Field-based cross-references instead of hyperlinks in LaTeX2docx conversion

[jgm]

Discussed in #10660

^{Originally posted by JPZ4-5 March 4, 2025}
When using LaTeX2docx conversion, how can we achieve field-based cross-references (for captions and text references) rather than hyperlinks? This is crucial for automatic numbering updates when merging DOCX documents.

Current Behavior:

1. pandoc -o output.docx main.tex can convert \caption{XX} in the table and figure environments in LaTeX to captions in plain text, above tables or below figures. The \ref{} in the text can be converted to hyperlinks.
2. pandoc -F pandoc-crossref -o output.docx main.tex can convert \caption{XX} in the table and figure environments in LaTeX to captions with numbering in plain text, above tables or below figures. The \ref{} in the text can be converted to hyperlinks.
3. pandoc -F pandoc-tex-numbering -o output.docx main.tex can customize captions well, where Figure X-XX: XXXXX has Figure X-XX as a hyperlink and : XXXXX as plain text. The \ref in the text can be converted to hyperlinks. This is also the recommended latex2docx filter in the pandoc-crossref documentation.

Problem:
Haven't found any existing method produces Word field codes (like SEQ fields) for captions/references. Manual conversion (inserting caption fields + replacing hyperlinks with cross-reference fields) is prohibitively tedious.

Questions:

1. Are there mature solutions for automatic field-based conversion?
2. If not, is it better to:
   • Develop a custom Pandoc filter (preferred), or
   • Create VBA macros (undesirable due to lack of VBA expertise)?
   • record a macro in Word and execute it in a loop?

Recommendation

jgm: What we could perhaps do is add a specially marked Span around the generated numbers; this would be enough of a hook for the docx reader to substitute a field.