Is there an existing issue for this?
Environment
- OS: MacOS 26.3.1
- Zotero Version: 8.0.5
- Plugin Version: 2.4.3
Describe the feature request
Is your feature request related to a problem?
I just want to see the recognised text alongside the scan to make skim-reading easier, especially for lower-quality scans. No translation needed.
The plugin's selection popup already does almost exactly this, but the translation step requires an online service and sends the text to a third party, which is unnecessary for this use case and problematic for unpublished archival material.
Why do you need this feature?
I work with digitised historical sources printed in Fraktur (Blackletter). The PDFs already contain a high-quality OCR text layer.
- Works fully offline (no external service, no data sent anywhere)
- Relevant for privacy when working with unpublished archival sources
- Useful for anyone using the plugin purely as a reading aid rather than for translation (e.g. historians, philologists, editors working with OCR'd historical prints)
- Avoids failures when no translation engine is reachable or configured
Describe the solution you'd like
The solution you'd like
An option in the settings such as "No translation — show source text only", or a pseudo-engine entry "None / Passthrough" in the service list, which simply displays the selected raw text in the result panel without contacting any translation service.
Alternatives you've considered
- Configuring an offline engine: works in principle but adds setup overhead and is overkill when no translation is actually wanted.
- 'doing nothing': the plugin still routes the request through a translation service, which can fail or introduce delays.
Anything else?
Thank you for maintaining this excellent plugin — it already works remarkably well for my use case out of the box. This small addition would make it useful for a further group of users (humanities researchers working with historical OCR) without changing its core purpose.
Is there an existing issue for this?
Environment
Describe the feature request
Is your feature request related to a problem?
I just want to see the recognised text alongside the scan to make skim-reading easier, especially for lower-quality scans. No translation needed.
The plugin's selection popup already does almost exactly this, but the translation step requires an online service and sends the text to a third party, which is unnecessary for this use case and problematic for unpublished archival material.
Why do you need this feature?
I work with digitised historical sources printed in Fraktur (Blackletter). The PDFs already contain a high-quality OCR text layer.
Describe the solution you'd like
The solution you'd like
An option in the settings such as "No translation — show source text only", or a pseudo-engine entry "None / Passthrough" in the service list, which simply displays the selected raw text in the result panel without contacting any translation service.
Alternatives you've considered
Anything else?
Thank you for maintaining this excellent plugin — it already works remarkably well for my use case out of the box. This small addition would make it useful for a further group of users (humanities researchers working with historical OCR) without changing its core purpose.