Is there something people use instead of org-ctags? (was: [PATCH] `org-ctags-create-tags` creates empty TAGS file)

[Martin Marshall]

I was curious how long this bug had been around and why no one
complained about it before.  So I looked through the Git log and found
that it was introduced on 1/18/2010.  That's just over two weeks after
the package was added to Emacs[1]!

Other than a 4 year old Reddit post[2], there've been no bug reports or
mailing list discussions about it in the fourteen years since the bug
was introduced.  This gives me the impression that very few people are
using the org-ctags package.

That's surprising, because it seems like it could be very useful.  It
allows for linking to "direct targets" from external files[3], which is
similar to the "come-from" links that Howm implements.  It's a very
low-effort, low-friction way to add links between different notes.

Is there some other way to create this sort of simple external link in
org-mode?  Is there some other package that provides a similar feature?

[1] Commit 53868111d000302b50706769526f15164600d739
[2] 
https://www.reddit.com/r/emacs/comments/fg71cw/orgctags_failed_to_create_tags/
[3] That look like <<this>>.  See https://orgmode.org/manual/Internal-Links.html

-- 
Best regards,
Martin Marshall