Hookmark Window

The Hookmark popup window has two modes: context-sensitive mode and search mode. This document deals with the context-sensitive mode. That’s the main mode.

1. The Title bar and Action ☰ button menu

When you first invoke Hookmark on an item, you’ll just see the Title bar and PINNED and RECENT sections which are initially empty.

If you click on the Action ☰ button, you’ll see some handy commands:

The title bar contains the name of the title item, which is initially the name of the document or item that was active when you invoked Hookmark.

For example, if you invoke Hookmark on this page (⌃M), the title bar says “Hookmark Window – Hookmark”, which is the title of this web page.

The title bar has an Action ☰ button menu button and other buttons. The main entry to Hookmark is that Action button.

When you click on the Action button (☰) in Hookmark’s title bar with (or type ⌃M in Hookmark), you see the “Action menu”. The Action menu has the main commands you’ll use to copy and create links. All Action ☰ button menu commands operate on the currently selected item, whether it is the title item or the a hooked link.

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The Action ☰ button menu acts as if it were an additional menu in the foreground app. For instance, you are viewing this page in a web browser. Invoke Hookmark (⌃H), and click on the Action ☰ button. Notice that the menu items are relevant to your browser’s Edit menu, in that they could be there. Now, switch to another app, and click on the Action ☰ button. Again notice that the menu items are relevant to your browser’s Edit menu (Hookmark virtually extends your favorite apps.) Get that idea, (it’s worth it) and your cognitive productivity will also be extended!

So are the contents of Hookmark’s Action ☰ button menu:

  • Open: that title item
  • Copy Link, which copies the name and address of the title item into the clipboard as a link that you can paste or use in “Hook to Copied Link” (same effect as Hookmark’s Copy Link toolbar button).
  • Copy As Markdown Link does the same thing as the previous command but in Markdown format (Pro Only).
  • Copy Selection and Link copies a quote and a link, in Markdown, rich text and HTML formats. This only works for certain apps (such as PDFpenPro, Preview, Skim).
  • Copy All Hooked Links copies all the links shown in the HOOKED section to the clipboard.
  • Hook to Copied Link is only enabled if there is a link in the clipboard (e.g., from “Copy Link” above). This command hooks (links) the selected item to the target (URL) of the copied link (same effect as Hookmark’s Copy Link toolbar button.) This is the command that makes hooked links appear in the Hookmark window. NB: this command appears as Hook to Copied Links (plural) if there are multiple links in the clipboard.

  • Hook to New <default note taking app> is the same as the previous command but instantly uses your default note-taking app.

  • Hook to New… creates a new item in an app that you choose and links the new item to the title item (very handy for note-taking and other purposes).

  • Rename in Hookmark: This enables you to rename a bookmark. Next time you use Copy Link you’ll get the new name. (Revert the name in the Advanced menu).

  • Pin: This adds the title item to the PINNED section of the Hookmark window (though that [context-free] section may be invisible — depending on Preferences > General; or Gear Menu > View > Show|Hide Pinned).

  • Reveal File in Finder which is only enabled if the title item is a file (of course), in which case it reveals the file in the Finder.
  • Reveal Page in Pinboard is only shown if the selected item is a web page, and you have enabled Pinboard integration.
  • Focus →: Places the selected link in title bar. Only enabled if the selection is not the title item.
  • Back ◀: Hookmark’s contextual window is also a link browser/navigator. If you “focused on” a particular link (using the focus command above), this will unfocus, i.e., go back.

  • Make Hookmark File (Pro only). This creates a .hookmark file (in Finder). The name of the file is is same as whatever is selected. It contains a URL to whatever is selected. Opening the created .hookmark file opens the Title item. (It’s a better alternative to Finder aliases and .webloc files.)

  • Advanced >

    • Delete in Hookmark. This completely removes from Hookmark the bookmark for this item, and all the hooks (but not _their) bookmarks).
    • Add Bookmark Without Copying.
    • Open All Hooked Items.
    • Revert Name in Hookmark: This sets the name of the bookmark back to its original name (assuming you have renamed it yourself). Next time you use Copy Link you’ll get the original name.
    • Share: a share sheet for the item in the Title bar.

2. HOOKED links section

When you invoke Hookmark (⌃H), the HOOKED section shows everything that you previously “hooked” (bidirectionally linked) to the Title item. (See Hook to Copied Link in getting-started.)

If there’s nothing hooked to the Title item, then this section will not be shown.

Each item in the HOOKED section represents a bidirectional link from the Title item.

Selection of hooked item

If you click on a hooked link, it will be selected; then when you apply an Action ☰ button command it will apply to that item.

