[Plugin] MoveFootnotes2 - Intelligent Renumbering with Collision Protection

[jaad34]

Hi everyone,

I’ve developed a small but powerful edit plugin for Sigil called MoveFootnotes2. It’s designed for those moments when you need to reorder or shift a range of footnotes/endnotes without breaking the entire book's numbering or manually editing every ID and link.

Note for Spanish-speaking users: I have also released a native Spanish version of this plugin. If you prefer, you can use MoverNotas2 instead of MoveFootnotes2. The functionality is identical, but the interface is in Spanish.

Key Features:

• Universal Detection: It works with almost any prefix (ref, note, fn-, etc.) and handles id, href, and visible text like [1].
  
• Collision Shield: Before applying any changes, the plugin scans the book. If your new numbering "overlaps" with existing notes outside your range, it warns you and allows you to rectify the range.
  
• Safety First: It uses a non-destructive logic; if a number in your range isn't found, it simply skips it and continues.
  
• User Friendly: Includes a step-by-step welcome window and a loop for easy error correction.

How to use:

1. Select the start and end of the range you want to move.
   
2. Enter the offset (e.g., +1 to shift forward, -1 to shift back).
   
3. The plugin handles the rest across all HTML files.

Use Case Examples:
1. Adding new notes in the middle of a book:

Imagine you have an EPUB with 90 existing notes, and you need to insert three new ones before note 46. With this plugin, you can simply select the range from 46 to 90, set an offset of +3, and they will be instantly renumbered from 49 to 93. All your IDs, links, and back-references remain perfectly intact.

2. Removing notes and closing the gap:

Suppose you have 85 notes and you decide to delete 5 intermediate ones (e.g., notes 46 through 50) from both the main text and your notes.xhtml file. To fix the numbering gap, just select the range from 51 to 85, set an offset of -5, and your notes will be perfectly reordered again. No broken links, no manual editing, and no risk of corrupting your EPUB structure.

Rest assured that your notes will never overlap or duplicate accidentally. The Collision Shield constantly monitors your book; if you make a mistake while selecting the range and it conflicts with existing notes, you will receive an immediate warning. This allows you to rectify the range before any changes are applied, keeping your EPUB safe and error-free.



I hope this helps other fellow e-book editors! Feedback is more than welcome.

And, remenber:

MoveFootnotes2_v1.2.0.zip -> (English version)

MoverNotas2_v1.2.0.zip -> (Spanish version)


Best regards,
Freire_Hispalensis (jaad34)

[Doitsu]

Thanks for the plugin! I have some minor nitpicks, though:
1. You might want to add this line to plugin.xml:

<autostart>true</autostart>

2. The plugin is using Tk for the GUI. However Tk support might be removed from Sigil. To future-proof your plugin you might want to rewrite it to use PySide6 instead.

[jaad34]

Originally Posted by Doitsu

Thanks for the plugin! I have some minor nitpicks, though:
1. You might want to add this line to plugin.xml:

<autostart>true</autostart>

2. The plugin is using Tk for the GUI. However Tk support might be removed from Sigil. To future-proof your plugin you might want to rewrite it to use PySide6 instead.

Thank you for your feedback.

I'll rewrite the plugin based on your suggestions, and if it works correctly, I'll upload the updates.

[jaad34]

Originally Posted by Doitsu

Thanks for the plugin! I have some minor nitpicks, though:
1. You might want to add this line to plugin.xml:

<autostart>true</autostart>

2. The plugin is using Tk for the GUI. However Tk support might be removed from Sigil. To future-proof your plugin you might want to rewrite it to use PySide6 instead.

Thanks again for the feedback, Doitsu! I've taken your advice to heart:

Added <autostart>true</autostart> to the plugin.xml.

Fully refactored the GUI from Tk to PySide6 to ensure the plugin is future-proof and fits natively within Sigil’s Qt environment.

Version 1.3.0 is now ready. I appreciate the guidance!

MoveFootnotes2_v1.3.0.zip -> English version
MoverNota2_v1.3.0.zip -> Spanish version.