Snapshots
What snapshots are
Snapshots are automatic checkpoints of a document. While you write, Spleen quietly keeps copies of your text at regular points in time, so you can look back at how a chapter, scene, poem, or other document evolved and return to an earlier version when a revision goes the wrong way. You never have to create them yourself; there is no save button to remember. Every document keeps its own snapshot history.
How they work
Snapshots work alongside autosave. Roughly once an hour, Spleen starts a new snapshot. Saves made during that hour update the newest snapshot, so it reflects your latest work from that period. After the hour has passed, the next save keeps the previous snapshot as history and starts another one. The first snapshot is kept immediately as a starting point, so later writing appears as a clear change.
Plan limits do not change how often snapshots are made. They change how long snapshots are retained: Quill keeps five days of snapshot history, Folio keeps thirty days, and Library keeps snapshot history indefinitely.
Where to find them
Open the context panel on the right side of the editor and switch to the Snapshots tab. At the top, Current shows the present word count and how long ago the document was last saved. A green dot appears when you are looking at the current text. Older snapshots are grouped by day, newest first. Each day shows how many snapshots it holds and the total number of words added or removed. Open a day to see the time of each snapshot and how its word count changed from the one before it.
Previewing
Click any snapshot to preview it. The editor shows that older version without allowing changes, and an amber banner appears above the text telling you which snapshot you are viewing. Your current document is untouched and nothing is saved while you look around. To leave the preview, click Exit preview in the banner or click the Current entry at the top of the panel. The editor then returns to your current text exactly as you left it.
Restoring
If you want the older version back, click Restore Snapshot in the preview banner. Before replacing anything, Spleen saves your current text as a new snapshot. If you change your mind, the version you replaced remains at the top of the snapshot list and can be restored again. After a restore, the editor opens the restored text and the snapshot list includes the safety copy.
Good to know
- Snapshots are kept according to your plan. Older ones are cleaned up automatically unless your plan includes unlimited snapshot history, so treat them as a safety net rather than a finished archive.
- The word change beside a snapshot shows only the total difference. If you rewrite a paragraph using the same number of words, the snapshot may show no change even though the text is different.
- Each snapshot stores the complete document, not just the differences, so previewing and restoring always gives you the whole text as it was.
- If you restore a snapshot that contains highlights from annotations you have since deleted, Spleen removes those highlights during the restore.
- Snapshots cannot be restored in an archived project. Unarchive the project first.
- A snapshot can also appear when Spleen asks which version of a document to keep: the version you do not carry on from is kept here, including when you close the question without choosing.