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stevencohn
Question - Favorites Links to Section Group or Notebook
Hello, just a quick question. Sometimes on favorites I may need to link to a section group or even a notebook instead of just a page or section. Is there some way I could manually modify the stored Favorites link to point at a section group or notebook instead? (e.g. if it is stored in some XML file somewhere or something)
Or better yet - if we were able to add the ability to add current section group or notebook to favorites as a feature in the future, that would be great! But for the time being, a manual modification workaround would be fine for me as it's not super-often that I'm saving these links.
Any help is appreciated, thanks!
Just to be clear AFAIK Notebook, Section (and possibly section group - if they are a thing) links take you to whatever the last page you visited in that structure - is that what you are after?
Yes, it's possible. And, yes, it would default to the last page you visited in that scope.
OK, so my work around is to have a ToC (OneMore) as my 1st page in a section and have the shortcut to that.
I suppose it would be possible to treat these uniquely and the Favorite would know to lookup the first page and navigate to that regardless of what it is...
I would vote for slicker re-order; aliases (that override incremental filter); favourite tabs / folders or some mechanism for having fav collections that is slick to navigate.
Aside: I think Fav's are read from the XML everytime you invoke them in the dialogue, so I am intending manually editing the file to do some of the above (I am manually editing to re-order to overcome a bug).
@jasonjac2 Understood, and yes that is what I'd be looking for in these cases. The workaround you mentioned is a good idea - I may try that as well. A manual edit of the favorites.xml file here and there would work for me but linking to a ToC would definitely take it a step further.
@stevencohn Any method of allowing me to link to a group or notebook (even if it just takes me to the last visited page) would work for me. Beyond that, something that involved jumping to a ToC for the destination or even better, something that perhaps offered to auto-generate a ToC for the "destination scope" (current section, current section group or current notebook, depending on what sort of favorite was added) when adding a favorite to something other than a page would be really cool. I've only just started to play around with the ToC (and other "snippet") functionality in OneMore - very impressed so far.
Just to be clear AFAIK Notebook, Section (and possibly section group - if they are a thing) links take you to whatever the last page you visited in that structure - is that what you are after?
That is quite often exactly what I am after. Rather than keep a favorite to every page I may want to get to within a section group, most often just want to go back to whichever section and page that I most recently happened to have been working on.
OK, so my work around is to have a ToC (OneMore) as my 1st page in a section and have the shortcut to that.
@jasonjac2 , So far the work arounds that I am pondering are having "One TOC to Rule Them All," but that is really just a list of the Section Groups that I am currently working on the most. Create one favorite to the page that contains that TOC. Then just using the Favorites list for Sections and Pages. Then, just rely on the fact that Notebooks are super easy to get to right on the left edge of my screen.
So, when I just need to jump to whatever was the last thing I was working on in a particular notebook, then I can use the standard OneNote way. If I need to get to whatever I was last working on within a specific Section Group, then I can use my "pinned" Favorite to get to that TOC, and then click the link I created for that Section Group. That would always be kept at the top of OneMore's Favorites list. Then, I can just use other Favorites to get to Sections and Pages.
Here's the kicker, though. Those Favorites currently only show me the actual name of the Section or Page... out of the context of where it is stored. I don't make sure that I have globally unique names for every Section and Page. In fact, I usually use a small set of standardized names. So, just pinning Sections and Pages to the Favorites list, would not necessarily be super helpful unless we were ALSO able to name the entry in the list, like a shortcut on the Windows desktop. But, that is yet another feature request.
So... I am actually thinking of just keeping a bunch of Windows Shortcuts on my desktop, using a touchpad gesture to reveal my desktop, then click on one of those desktop shortcuts.
OR... I could just put all my links in that much bigger "One TOC to Rule Them All." Then I would always just use that one entry in OneMore's Favorites list to go to that one links page, to sorta-kinda-quickly-ish jump to frequently used parts of my notebooks. Now... I am starting to lean more toward that solution. This will allow me to arrange my TOC in any way that I like. I can even draw a diagram, and then stick small text blocks all over that, with links to things. That way, I can navigate visually rather than just by looking for the correct words.
OR........ Once I start figuring out how I'm going to set up my 32-key Stream Deck, I may likely program some of the buttons to take me to certain parts of my OneNote conglomeration with a single button press. One day.
I suppose it would be possible to treat these uniquely and the Favorite would know to lookup the first page and navigate to that regardless of what it is...
