Simple method of retrieving specific pdfs from Zotero?

adriw
I regularly need to retrieve specific pdfs from Zotero to upload to third-party tools for instruction (Perusall). My current method is to right-click on the reference and choose "show file," which opens an Explorer folder. I can then copy the file onto my desktop or drag the fie to the relevant upload site.
Is this the best way to get to the pdf of an article, or am I missing the super-obvious "download pdf" button somewhere?
  • adamsmith
    You can drag the attached file directly from Zotero to your desktop. Depending on the site, you might even be able to directly drag from Zotero to the upload window -- I tested that with a pretty standard "drag here to upload" on a website from Zotero & Windows and it worked fine, but details will likely matter (and I don't have a Perusall account, so can't test there).
  • adriw
    Hmm. My attempts to drag (either the reference in the Zotero library or the pdf itself in the annotation screen) to the desktop or to a browser window give me a denial - a little red circle with a line through it.
  • adriw
    I am still not able to drag files from Zotero on two different computers.
    I am using Windows machines and Windows 11.
    Am I missing something?
  • adamsmith
    You write above
    "the reference in the Zotero library or the pdf itself in the annotation screen" -- neither of those is what you'd drag. It's the item (with the PDF icon) attached to the reference in the middle panel -- so you'd have to click the little arrow/triangle next to the item to show all attached items, then drag the attachment.
  • adriw
    That works!
    Thank you for the clarification.
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