Full character name not shown when trying to link existing character

Scrivener
,
1

Hello,

When I use the [[…]] syntax to link a character, and I only type part of the character name (e.g. a nickname) I’m prompted to select the destination for the link.

However, the character names are truncated very short, and if I have more people with the same prefix (in my case “Lord”), I don’t know which is which.

I’d add a screenshot but I’m not allowed (I guess because I’m a new user here).

Thanks in advance!
Salvatore

2

They’re not character names to Scrivener. They’re document names. If they have to be unique, adjust the document titles accordingly. A document could be “Lord A” instead of “Lord Aristophanes”, for instance.

3

Thanks for clarifying. My names are unique, but in the selection UI on MacOS, they get truncated very short. So if I have “Lord A” and “Lord B”, the both show as “Lord…” and I don’t know which one it is.

This is most definitely a UI bug and I’m hoping they’ll fix it in an upcoming release.

4

So start the name with A or B.

5

Sure, I appreciate the workaround. My intent was to report an issue, however. Truncating to 4 characters when there’s plenty of pace available sounds like it’s not intentional and, spoken as a professional software developer, could probably be easily fixed.

6

Actually, I just found out that you can resize the column in that screen, so never mind! :slight_smile: The resize handle was at the bottom, so that’s why I didn’t find it at first.

All good now!

1 Like
7

Thanks for the update, I was going to say I don’t know what part of the UI you are referring to, but I know where you are at now.

By the way for cases where what you are typing in does match the binder title, the Edit ▸ Completions ▸ Complete Document Title menu command can be very helpful. If there is an ambiguity with what you’ve typed in thus far “Lord”, then you’ll be offered A and B as options.

Another tip, and this is what I tend to use most often, for when you want to link to something with some text that doesn’t match its proper name:

  1. Type in the text as you want it to be.
  2. Select it (usually a few ⌥← / Ctrl+← shortcuts do the trick).
  3. Type in a bit of the name you want to link to into the Quick Search tool in the main toolbar. When you see the result you want, drag and drop the search result onto the selection.

It’s subjective as to which is easier, but I find that more direct than poking through column views in a secondary tab of a dialogue box.