zotero-vim plugin - a vim/keyboard-driven approach to using Zotero

alexanderjfink
edited March 12, 2026
I've long desired to have a more keyboard-driven experience of using/reading in Zotero. Specifically, as a Vim user, I love having a familiar, modal interface.

In case anyone is interested in using it, here's what I created and am using now: https://codeberg.org/finktank/zotero-vim

Works great for me in Zotero 8. I'm using it actively in my reading and making changes. I'm open to hearing about things to add/fix (can't promise I'll do anything about them, but you are welcome to let me know), but am mostly just posting here in case anyone has been looking for something similar and wants to try it out - with no guarantees!
  • maxbrydak
    omg what a perfect timing, I was just looking for something like this <3

    just checked it out and threw a PR your way
  • alexanderjfink
    Thanks @maxbrydak! I incorporated your update - it was great thank you. Look forward to hearing how it works. I've been waiting to read this way for years. What kind of reading do you do in Zotero?
  • pdalmia
    This is amazing!! Now please M'Lord, I beg you, let me take notes in full Vim mode too.
  • dalik98
    Amazing !!!!! I really needed this.
  • SGGbond
    I’ve been looking forward to this for years, thanks!!!!
    Next on my wishlist: a fuzzy picker for the TOC!
  • sinaab
    Great work, thanks a lot. I'm not sure if Zotero announces the citation links it finds, but it would be nice to have a follow link function too.
  • Skelbti
    Love the idea! Does it work fine in Zotero 9?
  • alexanderjfink
    It does work in Zotero 9 now!

    Fuzzy picker and follow link will be on the agenda next. Love those ideas, thank you.
  • alexanderjfink
    FYI - follow link is implemented in the newest release. "f" like in tridactyl opens tooltips with all the link options.

    Fuzzy picker next for @SGGbond.
  • alexanderjfink
    OK @SGGbond - there's a fuzzy picker now too! It works across the "main" and the "PDF" reader with a key that defaults to
  • SGGbond
    @alexanderjfink, thank you for being so productive. I’m already actively using it, and it’s been a great improvement to my workflow.
  • alexanderjfink
    Awesome! Please continue to leave notes here or on Codeberg with other ideas about what to add next.
  • Skelbti
    edited 12 days ago
    Thanks for the plugin! I'm trying to understand how everything works. How can I select a single word within a phrase in visual mode? For example, I want to highlight the word "Zotero" in the phrase, "I love Zotero; it's wonderful!" I can use the "v" key to place the selection cursor at the beginning of the phrase, but how can I select only the word "Zotero"?

    I suppose that I need to use "Open find bar and search for selection (#)" but I can't trigger it with my configuration (AZERTY French keyboard).
  • alexanderjfink
    Hi @Skelbti - the plugin does not currently support that level of granularity, you can either select by word from the beginning or end of a sentence. I don't tend to use that level of granularity in my reading, so didn't think to design for it.

    Trying to brainstorm: I suppose "v" could drop the cursor and highlight by default (for ease), but if one pressed another key, could turn highlighting off to jump the cursor before turning highlights back on.

    Any other ideas to make that workflow functional for you?
  • Skelbti
    Perhaps a key to toggle highlighting in Visual mode is the way to implement this kind of granularity.

    Another question: Do you know why, most of the time, hints don't detect sentences, only lines? Perhaps it has to do with how different PDFs are formatted.
  • alexanderjfink
    @Skelbti - regarding your second question, it does its best to get sentences, but PDFs seem to have weird formatting. I've encountered the issue you describe in some PDFs. However, in many PDFs, it does detect by sentence.

    I will look into adding highlight toggling to the "v" commands.
  • alexanderjfink
    Update for all - Leader key ( by default) is now accessible and settable. I also implemented Zotero Split Vertical/Horizontal features and Marks (local and global).
  • alexanderjfink
    Hi @Skelbti - OK, your feature is implemented! Shift+v for 'cursor mode', which uses a cursor without highlights to navigate the text, standard motions apply. Pressing "v" from within cursor mode enters highlight mode.

    I also implemented counts for motions in visual/cursor mode (e.g. 10j, 3k, 5w).

    Give it a test and lemme know how it works!
  • Skelbti
    edited 4 days ago
    Hi @alexanderjfink,
    Thank you for the update! It's working really well. I have one suggestion. When I activate Cursor Mode (Shift + V) and input the label, I would like to start moving the cursor. Currently, a red line appears on the left side of the page instead of at the beginning of the selected sentence. When I press the key to go to the end of the sentence, the red line doesn't move until I press a word or character move. It would be better if we could see each move. (Sometimes it works as intended, and sometimes it doesn't. Maybe it depends on the PDF.)

    One more thing: I think you shouldn't override the system shortcut Command + H on macOS, which we use to hide the app window. It's part of the basic macOS workflow and one of the most used shortcuts, along with Command + Q to quit an app.
  • alexanderjfink
    @Skelbti - can you make a screen cast or send the PDF this is happening with? I can't reproduce this issue with the cursor position.

    I'll look into the Mac overrides - I'm not experiencing that issue and am on a Mac too.
  • Skelbti
    @alexanderjfink - Strangely enough, I can't seem to reproduce the same error, which is a good thing in itself.

    As for macOS system shortcuts, I can no longer use ⌘ H to hide Zotero. The plugin displays “No split” even when I remove the shortcut in the preferences. In fact, no changes or deletions of shortcuts seem to be working on my end.
  • alexanderjfink
    @Skelbti - OK! I figured out the shortcuts issue in the PDF reader. Check out the newest release (https://codeberg.org/finktank/zotero-vim/releases) for a fix. Thanks for tracking down bugs!
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