Nebulous Notes 4.3.1 FAQ
Macros Tips ↓
I'm on iOS 3.1.3 and it crashes.
Unfortunately, the latest Nebulous only works on iOS 3.2 and above. This is to make it easier for me to adapt to new features as Apple releases them.
What apps do you recommend for opening text files on the desktop?
If you want a free app, I recommend TextWrangler (Mac) or Notepad++ (PC). For the PC, I use a paid version of TextPad.
Accents (or other characters) don't appear, or appear garbled when I open them on my desktop.
By default, Nebulous Notes saves all text files in a UTF-8 encoding. What this means, is that special characters won't appear in text editors that don't read UTF-8 files. Examples include Notepad (PC) and TextEdit (Mac). I recommend you get the apps mentioned at the top. Alternatively, tap the "Aa" button, scroll down, tap "Automatic Encoding" and choose ASCII.
Everything appears on one line in Notepad.
Notepad is one of the few text editors that uses a non-standard convention for representing new lines (return keys). If recommend using the alternatives to Notepad mentioned above. Or, if you must have text files open in Notepad, you can tap the "Aa" button, scroll down, and turn on the switch for "Notepad/CRLF" newlines.
What is the difference between the Lite and Full versions?
The Lite version has ads.
How do auto-saves work?
The short answer is that all your edits are automatically saved to your local disk all the time. The more detailed answer is that they're saved in the following cases: when the file is opened, when the file is closed, when the app is exited, when the app is minimized, and every 5 seconds while you're editing.The worst case scenario is if the app crashes (which is rare), in which case, you've lost at most 5 seconds worth or work. To be extra sure, I recommend regularly uploading your files to Dropbox when you are satisfied with your changes.
How do I delete a file in Dropbox?
Swipe your finger on a file in the Dropbox folder listing.
How do I rename a file?
This is currently not supported from the app. For now, you can go to dropbox.com or your desktop to rename the file.
How do I undo?
Shake your device and it'll bring up Apple's undo menu. Or enable the Macro bar, and you'll see an undo button right there.
What is Nebulous's privacy policy?
Nebulous does not communicate with any servers outside of Dropbox. Nebulous doesn't even store your username or password on your device. This is achieved by using 0auth.
Will you make Nebulous Notes for Android?
As much as I'd like to expand to more platforms, working on Nebulous for iOS keeps me fairly occupied.
Can you make such-and-such feature?
I'm receptive to feedback. Especially feedback related to making the app more intuitive and fun to use. If you can describe in detail what you need, send an email to phil@nebulousapps.net. I try to implement as many features as possible, but I have to be careful not to overload the small screen-size constraints of the iPad and iPhone.
How do I edit macros?
Tap the blue arrow next to them.
How can I learn more about the macros?
The macro "language" is just something I made up. All the commands are listed under "Reference Macros." Tap Aa, tap Macros, and scroll-down to see these. Tap the plus sign to add them to your active macros. $sel simply means it'll put the currently selected text within that space.
How can I make custom date formats?
I recommend adding the $datefmt macro from the Reference Macros, and then editing out what you don't need. You can also read up Unicode's documentation for more detailed command descriptions.
Can I import and export my macros?
There is a way to do it that isn't elegant. Download this file (right-click and choose save-as) and save it into your Dropbox root. Open it with a text editor on your desktop, like Notepad++ or TextWrangler (Notepad will not work). Each line in this file represents a macro. If you want to add an alias, use the pipe character, "|" without the quotes. Save the file, then open _NebulousPresetMacros.txt from Nebulous. Turn on your macro toolbar to see the changes.