Standalone + Firefox connector : No "save to zotero" option?

swaldman
Hi,

Due to the upcoming changes I thought I'd get ahead of things, and have moved from Firefox for Zotero to Zotero Standalone (v4.0.29.17) and the Firefox connector (v5.0.7).

I still have a button to save things to Zotero when there is a known translater, which works.

However, when saving a file from the web (such as a PDF) there used to be an additional option in the Firefox save dialog - along with "Open File", "Save file", etc., to "Save to Zotero". This would simply save the file as a new item and automatically do a Google Scholar search for metadata. This was very useful for "naked" PDFs that weren't accessed through a journal website.

Is it intended that this option should still exist? If so, can you help me get it back? If not, please can this be considered a RFE?

Thank you.
  • bwiernik
    edited June 18, 2017
    That option in the download pane isn't possible currently due to limitations in how Firefox's new extension system works. You can, however, just use the regular Zotero connector button with a naked PDF page (just like with any other web page) to accomplish the same thing.
  • swaldman
    Ach. Yet another good addon feature that's no longer possible :-(

    Thanks for the info.

  • dstillman
    We actually made a request to Mozilla for some sort of replacement functionality in the new extension framework, but it's not clear what if anything they'll do. (They almost certainly won't allow changes to the open/save dialog.)

    Just to reiterate, though, you can replace this pretty easily as long as you turn on native PDF viewing in Firefox. (It's on by default.) When you do, PDFs will display in-browser initially, and you can use the Zotero save button on those. If you want to open them in another program, there's a download button in the toolbar of the PDF viewer.

    The Zotero save button won't currently trigger metadata retrieval automatically, so there's an extra step back in Zotero, but we hope to be able to make that automatic in the not-too-distant future.
  • swaldman
    Yes, sorry - the whinge in my last reply was aimed at Mozilla, not yourselves. Thank you for pointing out the workaround, and much appreciation for having something in place well before we lose the old-style addons.
  • sharachchandra
    I have a slight concern. If I enable 'display in browser' then it means the pdf has to first download, become visible in my browser, then I save it to zotero. Many times, I find a pdf in google search (naked pdf) and just want to save it to zotero (without opening it), while going on to do other things. Now, I will have to open the pdf first, then only I can save to zotero. Am I right? Any workaround?
  • dstillman
    You can drag the PDF link to Zotero.

    A right-click save option for PDF links is also planned.
  • friedsoap
    Hi Dan,

    I just wanted to let you know that Zotero and the support you provide is amazing.

    The drag solution you just mentioned works like a charm (but it is not intuitive so thanks for pointing it out!), and the right-click will even be more useful since I/we won't need to resize the zotero and browser windows to drag and save the link.

    Since we are talking about right-click saving, I am going to add my penny: there could be 2 options: one to save into the "working directory" (i.e. the directory you last visited within zotero) and another save option which let you choose into which directory you'd like to save the link (many times I come across stuff that you'd like to keep elsewhere than the directory I am working on/populating with articles).

    Congrats for the good work and thanks again.

    Best

    Aleix
  • dstillman
    since I/we won't need to resize the zotero and browser windows to drag and save the link
    For what it's worth, depending on your comfort with keyboard shortcuts, that might not be necessary now. On macOS and Windows (and probably Linux), you can drag across Cmd-Tab/Alt-Tab. Basically, see Switching Between Programs, but start to drag and keep the mouse button down before using Cmd-Tab/Alt-Tab.
    there could be 2 options: one to save into the "working directory" (i.e. the directory you last visited within zotero) and another save option which let you choose into which directory you'd like to save the link (many times I come across stuff that you'd like to keep elsewhere than the directory I am working on/populating with articles).
    In an upcoming connector version (and currently in beta), you'll be able to choose any library or collection to save to from within the connector, without switching to Zotero first.
  • dstillman
    Oh, and just to follow up, automatic metadata retrieval when saving PDFs directly — via Save to Zotero or drag-and-drop — is now implemented.
  • friedsoap
    > On macOS and Windows (and probably Linux), you can drag across Cmd-Tab/Alt-Tab: start to drag and keep the mouse button down before using Cmd-Tab/Alt-Tab.

    I can confirm this shortcut works on Linux! (at least on Ubuntu 16.04 with Unity)... Amazing shortcut tip! Thanks.

    > In an upcoming connector version (and currently in beta), you'll be able to choose any library or collection to save to from within the connector, without switching to Zotero first.

    OK, but the idea of having the two options still appeals to me in the sense that sometimes I do a literature review and I am putting everything in the same folder, so it will save me time just to send it to the "working directory". I am making the key assumption that saving to the working directory is only "1-click" while choosing another one is at least "2-clicks". I guess that if the connector provides you with the working directory option first (and,e.g., not the home directory of "my library"), you would be solving this issue and you would not need 2 save options. Does that make sense?
  • friedsoap
    BTW, how do you format the text from an older post so that you get the vertical line on its left margin?
  • adamsmith
    I guess that if the connector provides you with the working directory option first (and,e.g., not the home directory of "my library"), you would be solving this issue and you would not need 2 save options. Does that make sense?
    Try it out -- that's already what it does.

    To quote text, wrap it in html <blockquote>Here's the quote</blockquote> elements
  • friedsoap
    Try it out -- that's already what it does.
    Yes, I meant in the future connector where you will also be able to chose an alternate destination where to save, in case this new option triggered a dialogue first or something.

    Last suggestion (I tried to edit the wiki but I did not have the rights): you could add the tip Dan mentioned earlier to https://www.zotero.org/support/getting_stuff_into_your_library:
    On macOS, Windows and Linux, you can drag across Cmd-Tab/Alt-Tab. Basically, see Switching Between Programs, but start to drag and keep the mouse button down before using Cmd-Tab/Alt-Tab.
    Thanks a lot!

  • adamsmith
    I understood that you were referring to the next version (which is in beta, so you can try it out; Dan links to it). It defaults to the currently selected collection and if you just click once, that's where it saves. You have a couple of secs to select a different collection.
  • fbennett
    Beautiful piece of work.
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