correct.
The abstracts aren't in the citation data output from the page. We can, generally speaking, scrape the abstract from the page directly, but currently that requires a relatively substantial rewrite of the translator, so it won't happen super quickly, but I'll try to get to it eventually.

yes it's translator specific. We do grab the abstract off the page for a number of sites - but obviously having it right in the RIS is preferable.

Before I read this message I saved an item from esajournals.org. I just went back and checked and it did save the abstract as well. Cool.

Then, just to test, I enabled the save associated PDFs option in Standalone. With that option enabled, it fails to save the item from the page at all with the message "Could not save item. An error occurred while saving this item. Check Known Translator Issues for more information."

Yep.

I gave it another try with my Zotero build at a different location with a much better internet connection just to make sure that wasn't the issue. ( I'm using that build because I'm trying to work on a patch to fix some annoying file picker behavior, http://forums.zotero.org/discussion/25837/attach-link-to-file-file-picker/#Item_10. )

Then I gave it a try with Zotero Standalone 3.0.8 and had the same problem. I disabled "Automatically attach associated PDFS" but no luck. Then I disabled "Automatically take snapshots", which I like to have disabled, and still no luck with both options disabled. Next I updated the translators again but I'm still broken.

I uninstalled the keyconfig extension and tried it all again but still no luck. I re-enabled snapshots and PDF saves and tried with an article from cell.com and that worked fine.

I've been using these two articles as tests for esajournals.org:
http://www.esajournals.org/doi/full/10.1890/10-0154.1?prevSearch=coexistence&searchHistoryKey=
http://www.esajournals.org/doi/full/10.1890/10-0154.1?prevSearch=coexistence&searchHistoryKey=

In order to paste shorter URLs here, I loaded up http://www.esajournals.org/doi/full/10.1890/10-0154.1 and http://www.esajournals.org/doi/full/10.1890/10-2422.1. Then just for kicks I tested them. Using these URLs, the articles were added to my library with snapshots but without PDFs.

Using the previous URLs, the results of esajournals.org searches, I get the translation issue dialog again. Actually, I get the little box but without any text. The only way I knew it was the failure was that when I clicked in the blank box it took me to the known translator issues website.

So, at the moment, it looks like Firefox and Standalone will import items from esajournals.org, but not the PDFs, unless the web page is the result of an esajournals.org search. Then it won't import at all.

Now it gets the item into my library with snapshots even if it is a search result page. It still doesn't get the PDF whether it's a search result or not.

Yes, up to this point everything has been done via proxy. I'm not sure what the full URL would be. I just configure Firefox to use an "Automatic proxy configuration URL". Then the URL I see in the location bar is the same as if I wasn't using a proxy.

I just got to run all of these tests again without the proxy. Everything works fine in both Add-on and Standalone. That is, the abstract, pdf, and snapshot were all saved via full-text view and via abstract view both directly and via search results of the journal's internal search.

Then I repeated using the proxy again. Everything worked properly again with Add-on. However, with Standalone the pdf was never retrieved although both the abstract and the snapshot were properly retrieved in each case.