Upgrade StorageFeature Request: Read Aloud default mode & persistent annotation tool selection settings (macOS)
Zotero Version: 10.0.3
OS: macOS
I would like to propose two quality-of-life enhancements for the Zotero PDF reader to improve accessibility and speed up annotation workflows.
1. Toggle for "Read Aloud" and/or Re-flowed text as the Default Reading Mode
Description: Add a toggle in settings to allow users to set "Read Aloud" as the default PDF viewing/reading mode upon opening a document.
Rationale: For users who rely on text-to-speech for primary consumption or accessibility, manually enabling Read Aloud each time a tab or document is opened adds unnecessary friction.
2. Persistent Annotation Tool Selection Across Tab Changes
Description: Add a setting toggle to control whether active annotation tools (e.g., Highlight, Underline, Ink, Note) stay selected when switching between tabs or opening new documents.
Use Case:Currently, when “Turn off note, text, and image annotation tools after each use” is toggled OFF, a tool remains active within the current document. However, when switching to another open PDF tab or opening a new item, the active tool resets to the default selection/pan tool.
Desired Behavior: Maintaining the selected tool (e.g., Underline) across tab switches so heavy reading/annotation sessions aren't interrupted by re-selecting tools in every new tab.
Proposed Settings Placement
Preferences / Settings -> Reader
[ ] Automatically start Read Aloud when opening PDFs
[ ] Maintain active annotation tool selection across reader tabs
OS: macOS
I would like to propose two quality-of-life enhancements for the Zotero PDF reader to improve accessibility and speed up annotation workflows.
1. Toggle for "Read Aloud" and/or Re-flowed text as the Default Reading Mode
Description: Add a toggle in settings to allow users to set "Read Aloud" as the default PDF viewing/reading mode upon opening a document.
Rationale: For users who rely on text-to-speech for primary consumption or accessibility, manually enabling Read Aloud each time a tab or document is opened adds unnecessary friction.
2. Persistent Annotation Tool Selection Across Tab Changes
Description: Add a setting toggle to control whether active annotation tools (e.g., Highlight, Underline, Ink, Note) stay selected when switching between tabs or opening new documents.
Use Case:Currently, when “Turn off note, text, and image annotation tools after each use” is toggled OFF, a tool remains active within the current document. However, when switching to another open PDF tab or opening a new item, the active tool resets to the default selection/pan tool.
Desired Behavior: Maintaining the selected tool (e.g., Underline) across tab switches so heavy reading/annotation sessions aren't interrupted by re-selecting tools in every new tab.
Proposed Settings Placement
Preferences / Settings -> Reader
[ ] Automatically start Read Aloud when opening PDFs
[ ] Maintain active annotation tool selection across reader tabs
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dstillman Zotero TeamFor (1), note that you can press Ctrl/Cmd-Shift-L or Ctrl/Cmd-Shift-R to start Read Aloud.