Tech Forum

Gospel Library 5.4.0 for iOS is now available on the iOS App Store. Here are the release notes:

NOTE EDITOR
• Added undo and redo buttons.
• Added underline, alignment, and list indentation options.
• Added ability to insert a hyperlink, horizontal line, or timestamp.
• Increased maximum length for notes (Warning: If you take the new 500,000-character limit as a challenge, we are not responsible for sore thumbs).

SEARCH
• Added search suggestion for searching in context, based on your location in the library.
• Find on Page goes directly to the page instead of loading results in the search panel.
• Date modified shows for notes on the Notes tab in search results.

CONTENT
• Added topic tags to the bottom of general conference talks.
• Added links to Revelations in Context chapters from the sidebar in the Doctrine and Covenants.

Any change in iOS requirements?

russellhltn wrote:Any change in iOS requirements?

No, Gospel Library 5.4.0 still supports iOS 11 and up.

Love hyperlinks but this is a very weak implementation. The hyperlink is not retained when copying and pasting text containing hyperlinks within annotation being edited.

Hyperlinks are not retained when pasting text contains hyperlinks into a note.

A new screen is opened when navigating with a hyperlink. There is no back arrow to navigate to the source clicked in.

corwinslack wrote:Love hyperlinks but this is a very weak implementation. The hyperlink is not retained when copying and pasting text containing hyperlinks within annotation being edited.
Hyperlinks are not retained when pasting text contains hyperlinks into a note.

When pasting or dragging content into the note editor, the content on the clipboard is converted to plain text (so all HTML tags, including the tags that indicate a hyperlink, are removed). The decision to paste as plain text was made for three main reasons: 1) to prevent users from pasting a malicious script into a note that could be used for phishing, an XSS attack, etc. when the note is loaded on the Church website or synced to another device, 2) to prevent users with parental controls from pasting in an <iframe> to use a note as a browser, and 3) to prevent users from accidentally pasting in HTML elements that can't be edited or cleared using the buttons at the bottom of the note editor (for example, the navigation bar from a website). Because the OS handles the copying and pasting itself, it's difficult (or impossible) for the app to know where something was copied from, so there's no way to treat copying content within the app differently from copying from an external app or website.

corwinslack wrote:A new screen is opened when navigating with a hyperlink. There is no back arrow to navigate to the source clicked in.

Following a link to Gospel Library content from outside the app always opens in a new screen (for example, if you email yourself a link to a conference talk). This prevents the content you were viewing before from being lost. Links in notes follow the same pattern.

The biggest issue with hyperlinks in notes right now, that I'm aware of, is the inability to edit a hyperlink after it's been created. If anyone else agrees, feel free to send feedback.

I did send feedback on the inability to edit a hyperlink.

Appreciate your explanation but surely there are measures that can protect against malicious links. This isn’t the first time this issue has cone up in linking technologies.

Also I wonder why a hyperlink cannot be shared outside of the gospel library.

corwinslack wrote:Also I wonder why a hyperlink cannot be shared outside of the gospel library.

Could you give an example?

When you clicks the three ... in the right hand corner of a notes display window it gives a share option for the note. Share it to email or a note etc and the link will disappear.

It seems to me that if the editor did not render the link immediately that a link could be entered with a simple markdown like syntax like

[6 The Gift and Power of God](https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/stu ... wer-of-god? id=p32-p33#p) ( This renders as navigable but imagine it is just normal plain text here and renders with 6 The Gift and Power with link formatting when saved. )

When the text is saved the link is checked for legality and if not legal it would not be rendered. Of course I am only speculating about feasibility but I don't really see what the current restrictions protect.

Will not open following 5.4 update