The actual metadata extraction is very poor. Could you implement a communication with Zotero in order to use the metadata retrieved from it? Or implement the Zotero’s functionality directly in Remnote?
Same issue!
Not a solution, but, I’ve a CSL that “speaks remnote”, allowing extractions of Authors, Journals, Issues Year, systematically.
Ex:
Weaver, W. Science and Complexity. Am. Sci. 36, 536–544 (1948)
becomes:
Science and Complexity, Weaver, [[Issued/1948]]
∟ [[People/Authors/Weaver, Warren]]
∟ [[Issued/1948]] in [[Journals/American Scientist]]
∟ … ##1-line-abstract
∟ … ##Topics
Here is the CSL and instructions : ft-fk/CSL-Remnote: CSL (citation language style) to cite document from Mendeley/Zotero in Remnote-Md (github.com)
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I’ve changed the CSL to make use of aliases
Now it adds an alias “Author, date”, so that you can cite more easily:
In the example above [[Weaver, 1948]] is created as an alias of the full article name.
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I would like to request Zotero integration for Remote. Realizing that direct integration can add unwanted bloat to the software, I would like to request a team maintained plug-in for academic users.
I do not have a software background, so what is feasible is difficult for me to gauge. Also, there may be even better ways to do things. That said, I would like to be able to link directly from Zotero references to Remnote REM and vice versa.
- Ideally, there would be metadata integration into the REM referencing the article that would synchronize; so that if you import a reference into Remote the selected metadata would carry over into the rem; including the cite key as an alias. Even better, you would be able to create settings for metadata to carry over.
- The PDF revision and editing would happen in Remnote but the notes taken would synchronize over to the notes section in Zotero for the reference; with each note having a link to the corresponding rem in remote.
- The tags attached to the document in Remnote would sync over to the Zotero reference. tag pane.
- References made to other zotero articles in Remnote would link over to “related” tab in the Zotero reference.
That already seems like a lot for a starting point but I think I have put them in approximate order of importance. I think at least the first couple would help my productivity significantly; especially the PDF integration. Hopefully other academic users feel the same and are willing to make suggestions or make these suggestions even better.
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I agree, for academic research, the integration of a literature manager is paramount (preferably Zotero, as it is open source and used by many).
Roam, Obsidian, Logseq, Zettlr → all have Zotero integrated. To have things as authors, published date, publishing houses, tags etc. directly in RemNote as rems and documents is very neat. Potentionally. (See e.g. Demonstrating my Academic Paper Reading Workflow (ft. RemNote PRO).)
Best,
C
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Speaking of Logseq, I think emulating their Zotero integration would be a great start.
The Logseq-Zotero integration works, roughly, like this: In settings you give your Zotero API key and the Zotero data directory on your local machine. You can use a /zotero command anywhere which brings up a search box with dropdown results. When you click a result, it generates a page with all of the metadata for the paper, and inserts a [[citekey]] reference to it where you typed the command. In the page is a link which opens your local PDF in the Zotero PDF reader. (There is also an option to batch make a page for every entry in your Zotero library. I avoid this setting because I have thousands of articles).
Here’s a quick video showing how it looks: https://twitter.com/logseq/status/1421122972954202121?s=20
Afaict, getting identical functionality in Remnote would be easy. You do the exact same thing except, I suppose, attach the PDF as a “source” to the metadata page. I’m not sure if this is doable as a plugin now, but, anyway, it should be easily doable by the Remnote team.
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Nice and concise description, cool. And yes, I would agree. In my search for the right tool for academic note-taking (and writing), I’ve tested Logseq for a while. The Logseq-Zotero integration indeed works very well. In the end, Logseq wasn’t (yet?) the right tool for me, but I liked the way the program handled citations (and its meta-data). To emulate this functionality in RemNote really would be a great start!
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Just curious: Is anybody working on Zotero - RemNote integration? I have installed zoteroRoam plugin for Roam and it is really impressive! LogSeq’s plugin works decently as well.
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I would also really appreciate a zotero-remnote integration, not just retrieval of metadata but also being able to quickly import pdfs stored in zotero.
I’m considering moving over to logseq or another PMK tool due which has this feature. It’s essential if you’re doing any type of academic research.
Are there any plans for it @Karthikk @hannesfrank?
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Given RemNote’s reputation as “note-taking app that’s especially suitable for students and life-long learners”, adding “and academics/researchers” to that with this simple integration seems like a no-brainer, to me.
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Hi!
Thanks for the CSL - when I tried to install it in Zotero, it gives me this error message and the installation fails:
Any ideas? Sorry, I’m not really the programmer myself. Otherwise I could help out or somethig…
Best,
C
@Chinchivi I don’t speak German sorry, but in essence:
- you need to install the CSL. Check YouTube or zotero forums for that. Every software (zotero mendeley, etc) are different. I think there is your issue, you didn’t install the CSL file properly.
