Preview file interrupting collection import

edaugherty

Hi there,

I am switching over to Zotero from Mendeley due to Mendeley's incompatibility with Mac OS High Sierra and/or Word 16.9. I exported my Mendeley library as a .ris file and have been attempting to import it into Zotero. The first 130 references appear to load without a problem, but then there is one that sends up a separate window with the following message:
"You have chosen to open:
..NameOfFile.pdf
which is: Preview Document (127 KB)
from: .../Zotero/storage/JU2L4DXD
What should Zotero do with this file?
- Open with: Preview (default)
- Save file
- Save to Zotero
- Retrieve Metadata for PDF"

Ideally, I would like to save to Zotero and retrieve metadata. When I select that option, I get an error that says "Saving link... An error occurred while saving this link." Selecting any option permanently pauses import, such that the Importing... box remains visible but the import does not progress.

I could not find any discussions referencing this behavior, so I have created a new one. Please point me in the right direction if I missed an answer to this issue.

Thanks!
Ellen

dstillman

That's certainly not supposed to appear during import.

Could you generate a Debug ID for the import attempt through that error?

edaugherty

@dstillman Thank you for your quick reply.

This is the Debug ID: D1369157843

dstillman

So if you look in your Mendeley "Downloaded" folder for the filename beginning with "and," and ending with "from.pdf", and you try to open it, is that actually a PDF? Zotero seems to think it's an HTML file, despite the filename, and that's causing the popup. We should be able to fix that, but deleting that file might help (though there could be other problems).

edaugherty

I use a watched folder for Mendeley, so I don't have a "Downloaded" folder, as far as I can tell. I found the article as a pdf with a different name in a Mendeley subfolder, but it opens just fine and has no mark-ups. Trying to open the file on Mendeley web app, however, I get an error message saying the pdf file is invalid or corrupted, with the following details: PDF.js v1.1.366 (build: 9e9df56)
Message: Invalid PDF structure.

I am going to try to delete the file from my library and download a new copy, then re-export my Mendeley library and re-import it into Zotero. I'll get back to you on how that goes.

dstillman

I use a watched folder for Mendeley, so I don't have a "Downloaded" folder,

You do: /Users/:username:/Library/Application Support/Mendeley Desktop/Downloaded

dstillman

(Hold down Option and click the Go menu in Finder to access /Users/:username:/Library.)

edaugherty

Ah yes, I had forgotten about that. I was able to go into the "Downloaded" folder and remove the problematic file. I then wrote a new Mendeley export over the previous one, which apparently did not remove the file from export. Once I deleted the .ris export file and saved a new one, I was able to import successfully.

There appear to be multiple corrupt files, however, and each time Zotero tries to import one, I get the same message as in the original post, and import stops. I can then delete that file and replace it with a clean one, then save a new .ris file and start import again. It is an arduous process, but at least I think I will get through all the entries eventually.

dstillman

If you can wait a few days, we should be able to fix it to not show those messages for invalid files.

edaugherty

It turned out I had about 4 problematic files. I was able to get through the entire import by yesterday evening. Thank you so much for your help!