Open access PDF

vit_gri

Because of space constrains, I'm usually deleting open access pdf attachments (I tend to skim the content, highlight the gist and export it as a note first), since I can get them whenever I need it
Is there a way to avoid the automatic download of open access pdfs?

bwiernik

You can disable the automatic retrieval of PDFs in the General pane of Zotero preferences.

dstillman

That will disable automatic retrieval of all PDFs, though, and not just open-access ones. We didn't create a separate preference for open-access PDFs, and while we could, I'm not sure it's necessary — just as you can access an OA PDF later, if you have access to a gated PDF there's a decent chance you'll have that later as well. And if you know you won't, you can use Find Available PDF to download it manually (though that will currently only work for on-campus or VPN access, not when you're using a web-based proxy).

vit_gri

Exactly as you say dstillman, I'm on a web-based proxy and that's why I find it useful. I understand it's unnecessary for most people though, thanks for answering.

dstillman

Well, web-based proxies are common, and we're hoping to support those eventually for Find Available PDF.

My point was more that, as long as you have access to the proxy, viewing an open-access PDF and viewing a gated PDF through your proxy isn't really much different. Even if you can't use Find Available PDF, if you want to add a specific gated PDF to Zotero later you can just view it in the browser, click the Save to Zotero button, and then drag the saved PDF item on top of the existing item.

vit_gri

You're right, I suppose I'm viewing the "turning the proxy on and off" part as a hurdle, that's why I usually download gated PDFs in batches, while for OA papers I just save them on Zotero reserving the possibility to get the PDF at a later time.