Using Document Links

Use document links to move directly between related project documents or between headings in one document. Links are saved as ordinary document content, so they remain visible in Markdown and are not limited to Project Navigator's relationship views.

Table of Contents

  1. Open the Markdown document in ThinkForge's rich-text editor.
  2. Place the caret where the link should appear.
  3. Type [[.
  4. Type at least two characters of the document's title, path, or a tag.
  5. Move through the results with the Up and Down arrows.
  6. Press Enter or Tab to insert the highlighted document. Press Escape to dismiss without inserting.
  7. Save the document.

The caret stays in the document the whole time, so you can keep typing to narrow the list without clicking anything.

Each result shows the document title above its project-relative path, with a small badge on the right showing why it matched: kw for a keyword match on the title or path, SK for a semantic match, and tag for an exact tag match.

ThinkForge inserts a link using the target document's existing identity. Renaming or moving the target does not change that identity, so the link still resolves to the target's current location.

The document you are editing is excluded from the results. Only one target can be inserted at a time.

Insert > Document Link on the Insert ribbon still works. It types [[ for you and opens the same autocomplete.

Choose the link text

ThinkForge inserts the target document's title as the link text, followed by a space that sits outside the link so you can keep typing normally.

Selecting words before typing [[ does not turn them into the link label. The trigger replaces the [[ you typed rather than a selection.

The visible words are normal document content. Rename or edit them whenever needed; changing the label does not change the target.

Project Navigator is the main place to browse and reuse document links.

  1. Open Project Navigator.
  2. In Files, open the document's focused presentation.
  3. Select Copy document link.
  4. Paste the copied target where it is needed.

The copied value is a ThinkForge application link. To create a readable Markdown link manually, place it behind a label:

[Project notes](thinkforge://document/<existing-timestamp-id>)

Do not change or invent the ID. Use the value copied by ThinkForge.

Create a table of contents

The rich-text editor can build a linked contents list from the document's current headings.

  1. Add clear headings to the document.
  2. Place the caret where the contents list should appear.
  3. Open the Insert ribbon.
  4. Select Contents.
  5. Save the document.
  6. Select an entry to jump to that heading.

The inserted block is ordinary Markdown. It contains a bold Table of Contents label followed by linked bullets.

The list is a snapshot. If headings are added, renamed, removed, or reordered later, edit the list yourself or delete it and insert a new one. The command creates a flat list rather than a nested outline.

A heading link starts with # followed by the heading fragment:

[Create a table of contents](#create-a-table-of-contents)

ThinkForge creates heading fragments by lowercasing the heading, replacing punctuation and spaces with hyphens, and adding -2, -3, and later suffixes when headings repeat.

A document link can include a heading fragment to open another document at a particular section. The [[ autocomplete inserts the document target only, so add the fragment yourself when a cross-document heading link is needed.

In Project Navigator

Links in the focused document reader are clickable.

  • A link to another indexed project document keeps the reading flow in Project Navigator and focuses the target.
  • A #heading link scrolls within the focused document.
  • A relative local link opens the linked project file.
  • A web or email link opens through Windows.

Use Project Navigator's Back control to return to the folder listing.

In the rich-text editor

Select a heading link to scroll within the current document. Selecting another document link opens that file. Web and email links open through Windows.

Troubleshooting

The target is not in the results

Search results come from documents in the project index. Confirm that the target is a supported project document and has been indexed. Remember that the document you are editing is deliberately excluded, and that searching does not begin until two characters are typed.

Typing [[ does nothing

The autocomplete is part of the rich-text editor. It is not available in the Smart Clipboard composer, which reports no results.

If the popup opens but always reports no results in a normal document, the index may still be initializing. Reopen the document and try again.

A contents entry points to the wrong place

The heading probably changed after the contents list was inserted, or the document contains repeated headings. Recreate the contents block or edit the fragment. Repeated headings use numbered suffixes such as -2.

A thinkforge: target is an application link. Other Markdown readers can display its label but generally cannot open the target. Use a relative Markdown path when the document also needs to navigate outside ThinkForge.

Confirm that the target document still exists and is indexed. ThinkForge does not currently show a broken-link repair window or a broken-link report.

A document link is part of the written content. Use it for reading paths, references, and tables of contents.

A Project Navigator manual link is relationship metadata with an intent such as Supports or Contradicts. Insights and Clusters use those manual relationships. Creating one type does not create the other.

For supported target formats, identity behavior, and current limitations, see Document Linking.