Copy as text and pin from PDF

Archive Feature Requests
#1

The pdf feature is absolutely amazing. I just have one feature request which I assume won’t be very hard to do but is crucial for many practical workflows.
In addition to the copy as reference and copy as pin, there should be “copy as text and pin”. This way we can manipulate original text and more importantly link concepts from the copied text, while having the pin there to view the original material.
Right now it is possible to go into the highlights page and copy from there, but having this as a one click option like the others would be very much appreciated.
Finally, an option for auto-pasting highlights on a new bullet would add more fluidity to the otherwise repeated copy and paste.

Default pdf to highlight to rem reference + copy paste from pdf
#2

copying the text itself : ctrl+shift+c

7 Likes
#3

That would be very useful :heart:

#4

:exploding_head: Thank you for sharing. This is so useful.

1 Like
#5

After using ctrl+shift+c for about five seconds, I see the problem (the highlight isn’t saved in the actual PDF page). The suggestion from the OP would be very useful if implemented.

#6

Yes, that’s true; however, you have 2 options available to you at the moment:

  1. Select text, ctrl+shit+c, paste. select text again, Enter paste the pin next to the text.
  2. or (the better option in my opinion) simply select the text and ctrl+c and ctrl+v.
    What you have created is a reference to a rem containing both the plain text of ‘the part of the pdf you have selected’ and a pin pointing toward the coordinates on the PDF where this text can be found.
    That means that if you open this rem (on the link you created: shift+click or right-click → open as a document) or open a portal toward this document (ctrl+click on the link), you can change anything you need regarding this quote: the text itself, create links within the quote, etc.

@Jude I’m adding you here because I think you might be interested in these solutions as well :slight_smile:

#7

@_yb that is boss. Thanks for pointing out the shift+click and ctrl+click. I’ll definitely be using those in the future.

I still wish the feature from @Nabhan would be incorporated, though, because ctrl+c alone for some reason still produces a number of text errors. This occurs practically every time I try just ctrl+c. Below is an example (yellow shows text errors or double-spaces):

ctrl+c
image

It’s usually accurate in terms of letters, but for some reason stray spaces are littered throughout. This PDF was previously a Word doc, so it shouldn’t be an issue with poor OCR.

Also, for some reason ctrl+shift+c produces the correct text: “Further, he treats of being as being in the sense order, where he considers matter and form, not now in relation to becoming, but in the very being of bodies inanimate or animated.”

Not sure what’s going on there, but to avoid having to do “double work” on copy/paste from a PDF, there would need to be a feature for a ctrl+shift+c accuracy of text, while also including a pin of some kind. The ctrl+v result would look like this screenshot:
image

@Karthikk can you comment on if the redesign will fix these scattered spaces? Or could the feature from the OP be implemented?

#8

Ctrl-Shift-C also seems to produce the correct text for me, but when I try to “Open as Document” it just re-opens the PDF file. Put another way, the text acts a Pin. Is there anyway to open both the PDF excerpts and the PDF at the same time, in different panes?