ADVANCED: Secondary selection of hooked items (and keyboard shortcuts)

You’ll notice that if the title item is selected and there are hooked links in the window, one of those hooks will be “half-selected” or “semi-selected”. It is then known as the “secondary selection”. We’ve provided a way for advanced users to act directly on the secondary selection, without needing to make it the focus (title item), as follows.

There is a set of commands you can use to act directly on the secondary selection. The commands replicate the Action ☰ button menu (the Action menu itself only works on the full selection.) Those commands are tucked away in Gear > Advanced > Link menu. You can see the keyboard shortcuts there. (Or look at the All commands & keyboard shortcuts page.

These commands are also available if you control-click on a hooked item. It’s a handy way to act directly on a link even if you haven’t clicked on the link first. However, we do not display the keyboard shortcuts for them in this context.

See Link Menu.

Note these commands are basically a replicate of the Action ☰ button commands. They are a convenience for keyboard users and to save a click.

This also applies to the PINNED and RECENT items links.

Navigating the Hookmark window

You can also navigate (browse) the network of hooked links using arrow keys or by clicking. Hookmark supports many standard keyboard shortcuts (e.g., emacs style keyboard bindings). For instance if you select a link and click its > button, the Hookmark window will focus on the link. When you focus on an item (i.e., “navigate to it”), the title bar of the Hookmark window takes the name of the hooked item. Try it out, and check out “navigating linked items”.

3. PINNED items section

Show or hide the PINNED section via the Gear menu or by typing ⌥⌘P.

As you would expect, the PINNED section of the Hookmark window contains items you have pinned.

Whereas the HOOKED items section is contextual, the PINNED items section is context-free. Regardless of the context you’re in, this section will show the same items: anything you’ve pinned, assuming you’ve configured Hookmark to display this section.

Please note that:

  1. Double-click or ‘Return’ on a pinned item to open it.
  2. As you can tell from the screenshots above, you can pin items using the Action menu’s (⌘P) or the Link menu (⇧⌘P).
  3. You can show/hide the PINNED section with a keyboard shortcut or via Hookmark’s General Preferences pane.
  4. You can expand or collapse the PINNED section using a keyboard shortcut or by clicking on the triangles.
  5. You can also focus on (“navigate into”) pinned items (also with a keyboard shortcut).
  6. The Link menu is also available for pinned items.

The PINNED section is part of what makes Hookmark a truly universal bookmark manager. You can bookmark just about anything! 👏👏👏

At the end of a work day, or when switching between projects, it can be useful to pin a project item. Then when you get back to work on the project, consult the PINNED section, open the item, and use Hookmark to navigate its related items. (Of course, you can also use Hookmark’s search to find previously bookmarked items).

4. RECENT items section

Whereas the HOOKED items section is contextual, the RECENT items section is context-free. Regardless of the context you’re in, this section will show recent items, assuming you’ve configured Hookmark to display this section.

You can show or hide the RECENT section.

This is more general than the ‘Recent items’ entry in macOS Finder, because Hookmark can open not just files, but anything to which it can attach a link.

Hookmark adds an entry in the RECENT items section whenever:

  1. You invoke the Hookmark window on a hooked item (it takes on the Title). For example if you invoke Hookmark on this web page it will be added to RECENT items;
  2. you open an item through the Hookmark window;
  3. Hookmark opens an item that is new to it through a hook:// link.

Please note that:

  1. Double-click or ‘Return’ on a recent item to open it.
  2. You can show/hide the RECENT section with a keyboard shortcut (⌥⌘R); via the Gear menu; by typing or via Hookmark’s General Preferences pane.
  3. You can expand or collapse the RECENT section using keyboard shortcut (⌥⌘09, ⌥⌘0) or by clicking on the triangles.
  4. You can also focus on (“navigate into”) recent items.
  5. The Link menu is also available for recent items.

5. The Status bar (bottom of window)

At the bottom of the Hookmark window is a status bar. It displays helpful context-sensitive messages. If the current app is unsupported or Hookmark just cannot find a valid file or linkable resource, the status bar will say “No linkable found in the app”. But normally, the status bar presents tips, such as listing available commands and keyboard shortcuts.

Gear menu in Status bar

On the far right side of the Status bar is a Gear menu. To access the gear menu, click on the gear menu or type ⌃G. Whereas the Action menu and the Link menu are context-sensitive, operating on the title item and selected link, respectively, the Gear menu contains global commands (that do not vary as a function of the Title item or link-selection).

See Gear menu for more information on that menu.

Search mode (show all bookmarks)

The Hookmark window has two modes:

  1. It starts off in contextual mode, reflecting the title item.
  2. Type ⌘F (Find) or use the search button in the title bar to enter search mode (exit context-sensitive mode.) Hookmark’s search has a very powerful syntax.