Browse Scient Docs File previews

File previews

File previews let you inspect the project’s documents, data, code, figures, and other outputs without leaving Scient. Files linked in chat open inside Scient first. Project files keep their editable Files-panel behavior. Files elsewhere in the connected environment open in a read-only side panel or, for HTML, the integrated browser.

Browse workspace files

The Files tree loads folders as you open them. Useful project material remains visible whether it is Git-tracked, ignored, or named with a leading dot. Low-level machinery such as version-control data, dependency stores, temporary caches, and private Scient runtime state stays out of the ordinary view.

The Files menu offers two visibility levels:

  • Project files is the default. It includes durable managed source files, records, receipts, and history below .scient/sources.
  • All workspace internals also shows technical machinery such as version-control data, dependency stores, caches, source operations, and staging.

The choice lasts for the current workspace session. Managed and tool-owned files open read-only in Files; use their owning Scient surface when you need to change them.

Filename search filters the existing tree. Scient uses the project index to discover matches in unopened folders and loads only their ancestor folders. Ignored paths that have not been browsed may not appear in search.

What appears in Files does not change what an agent can access and does not add file contents to a conversation. Those boundaries are enforced separately when an action reads or shares a file.

In a project file’s header, select the project name or any parent folder to browse that folder, drill into its subfolders, and open a nearby file. The final file name identifies the current file and is not a navigation control.

Right-click a file tab to copy either its project-relative path or its full path. For a remote project, the full path belongs to the connected environment rather than the computer displaying Scient.

Workspace and chat-linked host-file previews follow changes made on disk. The compact reload action in the file header remains available for an immediate retry or manual refresh. If automatic updates pause, that action is highlighted and its tooltip explains that reloading will retry them. A failed read keeps the last available preview visible while reporting the problem.

The Files tree, Git status, and working diff also refresh after the agent finishes a file-changing tool or command. Unsaved source edits remain protected.

Current limitation: automatic refresh follows the exact known path. If the file is renamed or moved, reopen it from its new location; Scient does not yet relocate an already open file automatically.

  • Markdown files open as rendered documents. Writable project Markdown is directly editable in that rendered surface; formatting controls appear without replacing it with a second preview. Use the source/rendered control in the file header when exact Markdown text is needed; Scient remembers that preference. A link to a specific Markdown line opens source so the requested line can be shown. Relative image paths resolve from the Markdown file’s folder, including nested folders; inline sizes and alignment are preserved.
  • Code blocks and HTML/YAML/TOML source boxes stay directly editable and offer Wrap lines and Copy code in their headers, matching chat. Wrapping follows Settings → Word wrap, which defaults on. A block’s wrap button changes only that block; changing the setting applies the new preference to open blocks. Copy includes the current code without adding Markdown fences. Code headers use the same colored language icons or filename titles as chat. HTML tags and attributes, operators, and punctuation are highlighted in the editor. Code boxes have a subtle border and the same thin scrollbar as math.
  • Standalone Markdown images expose floating viewing controls. Use Edit details for the image source and alternative text; Apply saves one change and Cancel leaves the document unchanged. Click an image to place the caret in its caption, or click the caption to choose a text position. One outline surrounds the image and caption while editing. Captions save as you type; Enter or Escape leaves the caption, and Undo remains available. An image without a caption shows an empty field when clicked or after Add caption; leaving it empty does not change the document. Typing before or after a standalone image creates a separate paragraph, so text stays above or below the image and its caption. Add caption on an image mixed with prose places that image in its own paragraph and opens its caption without discarding surrounding text. Linked badges and table images keep their compact presentation and link behavior.
  • Images, Mermaid diagrams, Plotly, and Vega-Lite share quiet Expand and More controls. Copy, downloads, and source/details actions live in More. Move controls exposes a handle; drag it or use arrow keys, then press Enter or Escape to finish. Reset controls position restores placement. Plotly exploration tools remain directly accessible. Vega-Lite keeps its authored interactions and a direct reset control; expanded viewers retain zoom, fit, and exploration controls.
  • Reference-style images share their source and title with a Markdown definition. Edit shared reference opens that definition; Make independent explicitly separates this occurrence. Alternative text remains local to the image. Replace image keeps the original until upload succeeds, and Remove from document never deletes the file. Copy, expand, background, and retry actions do not edit Markdown.
  • Text files larger than the preview limit open read-only. In rendered Markdown, task checkboxes are also non-interactive so a partial preview can never replace the complete file.
  • HTML files open in the integrated browser. To edit the HTML, right-click the file in the file tree and choose Open source.
  • If the integrated browser is unavailable or an HTML preview fails, Scient opens the source instead.

In a project conversation, an agent can also turn an existing project HTML file into a PDF. Scient builds it with local project assets, opens the generated PDF in its reader, and preserves the HTML as the editable source. Remote assets are not loaded during this controlled build, so keep required styles, fonts, data, and images inside the project. A compatible Scient Desktop must be connected while Scient performs this Chromium build.

Direct files outside the current project support:

  • images, including SVG, with pan and zoom;
  • PDFs in the full Scient reader, including remembered reading state;
  • rendered Markdown, including math, Mermaid diagrams, and Vega-Lite charts;
  • syntax-highlighted source and text, including TSX, Python, MATLAB, R, JSON, CSV, and LaTeX source;
  • browser-supported audio and video; and
  • a stable file-information view for formats that do not yet have a rich preview. On the primary desktop environment, the header can still open the file in a preferred editor.

Text previews are read-only and limited to 2 MiB. Large files show that limit explicitly. An optional line target is revealed once after the source view is ready.

HTML runs normally in Scient’s integrated browser, including JavaScript, network requests, navigation, and relative local CSS, scripts, fonts, data, images, and media. A packaged site that assumes it is hosted at a web-server root (for example, references /assets/app.js) should be opened through its development or static server; a standalone local document should use relative asset paths.

“In the connected environment” is important for remote sessions: an absolute path refers to the remote host, not the desktop Mac or PC. Remote files can be previewed through Scient, but desktop-only editor actions are not shown.