# Can't have string # in one entry

**URL:** <https://discourse.jabref.org/t/cant-have-string-in-one-entry/5439>\
**Category:** Help\
**Tags:** entry-editor\
**Created:** [February 14, 2025, 10:25am UTC](https://discourse.jabref.org/t/cant-have-string-in-one-entry/5439 "2025-02-14T10:25:47Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 10\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![0hsuanyin](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/discourse.jabref.org/0hsuanyin/32/1244_2.png) [@0hsuanyin](https://discourse.jabref.org/u/0hsuanyin)\
**Post date:** [February 14, 2025, 10:25am UTC](https://discourse.jabref.org/t/cant-have-string-in-one-entry/5439/1 "2025-02-14T10:25:47Z")

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Hi,

I’ve used the newest version for Macs:  
JabRef 5.15–2024-07-10–1eb3493  
Mac OS X 15.3 aarch64

and found that the string “#” will always be automatically deleted in an entry. For example, if I want to put “proc # sosa” in the booktitle entry, I get “procsosa” when I save the file. Can I make any changes in File-\>Preferences to keep “#” displayed?

Cheers,

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**Author:** ![Siedlerchr](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/discourse.jabref.org/siedlerchr/32/216_2.png) [@Siedlerchr](https://discourse.jabref.org/u/Siedlerchr)\
**Post date:** [February 14, 2025, 3:19pm UTC](https://discourse.jabref.org/t/cant-have-string-in-one-entry/5439/2 "2025-02-14T15:19:36Z")

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Hi,

under Preferences → Entry → Resole Bibtex Strings  
Add your field(s) separated with a semicolon

Regards  
Christoph

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![0hsuanyin](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/discourse.jabref.org/0hsuanyin/32/1244_2.png) [@0hsuanyin](https://discourse.jabref.org/u/0hsuanyin)\
**Post date:** [February 14, 2025, 3:40pm UTC](https://discourse.jabref.org/t/cant-have-string-in-one-entry/5439/3 "2025-02-14T15:40:11Z")

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Hi,

Thanks for the response. However, it seems still not working even I put this:

 ![image](https://canada1.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/uploads/jabref/original/2X/7/7adc7805efadcbcb0850e4ef0e00caa28bb7fb0a.png)

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Siedlerchr](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/discourse.jabref.org/siedlerchr/32/216_2.png) [@Siedlerchr](https://discourse.jabref.org/u/Siedlerchr)\
**Post date:** [February 14, 2025, 5:46pm UTC](https://discourse.jabref.org/t/cant-have-string-in-one-entry/5439/4 "2025-02-14T17:46:28Z")

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Do you have any cleanup operations defined for the field(s)?

How is your BibTeX string defined, I mean, what replacement value? Is this perhabs the replacement value that is defined and automatically gets replaced while JabRef resolves the String value?

I just tried it out in the latest dev version (no BibTeX strings defined) at all and just

 ![grafik](https://canada1.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/uploads/jabref/original/2X/a/a09a4a3e005f4599c5264689f6e586e0242dd8ff.png)

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![0hsuanyin](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/discourse.jabref.org/0hsuanyin/32/1244_2.png) [@0hsuanyin](https://discourse.jabref.org/u/0hsuanyin)\
**Post date:** [February 17, 2025, 2:15pm UTC](https://discourse.jabref.org/t/cant-have-string-in-one-entry/5439/5 "2025-02-17T14:15:57Z")

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Hi,

Thanks very much. I also tried to use the development version:

 ![image](https://canada1.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/uploads/jabref/original/2X/9/92a3b0a54a6b905970a9ba9da04042fbd38220e8.png)  
But still didn’t get what you have. I don’t think I have used anything about the string replacement before…However, How do I check where the replacement value is defined?

Cheers,

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Siedlerchr](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/discourse.jabref.org/siedlerchr/32/216_2.png) [@Siedlerchr](https://discourse.jabref.org/u/Siedlerchr)\
**Post date:** [February 19, 2025, 6:32pm UTC](https://discourse.jabref.org/t/cant-have-string-in-one-entry/5439/6 "2025-02-19T18:32:22Z")

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Hi,

they are defined in the bib file at the beginning of the file or you can see them in the Library → library Properties → String constants

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![0hsuanyin](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/discourse.jabref.org/0hsuanyin/32/1244_2.png) [@0hsuanyin](https://discourse.jabref.org/u/0hsuanyin)\
**Post date:** [February 27, 2025, 8:47pm UTC](https://discourse.jabref.org/t/cant-have-string-in-one-entry/5439/7 "2025-02-27T20:47:06Z")

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Hi, Thanks for the response. I didn’t make any String constants in the beta version. On the other hand, just to clarify. I wanted to have the exact  
“proc # sosa” in the BibTeX source field, not just the “Required fields”

 ![Screenshot 2025-02-27 at 21.43.42](https://canada1.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/uploads/jabref/original/2X/d/d01ecdd838a1e1a09592efb6c499b5648a050170.png)  
 ![Screenshot 2025-02-27 at 21.45.04](https://canada1.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/uploads/jabref/original/2X/4/4ac9fd90aa62ae0a61e53d2da741182b5d358dbe.png)

While I can make the “Required fields” to be “proc # sosa” but in the BibTeX source it turns out to be “{proc # sosa}” which is not what I want.

 ![Screenshot 2025-02-27 at 21.46.23](https://canada1.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/uploads/jabref/original/2X/5/5c0e7a6cefb126fa54b33f277cca8a6b2cf1cad7.png)

I have to back to the old version JabRef 5.13–2024-04-01–6bdcf63. Then, no such issue anymore.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![koppor](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/discourse.jabref.org/koppor/32/5_2.png) [@koppor](https://discourse.jabref.org/u/koppor)\
**Post date:** [February 28, 2025, 11:14am UTC](https://discourse.jabref.org/t/cant-have-string-in-one-entry/5439/8 "2025-02-28T11:14:25Z")

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Thank you for the report. This is effort of more than 5 hours to solve. I try to work on it next month. Even though all of this happens in my freetime, I try to keep the tool operational. Sometimes, feeding my family is more important.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![0hsuanyin](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/discourse.jabref.org/0hsuanyin/32/1244_2.png) [@0hsuanyin](https://discourse.jabref.org/u/0hsuanyin)\
**Post date:** [March 24, 2025, 12:23pm UTC](https://discourse.jabref.org/t/cant-have-string-in-one-entry/5439/9 "2025-03-24T12:23:18Z")

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Sure! That’s entirely understandable 🙂

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![koppor](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/discourse.jabref.org/koppor/32/5_2.png) [@koppor](https://discourse.jabref.org/u/koppor)\
**Post date:** [May 15, 2025, 12:27am UTC](https://discourse.jabref.org/t/cant-have-string-in-one-entry/5439/10 "2025-05-15T00:27:26Z")

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We do need a bug report at [GitHub · Where software is built](https://github.com/JabRef/jabref/issues). Otherwise, this will probalby not be fixed before 2040 😅. With a bug report in our issue tracker, the issue is going into our developers “world”.