Renaming linked files: Renaming rules

edited March 24, 2019
Hi everyone,
I was hoping that someone would have some advice on the renaming rules of linked files (in Zotero itself, not ZotFile). Is there a preliminary list of rules that do work? I've read that this feature is still in progress but I thought I could still ask.

I have "extensions.zotero.attachmentRenameFormatString" currently set as {%c_}{%y_}{%t{50}}. Is it possible to skip the "et al." that is added if the entry contains several authors (so instead only adding the first author to the file name)?

E.g. instead of Jobert et al._2007_Local acceptance of wind energy Factors of succes.pdf renaming it as Jobert_2007_Local acceptance of wind energy Factors of succes.pdf

All the best and thank you in advance for any tips.
  • No, Zotero’s current renaming rules are limited. If you want more detailed control over renaming, you should use Zotfile.
  • Okay, I figured, but thank you for your reply!
    I tried using ZotFile for it but it doesn't seem to work without moving the files.
    But then again maybe the problem sits in front of the computer, not "in" the computer...
  • If you leave the location field empty in Zotfile Preferences, the files should rename without moving.
  • edited March 25, 2019
    Thank you for the tip!
    I got it halfway working but I'm still doing something wrong. When I click on "Manage attachement" - "Rename attachment" then it renames the linked file in zotero but not in my actual folder where the file is stored.
  • Just to confirm, you have the PDF file closed when you try to rename it, correct?
  • (I vaguely remember this having gotten glitchy on ZotFile, but not sure)
  • Yes, the file is closed!
  • I tried it with a defined destination field and that way it worked. So the issue really seems to lie in the non-moving of the file...
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