Whisky Tango Foxtrot? What happened to Link to options?

[royj]

In Flare 5, when you were inserting a cross-reference, you could choose from the following Link to options in the Insert Cross-Reference dialog:

• Place in this document
• Open document
• File in current folder
• Recent file
• Topic in project

In Flare 6, the only Link to options are Topic in Project, and Place in this document.

Same when creating links-- the Link to options in the Insert Hyperlink dialog have been reduced going from v5 to v6--and inserting pictures--v6 has none of the Choose Source options that were in the v5 Insert Picture dialog.

Hello?!?!?! I used Open document and File in current folder frequently, and even Recent file once in a while. What's going on that MadCap is taking features away?

[LTinker68]

Click the folders icon below Topics in Project. That will show you the same Content Explorer type structure. That seems easier to me than the default option which is to list all the topics in the project.

If you expand a folder and click a topic in it, then the next time you go to insert a cross reference, it will open to the same folder automatically. You lose it if you switch back and forth from Place in this document to Topics in project, but if you stay in Topics in project then it'll remember where you last were. So the File in current folder and Recent file are sort of incorporated into the new setup, depending on which folder/file you last selected. The Open document option seems to be the only one that isn't covered in some fashion by the new layout.

Personally, I like the fact that it remembers which folder I was last in so I don't have to keep navigating to the same folder over and over again. BTW, if the current topic is in the same folder that was last selected, then you can always select the same topic and click the Bookmark icon to select the item to xref to. So you don't have to switch to Place in this document if the topic is in the same folder when Topics in project is visible. (Hopefully that made sense.)

[royj]

OK, I'll grant you that the new functionality, with the tree view of the folders in the project is cool. Credit where it's due. But they've still taken away useful features.

Although it does give you something like the File in current folder option, the Content Explorer is not the same thing. The last folder I was in is not necessarily the folder containing the file I'm currently working on.

They've effectively cut the Recent files option down to Most recent file (singular). And the option that I used most, Open document, is just plain gone.

Yeah, maybe I'm whinging. But I liked those features.

[LTinker68]

I personally never used the Open document one, but I did occasionally use the Current document one. I'd rather not have to switch between Topics in project and Place in this document, but doing so isn't uncommon. It would be nice if you could left-click or right-click on a topic in Content Explorer, drag to the open topic, and get options to "Insert Hyperlink" or "Insert Cross-Reference" at the point where you left the cursor in the topic. Right now you can only use that method to insert a hyperlink.

[RossF]

I use(d) Open Document all the time. Removing it is like cutting off a body part. Why do they torture us so?

[LTinker68]

Programmers have to get their jollies somewhere.

Don't forget to submit a feature request asking for it to be added back --> http://www.madcapsoftware.com/bugs/submit.aspx

[Andrew]

I use Open Documents all the time.

However, the feature was not removed. It was added to the right mouse menu.

[doc_guy]

You can right select text in the XML editor and right click on it and then you can use "Quick Link" or "Quick Cross Reference" to still access the Open, Bookmarks (current document), and Same Folder options that were available on the old link inserter.

This is kind of backwards for me, because usually when I insert a cross reference, I want to select a specific class of cross reference, but it is a way to create the link, then you can edit the cross reference later, if you want.

[royj]

You can right select text in the XML editor and right click on it and then you can use "Quick Link" or "Quick Cross Reference" to still access the Open, Bookmarks (current document), and Same Folder options that were available on the old link inserter.

This is kind of backwards for me, because usually when I insert a cross reference, I want to select a specific class of cross reference, but it is a way to create the link, then you can edit the cross reference later, if you want.

OK, that's interesting. The feature still exists, but they took it away from its old homes, the Insert Cross-Reference and Insert Link dialogs.

The problem with that is that I always anchor my cross-references to a bookmark. (Long story short: In earlier versions of Flare, leaving the bookmark out of the cross-reference broke the resulting links in Word outputs. Is that still the case now? Note to self: Test in next build.) Inserting a Quick Cross-Reference or a Quick Link doesn't allow you to do that. So, I can use a Quick Cross-Reference to link to an open document, and then go back and add the bookmark, like you said, grumbling about the extra step of editing the cross-reference. Or I can just use the Insert Cross-Reference dialog and grumble about the missing Open Documents option.

Yeah, yeah: I could also quit grumbling.

[doc_guy]

Nah. Grumble away. Especially at this link:

https://www.madcapsoftware.com/bugs/submit.aspx

Enough grumbling may effect a change!