diff --git a/docs/source/index.rst b/docs/source/index.rst index 8a5e655e..40c1f2cc 100644 --- a/docs/source/index.rst +++ b/docs/source/index.rst @@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ robustness. The project storage is suitable for version control software, and also well suited for file synchronisation tools. All text is saved as plain text files with a meta data header. The core project structure is stored in a single project XML file. Other meta data is primarily saved as -JSON files. See also the :ref:`a_storage` section for more details. +JSON files. See the :ref:`a_intro_storage` section for more details. Any operating system that can run Python 3 and has the Qt 5 libraries should be able to run novelWriter. It runs fine on Linux, Windows and macOS, and users have tested it on other platforms diff --git a/docs/source/int_introduction.rst b/docs/source/int_introduction.rst index 4b66092e..868a247b 100644 --- a/docs/source/int_introduction.rst +++ b/docs/source/int_introduction.rst @@ -8,11 +8,11 @@ novelWriter is a simple, multi-document plain text editor using a markup syntax markdown to apply simple formatting to the text. It is designed for writing novels, so the formatting features are limited. -The idea is to let the user focus on writing instead of spending time messing with the formatting -of headers and text. Therefore you cannot change the look of the text in the editor window. -Instead, you provide formatting tags where they're needed, like for instance which text is a -header, where you want text bolded or italicised, and what alignment you want for paragraphs. The -actual formatting is then added to the text when you run the :guilabel:`Build Novel Project` tool. +The idea is to let the user focus on writing instead of spending time on the formatting of headers +and text. Therefore you cannot change the look of the text in the editor window. Instead, you +provide formatting tags where they're needed, like for instance which text is a header, where you +want text bolded or italicised, and what alignment you want for paragraphs. The actual formatting +is then added to the text when you run the :guilabel:`Build Novel Project` tool. A document viewer to the right of the editor can also show a renderred version of any document if you want to inspect the result, or just want to keep a second document open for reference when @@ -41,6 +41,42 @@ correctly. An overview of the supported formatting syntax is covered in :ref:`a_ui`. +.. _a_intro_storage: + +Project Storage +=============== + +The files of a novelWriter project are stored in a dedicated project folder. The project structure +is kept in a file at the root of this folder called ``nwProject.nwx``. All the document files and +associated meta data is stored in the other folders below the project folder. For more technical +details about what all the files mean and how they're organised, see the :ref:`a_storage` section. + +This way of storing data was chosen for several reasons. Firstly, all the text you add to your +project is saved directly to your project folder in separate files. Only the project structure and +the text you are currently editing is stored in memory at any given time. Secondly, having multiple +small files means it is very easy to sync them between computers with standard file synchronisation +tools. Thirdly, if you use version control software to track the changes to your project, the file +formats used for the files are well suited for this. + +.. note:: + + Since novelWriter has to keep track of a bunch of files and folders when a project is open, it + may not run well on some virtual file systems. A file or folder must be accessible with exactly + the path it was saved or created with. An example where this is not the case is the way Google + Drive is mapped on Linux Gnome desktops using gvfs/gio. + +.. warning:: + + You should not add additional files to the project folder yourself. Nor should you manually edit + files within it as a general rule. If you really must manually edit the text files, e.g. with + some automated task you want to perform, you need to rebuild the index when you open the project + again. + + Editing text files in the ``content`` folder is less risky as they are just plain text. Editing + the main project XML file, however, may make the project file unreadable and you may crash + novelWriter and lose project structure information and project settings. + + .. _a_intro_design: Design Philosophy diff --git a/docs/source/setup_linux.rst b/docs/source/setup_linux.rst index 2a62a4ea..3f68efde 100644 --- a/docs/source/setup_linux.rst +++ b/docs/source/setup_linux.rst @@ -57,6 +57,11 @@ Then run the update and install commands as for Ubuntu: sudo apt update sudo apt install novelwriter +.. note:: + + Please use the Ubuntu 20.04 packages for Debian. The newer Ubuntu packages use a different + compression that Debian doesn't currently support. + Pre-Releases ------------