What about the reverse? Is it possible to upload a PDF document that already has highlights into Zotero and somehow preserve those highlights?
I understand that annotations made in Zotero stay in the app, but I don't see why users need to re-highlight if they want to use Zotero to look at older PDFs.
External annotations are read-only by default — indicated by a lock icon — but you can transfer them into Zotero by selecting File → “Import Annotations…” from within the PDF reader, after which they'll be fully editable. The annotations are removed from the PDF to avoid conflicts and duplicates.
Import Annotations is disabled in group libraries in the current release version, but we've re-enabled it now in the Zotero beta. If you're trying this in a group library, that's the reason.
If you're trying this in your personal library, the option should be active if there are actually annotations saved to the PDF that haven't yet been imported.
I understand that annotations made in Zotero stay in the app, but I don't see why users need to re-highlight if they want to use Zotero to look at older PDFs.
Thanks!
If you're trying this in your personal library, the option should be active if there are actually annotations saved to the PDF that haven't yet been imported.