@stevencohn , As long as you just have your Favorites have the same behavior as OneNote's links to other OneNote items, then I think everyone will be comfortable with that.
Onetastic uses windows shortcuts for its favourites and when used it I liked the fact I could rename the file to order them exactly as I wanted to (I realise OneMore allows you to re-order the favourites, but it crashes when I go to manage them).
Here's the kicker, though. Those Favorites currently only show me the actual name of the Section or Page..
It shows you the location in one of the columns - does that not show enough
It shows you the location in one of the columns - does that not show enough \Section....
@jasonjac2 , It only shows you that in the management window. Not in the drop-down list that you normally see when using the Favorites feature. I am not going to open the Favorites Management interface just to check which of my identically named favorites actually points to the page I want this time, then close the Favorites Management interface, then hope I remember which of the Favorites was the one I wanted... So, no, that is not enough.
@GrantRobertson ah, sorry, I don't use the dropdown from the ribbon - so there are actually 4 ways to look at them :-).
- in the dropdown from the ribbon
- In the Favourites dialogue (I bind this to Alt+F - not sure if that is a custom key binding) -- I like this as you can the type and incrementally filter.
3) The Management in settings
4) In a text editor (which I have as a shortcut to efficiently re-order them and edit them) (Don't tell Stephen - he'll roll his eyes).
C:\Users<user>\AppData\Roaming\OneMore\Favorites.xml
2. In the Favourites dialogue (I bind this to Alt+F - not sure if that is a custom key binding) -- I like this as you can the type and incrementally filter.
Hey, @jasonjac2 , Thanks for that list. However.... I cannot for the LIFE of me find the "Favorites Dialog." I have looked in the shortcut key assignments, and all over. I noticed that for #3, you mentioned the "Management in settings". But, when I choose the "Manage favorites" option in the OneMore toolbar,
it always takes me to the settings dialog. So, when you choose this option, do you go to the settings dialog, or to the dialog that you posted a screenshot of? The reason I was confused about you seeing the full path to the favorites, was because I don't seem to have that "Favorites" dialog like you do.
I can't see how to navigate to it by the ribbon. Try bringing up the "command palette" and type fav
Then it should show you what the keyboard shortcut is (Alt+f) for me.
So once you know the shortcut key you can invoke it easily. I did take a look at customising the ribbon, but couldn't find the command:
Can you use the keyboard shortcut in your daily working? When I clicked on the favourites in the ribbon my list went way off the bottom of the list and I wouldn't use the feature if I had to navigate to it that way.
Hi guys.
From Grant It only shows you that in the management window. Not in the drop-down list...
It does show the page path in the Favorites dialog, via the Alt-F shortcut
From Jason 3) In a text editor...
🙄
From Grant I cannot for the LIFE of me find the "Favorites Dialog...
It's only available via the Alt+F shortcut, as [implied] on the Wiki page .
From Jason but couldn't find the command:...
True. Since it's only a shortcut and not on the ribbon then it won't show up in Customize Ribbon. That's how all Office products work. I could add it to the Favorites dropdown, but that would kind of defeat the quick-access purpose of a shortcut.
So back to the OP, add notebook or section group to favorites. Yes, I can add those, and I think it makes sense to jump to the first page in that scope, only because clicking on the notebook or section group themselves in the navigation panel already jumps to the last page viewed in the scope and I don't like duplicating OneNote functionality. I'd rather add functionality.
As for keyboard shortcuts to favorites, an acceptable alternative is using Alt+F, then start typing to match on the name, hit up/down as necessary, and hit Enter. Shortcuts are a rare commodity in OneNote.
@stevencohn , Alrighty... It seems as if I have been dealing with a case of "priming" on my part, combined with my brain being wrapped up in other things. I was simply looking in the wrong "places" because my brain had gone in a particular direction. When @jasonjac2 mentioned that he "had a keybind to Alt-F" I assumed that he had manually set that himself. Therefore, I didn't even frikkin' try pressing the Alt-F shortcut key. Instead, I went looking in the OneMore settings for how to set that keyboard shortcut for myself. However, I couldn't find said function to assign said keyboard shortcut to... because it was listed under C (for "Chose") rather than F (for "Favorites") so I just thought it wasn't in my list for some crazy reason. As it turns out, said "crazy reason" was because I was still asleep. (I tend to deal with these GitHub responses first thing after I wake up, because that is when I see the e-mails.) Plus, I had completely forgotten about the Command Palette, because I tend to not use those "search for the command" kinds of features. I am just used to being able to find everything in the user interface.
