Zotero Connector stopped saving snapshots from time to time

hayhayhay · 2024-04-22T10:13:42+00:00

Sometimes Zotero Connector stopped saving snapshots. The metadata of webpages could still be saved to Zotero, but snapshots couldn't. Usually the problem could be solved by turning off Zotero Connector then turning it back on.

I don't have a pattern to reproduce the problem for now. It seems to happen randomly.

Zotero 7.0.0-beta.75+f7dc68c7f (64-bit)
Microsoft Edge 123.0.2420.97 (64-bit)

dstillman · 2024-04-22T10:28:26+00:00

To be clear, snapshots aren't saved on all webpages. If the site is covered by a translator and the page doesn't include full text, or there's a PDF that does, a snapshot generally won't be included.

If you're saying you're not getting a snapshot and then you reload the page or restart your browser and then it saves a snapshot, that sounds more like a bug.

hayhayhay · 2024-04-22T10:39:56+00:00

Yes, turn off the Connector then turn it back on (and reload the page), then the snapshots (which the Connector previously failed to save) can be saved successfully.

dstillman · 2024-04-22T10:41:16+00:00

Do you get an error for the snapshot or does the snapshot not show up in the save popup?

We'd probably need to see Debug IDs from Zotero and the Zotero Connector for reloading the page and trying to save and having it not work.

hayhayhay · 2024-04-22T10:45:38+00:00

No error message. The snapshot was in gray in the save popup.

Sure, I'll try to get a Debug ID next time.

wayt · 2024-04-25T00:30:14+00:00

I have been having the same issue for many months, and it causes me a lot of manual labor that should be unnecessary. I use Zotero Connector with Microsoft Edge for Windows 10. When my laptop has been idle for a while and automatically locks, and then I later unlock it and resume working with Edge and Zotero, Zotero Connector frequently fails to generate a snapshot from websites such as bloomberg.com and technologyreview.com. Closing the browser and reopening it (with tabs automatically restored) somehow resets the extension, and snapshots then work as expected. Screenshot:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/zotero.org/images/forums/u1673756/x3rhdp1ucjtpcnz7iada.png
Zotero debug ID: D299205187

wayt · 2024-04-25T01:06:53+00:00

Here is a second debug ID D364513658 for a failed attempt to save a snapshot of an article from foreignaffairs.com. I should mention that I am a subscriber to both Tech Rev and FA and was logged in when saving these articles to Zotero.