@dstillman Here is my workflow: I annotate a PDF with comments and highlighting from the Zotero PDF viewer on desktop. If I right-click on the PDF attachment (from the main Zotero pane) and select "show file", I can copy-paste the PDF file to send to someone. This PDF will NOT have any of my annotations on it, which is often what I want.
However, I often want to send someone a PDF *with* the annotations saved within the PDF using the normal PDF annotation format. For instance, sometimes people ask me comment on their papers and it's nice to be able to just open it in Zotero and start reading/annotating, and then later send it to them. But, to my understanding, there's no easy way to export the PDF with the annotations I have made embedded inside it so that I can send it back to the person. In particular, if there are dozens or more annotations, anything that involves converting them to Zotero notes one-by-one is a massive headache.
What I would like: an "export PDF with annotations" option (perhaps in the "Tools" menu?) that opens up a save dialog and, after you pick a file name and folder location on your hard drive, creates a copy of the PDF there with all annotation included in the native PDF annotation format.
Is this the appropriate thread for this feature suggestion, or is it different enough from the OP that I should post as a new thread? Thank you!
What I would like: an "export PDF with annotations" option (perhaps in the "Tools" menu?) that opens up a save dialog and, after you pick a file name and folder location on your hard drive, creates a copy of the PDF there with all annotation included in the native PDF annotation format.
Hi! I've been doing precisely that step. File -> Export PDF based on your advice. The pdf compiled does add my own notes/comments on the parts I highlighted. Yet, in a very random way, rather than following the page structure (e.g. first comments on page 14, then 7, 11, 3 etc.). Is there a way to fix this? Thanks in advance.
I also did not find the "File => Export PDF" functionality and ended up in this thread.
For me, the reason was that right-clicking on a PDF in zotero shows a number of file/pdf-related options, but _not_ "Export PDF". I therefore did not think to look elsewhere.
I agree with leoteo - indeed, I often find that many functions are located in menus that aren't necessarily intuitive (copy citation/bib under edit, for example).
In this case the file menu IS intuitive, once you know it's there, but it's still not AS intuitive as right clicking or looking within the PDF itself. Adding it to those locations, too, would indeed be useful.
In this case the file menu IS intuitive, once you know it's there, but it's still not AS intuitive as right clicking or looking within the PDF itself. Adding it to those locations, too, would indeed be useful.
It's File → "Save As…" in the PDF reader.
There's a cost to loading up the context menu — which is already fairly crowded — with every single possible operation, and this is not a particularly common operation. The File menu is clearly the most appropriate place for this — it's literally about saving something to a file on disk. We can think about adding it to the context menu as well, but the File menu is much more basic and accessible to more users than right-clicking.
I often find that many functions are located in menus that aren't necessarily intuitive (copy citation/bib under edit, for example)
Copying to the clipboard is located in the Edit menu in every program that exists.
My context menu almost has to scroll because it fills the screen, with the many plugin options added. Adding more to it is not a great idea. And encouraging plugin writers to only add one main context menu item, with the actual operations in a sub-menu, would be a good idea (eg like Zutilo does).
I see your points. Can I suggest simply adding PDF to the format options under the Export Items already in the context menu?
The confusion for me was, I think, that Export Items and Export PDFs seem similar enough to one another that I was surprised when recently trying to export into NVivo that I couldn't do it from File, and (I'm realising now) must've ruled 'File' out as 'already checked' because it didn't export into NVivo when I was looking for that function recently, and I would've expected PDFs to be in the same place given the practical overlap in the way I'd use these functions. I guess I also think of PDFs as more widely used, so if anything would've assumed that in the case of a separation in the export function that they would be the one in context, whilst others in File.
Thanks for pointing me to the Save As... within the reader. I agree that's pretty common sense, too, and think it's the annotations aspect that muddies the water there, since it doesn't seem to come with any option to do with or without. That makes the distinction between save as and export clearer, of course, but does mean there's a layer of processing needed to determine which I need and where to go.
These functions are all there, though, and probably are obvious and accessible *enough* that under normal use I'd have already just factored it into the way I approach it. I am often using this program whilst in the middle of thinking and writing about complex topics that don't leave me many resources for processing much else, so guess that's a factor. I imagine I'm not alone there, though, hence the detail of this reply, which is very much intended purely as user feedback for you to do with as you will. Whilst I do find myself having to look up what I need more often than I'm accustomed, Zotero has still resolved so many of my reference library needs and I'm still stumbling upon great functions I didn't realise were there. kudos on a great thing.
@cadoylemd: I'm not sure what your "this" is referring to, but you can export a copy of the PDF with annotations embedded by using File → “Export PDF…” from the library view or “Save As…” from the PDF reader. Those are equivalent.
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However, I often want to send someone a PDF *with* the annotations saved within the PDF using the normal PDF annotation format. For instance, sometimes people ask me comment on their papers and it's nice to be able to just open it in Zotero and start reading/annotating, and then later send it to them. But, to my understanding, there's no easy way to export the PDF with the annotations I have made embedded inside it so that I can send it back to the person. In particular, if there are dozens or more annotations, anything that involves converting them to Zotero notes one-by-one is a massive headache.
What I would like: an "export PDF with annotations" option (perhaps in the "Tools" menu?) that opens up a save dialog and, after you pick a file name and folder location on your hard drive, creates a copy of the PDF there with all annotation included in the native PDF annotation format.
Is this the appropriate thread for this feature suggestion, or is it different enough from the OP that I should post as a new thread? Thank you!
For me, the reason was that right-clicking on a PDF in zotero shows a number of file/pdf-related options, but _not_ "Export PDF". I therefore did not think to look elsewhere.
Could be worth adding it in the right-click menu?
In this case the file menu IS intuitive, once you know it's there, but it's still not AS intuitive as right clicking or looking within the PDF itself. Adding it to those locations, too, would indeed be useful.
There's a cost to loading up the context menu — which is already fairly crowded — with every single possible operation, and this is not a particularly common operation. The File menu is clearly the most appropriate place for this — it's literally about saving something to a file on disk. We can think about adding it to the context menu as well, but the File menu is much more basic and accessible to more users than right-clicking. Copying to the clipboard is located in the Edit menu in every program that exists.
The confusion for me was, I think, that Export Items and Export PDFs seem similar enough to one another that I was surprised when recently trying to export into NVivo that I couldn't do it from File, and (I'm realising now) must've ruled 'File' out as 'already checked' because it didn't export into NVivo when I was looking for that function recently, and I would've expected PDFs to be in the same place given the practical overlap in the way I'd use these functions. I guess I also think of PDFs as more widely used, so if anything would've assumed that in the case of a separation in the export function that they would be the one in context, whilst others in File.
Thanks for pointing me to the Save As... within the reader. I agree that's pretty common sense, too, and think it's the annotations aspect that muddies the water there, since it doesn't seem to come with any option to do with or without. That makes the distinction between save as and export clearer, of course, but does mean there's a layer of processing needed to determine which I need and where to go.
These functions are all there, though, and probably are obvious and accessible *enough* that under normal use I'd have already just factored it into the way I approach it. I am often using this program whilst in the middle of thinking and writing about complex topics that don't leave me many resources for processing much else, so guess that's a factor. I imagine I'm not alone there, though, hence the detail of this reply, which is very much intended purely as user feedback for you to do with as you will. Whilst I do find myself having to look up what I need more often than I'm accustomed, Zotero has still resolved so many of my reference library needs and I'm still stumbling upon great functions I didn't realise were there. kudos on a great thing.