Change default shortcut prefix and postfix

[jon-heard]

In brief:

These are my three questions for the community:

• Should the default prefix be 2 semicolons or 1 semicolon?
• Any issues to keep in mind when picking the default prefix and suffix?
• What characters to use for the default suffix, and why?

In depth:

Since this plugin has been in open beta, I've noted drawbacks to the default prefix and postfix (;; and ;). Some users have found it cumbersome. Others have uncovered logistical limitations.

I am reconsidering the default prefix and postfix. My decision for this is based on:

• ease of typing - semicolon is under the pinky, as opposed to curly braces, which require moving both hands for the shift key and curly brace key.
• unobtrusive - semicolon is not markdown syntax and is rarely used in normal prose, making it unlikely to accidentally trigger a shortcut-check during normal typing, as opposed to the space key.
• distinctive - semicolon stands out when writing plugin docs and error messages.

So, I'm inclined towards using a semicolon for the prefix. Perhaps a single semicolon is sufficient, though? What do you think?

I'm currently aware of one particular logistical issue with the current prefix and postfix: nesting expansions by writing a shortcut within another shortcut triggers a "Shortcut unidentified" warning partway through. Can you think of any other issues to keep in mind when picking a prefix and postfix?

The suffix is the big open-ended question. Options include one or more of the following:

• ' (apostrophe) - Easy to type. It's meaning doesn't jibe with this purpose. Possible issues with accidental triggering of a shortcut-check: using multiple apostrophes can help. A user just pointed out that the autocomplete of Obsidian's new editor causes issues with keystroke recognition and, thus, prefix/suffix. This includes apostrophe.
• . (period) - Meaning jibes with this purpose. Probable issues with accidental triggering of a shortcut-check. Using multiple periods can help, but still problematic with ellipses.
• / (forward-slash) - Less obtrusive than apostrophe or period. It's meaning doesn't jibe with this purpose.
• space key - Not possible on it's own as many shortcuts have spaces in them. Would work after a different character, but is it useful then?
• tab key - Not as easy to type as the others. More importantly, not feasable within Obsidian's latest editor, as far as I can tell. Tab has a special use (to indent the current line). It doesn't seem open for rewiring, nor does it seem like a super idea. However, if you know of a plugin that does (again, in the latest editor), then let me know and I'll look into it.
• something else - Anything else is likely to be harder to type, which I'm trying to avoid, but I'm open to other opinions.

[thecookiemomma]

Single : prefix / postfix is used for emoji shortcodes plugin. Double is nice, IMO.

[MohrJonas]

I agree with @thecookiemomma that the prefix should be 2 semicolons.
Anything that has a different meaning in Markdown should be avoided. That would remove

• \
• `
• *
• _
• { }
• [ ]
• <>
• ( )
• #
• +
• -
• .
• !
• |

Because I type a lot of LaTeX math, I don't like using symbols common in math. That means removing:

• /
• ^

I'm personally using a German QWERTZ keymap, so I also don't like characters where I have to press the Alt Gr key, which completely cramps my hand. For me, that also eliminates

• ~

Because of that, I'm currently using :: as a suffix.
Hope that helps 😁

[jon-heard]

@thecookiemomma: thanks for your input.

@MohrJonas: I just finished adding an explicit block against using characters that trigger auto-complete. Thanks for pointing out these other ones to avoid as well.
:: is decent. It requires holding shift, but your list of characters to avoid removes a LOT of possibilities. I'm going to check to see if anything in that list is ok, despite being used in markdown.

[jon-heard]

I'm going with ::.

There are a number of characters that are viable despite being markdown or math symbols. Context helps, as does doubling the character. In the end, though, :: seems to be the easiest to type. It requires moving one finger to shift, but that's the most practiced move of all. Everything else requires less familiar moves except maybe, comma, which is right out (it's an auto-completing character).

[jon-heard]

Now that that's settled, I hate to hijack this conversation, but there's one other thing bothering me: ~~.

~~ is used extensively for shortcut-file organization. @MohrJonas, you've mentioned ~ being difficult to type on a German keyboard. How do you feel about shortcut-files relying on ~~? What character would you have chosen?

I chose ~~ because it is uncommon, visually distinctive and non-reactive in the markdown parser. There are plenty of other options, though.

---

Here are some alternatives that I'm liking. They are markdown non-reactive.

• @@ - It's visually loud. It's even more distinct than ~~, yet reads differently from normal text, letting shortcut strings be pretty easy to read. It's wide, making each shortcut scan more like a solid block of text.
• .. - It's visually quiet. It helps the shortcut strings stand out more individually and lets the organization be defined more by the vertical spacing.

[MohrJonas]

I personally don't mind using ~~ for shortcut files, even though it is a bit of a hassle to type. Typing @ also requires pressing Alt Gr on the Germany keyboard layout, so there is not that big of a difference between them. Using .. is, as you've mentioned, a bit too subtle. Another symbol I thought of that's pretty simple to type on a German keyboard (I don't know about other keyboards) and is rarely used for anything is the degree symbol °.

[jon-heard]

Perhaps this is fine as-is, but I'd like to have it explored before letting it rest. I often templatize the shortcut form, but it's nice to be able to quickly type it on occasion, so picking a good character helps.
.. being too subtle is good to know.
Unfortunately, typing ° on Windows on a US keyboard is Alt+0176 (hold alt, then type "0176").
I'll see if I can find a list of symbols common to national keyboards. If I do, then I'll post a list of options.

[jon-heard]

After reviewing keyboard layouts (using Windows On-Screen keyboard), I'm inclined to change ~~ to __, unless anyone has an objection. Obviously, it would have been better to decide this before establishing a user-base, but at least Text Expander JS is still in open-beta.

~~ isn't terrible overall (for occasional use). However, it's missing entirely from some keyboard layouts, including Italian and Russian.

__ is ubiquitous across keyboard layouts. Also, it looks good, works... decently with markdown and is unused in regex and JS. ALSO, adding an extra underscore (3+ instead of 2) shows as as a horizontal rule in markdown, so that mistake is pretty obvious.

[MohrJonas]

Sounds good!