Assembler

This ap is not functional, it doesnt work.

Using Highland (another of Quote-Unquote Apps’ great apps) has changed my workflow for writing plays. I have started writing scenes using separate text files, which I was always afraid to do because of the time it would take to copy and paste the work into a new Master file. Enter Assembler and suddenly a task that would’ve taken hours can take a couple minutes! It’s great!

If you want to assemble multiple csv files, from say an export, into one file to analyze the data, this is not the app. After running the app, and opening the file, the data is reapeatedly incosistent, combining multiple cells in one in most cases, open rows where there shouldn’t be. Very dissapointing.

Another great app from this company run by people who actually use their products. I heard about this app from the Scriptnotes podcast (also great!) and I’ve been using Highland for awhile now with no complaints. This app helps give me more flexibility with all my files. It basically does the most important part of Scrivener, which is also a great app, but sometimes I don’t need all the bells and whistles and this is a faster way to combine my documents without having to import them into a binder. I use it mostly for writing standup, where I have a bunch of short jokes as separate files, and this helps me to quickly create setlists by picking and ordering the jokes I want without having to cut and paste. It’s great because I can include the same joke in many different setlists without having to move or duplicate the actual file. I’m sure there’s probably a way to combine this with dropbox or Apple notes so I can sync my documents and edit them on the go. It’s nice being able to focus on one small scene or bit at a time, without the distraction or temptation to go back and rewrite the scene I just wrote. I definitely recommend it!

This was just released. I just bought it. I am not affiliated with this company in anyway other than my enthusiam for the work they do and the products they produce. My five stars is as much for past performance as it is the current offering. These guys are great and deserve every penny they charge for their exceedingly reasonably priced apps. I heard about this app and instantly realized I have been waiting for it without ever knowing it. This is a prime example of the way the simple useful apps from Quote Unquote have quickly become indispensible to me. Each is written to solve a narrow, clearly identified real-world problem. And each app performs its intended task really really well. I often write in smaller pieces and have new versions, rewrites or things I am just playing with littering a given project file. When it comes time to put it all together, while it is not insurmountable by any means, it is enough of a hassle that it continuously makes me privately question whether my so called ‘process’ is just an self-serving excuse for disorganization. It also makes me wonder if my penchant for writing in bits and scraps so I can focus on one thing and avoid consistently navigating a giant document is misguided in the extreme. In my limited time playing with this app, I can say that Assembler seems to allow a stripped-down organizational movement reminiscent of a navigator in a Final Draft-type formatting based software or a Scrivener while leaving you the ability to write anywhere and on any device, simply throwing the text files in Assembler for later (and repeated) ordering and noodling. Obviously, I have not had any substantive experience with it as yet but it is a simple app that seems to do the one thing it was designed to do quite well. If past experience with this company is a decent guide, Assembler will perform as it was designed to in a stable and effective fashion and the company will iterate sensibly and with reasonable regularity. What more can you ask for? The one request I’d make for an update is for it to handle .fdx files as well. While I am increasingly beginning to utilize fountain for current projects, many of the bits and pieces from the past that I would like to throw into Assembler were written in Final Draft and adding Highland into the workflow on both ends is another step I’d love to avoid. This is a really minor point and easy enough for me to do, just a first-glance thought. Thank you again, John August et al. for another app that slipped seamlessly into my life, makes my work easier and reminds me that whatever works for you is the way you should work.