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Pendrilo during the beta: free, fully unlocked, no watermark, and what stays on your computer

What the beta means for you

Pendrilo is in beta. During the beta, all six programs are free to use, nothing is locked behind a trial, and nothing is watermarked. Your print PDFs and ebooks come out clean.

During the beta:

  • All six programs are free: Pendrilo Studio, Pendrilo Formatter, Pendrilo Maps, Pendrilo Cover Wrap, Panelhouse and Pendrilo Type.
  • Everything is unlocked. There are no trial limits.
  • Nothing is watermarked. That includes your print PDFs, your ebooks and any other files you export.
  • There is no license key to buy or enter.

Studio and the Formatter are at version 0.9.6 (beta). Maps, Cover Wrap, Panelhouse and Pendrilo Type are at version 0.2 (beta).

Checking that your copy is unlocked

The first time a program opens while you're online, it unlocks itself. You don't need to do anything.

To check, open the About item in that program's Help menu:

  • Pendrilo Studio: Help → About Pendrilo Studio
  • Pendrilo Formatter: Help → About Pendrilo
  • Pendrilo Maps: Help → About Pendrilo Maps
  • Pendrilo Cover Wrap: Help → About Pendrilo Cover Wrap
  • Panelhouse: Help → About Panelhouse
  • Pendrilo Type: Help → About Pendrilo Type

The window says "This app is free to use." In Studio and the Formatter, it also shows the version number, the publisher (Pendrilo, LLC), your license status and a Machine ID, which you can copy with the Copy button.

If you installed a program while you were offline, open it once with your internet connection on. It will unlock itself then.

About Help → Enter License

The Help menu has an item called Enter License…. It's there for license keys later on. During the beta there is nothing to enter, so you can ignore it.

What stays on your computer, and what doesn't

Your books stay on your computer while you write, format and export them. You don't need an internet connection for that, and Pendrilo doesn't send your manuscript anywhere while you work.

The only time your words leave your computer is when you choose to publish chapters with Pendrilo Online. Publishing sends the chapters you choose, the book's title and your author name. Unless you untick one box, it also sends the book's Details.

These are the only times Pendrilo uses the internet, and what each one sends:

  • Update checks: Pendrilo checks for a new version when it starts, at most once a day. The check doesn't send your books.
  • Natural voices: in Studio, the natural voices for Read Aloud are downloaded only when you click Get Natural Voices. They then run on your computer, so your words never leave it.
  • Feedback and crash reports: these are sent only when you click Send. Feedback includes only what you write, plus the program's name and version, your Windows version and your kind of license. If you tick Include a picture of this window, the picture is sent too. You see it before you click Send, and it can show your work. A crash report is saved on your computer and holds no documents or personal files.
  • Pendrilo Online: this only happens in Studio, and only when you click Publish. Studio then sends the text and titles of the chapters you ticked, plus the book's title and your author name. Unless you untick Also send Book Details to my author page on the Publish tab, it also sends the book's Details (cover, series, genre, logline, blurb and store links). Nothing else leaves your computer: not your notes, comments, codex, plot, pictures, or the chapters you didn't tick. Pictures inside chapters aren't published yet.
  • Connecting and checking for comments: connecting Studio to your pendrilo.com account, and checking for new reader comments, use the website. Neither one uploads your chapters. Studio contacts pendrilo.com only when you publish, make or revoke a beta-reader link, check for comments, connect, or open a book you've published. Nothing runs in the background.

Publishing never happens by itself. Only people with a link you make can read the chapters you publish, and you can revoke a link at any time. Pendrilo Online needs a free pendrilo.com account.

What feedback includes

When you choose Help → Send Feedback…, only what you write is sent, along with the program's name and version, your Windows version and the kind of license. Your books and file names are never sent.

If you tick Include a picture of this window, you see exactly what will be sent before you click Send. Leave it unticked if you'd rather not share it.

Which computers are supported

Pendrilo runs on Windows 10 and 11. A Mac version is in testing. If you chose Mac when you joined the beta, your beta page shows that you're on the Mac list, and you'll get an email when the Mac beta is ready.

If Windows says "Windows protected your PC" when you install, click More info, then Run anyway. The beta installers aren't signed with a publisher certificate yet, so Windows doesn't recognise them. If your browser warns that the file "isn't commonly downloaded," choose Keep from the … menu next to the download.

If you have questions

If you're unsure whether a program is unlocked, open its About window first. If it doesn't say "This app is free to use," make sure you're connected to the internet and open the program once. If that doesn't help, send feedback from the app or open a support ticket from your account at pendrilo.com.