Archive for July, 2017

We are excited to announce major improvements to the Zotero Connectors for Chrome and Safari.

Chrome

The Zotero Connector for Chrome now includes functionality that was previously available only in Zotero for Firefox.

Automatic Institutional Proxy Detection

Many institutions provide a way to access electronic resources while you are off-campus by signing in to a web-based proxy system. The Zotero Connector for Chrome makes this more convenient by automatically detecting your institutional proxy. Once you’ve accessed a site through the proxy, the connector will automatically redirect future requests to that site through the proxy (e.g., if you open a link to jstor.org, you’ll be automatically redirected to jstor.org.proxy.my-university.edu).

Proxy detection does not require manual configuration. You can disable or customize it from the connector preferences.

Style Installation and Automatic File Importing

Zotero for Firefox has long included support for installing citation styles and importing reference manager files such as BibTeX or RIS when opened in Firefox. This functionality is now supported by the Zotero Connector for Chrome.

Clicking on a link to a CSL file will display a prompt to install the style into Zotero. Clicking on a BibTeX or RIS file that is served correctly by the website will prompt to import its data into Zotero. If you choose ‘Cancel’, you can download the file normally.

Note that this feature requires Zotero 5.0.

Upgrading

If you have the latest version of Chrome installed, you should be automatically updated to version 5.0.5 or later of the Zotero Connector. If you’re not currently using Zotero with Chrome, you can install the extension from the downloads page. Make sure you’ve installed Zotero 5.0 as well for the best experience.

Safari

We’ve brought several features to Safari that were previously available only in Chrome and Firefox.

Streamlined Saving

Previously, on pages where Zotero could not detect any high-quality data, the Zotero save button was inactive, and you could save a basic webpage item and snapshot by right-clicking on the page and selecting “Save Page to Zotero”. In the latest version of the Zotero Connector for Safari, it’s possible to save any page to Zotero with the click of a button.

When high-quality data is available, the button will show the same icon as before: book, newspaper, etc. On all other pages, you’ll see an empty page icon, and clicking on it will create a basic webpage item and snapshot in Zotero. Hovering over the icon will tell you which translator, if any, Zotero would use to save the page.

One-click PDF saving

You can also now save PDFs to Zotero with a single click.

Previously, saving a PDF to Zotero from Safari required dragging from the address bar into Zotero or saving the PDF to disk and adding it to Zotero manually. Now, when you’re viewing a PDF in Safari, simply click the toolbar button to save the PDF as a top-level attachment in Zotero, after which you can use “Retrieve Metadata from PDF” or “Create Parent Item” to create a full bibliographic item. Note that, when possible, it’s still preferable to save from a webpage with full metadata.

Secondary Translators

On some webpages, Zotero can save data using multiple translators, but up until now it hasn’t been possible to choose a secondary translator from Safari. You can now long-press the Zotero button to see additional options for saving from the current page, including saving as a regular webpage instead of using a translator.

Secondary translators may provide different data for the page itself or data for other sources referenced in the page (for example, cited references on Wikipedia, as in the example above).

Upgrading

You can get the new version of the Safari extension from the downloads page or by updating to 5.0.0 or later from the Extensions pane of the Safari preferences. Make sure you’ve installed Zotero 5.0 as well for the best experience.

Since the introduction of Zotero Standalone in 2011, Zotero users have had two versions to choose from: the original Firefox extension, Zotero for Firefox, which provides deep integration into the Firefox user interface, and Zotero Standalone, which runs as a separate program and can be used with any browser.

Starting with the release of Zotero 5.0, Zotero for Firefox and Zotero Standalone have been replaced by a single standalone application for users of all browsers. A new Zotero Connector for Firefox, similar to the extensions available for Chrome and Safari, allows saving to the Zotero application or zotero.org in a single click.

If you’re using Zotero for Firefox, you’ll soon be upgraded to the new Zotero Connector for Firefox, which provides the same “Save to Zotero” button in the Firefox toolbar that you’re used to. You’ll then need to install the standalone Zotero application to access your data. Going forward, instead of clicking a “Z” button in the Firefox toolbar, you’ll open Zotero like any other program on your computer. The Zotero application offers the same interface and runs off the same database as Zotero for Firefox, so you’ll be able to pick up right where you left off.

If you’re already using Zotero Standalone, you can continue using Zotero as you were before — with some new features available in the Zotero Connector for your browser.

Why is this happening?

The reason for this change is technical, and, unfortunately, out of our control: Mozilla is discontinuing the powerful extension framework on which Zotero for Firefox is based in favor of WebExtensions, a new framework based on the Chrome extension model. WebExtensions offer many advantages, including improved browser performance, improved security, a fine-grained permissions model, and the ability to create a single extension that runs in both Chrome and Firefox (as we’ve done with the Zotero Connector). The trade-off is that it’s no longer possible to create an extension like Zotero for Firefox that affects the browser in more profound ways (adding an entirely new pane or tab, creating native-looking windows, adding options to the open/save dialog, etc.) or that uses low-level features of Firefox to manage a database, access the filesystem, or run local programs.

But while we’re not able to continue offering the full version of Zotero for Firefox, we think that this change will ultimately benefit the Zotero ecosystem going forward. The Zotero interface will no longer need to fit into a small browser pane, allowing for a much richer user experience. Offering a single version will mean that documentation and instruction can be greatly simplified. And most importantly, Zotero developers will be able to spend less time maintaining separate versions and responding to Firefox changes and more time improving Zotero for everyone.

In the lead-up to Zotero 5.0, we’ve worked hard to add features that were previously available only in Zotero for Firefox, such as institutional proxy support, to the existing Chrome and Safari connectors and the new Zotero Connector for Firefox. Those changes are documented in a separate post. As Mozilla and Chrome add additional capabilities to their extension frameworks, we’ll continue to add new features to the connectors.

When we launched Zotero a little over 10 years ago, the Firefox extension framework allowed us to create a new type of research tool that lived where people worked, in the browser itself. Today, we think we can offer the best of both worlds — unparalleled extensions for every browser, all connecting to a powerful standalone app. While it’s tough to say goodbye to the original version of Zotero, we couldn’t be more excited about Zotero’s future, beginning with Zotero 5.0. Here’s to the next 10 years.

Other questions? Check out the FAQ for additional details.

We’re delighted to announce the release of Zotero 5.0, the next major version of Zotero and the biggest upgrade in Zotero’s history. Zotero 5.0 brings many new features, as well as a huge number of changes under the hood to improve Zotero’s responsiveness and stability and lay the groundwork for other big developments coming soon. We’ll be highlighting some of the new features in upcoming posts, but for now see the changelog for more details on all that’s new.

Download Zotero 5.0 now to get started with the new version.

If you’re already using Zotero Standalone 4.0, you’ll be offered the choice to upgrade soon, or you can update now via Help -> Check for Updates. (Windows users may wish to reinstall from the download page instead to rename the program from “Zotero Standalone” to “Zotero”.) Your database will be automatically upgraded to work with the new version.

If you’re using Zotero 4.0 for Firefox, be aware that Zotero 5.0 now runs only as a standalone application, and a new Zotero Connector for Firefox replaces the full Firefox extension. We’ve written a separate post explaining this change. Existing Zotero for Firefox users will soon be upgraded to Zotero Connector for Firefox and will need to install Zotero 5.0 to continue accessing their Zotero data locally. If you install Zotero 5.0 now, be sure to install the Zotero Connector for Firefox from the download page as well.

Thanks to everyone from the Zotero community who has helped test Zotero 5.0 over the last year and get it ready for today. We’re excited to finally share it with the world!