Checking Project Statistics

The Project Statistics window provides word, character, and page counts for contents of the Manuscript (Draft) folder based on the compile settings. Basically, the Compile function runs in the background to determine the numbers.

So, even if you have documents selected, if you have the Text element deselected in the Formatting tab of the Compile window, the text isn’t counted (see Chapter 12 for more about Compile options). This is where the ability to change and save the compile settings without running the Compiler comes in handy (see Chapter 13).

You can also view the same information for the current Binder selection. Unlike the Manuscript (Draft) Statistics, Selection Statistics apply to all files selected in the Binder, regardless of their location within the project or their compile status.

Check your stats by choosing Project⇒Project Statistics. The Project Statistics window opens, as shown in Figure 14-6. The upper half applies to all files in the Manuscript (Draft) folder, and the lower half applies to the item(s) selected in the Binder.

The Pages (Paperback) count is calculated by using the industry standard of total character count divided by the product of the word count per page and the average number of characters per word. Pages = Total Chars ÷ (Words per Page × Chars per Word). You can change the Words per Page value in the Project Statistics Options window (see the following section).

The Pages (Printed) count is calculated based on your Compile settings. If the project is large, this calculation can take a minute because Compile has to run in the background. Projects over 100,000 words don’t Compile every time you open Project Statistics and aren’t up to date unless you click the Update Printed Counts button that appears for large projects.