As much as I like the fact that the improved fullscreen mode now uses the plain-text color settings for RTF, too, I feel there’s still room for improvement:
It should be possible to choose between the old, “normal” RTF fullscreen mode and the new one.
I’m missing an option to define a dedicated zoom level (above 100%) for the RTF fullscreen mode.
Yes, it’s been said before, user-definable margins (left and right!) would be nice, too. (UPDATE: Scratch that, I misunderstood a setting in the prefs.)
Instead of top and bottom margins I’d rather have a typewriter mode for fullscreen editing (plain text and RTF) like Ulysses and now Scrivener offer. (It basically means that the cursor will remain in the (vertical) center of the screen while typing.)
You’re talking about the text zoom, right? Because the preference panel allows for the margins to be set… but why anyone would want something wider than 100% is beyond me.
Other than what’s already in the preferences? I myself am fine with what we currently have.
While I agree that typewriter mode would be nice, I’d be perfectly happy with a top and bottom margins. Unless I’m missing something (which would be great!) there are no settings for top and bottom margins in DEVONthink fullscreen mode. Which makes it essentially useless on a laptop. Alas.
Yes, I’m talking about text zoom; it’s very annoying to zoom manually every time.
You’re right, scratch that! I simply mistook the zoom settings there for something else.
Huh, maybe I don’t get what you mean, but I think that bottom and top margins would actually render the fullscreen mode useless, especially an a notebook. I for one wouldn’t rather take a “typewriter option” (or whatever you call it). Top and bottom margins would limit the vertical amount of text visible and I’d find that very unhelpful.
After playing some more with the beta of Scrivener, I can say that basically I’d like its fullscreen mode in DT§. It’s quite customizable and, what’s probably most important, most settings can be changed on the fly via an iPhoto-fullscreen-edit-mode-like menu on the bottom of the screen. And, yes, it freatures small (customizable) top and bottom margins which don’t hurt, so I guess I now see terceiro’s point! Still I consider a “typewriter” option (!) on that the ideal solution …
The Full-Screen view uses the same Zoom size for font that was set in the document’s normal view. Control-Command-Up/Down Arrow increases/reduces apparent font size. Note that view size changes made in Full Screen view are retained when one returns to “normal” view. (I do all my writing/editing in normal view, so that wouldn’t bother me as I set a comfortable view size in most documents anyway.)
One can use the “old” RTF white background and black text simply by choosing those colors.
The Home, End, Page Up and Page down commands work in full screen mode. Those are available with dedicated keys on my Power Mac G5 and with the “fn” key and arrow keys on my MacBook Pro. The “scroll wheel” feature of the Mighty Mouse works, as does the two-finger drag on the MacBook Pro.
I chuckled about the “type-writer” view comments, especially the centrally-locked position of the insertion point. As someone who spent a number of decades using typewriters, that was a mechanically-imposed limitation that I was delighted to be freed from when computers became available. Such a fixed insertion point made editing difficult, as one had to roll back and forth and move the carriage to position the insertion point properly.
The developers are responsive to user comments, as evidenced by improvements in Full Screen mode. Please keep making them.
I’ll confess that I don’t use Full Screen mode, as I find it distracting in the sense that I cannot instantly check a reference while I’m writing. Otherwise, when I’m writing I focus so tightly that nothing distracts me – not the screen appearance, nor most things in my surroundings. When I’m writing, my dogs find it necessary to nudge me in order to get the message across that they need to go outside or be fed.
I can see the value in both (typewriter and non-typewriter). However, I found the “typewriter” mode in Scrivener somewhat disconcerting, what with all that strange blank area. But I did like the way it kept the line I was writing on away from the bottom of my screen.
The difficulty comes when I’m using a laptop and my writing gets down to the last line on the screen. The text gets so low that it is blocked by my fingers on the keyboard. Essentially, I’m typing blind. If I wanted to type blind, I’d turn the brightness down to zero. That’s why I want a buffer of some sort to keep the text from the bottom 20-30 pixels of the screen. That’s all. I think that for aesthetics, you’l probably want to give us a cushion of 20-ish pixels at the top as well, but that’s a question of looks, not usability.
As it stands now, fullscreen is only useful for documents that take up less than one screenful. And that’s too bad because I like fullscreen mode.
While I have found that I’m very capable of blocking out distraction on my own, I like the signal it sends my subconscious: “when things are black and green, it’s time to get writing. Quick checking that email, bozo!”
Here’s a workaround: type a few carriage returns that will persist beneath the text you are writing, so that it will always be possible to ‘scroll down’ from the text you are typing.
But the suggestion that a little blank ‘margin’ be left at the screen bottom (and perhaps the top, as well) so that one never has to “type blind” is one I’ll note to Christian.
I know, that’s what’s so annoying …!!
It might be a start to be able to safe different zoom levels for fullscreen and normal mode.
Which sets these colors for fullscreen editing plain test files, too. And it’s not very comfortable to switch. But this not that important …
I know that. It was never the point …
The point is, that when you’re at end of a document in fullscreen mode, the insertion point sits quite uncomfortably at very bottom of the screen, even half obstructing the “lower parts” of some letters like “g” or “p”!
Well, you should take a look at the implementation in the Scrivener beta before dismissing it. (I wouldn’t want it for the normal view, for sure! Scrivener offer separate options for both views.)
Hey Everyone,
I’m now using the full screen mode to save some battery when I have long lectures.
I have experienced long delays in the writing time: the delta between my pressing the button and the character appearing on the screen.
I’m now used to keep my eyes on the screen itself, but this delay forces me to check on the keyboard to have the correct visual.
I have tried to reinstall DT PE but I still have the same issue. I’m using the first 17inch model. Is the computer speed causing that?
Regarding to the previous discussion a floating window to customize the full screen appearance would be great! eventually also including a compressed formatting palette.
Still I consider a “typewriter” option (!) on that the ideal solution …