iOS share pdf from PubMed

mnneely · November 30, 2022

Any pointers on more simply adding a reference with pdf from PubMed to iOS Zotero? Here’s what I’ve tried.

Workflow 1:
1. Find PubMed reference.
2. Log into institution.
3. Share reference to Zotero -> Imports correctly, but no pdf and no way to gain access to pdf in Zotero.

Workflow 2:
1. Find PubMed reference.
2. Log into institution.
3. Open pdf in Safari via institutional access.
4. Share pdf to Zotero -> Imports as hyperlink/web page, not pdf. No way to access the pdf or get true citation details.

Workflow 3:
1. Find PubMed reference.
2. Log into institution.
3. Open pdf in Safari via institutional access.
4. Save pdf to Files.
5. Share pdf to Zotero -> Imports as pdf with no citation data and no way to add

Workflow 4:
1. Find PubMed reference.
2. Log into institution.
3. Open pdf in Safari via institutional access.
4. Save pdf to Files.
5. Share PubMed reference to Zotero
6. Add saved pdf to reference.

Only workflow 4 gets a proper reference in Zotero with attached pdf, but with a lot of steps. Can this process be more efficient? Even workflow 2 would be better if the pdf could be transferred and with metadata.

Thanks.

adamsmith · November 30, 2022

In most cases, clicking through from PubMed to the publisher and saving from there should get you the PDF.

mnneely · November 30, 2022

Thanks. Unfortunately for me, I always have to log in to PubMed, and get access via the “Find at USC” button, which makes me log in to my university, and then takes me straight to the pdf. If I click the publisher button from PubMed, even after logging in to both PubMed and my university, I land on a publisher page with no access. That’s the same behavior if I simply send the PubMed page to iOS Zotero. I get the publisher page with no access, i.e. Workflow 1 in my original post.

What I’m hoping for is the ability to send a pdf open in Safari to Zotero and have the metadata populated (like the desktop version). Alternatively, if I have logged in to my institution and received whatever cookies they send, then “Find Available PDF” would be an option that works, again, like the desktop version of Zotero.