Zotero 5.0 Beta
This is an old discussion that has not been active in a long time. Before commenting here, you should strongly consider starting a new discussion instead. If you think the content of this discussion is still relevant, you can link to it from your new discussion.
This discussion has been closed.
Note that we will be shutting off 4.0 syncing a few months after 5.0 is released, at least for libraries with 5.0 users, because that's the only way we can make long-awaited changes to the Zotero data model. The exact timeframe will depend on how quickly people upgrade to 5.0 and the stability of cross-version syncing. Oh, I think we've pretty well accomplished that…
It's also now much easier to adjust the public visibility of child items in My Publications. You can still choose whether to include files and notes when dragging the parent item, but since you're now simply adding the original item, all child items will show up in the My Publications view, with those that aren't shown publicly in gray. You can change an item's visibility by clicking a new button in the right-hand pane. New child items you add are not shown in My Publications by default, so you don't have to worry about accidentally exposing something.
If you've already added items to My Publications, those items will be automatically migrated to My Library. Unfortunately we don't have a good way of automatically merging those, so if you didn't delete the original items in My Library you'll end up with duplicates and will need to merge those. You may also get a sync error until you upgrade, though other libraries should continue to sync. Sorry for the inconvenience on both counts.
Thanks for the feedback on this feature, and let me know if you have any questions on this change.
I am not sure if this is a new thing or just that my previous page has not updated.
I use Zotero within a corporate environment. I do not have any administrative privileges, and therefore use Portable Firefox with the Zotero plugin, as we cannot install any additional software onto these machines.
Are the planned changes going to break this? If so, is there any way I can freeze my system configuration and versions in order to prevent any updates from occurring?
I'm not sure if there is a way to run Standalone from USB (this is on Windows?).
Zotero will not auto-update to version 5.0, but eventually version 4 will be cut off from syncing and in the longer run you'll start to miss out on other crucial fixes and updates (in addition to not being able to upgrade portable Firefox), so while this will buy you another 9-12 month, maybe, it won't be a viable solution for the long run, sorry.
I suspect that for many, this will be significant problem. There is no way my organisation will permit the installation of 'Zotero Standalone'. Therefore, this will need to be packaged as a Portable App before I (and others) can use it. (This is in the NHS, where I work).
Staying with Firefox Portable will also prevent me from using 'Standalone' at home - since eventually I can see that the database structures will diverge enough to become incompatible with each other - so I will have to downgrade at home.
I would strongly advise against keeping an outdated version of Firefox on your home computer. If you do, you should assume that everything you do on that browser -- including anything on a supposedly "secure" connection like online banking -- is public information.
Hence the value of designing 'Zotero Standalone' to be packaged and/or installed on any system without requiring System Administrator privileges.
We will be running FF 52 ESR as long as possible and we won't switch to standard Firefox.
So, I wonder whether Firefox 52 ESR will work with Zotero 5.0 standalone or will I have to use a different webbrowser with standalone?
Thx!
Also, at least initially, the Zotero 4-->5 update is _not_ automatic but will only happen if/when a user agrees on a prompt.
Would it be possible to additionally provide a self-contained version of Zotero 5.0 which runs without administrative privilege (and still connects to the Firefox/Chrome Zotero Connector)?
Mjules mentioned that he/she could install zotero 5.0 beta 2 without administrative privilege (windows 7) in the profile directory......
I think this would resolve headaches of (many) Zotero users in professional environments.
When I sync (upload a file or download), there was a progress bar that shows the progress and the remaining ration near the yellow turning circle. At Zotero 5 Beta, there is not this progress bar and it is not good :/ Could you add it again.
Thank you.
Thank you very much for adding to Zotero which Library is updated feature. It is a great help. But I think you should add one more feature for it. That is when we chose which library will be updated, we should also choose all the attachments will be synced at any time or as needed. Now this feature is missing and I think it will be very helpful for us.
Thank you
Thanks very much for the continued hard work in making Zotero 5, too; I'll look forward to the 5.0 release!
I think you can't solve this without your IT.
I can confirm that just installing 5.0 beta on a fairly locked down Windows environment does work. It prompts for admin login and then installs locally if you don't provide it. You could just try what happens if you do that. Make sure you have a back-up of your database, but I can't really see much going wrong.
Thanks :)