Hollywood Screenwriter

 Read Me!

ABOUT THIS DOCUMENT

The purpose of this document is to provide additional information that may not be included in the manual or is important enough to warrant being placed in this document.  If this document does not provide the information you are searching for please refer to the resources below.

Corrected Issues

The list below contains both corrected and new issues in Hollywood Screenwriter 3.82.

  • Unable to put in hard parentheses (Ctrl+SHIFT+9) instead of Parenthetical Element.
  • Parenthetical will comply to the template's setting on whether it should be a separate element or within Dialogue.
  • You can now copy and paste from Hollywood Screenwriter to any other program. (NEW)
  • Added mousewheel support to Hollywood Screenwriter. (NEW)
  • Quick Help no longer references the "Script Notes" feature which isn't enabled in Hollywood Screenwriter.
  • Setup Font for Menu Defaults is now set to Arial.
  • New Icons for HWS application and documents. (NEW)
  • The Status Bar now displays the following information. (NEW)
    • Current Scene and Total Scenes.
    • Current Act and current Act and Scenes.
  • Left clicking on the Page Up and Page Down scroll buttons, now moves the script up and down a page respectively.

Known Issues

These are issues that are known to exist in the Version 3.82 of Hollywood Screenwriter.

  • Hollywood Screenwriter does not run on Non-U.S. versions of Windows XP and 2000.
  • When Printing "Current Page to End of Script" it will print the previous page as well when the cursor is at the top of the current page.
  • Highlighting an element and clicking the element buttons on the right toolbar will delete the text rather than change the element type.
    (The correct method is to place the cursor in the element and use the Element Drop Down Menu in the top toolbar to select the element you wish to change it to.)

We’ve moved and changed our Company Name

On August 24th, 2002 we moved our offices from downtown Burbank to downtown Glendale, California.  We’ll miss our home of twenty years in Burbank, but we wanted offices that were better organized for our increasing focus on the writing and creativity markets.

Simultaneously, Screenplay Systems changed its corporate name to Write Brothers, Inc.  Our new name will help marketing in our non-screenwriting markets, where our current software (Dramatica Pro, Writer’s DreamKit, StoryView, Movie Magic Screenwriter and Word Menu) and future products apply to all kinds of writing.

Our New Address is:

Write Brothers, Inc. 
138 North Brand Boulevard, Suite 201                           
Glendale, California  91203                           

(818) 843-6557

Screenplay Systems hasn’t been bought.  We haven’t merged with any other company.  The two owners, Chris & Stephen, are still the two owners  and as active as ever in developing new and exciting products.

Our main phone numbers and e-mail addresses will remain the same, as will our main web sites (see below).  However, during the next year you will see a transition from the old Screenplay Systems name to the new Write Brothers name in advertisements and product boxes.

We wanted to make sure you weren’t concerned that we were “disappearing.”  The only real change you will notice is our name and office locations changing.

We look forward to serving your writing software needs for the next twenty years  and beyond!

Sincerely,
Chris Huntley & Stephen Greenfield

Write Brothers, Inc.  (formerly Screenplay Systems, Inc.)

WRITE BROTHERS CONTACT INFO

WEB SITES:

PHONE NUMBERS

  • Main number:  (818) 843-6557
  • FAX:              (818) 843-8364

Hours of Operation: 8:30 AM to 12:00pm and 1:30PM to 5:00 PM, Mon.-Fri., Pacific Time

SALES:

TECHNICAL SUPPORT:

POSTAL MAIL:

Write Brothers, Inc.
138 N. Brand Blvd  #201
Glendale, CA 91203

LIST OF TUTORIAL AND REFERENCE RESOURCES

One of Screenwriters best features is that it is easy to use. You can literally write a script without knowing any special keys or accessing any of the menus with the exception of printing and saving your script.  However, in order to assist the user in getting the most out of the program, we have created the following resources and documents. These can be accessed from either the Online Document page in the CD Menu Launcher, the Program Group in the Start Menu or the Help Menu in the program.

Hollywood Screenwriter 10-Minute Tutorial - A tutorial to help you quickly start writing a script.

Read me - this document.

Hollywood Screenwriter Manual - The manual provides clear and concise documentation of every feature in the program.

Online Help Menu - We have an extensive online help menu including:  A complete online document and context-sensitive help for most program dialogue windows.

MOST FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

Q: When I am in my menus and dialog screens the end of the text is cutoff and is unreadable. How can I fix this?

A: In the File Menu select Setup Menu Fonts. This will allow you to change the font type and size for the menus. We recommend using the default of Arial size 9.


Q: Is there anyway to avoid putting in the Hollywood Screenwriter CD-ROM every time I launch the program?

A: No, the program requires the presence of the CD-ROM in order to launch. However, once you have the program running you can remove the Hollywood Screenwriter CD-ROM if you wish.


Q: When I try to open the program it says the printer is not valid. I do not have a printer connected to my computer how can I open the program?

A: The software needs a print driver to determine the page outline setting for your printer. Just go ahead and install a printer in Windows even if you don't have one. The HP LaserJet II and III are good choices since the driver is normally already installed.


Q: I was working and lost power, I had a file open at the time. How can I get the information back in that file?

A: Hollywood Screenwriter saves your file every 15 minutes in a Timed Backup (.TMB) file.

