Has this happened to you in Final Draft?

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  • Has this happened to you in Final Draft?

    Has this happened to anyone while using Final Draft?

    I'm happily working on my screenplay in Final Draft 7.1 on my laptop (Windows 7) when suddenly both my script and Final Draft disappear from my screen, leaving the blank desktop. Two seconds later, Final Draft and my script re-appear. No harm seems to have occurred (other than my being totally freaked out).

    I should add that this didn't happen when I was using the same FD 7.1 software on my old Windows XP desktop computer -- but that computer died a few weeks ago so I have been using my laptop to write in Final Draft. (Before the XP computer died, it was my primary writing tool because it was better ergonomically.)

    Anyone have any idea what's causing this, and if I should be concerned? In a two hour writing session last night it happened about three times.

    Thanks much!

    Late Night Writer

  • #2
    Re: Has this happened to you in Final Draft?

    Final Draft 7? Yikes. I am no technical genius, but I would take it as a distress signal and immediately back up important files in something exportable (PDFs or text files?) and start writing in something else. There are options now. You could download the demo of Fade In and see if it works for you.

    Good luck with your drafts.

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    • #3
      Re: Has this happened to you in Final Draft?

      Upgrade to something.

      Also, I promote writing in Fountain format, regardless of what screenwriting program you use for formatting.

      To save you the effort of reading about Fountain, I will say the following:
      • Use a text editor, many of which are free and work great, like Notepad++. Even the crummy Notepad that comes with Windows will do, though it is an inferior product.
      • If you use what I would call "simplified" Fountain, your text will import pretty well into all screenwriting programs, even if they do not support Fountain itself.
      • Simplified Fountain is just a script with blank lines in the appropriate places, but no other formatting, as in the following example:
      EXT. MOVIE THEATER - NIGHT

      A line has formed outside the theater.

      MAN
      My friends at the office saw this film yesterday and said that it is really good. Lots of action.

      WOMAN
      (no enthusiasm)
      Yeah, I've learned how reliable your friends at the office are.

      CUT TO:
      Most screenwriting programs will import a text file like this with no problems.

      "The fact that you have seen professionals write poorly is no reason for you to imitate them." - ComicBent.

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      • #4
        Re: Has this happened to you in Final Draft?

        Thanks everyone for your advice! It might be that FD 7.1 doesn't like windows 7 -- you can't use it to convert to PDF unless you upgrade to 8. I would pop for the upgrade if I knew that would solve the problem.

        Someone in my writers group suggested that I might accidentally be rolling my mouse over "show desktop". Since I'm kind of a techno idiot, I wasn't sure what the "show desktop" function was. But is this a possibility?

        Late Night Writer

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        • #5
          Re: Has this happened to you in Final Draft?

          Have you bumped anything when this happens? Can you still see the outline of your program on the desktop, although the desktop itself shows through? This happens to me sometimes in Windows 7. I don't know why, and I can only replicate it occasionally, but it seems to be connected to the position of my external mouse. I move the mouse and everything reappears. It seems to be a view thing rather than something dangerous. I've never worried about it.

          But your problem might be something else...
          "Your intuition knows what to write, so get out of the way.-
          ― Ray Bradbury

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          • #6
            Re: Has this happened to you in Final Draft?

            "Show desktop". In the Windows 7 taskbar, it's the button at the right of the clock and date. If you place your mouse pointer in that spot, all open windows become transparent and you can see the desktop underneath. If you click on this button, all windows are minimized (same as the keyboard shortcut Win+D).

            What are the specs of your laptop? RAM? Maybe it can't handle Final Draft and chokes on it from time to time. FD on Windows can use a lot of RAM on some computers.

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            • #7
              Re: Has this happened to you in Final Draft?

              Ravenlocks and Dr. V -- that is exactly what's happening! I do see a transparent image on the desktop when this happens, and I am using an external mouse with my laptop. When I go home tonight I will try to replicate it when I'm in a Word document -- if it happens the same way, then the mystery is solved.

              Thanks all for your help!

              Late Night Writer

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              • #8
                Re: Has this happened to you in Final Draft?

                It will happen with Word and any other application. That's a feature of Windows since Vista, I think. It's called Aero Peek. If you place the mouse pointer over the taskbar thumbnail of an application, every open window will turn transparent except for that one. It's kind of useful.

                Now, this only happens when you place the mouse on either of those places, so if you're not moving the mouse when Final Draft disappears from your screen, the issue is somewhere else.

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                • #9
                  Re: Has this happened to you in Final Draft?

                  Yessss! That rectangular thingee in the lower right hand corner of the task bar (which I never noticed before) is the culprit: "show desktop." I just tried it in a Word document and bingo-- Word document disappears.

                  Again, thanks all, and Comic B, I will definitely take a look at that Fountain Format.

                  Late Night Writer

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                  • #10
                    Re: Has this happened to you in Final Draft?

                    Dr. V rocks!

                    "The fact that you have seen professionals write poorly is no reason for you to imitate them." - ComicBent.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Has this happened to you in Final Draft?

                      Cool, I learned something new here too. I learned why this happens and how to replicate it.

                      Glad this was the only problem, Late Night!
                      "Your intuition knows what to write, so get out of the way.-
                      ― Ray Bradbury

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