Drag and Drop PDFs doesn't work; can't move to "My Publications"

I'm new to Zotero and I'm facing a strange issue: when I try to add pdfs to Zotero desktop program, it simply doesn't work. I tried to drag and drop the files from File Explorer and put in the central area, in My Library, etc., but nothing works.
I was able to add the pdfs in the web version and they appeared in my desktop app. However, I found another issue: I cannot move them to "My Publications". In fact, I am not able to move to "My Publication" even in the web browser.

Any suggestion on what might be the problem? I installed the program both in my desktop and laptop (both Windows) and facing the same issue in both.
  • edited November 22, 2021
    You should certainly be able to drag PDFs to Zotero. If that's not working, it's possible you're running either Zotero or File Explorer as different users (e.g., one as administrator and one not), which can break drag-and-drop.

    You can also use "Store Copy of File" in the New Item menu in the toolbar.

    Note, though, that you normally wouldn't add items to Zotero by dragging in local files. Make sure you've read through Adding Items to Zotero to learn about the recommend workflows.

    For My Publications, you can only add items to My Publications by dragging the full metadata items — not standalone PDFs — in the desktop app. See the PDF section on the linked page for an explanation of PDFs vs. regular items.
  • Thanks. But how can I check whether I am or not administrator in zotero and File Explorer?

    With respect to "My Publication" - is there a way for Zotero to pull this information directly from my Google Scholar page?
  • https://superuser.com/questions/1213101/check-if-an-app-is-running-as-admin
    With respect to "My Publication" - is there a way for Zotero to pull this information directly from my Google Scholar page?
    No.
  • Both Zotero and File Explorer are "No" in the elevated column of Task Manager.
  • Can you take a screen recording of what you're doing, upload it somewhere (e.g., Dropbox or Google Drive), and provide a link here?

    Did you try Store Copy of File?
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