I know we’ve been quiet about the iOS version recently, and some users have been wondering if it’s still in development. After all the problems we’ve had with it, I took over development myself last year and rewrote it from the ground up. I had originally planned not to develop it myself so that I didn’t have to divide my time between the Mac and iOS versions, but in the event, coding our iOS version turned out to be a lot of fun, especially with the introduction of the iPad Pro. Adapting Scrivener for iOS felt like going back to the beginning and remembering why I built Scrivener in the first place.
I’ve now finished the rewrite and it’s in internal alpha-testing, which is going well - in fact, I was on holiday last week, and wrote exclusively using Scrivener on my iPad Pro. As soon as it’s in beta - which shouldn’t be too far away now (really, this time) - we’ll start bringing you more news. We’re incredibly proud of how it’s turned out, and I can’t wait to tell you more about it, and to get it into the hands of our users at last.
Thank you for your patience, your support, and your enthusiasm while Scrivener for iOS has been undergoing its long gestation.
— Keith
(Scrivener designer, Mac and now iOS developer)
15 Comments
Lukas / 25 FEBRUARY 2016
This is great news! The first time I pulled out my own iPad Pro, I was already missing Scrivener on it.
KB / 25 FEBRUARY 2016
Thanks all. Oscar - no iCloud (that doesn't work well with Scrivener's file format), but Dropbox sync, yes (which will work for both our Mac and Windows users).
KB / 25 FEBRUARY 2016
Crystal - no, it will work on any device running iOS 9.x - the iPhone, iPod, iPad, iPad Pro...
Cody / 25 FEBRUARY 2016
So delighted to hear this - I love using scrivner. Right now I've adopted this complicated system of using evernote on mobile, then transferring it to scrivner once I'm home.
If you need any help testing, I'm more than happy to lend a hand (and still purchase the product in the end). I have developed a number of games for IOS and have done plenty of QA. Just happy to see this come to market and happy to help any way you need.
KB / 25 FEBRUARY 2016
Thanks again for all the enthusiasm.
Wayne - the only requirement is that your iPad can run iOS 9.0 or above, so it should work with an iPad 3 (I think).
Tony - no plans for Scapple for iOS yet. We definitely want to do it at some point but have our hands full right now.
Keith - thanks for the kind words and for recommending Scrivener to others!
David - no to all of those questions, I’m afraid. The TextExpander API would interfere with Scrivener’s custom rich text features because of the way the API is implemented. Scrivener for iOS is rich text just like the Mac and Windows versions.
KB / 25 FEBRUARY 2016
Marc - it has nothing to do with "developer convenience" and everything to do with the fact that iCloud just does not support file formats such as the one Scrivener uses, and changing that format would require removing half of the features of Scrivener, such as being able to bring in research files. You can always use iTunes to transfer projects, though, of course.
Everyone: regarding beta-testing, we'll give out news about that when it comes closer. We'll be starting with a smaller group of testers to catch as many nasty bugs as possible before asking for volunteers.
Fred / 25 FEBRUARY 2016
Such a great update. I support the use of Dropbox, it real just works better for syncing than iCloud for non-Apple files. I was very reluctant to move to DropBox but I just purchased a 1 TB account and it's working great with my Scrivener files. I started to use Notability on my iPad for note taking, it has some great features (like audio recording) that I hope Scrivener for iOS can someday support.
Ian Stanley / 09 MARCH 2016
Would also like to volunteer
Thanks for all the hard work
ToniM / 10 MARCH 2016
YAYYYYYYYYYYYYY!
Hugs, kisses, flowers, pints of beer, another mug of coffee?
I LOOOOOOVE Scrivener!
More or less finished my first novel.
Working on the sequel
Need iOS version for when I am travelling or visiting grandchildren
<3 <3 <3 <3 <3
THANK YOU! :o)
Fred / 15 MARCH 2016
So what's the projected timeline? There are tons of articles that criticize L & L of making similar "iPad version coming soon" claims.
ToniM / 16 MARCH 2016
PS Will support for Apple's iCloud be included?
Pretty please :)
KB / 17 MARCH 2016
Thanks again, all, for the support and enthusiastic comments.
Toni - no iCloud support, I'm afraid, as iCloud just doesn't work well with Scrivener's file format (and we'd have to remove all the research features to change the file format). It uses Dropbox syncing instead (which also has the advantage of working for our Windows users). I'll be keeping an eye on Apple's updates to iCloud, though, as I would like to provide iCloud sync. If they make it possible, I'll certainly add it.
Fred - no projected timeline, because people get upset when we're wrong. :) It will be done when it's done. I had hoped to go into a closed beta this week, but I've taken some extra time to add and refine some features I thought were really needed after spending time using it properly during this alpha period.
We'll let everyone know about an open beta when the time comes.
aburinda / 21 MARCH 2016
I'm glad to read this. But, what would make the waiting a little easier would be if you would not forget that we ARE waiting and would really like updates. A little blurb once a month would go a very long way to restoring some good will to those of us who are less than thrilled by how much time this is taking.
Thanks,
Amy
rannza / 23 MARCH 2016
I recently became the happy owner of an iPad mini and would love to be a beta tester.
Thank you for all your hard work.
littlestweiss / 25 MARCH 2016
That's incredible news! I'm so excited for an iOS version to be released soon. Thanks for continuing with the project, even amidst people getting fairly grumpy at the delays involved. I'm sure you wanted to be delayed just as little as we did. I'm a law student and Scrivener is by far the best program for writing up my essays available. Keep going!
I'm also happy to beta test for you if you'd like. I have an iPad Pro (12.9") with an Apple Pencil if you would like for me to test with that as well.
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