PDF and document context searching

jsmith967

Hello Zotero users, first post here.

I realize that my question may be too broad or naive so I apologize in advance.

I'm looking for a plugin for Zotero that would allow me to search the attached PDFs (and other files like .txt, .docx, etc.). Currently, I know Zotero allows to search PDFs but has a major flaw for my purposes: it does not indicate the "context" of the search. Thus, if I search "King Henry VII" through my library, Zotero indicates which items have this phrase but I must then open up each attachment, click 'find', type "King Henry VII", and read the context for each item. This is quite tedious.

Is there a way for Zotero to show the context of the search? I have in mind a feature wherein I would type "King Henry VII" and then I could specify the search to show me the paragraph "King Henry VII" shows up. I could then browse the relevant contexts and then, once I found the desired context, open that document more fully.

I don't think this has been developed yet. Where could I start if I wished to contribute to something like this?

dstillman

This has always been planned — the search subsystem actually provides snippets of matched attachment content — but hasn't been possible in the main items list due to technical limitations of the underlying framework we use. We have a new items list coming soon, which will open up new possibilities for displaying things like this.

You can see an old thread about this, including my response there, for more context.

jsmith967

Thanks for the reply. I can't wait for this! I would love to help in development. Could I do anything to help this along?

I suppose we could be waiting a long time, since your last reply there was in 2014.

jsmith967

Will the new items list come in a major new release, like 6.0, or will it come to an update to the current version of Zotero? Thanks for your work.