I am not a super big fan of having features that are only accessed via either a shortcut key or a "search for the command" method. I'm pretty sure that most "good UI design" standards say that everything should be easily discoverable within the UI. But, I am not the developer, so I am not going to tell @stevencohn what he should do. However, I might suggest that an additional menu item be added to the Favorites menu.
Suggestion Incoming:
In fact, I just noticed that all of the icons in the OneMore ribbon are either only drop down menus, or only a button that does an immediate action. However, in other office products, many of those icons are actually a combination. If one clicks directly on the icon itself, then one action is triggered, and if one clicks only on the little v under the icon, then it opens the drop down list. Perhaps @stevencohn could modify this icon in the OneMore toolbar, such that clicking the icon directly pulls up the full list that is normally displayed when pressing Alt-F. In this way, nothing is "hidden" behind a shortcut key. I know, lots of people absolutely love shortcut keys. But I use far too many different programs to memorize all those shortcut keys. Plus, I have more of a visual, or mental-map memory of where things are in a UI, rather than knowing all the shortcut keys.
To be clear: I am not "desperate" for this feature in any way. It is just that I can foresee other, less savvy (or less awake 🤣) users not spotting this in either the documentation or by poking around in the UI, and thus having the same problems that I did. I promise, I have meant to sit down and read the full documentation for a while. I have just not had the time, or I have been distracted by a thousand other things. Of course, I also know that most users of any software are in the same boat, floating on the sea of "other things to do."
A Slight Disagreement
@stevencohn , when you say:
I think it makes sense to jump to the first page in that scope, only because clicking on the notebook or section group themselves in the navigation panel already jumps to the last page viewed in the scope and I don't like duplicating OneNote functionality. I'd rather add functionality.
I have to disagree: You are already "adding functionality" by providing a way to quickly jump to "favorite" parts of the users' OneNote collections of notes. I see no reason to "do things differently" just for the sake of "doing things differently" at every step of the way. In my career (and life as a software user), I have seen too many projects fail due to the mindset of "as different as possible is always the best." Some people spend so much time "thinking outside of the box" that they wind up completely out in the desert, instead of where people actually live.
Let's say that I am working on a big project that involves lots of different parts within all my notebooks. Let's say that I don't know ahead of time which different parts I am going to need on any given day. And, quite often, I only need to jump to many of those sections once, then jump back. BUT..... I have a HUGE collection of notes and project plans, spread all throughout OneNote. Quite often, when I do need to go look at Project QZP, it is buried deep within Section Group after Section Group... in a Section that is shoved way over in the overflow menu on the right... on a Page that is three scrolls down because my monitor is only so tall. But... it is also highly likely that that was the last page that I worked on for that Section. So, if I have a OneMore Favorite saved for that Section, or for the Section Group that contains it, I can use the favorite without needing to:
- Go to the Navigation Panel.
- Scroll down to the necessary Notebook. Sometimes, quite far, because my deeply nested sets of notes are not always neatly collapsed to only show what I would want. In fact, OneNote quite often re-expands many branches of that huge tree even if I do collapse them. {{Only if that one page that I am after was the most recent page that I was working on within that Notebook, will it be easily accessible to me. Otherwise, I will still have to continue digging and...}}
- Click my way down through layer after layer of Section Groups. {{Remember, I have 22 years worth of OneNote notes, plans, projects, diaries, etcetera. And, now that I know about the "Paragraph Link Bug" I need to separate notes even more, going forward, because I don't dare move a page out from within a Section for fear of breaking links to paragraphs on those pages. Also, remember, I may not remember where all those are buried, and have to go looking for them.}}
- Perhaps even need to use the "Overflow Menu" to the far right of the Section Header, to get to the Section I need,
I will assume that getting myself to the Section manually will have the same behavior as to which page is then displayed as when I use a OneNote link to that section, or using a OneMore Favorite to that Section... Namely, simply showing the most recent Page.
So, you can see, for some of us, just manually clicking on the Notebook or Section Group, over in the Navigation Panel, is not necessarily a quick and easy process. Now, I can hear many people wanting to tell me that I should just simplify my life, and not have so many projects, notes and diaries. But, that is kind of defeating the whole reason for OneNote in the first place. Some of us have too much going on in their heads to just have three Notebooks with three Section Groups each. My life life just doesn't work that way. And remember, I've got 22 years of the prime of my life in OneNote. That's a lot of ideas and notes and projects and just stuff.
