wtf is zotero-pdf-translate?

Translate for Zotero (also published as Zotero PDF Translate) is a plugin for Zotero, a free tool researchers use to collect and organize academic papers. The plugin adds translation capabilities directly inside the Zotero reader, so you can translate text from PDFs, EPub files, web pages, item metadata, annotations, and notes without leaving the application. The most common use is reading a paper in a foreign language. You select a passage in the PDF, and the translation appears immediately in a small pop-up panel and in the item sidebar. You can also highlight or underline text and have the translation automatically saved into the annotation comment, which is useful for building notes while reading. A standalone translation window lets you compare output from multiple translation services side by side. For organizing your library, the plugin can translate item titles and abstracts from the right-click menu, so your reading list stays readable even when papers are in languages you do not read fluently. A dictionary mode handles single-word lookups differently from full sentences, and there is a sentence-by-sentence translation option for more controlled reading of technical content. The plugin supports over 20 translation services. Several are free and require no account, including Google Translate, Bing, Youdao, and CNKI. Paid options like DeepL, Microsoft Azure Translator, OpenAI, and others are available if you supply your own API key. The default target language is picked up from your Zotero language setting, but it can be changed in the preferences. Installation follows the standard Zotero plugin process: download the .xpi file from the releases page, open Zotero, go to Tools > Plugins, and install from file. The plugin supports Zotero 7 and 8. Chinese documentation is available alongside the English README.