Quickstart¶

After installing zot, you can immediately search and read papers.

1. Search Your Library¶

zot search "transformer attention"

This searches across titles, authors, tags, and full-text PDF index.

2. Read a Paper¶

From the search results, pick an item key (e.g. ABC123):

zot read ABC123

This shows the full metadata, abstract, and notes.

3. Extract PDF Text¶

zot pdf ABC123

Extracts the full text from the paper's PDF attachment. Use --pages 1-5 for specific pages.

JSON Output for AI¶

Add --json to any command for machine-readable output:

zot --json search "single cell RNA"

This is what Claude Code uses behind the scenes when you ask it about papers.

Using with Claude Code¶

Install the zotero-cli skill so Claude Code automatically recognizes literature-related requests:

cp -r skill/zotero-cli-cc ~/.claude/skills/

Then in any Claude Code session, use natural language:

Search my Zotero for single cell papers
→ Claude runs: zot --json search "single cell"

Show me details of this paper
→ Claude runs: zot --json read ABC123

Next Steps¶

User Guide — Full command reference
MCP Server — Use with Claude Desktop, Cursor, LM Studio
Workspaces — Organize papers by topic with RAG search