But.... With OneMore's Favorites, I can save a list of the most likely 10-20 Section Groups (regardless of how deeply buried they may be), eliminating Steps 1-4 of the above horrid list around 80% of the time. If I plan how I lay out my Section Groups and which ones I put in my OneMore Favorites list, then I can greatly increase my chances of getting to the pages I need quickly. BUT ONLY if those Favorites take me to the most recent page that I was working on within that Section Group or Notebook. This is because of that 80-20 rule that says that the most recent thing you were working on, within any one topic/project, has an 80% probability of being the thing you need within that topic/project the next time you access it.
If you design OneMore's Favorites to always force us back to the top Page of the first Section of any Notebook or Section Group that I have in my OneMore Favorites, then you throw away that magical 80% advantage. You force me to always go through steps 2-4 (or just the worst parts of Steps 3-4) of the above horrid list every time I use one of OneMore's Favorites to go to a Notebook or Section Group. And...
If I have to use that Favorite twice in one day.... You have forced me to go through Steps 2-4 all over again. And perhaps again and again and again. I can imagine that that would become very tiresome for most people. I know it would be so tiresome for me that I would just never use OneMore Favorites for going to Notebooks and Section Groups. I would just revert back to my current workaround of using a Favorite to link to a page full of OneNote hyperlinks. And you would have done all that work for nothing. And I know you don't like to do work for nothing. 😉
Remember, the behavior that you propose (actively forcing any Favorite to a Notebook or Section Group to jump all the way up to the top-most page of said Notebook or Section Group) can already be easily accomplished with the current version of OneMore, merely by the user saving a link to the top-most page in any Notebook or Section Group. I can already do that without you doing a single minute of extra work. So, again, why would you do all that work for something that we can already do, without you doing any work at all? By choosing appropriate names for those top-most pages in my Notebooks and Section Groups, I can even avoid using @jasonjac2's trick of editing the Favorites.xml file to rename how Favorites appear in the list. 😉
So, I propose, if you are going to do any work at all on this issue, that you do the least work necessary. Simply let OneMore's favorites make use of OneNote's current hyperlinking behavior and jump to whatever was the most recently accessed page in that Notebook or Section.
I apologize for the extra long message. Sometimes "Few Words" just won't "Do."
Thanks for all the discussion on this topic. @stevencohn I would agree with @GrantRobertson that going back to the last visited page when linking a favorite to a section group or notebook would be preferable for me at least (from what I can tell, that's how the existing functionality works when adding a section as a favorite anyway right? so why not keep it the same with section groups and notebooks). Or to make it really flexible, maybe make it a configurable setting so the user can choose whether to jump to the first page or go back to the last visited page.
Hello again, just wanted to check in/follow up on this and perhaps add another tidbit or two to the feature request. I'm not sure if this warrants having an entirely new request or not but I figured it was closely enough related to the original that it might make sense to just add it here. If that is an incorrect assumption please let me know and I will create a new request.
I noticed while manually editing Favorites.xml there is a separator line in there, which we can duplicate to add more of if we want, as long as we give each separator a unique ID (if not then it'll break the Favorites dropdown in the UI).
To be clear, this is the bit of XML I'm referring to (I added the 2 at the end to make the ID unique from the default one that is there):
<menuSeparator id="omFavoritesSeparator2" />
This is actually really cool, because for example I have a bunch of favorites for pages w/ lists of keyboard shortcuts on them (I'm one of those people that tries to take my hands off the keyboard as few times as necessary but I work in so many different apps , there's no way I can remember them all...) , so its nice to be able to separate those from the rest. And also to separate some of my section favorites (or section group or notebook favorites which I've accomplished again via manual editing of Favorites.xml 😁 ) from the page favorites as well. It produces something like this in the end:
The only downside is, if I make any Favorites changes via the UI my extra separators are wiped out. Luckily it's not something I do often but for now I just have to re-add them via XML after adding new favorites or whatever thru the UI.
So while we are on the topic of improvements to the Favorites system, I think it would be wonderful if we could we add a way to add these separators via the UI. To go along with this (which I believe has already been mentioned in the conversation on this thread), if there was a way to allow renaming the "friendly name" of the favorite via the UI that would be great as well.
Thanks again for your consideration and for taking the time to develop such an excellent plugin.