Zotero and Tablets

kbrand530
Hi,

I apologize if this question as already been asked and answered, but my search of the topic usually resulted in answers from about 2-3 years ago and I wanted to see if everything still holds true.

I currently have zotero 5.0.18 stand alone on my PC. My ultimate goal is to be able to pull up papers on a tablet (I don't currently own a tablet), highlight and annotate, then send them back to my computer and have it all sync up with Zotero's online storage. From what I found, it looks like I could use Zotfile (which I have installed on my laptop) to accomplish this. Does this still hold true?

My next question is if anyone had a recommendation on a tablet to get for this use. The main function of the tablet would most likely be to read papers, highlight, and then send it back to my computer. I wouldn't be opposed to getting something like an iPad for this if its going to result in a relatively simple set up with something like Papership. However, it is a bit pricey and if I could accomplish the same goal with something else, I would be up for an android based tablet.

Again, sorry if this has already been asked and answered 10 different times.

Thank you for help!
  • bwiernik
    Zotfile is still your best bet for annotating PDFs on an iPad or Android tablet.

    The easiest setup would be to get a Surface Pro or other Windows 10 (the full OS, not the 10S mobile OS) Tablet. Because it runs the full version of Windows, you can just run the Zotero program directly on it.

    Beyond that, I’m not personally a fan of Android, so I can’t recommend a tablet there
  • kbrand530
    edited September 18, 2017
    Unfortunately the surface pro is a bit out of my price point. After reading a bit more of the forum, looks like papership is kind of going away. Is there an option for iPads now? Or is an android with an associated app really the only option now? (and maybe I'm confused, but Zotfile isn't a program you can actually read pdf and annotate on, is it? My understanding is that it is just a add-on feature for the zotero stand alone)
  • adamsmith
    none of the Android apps are all that reliable either -- they're either no longer supported or not really mature; that's why bwiernik suggests using ZotFile, which will work the same way on any tablet with a file sync app (like Dropbox or box.com).
  • kbrand530
    edited September 18, 2017
    Would it be possible to use zotfile in conjunction with Zotero's online storage system or would i have to use something like dropbox, box, etc, to make it sync correctly between zotero standalone and the tablet? IE- instead of having a drop box file on my laptop that syncs with dropbox.com, could I use C://user/zotero/storage as the file for it to sync with? I'm assuming that same directory is what zotero.com uses to online sync.

    From other sources I'm seeing, it looks like I could do something that is recommended here (http://libguides.libraries.wsu.edu/c.php?g=294161&p=2088033) but it would end up making 2 files for each paper - 1 that is "clean" and 1 that is annotated. If this true, that's fine, I'm just seeing if it has to be done that way or if there is a way to overwrite the original
  • adamsmith
    Yes, the workflow described in the libguide is what we're suggesting. ZotFile actually has a preference that lets you choose whether to create two copies or overwrite.

    If you "just" use ZotFile's send to tablet functionality, you can keep attachments in Zotero storage. If you want to sync all your files using Dropbox, you'll still use Zotero for data sync, but the files wont be in /storage anymore but you'll have used ZotFile to move them to your Dropbox folder. Both set-ups have advantages
  • kbrand530
    If I wanted to overwrite the original file with the annotations I do on my tablet, what settings should I configure on my zotfile preferences, if my end goal is to keep my attachments and such on Zotero storage?
  • adamsmith
    To keep files in /storage: Under General Settings: Location of Files --> Attach stored copy of file(s)

    To overwrite files when refetching from tablet, under "Tablet Settings" make sure "Save copy of annotated file" is _unchecked_.
  • kbrand530
    Thank you so much! As a follow-up for the settings, should the base folder in tablet settings be /storage? Additionally, would I need subfolders at all or would I check the subfolders based on zotero collection?
  • adamsmith
    No, the base folder is where you (temporarily) move the files _to_. It must not be /storage. It'd typically be a dedicate folder within Drobox/box/etc., i.e. .../Dropbox/Zotero or so. Whether you want to use subfolders or not is up to you. That just affects how you navigate the files on your tablet.
  • kbrand530
    Got it, then my source file for attaching new files under the general tab should be the same as the base folder under the tablet tab, right?

    Just to make sure I'm understanding it correctly:
    Base file under tablet is where the annotated pdfs would be sent to and the source file is telling zotfile to retrieve those annotated files to go back into zotero which should then be sync'd with zotero's online storage.

    Close?
  • adamsmith
    Not quite. The base file under tablet is all you need to set for that functionality. The Source file does something completely different. It should typically be set to your preferred download folder. ZotFile allows you to add the last file downloaded to that folder to the item you currently have selected (e.g. when Zotero's auto download failed.)
  • kbrand530
    Ok, so let's try it again:

    Base file under tablet is set for a cloud based folder (in my case, I'm using google drive). I would then annotate on my tablet. I would then go to my laptop and say "get from tablet" which would then import it from that base file and overwrite it into /storage which then gets sync'd with zotero storage.

    Sorry it's not clicking with me...thanks for your patience!
  • adamsmith
    yup, that's it
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