Character map

I often need to lookup Unicode symbols. In other apps, I can open a character map and simply insert the needed symbol. In Joplin, I can't. Of course, in Windows, I can open charmap.exe. find the symbol, copy, and then paste, which is a long process. I don't know about Mac, but no such thing on Android or iOS. So, the suggestion is to include an icon on the toolbar that will bring up the Unicode table that can be used with a click at the current cursor position.

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I do not think that each and every application should duplicate functionality that is included in the operating system.

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That is not the point. The point is that such functionality is very much needed in Joplin, at least for some of us.

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Here is a suggested more universal solution.

I use autokey (linux) for that kind of thing. Windows, I believe, has a similar utility called autohotkey. You can assign a shortcut to unicodes you use a lot to make them available in Joplin and other programs near instantaneously.

These few below for example, I use frequently, and have put the letters in brackets that automatically trigger them, just to give you an idea. Of course you can set up any symbols and shortcuts you wish

:exclamation: (ex!)
β˜… (bstar)
β˜† (wstar)
:heavy_check_mark: (tck)
✘ (xmrk)

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It won’t work universally (Android, MacOS etc), so it has to be a feature built in Joplin. Also, I am talking about hundreds of characters. All Greek alphabet + various symbols that people use for technical writing.

I meant universal to the Desktop, in any case if you're using hundreds of characters it is not for you.

Might be an interesting use case of a plugin, I think.
Not everybody would want to have such feature, which would be big.
An application like BabelMap, which is exactly that, but in an independent application, weight 16 MB, probably most of it being Unicode data.

And to be practical, it would need to keep frequently accessed symbols, otherwise search would be tiresome.

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Potentially, a way to address the size issue is to have a charmap initially empty, or with just some common chars. One can then use the system's charmap, or one like BabelMap, to copy / paste the needed chars. Thus, you can build your own set of frequently used chars, a kind of palette.
Not sure if the process is too boresome, though.