I would love to be able to rearrange lines within a note using an easy drag and drop similar to the way it works in one note. It would be especially nice if this feature included the ability to adjust the indentation, promoting and demoting single elements and selections of multiple elements within the hierarchy.
40 Likes
9 posts were merged into an existing topic: Drag and drop bullets and headings
3 posts were split to a new topic: Refactoring of embedded blocks from another note
I have not used the Mobile app, but just looking at the screenshots in the posts of those who are testing it, I see this feature being like magic.
I kind of just wanted to add this here until a mobile feature request category of some sort manifests.
Thanks.
1 Like
SOLUTION ā MAC OS WORK AROUND ā The abilty to drag drop across the info tree is essential if for complex structures. On a MAC you can install a free app called FoldingText and make it the default app for .md files. Then bind the obsidian command open-in-default-app to a convenient key. When you hit this key obsidian will save contents of the current file and launch it in FoldingText. The folding text app has the ability to increase/decrease the ā####ā marks for an entire subtree, and you can select-drag whole sub-trees when they are folded. Once you have re-arranged your trees, just close FoldingText and you are back in Obsidian!
(NOTE: when you increase or decrease ā####ā depth the display gets a little wonky with multiple fold sections stacked up. Donāt worry about itā¦ the underlying text data is just fine, it is just wonky display behavior.)
I still cannot wait until we have this native in Obsidian, but this will help until then.
2 Likes
I havenāt tried this yet but it sure looks very promising: New Plugin: Drag-n-Drop for blocks just like Roam and Logseq
Thanks.
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I just tried it, couldnāt get it to work.
@kimaldis Lately I have been just using a hotkey for the Text Transporter pluginās Copy block embeds from this selection command and then clicking and pasting it. While it isnāt as useful as drag and drop, it does the job.
Right now Iām experimenting with the new Bookmarks core plugin. Iām still trying to figure out how to bookmark blocks. But itās pretty cool that these bookmarks will be able to be organized into collapsible sections. Seems pretty awesome!
A post was merged into an existing topic: Reorder headings with Mouse drag and drop
Iāve been actively using the app, and Iāve noticed that organizing ideas within my notes could be significantly improved with the ability to drag and drop text blocks. Iāve done some exploration through Discord, this forum, and the Help files but couldnāt find a definitive answer about the current availability of this feature.
Use case or problem
The current method of reordering blocks involves cutting and pasting, which can be quite labor-intensive, especially when managing comprehensive notes. I am aware of the alt + Up/Down arrow hotkey for swapping lines, but this isnāt quite what Iām looking for.
Proposed solution
I would like to suggest the implementation of a drag-and-drop feature for blocks of text. This functionality would save a considerable amount of time and enhance the organization of ideas, making the workflow smoother and more intuitive.
Expected Functionality:
- Reordering within the Same Note: Ability to drag a block to a new position within the same note for seamless reorganization.
- Moving to Another Note: Dragging a block to a different note would either create a new block ID or use an existing one, embedding the block in the target file using the appropriate linking syntax.
- Copying Blocks: Holding a modifier key like āShiftā could duplicate the block instead of moving it.
Current workaround (optional)
None
Previous Discussions & Attempts:
- There have been multiple requests for this feature last year, but I havenāt found any confirmation or updates on their status.
- I found references to a similar request for drag and drop of bullets and headings.
- There was an existing plugin that facilitated this to some extent, though it appears to be no longer functional.
Thank you for considering this request, and any updates or insights would be greatly appreciated!
7 Likes
Workaround for rearraging headings is Outline core plugin:
To rearrange sections in the note, click and drag the heading within the outline.
This is very close to your request if you are willing to name your text blocks using headings.
Really missing this feature too.
1 Like
I really want this.
I brainstorm blog posts by creating tiny blocks of text and dragging them around to compose the article so that every thought flows from the previous one. It is absolutely not the same as re-arranging headers, I need to re-arrange blocks of text.
Please please please add this, I am sure there are lots of people who want this despite small amount of upvotes.
Have you tried this plugin GitHub - slnsys/obsidian-canvas2document: Plugin for Obsidian to convert a complete Canvas to a long form document
Basically the idea is to utilize canvas to brainstorm then use some plugin to convert the content from your nodes. I think this can be actually a functional idea because canvas already implements way to zoom out/in making it intuitive to work with node arrangement. Compared to this feature request canvas already scales well to arranging tens of nodes with arbitrary text length.
Well thatās cool but itās like inventing a bicycle. It feels like an essential function for an app like this, and I am extremely surprised it is not requested more often, even though my friends often talk about it privately.
Itās like āour app doesnāt support moving files to folders so you have to create a copy of the file and then delete the originalā.
2 Likes
Piling on that this is a feature Iād like to see as well. My sue case of the day is that I am copying quotes in from an academic article, waiting to see themes emerge and then rearranging under headings. I often donāt know the headings until pulling out what Iām interested in (and is usually organized differently than the authorās outline.
So the Outline plugin is fine but not for the initial round of brain-storming by dropping info into a note and re-arranging it based on themes.
I am working in a Community Plugin that allows dragging and dropping text blocks. I will let you know when I share it.
3 Likes
Will you reply here when itās released?
Yes! I will inform here of its release. It is currently waiting for approval. I am using it already, and I am loving it!