Projects and files
A project is a folder on your computer. This page shows what's on screen, which editor opens each file, and how to create, find and remove files.
What a project is#
Any folder you open becomes a project. Open one with Open Folder on the home screen or File → Open Project Folder…, or make a new one with New Project or File → New Project….
Your files stay ordinary files with their own names and formats, so you can still open them in Word, PowerPoint, Excel or any other app. Nebula Writer adds one hidden folder, .nebula, at the top of the project. It holds the project's details and its agent conversations.
The workspace#
| Area | What it's for |
|---|---|
| Project sidebar, on the left | Your files, and the New and new folder buttons |
| Document area, in the middle | Open files in tabs, with the Saved status and the History button at the top |
| Nebula Agent pane, on the right | Ask the agent for help and follow its steps |
To show or hide the panes, click outside the document first, then:
- Press ⌘B on a Mac or Ctrl+B on Windows and Linux for the sidebar.
- Press ⌘L or Ctrl+L for the agent pane.
- Choose View → Focus Mode to hide both. Press Esc to leave Focus Mode.
Which editor opens which file#
| Files | Opens in |
|---|---|
.docx | The Word editor, a paged document view |
.pptx | The PowerPoint editor, with slide thumbnails and notes |
.xlsx, .xls, .csv | The spreadsheet editor. Save .xls changes as a new .xlsx file. |
.tex, .bib, .sty, .cls | The LaTeX editor, with Edit, Split and Preview views |
.md, .markdown, .txt | The Markdown editor, a single Live Preview surface |
.pdf | A read-only PDF viewer |
.png, .jpg, .jpeg, .gif, .svg, .webp | An image viewer |
Each format has its own page under Edit your files, starting with Word. For exports by format, see File types and shortcuts.
Create files and folders#
- Click New at the top of the sidebar.
- Choose a type: Markdown, LaTeX, Document (Word), Presentation (PowerPoint) or Spreadsheet (Excel). LaTeX support files (Class file, Style package and Bibliography) are in the same menu.
- Type a name and press Enter.
File → New Document (⌘N or Ctrl+N) skips the menu and creates your default type. That's Markdown unless you change Default Document Type in Settings. The button next to New makes a folder.
Find files and text#
- Filter files… at the top of the sidebar narrows the file list by name.
- Find in Project (⌘⇧F or Ctrl+Shift+F, or Edit → Find in Project…) searches file names and the text inside your documents.
- ⌘F or Ctrl+F finds text in the open document. ⌘H or Ctrl+H opens find and replace.
- ⌘⇧P or Ctrl+Shift+P opens the command palette.
- File → Open File… (⌘O or Ctrl+O) opens a single file without changing the current project.
Move, rename and delete#
Right-click a file to choose Open in Finder (Mac) or Open in Folder (Windows and Linux), Move to…, Rename or Delete. For a .tex file you can also choose Set as Main File. You can drag files between folders, too.
When you delete a file, a notice says it will be deleted and offers Undo for 5 seconds. After that, the file goes to your system Trash (the Recycle Bin on Windows), where you can still recover it.
When files change outside Nebula Writer#
Files you add, change or remove in another app show up in the sidebar. An open Word, PowerPoint or Excel file reloads by itself when another app saves it, as long as you have no unsaved edits and no agent edit waiting for review. If you do have unsaved edits, Nebula Writer won't save over the newer file; you'll see "This file changed on disk. Reload it before saving your draft."
What the agent can use#
The agent works from the open document (you can turn this off in Settings), text you select, files you mention with @ and attachments. While it works it can also read and search other files in the project. See Ask the agent.
Your request and the parts of your documents the agent needs are sent to our servers and our AI provider. Your files stay in your folder.