I have been using Zotero since 2006. It is one of my favourite pieces of software, and an essential part of my workflow. One of my longterm aims has been to link my PDFs to the corresponding entries in my Zotero catalogue. This sounds simple enough, but is very difficult to execute if you use Zotero on multiple operating systems because the file paths will be different. One solution is to have different PDF links for each OS. But this is cumbersome and knowing which link to click for which OS is confusing. There exist many complicated guides on the internet for syncing Zotero libraries across multiple OSes and devices, usually using Dropbox, but in most cases the steps involved are more complicated than they need to be. After 6 years, I have finally cracked it.
Here is what I use:
Firefox + Zotero*
Dropbox*^
iAnnotate PDF^
* on my Windows work machine, and on my MacBook
^on my iPad
And here is my ultimate Zotero workflow:
1. Import only references into Zotero. Disable the PDF auto-save feature.
2. Download and save PDFs to your Dropbox folder (I use a subdirectory called PDFLibrary).
3. View the PDF file online through Dropbox using Firefox.
4. Right-click on the corresponding entry in Zotero and select Add attachment | Add link to current page.
This final step is the key. It will create a Zotero link to your PDF file in Dropbox. Double-clicking that attachment will open the web-Dropbox version of your PDF file (and preserves annotations!). Most importantly, this functionality will be preserved across Windows, OSX, Linux. And because your PDFs are in Dropbox, you can sync them with PDF Annotation apps on your phone or tablet. Now your PDF files and Zotero library will always be accessible and in sync.
5 comments:
Hi there, I just tried using symbolic link to sync the storage folder of zotero in dropbox and sync the zotero database with zotero server. It works fine!
If you want to have your libraries synced across multiple computers I think there one better solution. You can use Zotero built-in function File syncing. Since you can soon run out of space with the free 100MB that Zotero gives us it necessary to use something else. That is where WebDAV option comes in. I have it set up with box.com and works great.
You just add PDFs directly to Zotero and they automatically sync with box.com. When you connect with your other computer you just start Zotero, wait a little for sync to finish and all you PDFs are in sync.
I have been working on the same problem and have come up with basically the same solution (except using Chrome with Zotero Connector on my PC).
My only reservation with linking all PDFs to the Zotero references is what would happen if I needed to move them out of Dropbox? Is there a way to "mass update" all the links in a particular collection?
I have been working on the same problem and have come up with basically the same solution (except using Chrome with Zotero Connector on my PC).
My only reservation with linking all PDFs to the Zotero references is what would happen if I needed to move them out of Dropbox? Is there a way to "mass update" all the links in a particular collection?
Thanks for sharing this. Using different softwares can be a mess, but when you know how to link them, you'll be able to enjoy the benefits. Your files can be stored safely in DropBox and can be used when you want to work in Zotero. It's been years now, and I hope you're still satisfied with work flow and have safe file storage with these softwares. :)
Ruby Badcoe @ Williams Data Management
Post a Comment