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howto_zotero.md

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How to Zotero

Setup taken from this beautiful post by Kashnitsky. The choice is based on Zotero being open-source and in the ability to sync metadata in the Zotaro Cloud (300 Mb but enough) while saving all PDFs in the Google Drive (15 Gb).

Two plugins are added:

  1. ZotFile: used to rename, following a rule chosen by the user, and organize PDFs in a separated folder
  2. Better BibTex: export the library into a plain .bib file

Workflow to save a document (paper, book etc.)

WARNING 2024/9: ZotFile has no plan to support the recent Zotero 7 update. I'll probably need to rely on another plugin or stick with Zotero 6.x.x

  1. Drag the PDF into Zotero (in the collection chosen, e.g. Thesis)
  2. Rename it using ZotFile by right click on the item and selecting Manage Attachments --> Rename Attachments. NOTE: the success of the operation is marked by the file being saved in the local folder /home/user/zotero-library

This is the PDF which will be modified and synced into G Drive. This operation leaves in Zotero only the synced file which will be automatically synced into Drive, not the one manually dragged.

Workflow to modify a paper

Modify (highlight, comment etc.) only the PDF saved in Zotero, i.e. the one renamed and save in the zotaro-library folder (which is the one synced in Drive). Same if you want to modified remotely, you need tio modify the file in the corresponding Drive folder and then sync everything.

Where are my files?

Drive: gdrive/zotero-library (classified by Author, see Zotaro settings)

Local: /home/user/zotero-library

How are metadata synced?

Through the automatic sync system of Zotero. This does not require any action from the user, it is automatic when Zotero is opened.

How are PDFs synced?

This is done manually by the user by connecting the zotero-library directory to Drive. I use rclone on Manjaro, command line software to synchronize with all major cloud services. Basically a bash script allow me to upload data. This operation is done by the following command:

rclone sync ~/zotero-library gdrive:/zotero-library --fast-list -P

where --fast-line is used to speed up the operation (this is something related to Drive) and -P displays a static information chart in the terminal to keep track of the progress.

How to create a .bib file

Go into the collection (e.g thesis) and use: export collection -> Better BibTex checking the Keep update box.

Export library in other machines

In a fresh new machine, just follow the same instructions of the original post of Kashnitsky and Zotero will take care of sync all metadata and PDFs from clouds.