Long time since the design of 3.0 has already been ready. In fact, I won’t expect its documentation could take so long or actually need months’ work. I’d better guess 3.0 was kept purposefully for a good timing of public release (nonsense to me). Anyway, feel kinda disheartened for the slow move of L&L compared with other Mac developers.
For faster deployment of updates to Scrivener without such long waiting session, I sincerely suggest L&L take the “subscription strategy”. The users of Scrivener pay a monthly or annual fee to give Keith continuous financial support, and Keith does not need to save all the new big ideas and improvements for the so-called “major updates”. In this way, all of L&L’s products could be rejuvenated more actively without considering how big or small the forward step is.
I’m not sure where you are getting the idea that it is only the documentation of Scrivener 3 that needs doing, as we haven’t yet said anything officially about the release of 3.0 or its status other than that we are working on it.
Also, if you don’t think that Scrivener’s documentation takes a month or so to write or update, you clearly haven’t seen our manual! It’s 550 pages long! It’s not the sort of thing you can rewrite in a week.
There is certainly nothing cynical about our timing, and we are not artificially holding anything back. 3.0 was held back by the iOS version, because I had to work on that for several months. But also, software needs testing.
Hopeful, eager users will easily extrapolate that writing the tutorial is all you have left to do. You can find that general interpretation in a few posts in the forums.
With sincere & great respect: Your team is extremely tight-lipped, perhaps you should be too!!!
Well, if I may: please don’t make it subscription or at least not subscription-only.
I am happy to pay a fair price for the product. I even think the product as it is is priced cheap for what it is, considering the value. I will update on day one, I bought iOS version on day one. But I really don’t like to rent my software.
After a while you would have a bill of 1000 dollars a month for all the software that once upon a time you could just buy and use without an extra credit going from your bank account every month.
About 3.0 of the OP: I think the latest version had a great redesign for Mac. And after using Scrivener for about 1.5 years, I am still discovering stuff, and I couldn’t think of (a lot) what I want ‘extra’ - although I will undoubtly be proven wrong by Keith when L&L presents the new version - which I will buy anyway to support the team for a great product. I am not sure I would update if it would be subscription-only.
I think it’s really not fair to say L&L has a slow update pace. As with iOS: they take a long time to get it right, but when they do, I feel they hit the ball out of the park, and they seem still a long way AHEAD of the competition. I have this feeling with both the Mac Desktop-software and the iOS-software.
Yes, they took years and delays for the last one. But the possibilities are far ahead of all the rest, so if you look at it like that, are they really ‘slower’ than other developers? That argument quickly fades if you look at the final products.
Every day I am amazed of how smart the original Scrivener was designed. The developers did the hard conceptual work years ago already, I feel. There is a reason so many people swear by it.
It’s like with Apple: they weren’t the FIRST to get a smartphone, or an MP3 player, but when they did, it was a lot better than the competition.
I’m happy they take the time to get it right. I’ll be curious to see 3.0. untill then I will enjoy a functional 2.8 that does more than I ever dreamed of a program AND in my opinion, had a very succesfull modern redesign already with the Yosemite-look. I don’t mind the redesign Keith has been hinting at, I know he wants to keep it as functional and powerful as the current version, I do hope that in the search for a clean look doesn’t double the amount of clicks one has to do.
But I do trust L&L. From all the companies, I couldn’t imagine someone complaining about their commitment to the users.
And I use a lot of software.
Look at the Touchbar. It was released a couple of weeks ago, and Keith is already looking into if it can contribute or not, to a 3.0 version.
Ahhh that is good to hear — especially after my favorite Journal App Day one has made these awkward, untrustworthy step towards a subscription model. Any one here who is using Scrivenre for journaling?
For those impatient for 3.0, remember a couple of important points.
It has been delayed by Keith having to take over the iOS project. While that was unfortunate in the delays that occurred to both projects, the need for Keith to do the iOS project was because paid developers who did not have Keith’s passion, or experience with Scrivener could not come up with the goods. Though the iOS project was very late, after Keith’s takeover, what we received was a superbly crafted app that has the possibly the tightest code of any professional iOS App. I am stunned and dismayed it did not receive a best app gong from Apple.
Now Keith is firmly focussed on V3.0, I am certain it will be released when Keith is satisfied it is the best it can be and ready for prime time. No release of a half-baked application and then months ironing out major flaws as we see elsewhere.
Like everyone here, I’m desperate to open my wallet and contribute to L&L’s ongoing success, but will (almost) happily wait until Keith is ready for the program to carry his ‘signature’.
As a dual licence Mac/Win user, I’ll agonise over when the Win version will arrive, meanwhile I’ll use it on the best platform for creation, my Mac
