Jumpers

Overview

A jumper represents a link to an element of the same project. Jumpers allow the connection of elements or branches with other elements that are either far away or in a different boards.

The element a jumper links to is called target element.

Examples

Jumpers offer great flexibility and help with workflow optimisation, as they allow breaking down a project in multiple boards. For example:

  • Break down your plot in sequences or scenes, placing each of them on a different board.
  • Separate locations from their scenes or actions, placing the latter on different boards.

  • Give the player the choice to restart, by linking your ending elements to the starting one. (Remember to reset your variables!)

  • Create a loop, where an element connects to itself e.g. incrementing a variable's value with each visit.

Creating jumpers

There are 3 ways to create a jumper:

  • Right-click on an empty workspace area and select Create jumper.

Or:

  • Drag and drop the New jumper icon , from the workspace's bottom left corner to an empty area of the board.

Or:

  • Drop a connection end to an empty board area and select Create jumper here. (See connections.)

Both these ways create an empty jumper. For a jumper to work, you must assign it a target element.

Assigning a jumper target

There are 3 ways to assign a target element to a jumper:

  • Via Copy/Paste: this method is handy when you can easily access the target element in a board.

    • In the board, click on the element to select it.
    • Copy the element (either with Ctr/Cmd+C or right-click and Copy).
    • Right-click your empty jumper (or an empty area of the board) and select Paste as jumper (or use the Ctr+Shift+V shortcut).

  • From the Boards list: use this method when you have located the target element in the left sidebar.

    • Go to the Boards list on the left sidebar.
    • Find the board where the target element is.
    • Expand the board by clicking on the drop-down arrow next to its icon.
    • Find the target element by its name.
    • Drag and drop the element into the empty jumper (or an empty area of the board).

  • From the Search field: use this method if you have the target element in your search results.

    • Search and find the desired element.
    • From the search results, drag the element into an empty jumper (or an empty area of the board).

{primary} Shortcut: Dragging or "Pasting as jumper" to an empty area of the board creates a jumper and assigns its target at the same time.

Changing a jumper target

To change a jumper's target, drag and drop the new target element into the jumper, using any of above methods.

Deleting jumpers

To delete a jumper, either:

  • Select it and press the Delete or Backspace key.

Or:

  • Right click on it and select Delete from the menu.