- you have to select in zotero this newly installed CSL before trying to use it. Again, check zotero’s YouTube or forums for help
- Then only you can use it
cheers
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I would like to add the following:
Metadata retrieval from PDFs is not a good idea IMHO
I think it’s not at all a good idea to try retrieving metadata from the PDF. Those are systematically filled with rubbish, and have no consistency.
Unfortunately, Remnote already does this and creates a lot of rubbish in our databases… Parse PDF Metadata - #2 by _yb
(or at least did, recent updated might have fixed this, I have no idea)
Zotero, Mendeley, Endnote plug-in
From my experience in research, the most accurate, and therefore, the only useful metadata of a document is provided by library managers (such as listed in the title). And even then, it’s not exempt of orthographic errors in names, titles, or journal… or more subtle, inconsistency in the formatting of names for examples (John Smith & Smith J, are considered 2 authors, and would become two different rems)
That being said, the questions I would like to ask the people using other PKMs with already integrated zotero plug-in :
- what does the PKM do with the metadata?
- How would you envision Remnote working with this information? Where would RN place this retrieved information in your knowledge base?
- finally, what is the advantage of having a plug-in between remnote and zotero compared to using the CSL hack shown above. Does it sync it? Then, are the rems with author name changed in your KB when you change it in zotero…?
Those are genuine question. My instinct is also to ask for a Zotero integration, but now I think, why?
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Thanks for yur answer. Yes, this is my problem: I tried to install the CSL (according to official documentation and all) and it still gives me the error message and doesn’t install properly. Well, thanks anyway - I will try further, maybe I’ll find some solution. It’s a shame RemNote does not have Zotero integrated just yet
Zotero 5.0.96.3, Win 11
It might be useful to have the same entity in Zotero have a load of attachments like videos, zotero notes, multiple pdfs etc. that don’t need to be synced to RemNote, but the main entity itself still is and can be gotten to in RemNote from any zotero collection and vice versa. Granted, this is part of a broader problem of RemNote being isolated from other apps, i.e. impossible to automatically sync to and from, so I’m not sure whether any app could be integrated at that level with the currently available methods.
Ideally, the newly added sources fields in beta could be directly parsed into citekeys by that future Zotero integration.
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I’m sorry I don’t use zotero, and therefore I can’t provide you with a detailed method to install the CSL.
Here is what I’ve found:
Alternative Installation Methods
You can also install CSL styles (with a “.csl” extension) from local files on your computer (e.g., styles that you edit yourself or that you download from another website). In the Zotero Style Manager, click the '+' button, then find the style file on your computer.
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Thanks for your reply
This would indeed be more convenient and provide greater consistency between Zotero and Remnote, which is in itself valuable.
I fully and entirely agree with your comment about RemNote being isolated. I use mem.ai for all thing “non purely knowledge based” (random notes, meeting minutes etc…) because of this. I would rather have remnote taking care of this, but I don’t think it’s an objective of the devs.
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Thank you for your effort. Yes, me too, I had a look at Zotero’s documentation too and couldn’t find anything else.
May I ask what literature manager you are using? I don’t want do start a deep discussion about this here (as it is slightly off-topic), but I’m curious and I suspect that this then is the reason for the installation not working: somehow it does not work with Zotero. I can’t fathom any other explanation.
- A lot of my collegues use Citavi - in my view really the best in class.
- The university, however, insists that we use Zotero for all projects which need to be accessed by - for instance - the university’s library. It is the most versatile and open source.
Best
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CSL works fine for zotero
I’ve installed zotero to see what’s the problem, but, good news, it works. 
Have you actually downloaded the CSL this way? see below
I suspect you’ve tried to right-click directly on the remnote-markdown-v2_1.csl and download it, which won’t work 
Try opening the file you downloaded with notepad or whatever, and you’ll see what I mean.
Library manager comparison
to answer your question, I use mendeley, but I could change for a better setup any time
These are my list of feature I ask for a library manager. Any that answers that is a go for me:
- be mainstream, stable and supported
- classifies by tags instead of folders
- allows for personal syncing capabilities without crashing (OneDrive or server or whatever) (do not use endnote if you intend in doing that!)
- search capabilities inside text of all PDFs
- offers a possible shared folder where you can collaborate with other people, and make use of their library (not sure mendeley does that)
- fewer lock-in’s as possible (notes and notes on PDF only available through this specific library manager, for example) (not sure mendeley does that).
otherwise they are pretty similar, I think
If you have any more questions about anything above, please contact me directly (DM)
if you find out the CSL works for zotero, please people know here
cheers
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Oh my, … yes, you’re completely right - it works. (The issue really was that I right-clicked directly on remnote-markdown-v2_1.csl - this caused the error in installation.)
Otherwise: Amazing! Thanks for your patience, your csl and also your anwers concerning literature managers. (I pretty much agree to all your points, it’s why I use Zotero [shared folders for collaboration and tags, and lock-in].)
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