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Footnote Inline Void Fix

docs/plans/2026-04-04-footnote-inline-void-fix.md

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Footnote Inline Void Fix

Goal

Make footnote references behave like real inline atoms instead of editable text.

Phases

  • Load prior learnings and inspect the current footnote runtime/tests
  • Add red tests for inline-void ref behavior and backlink navigation
  • Implement the footnote reference inline-void model and renderer/nav fixes
  • Verify with targeted tests, package checks, registry build, lint, and browser-use

Notes

  • The current spec now says footnote refs should be inline void atoms.
  • Runtime is still wrong: footnoteReference is inline but not void.
  • Browser symptom to kill:
    • Backspace after the ref edits the visible identifier.
    • Backlink navigation triggers generic chrome instead of clean navigation.
  • Result:
    • footnoteReference is now an inline void atom with an empty child sentinel
    • backlink focus lands on the nearest stable sibling text point instead of a node-range selection
    • browser proof on /docs/footnote showed backlink jump landing on the . after [1], only one toolbar on screen, and one Backspace removing the whole ref instead of the digit