Tip: Pasting text from OneNote creates an image in CL instead of text

[JohnnFour]

On Windows, at least, there are several clipboard modes, including text and image.

When pasting from OneNote, it seems Windows defaults to image.

To bypass this and paste actual text from OneNote into CL, use CTRL + SHIFT + V when you are pasting into CL.

Example:

https://komododecks.com/recordings/JTJ4w3OEeZ8WrGG5OKFh

 

[ExileInParadise]

If you right click there is usually an icon for "paste as text" as well - but - I am thinking this is a Windows OS problem and not so much a web/CL problem because Windows picks the mode and interface its going to call for the paste.
Maybe there's a default somewhere deep in the guts of the beast that make it prefer text paste first ...

 

[JohnnFour]

Yes. Good call @ExileInParadise. Windoze and browsers have contextual menus.

Sometimes you get clipboard paste options via right-click. Sometimes you get a handy "paste as plain text":

 

[JohnnFour]

I also want to remind/call out to CL GMs that CTRL+SHIFT+V also nukes characters wearing cloaks of invisibility and other nasty rich text stuff that can foil a good pasting.

So make CTRL+SHIFT+V a good muscle memory habit and you avoid a lot of wasted time. This goes for many other apps and doc suites too.

 

[GM Rob]

I think the way CL handles pasting on Windows has been a bit dodgy until just recently. Ctrl-V, of course, pasted an image from LibreOffice Calc as others have noted, but Ctrl-Shift-V didn't do much better, pasting some kind of escaped mess of text. As I was preparing a detailed example to illustrate what I meant, I discovered...

It works!

Ctrl-Shift-V now pastes exactly the same text as I get from a simple Ctrl-V into Notepad.

It seems that Notepad is smart enough to know it wants a text-only paste and doesn't require Ctrl-Shift-V. I wonder if CL could do a better job of deciding which kind of past it wants as well. In this case, an image is unlikely to be what's wanted.

 

[JochenL]

It seems that Notepad is smart enough to know it wants a text-only paste and doesn't require Ctrl-Shift-V. I wonder if CL could do a better job of deciding which kind of past it wants as well. In this case, an image is unlikely to be what's wanted.

In fact, CL has a paste hierarchy - if there is an image, paste the image; if there is HTML, convert it to markdown and paste that. Otherwise, let the browser do its thing.

I could turn this around of course, if all image copies are not putting additional data on the clipboard.

 

[GM Rob]

There seems to be a two-step process happening in my browser when I paste from Calc with just Ctrl-V. First I see a bunch of text, then it disappears and the image link appears. I'm happy Ctrl-Shift-V is working! Saves me a couple of steps.

 

[Hunterge]

I get your frustration with pasting text from OneNote and getting an image instead of actual text. That can be a real headache, especially if you're in a hurry and need to make quick edits. What I usually do to avoid this problem is to use a different note-taking app that handles text better. Have you tried notesonline.com ? I've found it to be reliable for this kind of stuff. When you paste text from notesonline.com into CL, it usually comes through as plain text, which makes life so much easier. Another trick is to first paste your text into a plain text editor like Notepad before transferring it to CL. This strips out any formatting that might be causing the issue. It's an extra step, but it saves a lot of hassle in the long run. If you're set on sticking with OneNote, you might want to explore its export options.

 

[JochenL]

So, you say, prefer text over image?