ZotClip

ZotClip is a plugin for Zotero 8 and 9 with two parallel feature areas:

• Attachment clipboard copy — from the library or reader, copy attachment files to the system clipboard. Target apps that accept file pastes receive files; otherwise ZotClip falls back to absolute paths as plain text.
• AI tagging — generate tags for selected library items using an OpenAI-compatible chat API. Built-in providers include DeepSeek, OpenRouter, and Ollama, plus a custom URL for other endpoints. Keys and prompts are configured in preferences.

Installation

Download the latest .xpi from GitHub Releases. In Zotero, open Tools -> Plugins, click the gear button, choose Install Plugin From File..., and select the downloaded package. Restart Zotero if the plugin does not appear immediately.

System Support

System	Clipboard backend	What to install
Windows 10/11	Native CF_HDROP file copy	Nothing extra
Linux X11	GTK4 helper backend	python3-gi and gir1.2-gtk-4.0
Linux Wayland	wl-copy text/uri-list backend	wl-clipboard
macOS	osascript AppKit pasteboard backend	Nothing extra; osascript is provided by macOS

After installation, open Edit -> Preferences -> ZotClip and check the Compatibility section. Confirm that Backend diagnostics reports the expected backend for your system and does not show a missing dependency. If the compatibility check does not pass, install the required system package before retesting. AI tagging does not use these clipboard backends; it only needs network access to your chosen API (or a local Ollama instance).

Usage

Attachment clipboard copy

In the library view, select an attachment or a parent item and press Ctrl+C, or use Copy Attachment File(s) from the item context menu.

In the reader, ZotClip keeps the default Ctrl+C behavior for text selection. Use the reader toolbar button to copy the current attachment. If you want a reader-specific shortcut, configure one in Edit -> Preferences -> ZotClip.

AI tagging

In the library, select one or more regular items and choose Generate AI Tags from the item context menu (when AI tagging is enabled in preferences). You can also opt into automatic tagging for newly added items and optional stripping of Connector-import tags; see preferences for details.

Settings (Edit -> Preferences -> ZotClip)

Copying: allowed attachment types, multi-attachment strategy, library and reader shortcuts, toolbar and context menu visibility, platform clipboard diagnostics.

AI tagging: enable the feature, provider and model, API key and endpoint (where applicable), optional connection test, and a prompt template with {title}, {abstract}, and {language} placeholders.

Development

Install dependencies with npm install, then run npm run start for the local development loop.

Before opening a PR, run:

• npm run test:unit
• npm run build
• npm run lint:check

Manual verification notes live in docs/manual-testing.md.