5

Recently I have been reading a lot of scientific papers and I would like a PDF reading app that can help me read the document more easily. Specifically, I would like to be able to hover a link in the document (reference, equation, theorem, figure, ...) and a small popup preview will show up with the relevant object. I want to avoid scrolling around the document as much as possible, because it interrupts the reading flow in my mind.

I am aware of the following:

  1. The "back" button in many PDF readers exists. It does not suffice, as it scrolls to the link and scrolls back. It slows me down a lot.
  2. AFAIK the Skim app for OS X does the job, but I am looking for a windows app.
Improve this question
3
  • "AFAIK the Skim app for OS X does the job, but I am looking for a windows app" - would you consider running OS X in a virtual machine?
    – Mawg
    Commented Mar 19, 2015 at 8:37
  • From what I know, there is no legal way to run OS X in a virtual machine on a Windows PC. I am working on a computer in an academic institution, and I will not risk installing something illegal here.
    – Alex Shtoff
    Commented Mar 19, 2015 at 8:51
  • I agree 100% on the legal point, but isn't OS X just BSD Linux with different desktop manager? I.E FOSS? Googling for run OS X in a virtual machine on a Windows PC finds lots of hits. Even if it were not FOSS; you could always buy a license, if it were worth it to you, and nothing forbids you from running that in a VM, just as many run Windows in a VM under Linux.
    – Mawg
    Commented Mar 19, 2015 at 9:32

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
1

I think what you are looking for a Reference management software and based on your question I would like you to suggest ReadCube.ReadCube is a desktop and browser-based program for managing, annotating, and accessing academic research articles. It is proprietary, but available for .It also allows users to enhance eligible PDF files with both the browser-based and desktop application.and the software features which have listed down from wikipedia.

ReadCube Desktop, running on Adobe Air, available for Windows and Mac OS.

  • Consolidated display of all imported articles into a library
  • Customizable lists to organize articles
  • Integrated search functionality with Google Scholar, PubMed, and Microsoft Academic to find and download new research material
  • Personalized recommendations of literature based on searches and library content
  • PDF viewer with notes and text highlighting
  • Supplements and references in one place
  • Full-text search across your entire PDF library
  • Hyperlinked references
  • Easily export citations to EndNote and other reference managers
  • Can sync your library between multiple devices
  • Can manually add and edit citation data
  • Can watch specific folders for changes & automatically import PDFs
  • SmartCite allows users to format citations and create bibliographies enter image description here

enter image description here

The screenshot below is from Papers fullscreen view which I think you might like ;) enter image description here

enter image description here

Improve this answer
6
  • 2
    Seems like a cool application. I believe will be useful to me, but doesn't do what I asked for.
    – Alex Shtoff
    Commented Mar 15, 2015 at 12:32
  • @Alex Added a another Screenshot I think you are referring to "I would like to be able to hover a link in the document (reference, equation, theorem, figure, ...)" and actually It does what you need.
    – Heisenberg
    Commented Mar 15, 2015 at 12:55
  • 1
    @PathumAnjana you might also want to answer this question, or link your answer over there
    – Tymric
    Commented Mar 15, 2015 at 14:32
  • @Timmy sure I will link my answer there :)
    – Heisenberg
    Commented Mar 15, 2015 at 14:40
  • 3
    Popup references are not always resolved. And they do not exploit links inside the document for the popup references. If they don't find the reference online, it will not popup. And what about equations and theorems in the document? All I wanted is something simple. I have a document, it has links, and I want to preview the link in a popup.
    – Alex Shtoff
    Commented Mar 16, 2015 at 11:50

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.