people) and gave my main character family, ...
3
votes
1
answer
333
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How do I create a custom dictionary in OpenOffice?
Writing fantasy and sci-fi, I grow a sizeable specialised vocabulary per story (names, locations, fantastical things, etc.) I grow tired of the autocorrect grumbling at this vocabulary, and would much ...
4
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1
answer
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How can I make the plagiarism detector "Ithenticate" identify "θ-continuous" as a single word?
I have a problem with the similarity index of one of my works since the plagiarism detector "Ithenticate" identifies θ-continuous as continuous. In my university, all that matters is the similarity ...
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What software/techniques do people use to gather ideas?
I'm planning to create a game. It won't be the first game I've created (or even released), but it will be my first game with any story to speak of.
I'm still very much in the planning phase of the ...
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Topic-based authoring vs. Modular authoring
What is the difference between "topic-based authoring" and "modular authoring"?
As I know, there are two well-known authoring approaches:
Narrative authoring;
Topic-based authoring (see link above).
...
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8
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3
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What software can I use to synchronize corrections and modifications over similar documents?
I'm currently working on a large thesis, from which I derive some smaller publications such as papers. The work is in parallel. Often it happens that I copy some paragraphs from the thesis into a ...
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6
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Any software for video game non-linear story design?
Is there any software for making non-linear story or dialogues?
I tried MS Word/Google Docs but that's not good for dialogues.
In one complicated dialogue I wrote in Google Drawings, it looks like ...
- 221
2
votes
2
answers
108
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Tools for organising anthologies
I'm looking for software or markup/markdown based tools for organising anthologies selected from a large number of short pieces of writing. In this case it's poems, but the content of the individual ...
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4
answers
3k
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Is there a software for story writing with detailed character files and an interactive timeline? (other then aeon timeline and scrivener)
I'm looking for a writing software that's user friendly and doesn't require endless tutorials to figure out.
Plotist seems to be a good start, but their timeline is too simple and doesn't even have ...
3
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3
answers
620
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What editor can I use for world building that has a tree-like structure for my files?
I'm looking for a simple editor to start getting into world building and story writing which is working out fine in Microsoft Word. However, I'm finding it difficult to continue without any structure. ...
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Software to draw plot structure charts
When I plot my own novels or analyze other works to understand their structure, I like to visualize the dynamic of the storyline(s) in a diagram.
Usually I draw this by hand. A first version of such ...
user29032
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1
answer
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good Wordpress theme for blogged book? [closed]
Leaving aside whether I ought to blog my book or not, I am doing just that. Each blog post will be a section, multiple sections will be a chapter, etc.
Currently I'm looking for a good wordpress ...
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1
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What's the best way to write (or rewrite) a math book?
I've been writing a book that has a fair share of geometric diagrams and equations. However, I am unable to make use of a computer for this and have been maintaining a journal where I manually draw ...
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6
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930
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Are there tools/software for planning your story using nested mindmaps and references to characters?
I've been looking for a certain piece of software for a long time, but I never quite found something that matches what I need. I'm a very visually oriented guy, the best way for me to keep track of ...
user23083
3
votes
1
answer
290
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Search and replace words across whole project?
I'm still new to articy:draft and I want to know if it's possible to search and replace words across the whole project. I know searching is possible, but I can't find the replace function, if it's ...
user23083
2
votes
3
answers
880
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Is there a tool for determining the number of on in a word for the purpose of writing haiku?
In America at least, Haiku are commonly taught to students as poems having 5, 7, then 5 syllables, when in actuality, they have a structure of 5, 7, then 5 on. The NaHaiWriMo site explains what an on ...
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Which free text analysis tools do authors use?
I'm looking for free tools to perform some text analysis. I don't want just simple Flesch-Kinvaid or Coleman-Liau score, I was hoping for a tool that identifies problem sentences, overused words, etc....
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Knowing when to disobey the advice of grammar software
When writing I try to be my own editor in order to improve the quality of what I write. When I feel happy I use Hemingway to further tighten up what I have written. Normally I aim for having a score ...
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What is the status of Sandcastle and are there alternatives?
Wikipedia currently lists the Development Status of the Sandcastle documentation generation software as "Stalled," citing the lack of recent releases. (There's actually contradictory information on ...
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2
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Our team needs to automate many routine tasks. Can we use a single tool or do we need to use multiple ones?
Our tech comm team has a wide variety of time-consuming, repetitive tasks they we need to automate. We are mainly using Sphinx, reStructuredText, Adobe Illustrator, and Visio.
Specific things we need ...
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3
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How can we make reviewing HTML documentation easier?
Summary: I'm looking for a way for reviewers to comment collaboratively as close to "inline" as possible on a large HTML project.
The problem in detail
I work on a team that documents a ...
- 21.5k
10
votes
2
answers
120
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Limitations of automatic documentation
As technology advances and workflows are streamlined, some have turned to automated tools such as Doxygen, Sphinx, Swagger, etc. in order to generate technical documentation automatically.
What are ...
- 351
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4
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1k
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Using software with my writing?
I am looking for a good writing software. I'm not talking about something to perform just grammar/spelling checks, like word, which is great, but not what I'm looking for. I'm looking for something ...
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0
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Looking for a Writing Time Tracker [closed]
I'm looking for something simple to track time, not words. Last year's goal was 500 words a day. This year's goal is 30 minutes a day. Leaves me more flexibility to edit and plan rather than solely ...
- 21
3
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2
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755
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How to create a useful diff of a markdown writing project iteration
I wrote a play that I performed this summer, and have done significant re-writes for an upcoming second performance run. In order to help me relearn my lines, I think it would be useful to see which ...
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