To retrieve Timed Backup (.TMB) files:

  1. Click File > Open.
  2. On the bottom of the window click where it says Files of Type, choose Timed Backup.
  3. You will see one or more files named with the following convention: Save1.TMB, Save2.TMB, etc.
  4. Select one of these files and click OPEN.
  5. If this is not the file you are looking for, simply close the file and repeat steps 1 thru 4 until you find your file.

Q: How do I remove doubled continues (The script was imported and Character list has Character Names PLUS Continueds) e.g. Henry (Cont'd) (Cont'd)

A: Under Search menu highlight Change Character Name and remove the unwanted text.


Q: How do I remove a forced page break?

A: One way is to put the cursor before or after the Forced Page Break. Then under Edit menu select "Remove Force Page Break". Another way is to put the cursor after the Forced Page Break and use the backspace key. You can also put the cursor before the page break and use the delete key.


Q: How do I change a character's name?

A: Click on Search and select Change Character Name. Choose the existing name and type the name you want to replace it with. The program will search the script and replace one name with the other.


Q: How do I edit my pop-up character name list so that characters that rarely speak do not clutter the menu?

A: Since the list is comprised of all the character names in the script there is no way to hide the character names .


Q: I have Hollywood Screenwriter for Windows on two different computers and when I load exactly the same script on both of them, the page breaks are slightly different...what's going on?

A: This is because each computer has a different printer selected. Hollywood Screenwriter bases the page breaks on the selected printer's page size and printing resolution. Since every printer is different, and different drivers for the SAME printer can be different, you can get different page breaks from one machine to another. Simply select the same printer driver on both machines (even if one or the other is not hooked up to that printer) and then they will match. If you don't have the same printer listed on both machines, you will have to install it. For help, please refer to your printer's Technical Support.


Q: How can I get it to go to the next line without putting a space in between the lines?

A: Hit Alt+Enter or click on Edit and select Add Hard Return instead of hitting Enter to go to the next line.


Q: I've lost my serial number. How can I find it?

A: First, look for your registration card. It is the post card that came in the white envelope in the box.

If you still cannot find it, use our Serial Number Request form.

Note, we can only give serial numbers via e-mail if the information submitted matches our records.


Q: I have Windows 2000 or XP and it won't recognize the CD-ROM!

A: We have recently discovered an incompatibility with Hollywood Screenwriter and non-US versions of Windows 2000 and XP, where Windows will not recognize the Hollywood Screenwriter CD-ROM upon launch of the program.  At the time of the creation of this document, we were testing a fix for this issue. Please contact technical support to see if that fix is available.

http://www.screenplay.com/support/contact

If you wish to return the program and are within the 30-day return period, you can contact Customer Service to request a refund.

Note: The purchase must have been made directly through Write Brothers, Inc. Otherwise, please contact the vendor or website you purchased the program from.

We apologize for the inconvenience.


Q:How do I Save a file?  How do I perform a Save As?

A: As you work you are going to want to save your work FREQUENTLY; probably every few paragraphs.  This can save you time in the event something goes wrong with the computer.  Also, make sure to BACK UP YOUR WORK!

You have just started a script and you want to save it:

Click File > Save

If you haven’t saved the file up to this point it will bring up a window asking where you want to save the file and what name to save it under.  Make sure you look at the top of the window to see what folder it is being saved into.  If you don’t understand how folders work on the hard drive, please refer to your Windows Help file or manual.

Type a file name and hit the Save button.

You already have a script started, but you want to save it under a different name.

1.    Click File > Save As

If you haven’t saved the file up to this point it will bring up a window asking where you want to save the file and what name to save it under.  Make sure you look at the top of the window to see what folder it is being saved into.  If you don’t understand how folders work on the hard drive, please refer to your Windows Help file or manual.

2.    Type a file name and hit the Save button.

You now have two files, one under the original name, and one under the new name.


Q: Does Screenwriter make backups of my files?  How do I retrieve these backups?

A: Screenwriter makes a timed backup file every 15 minutes. Also, Screenwriter will make an additional .BK (backup) after making changes and saving the script again.

To retrieve Timed Backup (.TMB) files:

  1. Click File > Open.
  2. On the bottom of the window click where it says Files of Type, choose Timed Backup.
  3. You will see one or more files named with the following convention: Save1.TMB, Save2.TMB, etc.
  4. Select one of these files and click OPEN.
  5. If this is not the file you are looking for, simply close the file and repeat steps 1 thru 4 until you find your file.

To retrieve Previously Saved Scripts (.BK) files:

  1. Click File > Open.
  2. On the bottom of the window click where it says Files of Type, choose Previously saved Script.
  3. You should see a file with your name in the File Open Dialogue (it may or may not have a .BK, depending on your windows setting.)
  4. Select this file and click OPEN.

Q: How do I open a file that I created in the Movie Magic Screenwriter demo?

A: If you created a file in the Movie Magic Screenwriter demo program you will need to email the file to our technical support to unlock it which at that point the file will be emailed back to you as a Hollywood Screenwriter file.  However you must be registered before our technical support team will unlock the demo file. To register, you can fax or mail your registration card to us. If you are not sure if you are registered please contact Client Services for assistance.

Client Services: (800) 84-STORY/(818) 843-6557[International] service@screenplay.com

Technical Support:  http://www.screenplay.com/support/contact/emailsupport.html

Operating Hours: 8:30AM to 12:00PM and 1:30PM to 5:00PM, Mon.-Fri., Pacific Time.