brycewang-stanford Zotero Night Theme Guide
Overview
Zotero Night is a dark mode theme plugin for Zotero that transforms the entire UI — library view, PDF reader, note editor, and preferences — into a comfortable dark interface. Reduces eye strain during long reading sessions and matches system-wide dark mode preferences. Works with Zotero 7 and integrates with other Zotero plugins.
Installation
# Download latest .xpi from GitHub releases
# In Zotero 7: Tools → Add-ons → Install Add-on From File
# Or via Zotero Plugin Market
# Search "Zotero Night" in zotero-addons marketplace
Configuration
### Settings (Tools → Zotero Night)
**Theme Mode:**
- Dark — Always dark
- Light — Always light
- System — Follow OS dark/light mode
- Schedule — Dark between custom hours
**PDF Reader:**
- Dark background with inverted text
- Sepia mode for reduced blue light
- Custom brightness/contrast
- Preserve figure colors (don't invert images)
**Colors:**
- Background: customizable (default #1E1E1E)
- Text: customizable (default #D4D4D4)
- Accent: customizable (matches Zotero theme)
- Link color: customizable
Theme Variants
/* Built-in theme presets */
/* Default Dark */
--background: #1E1E1E;
--surface: #252526;
--text: #D4D4D4;
--text-secondary: #808080;
--accent: #007ACC;
--border: #3C3C3C;
/* OLED Dark */
--background: #000000;
--surface: #121212;
--text: #E0E0E0;
/* Nord */
--background: #2E3440;
--surface: #3B4252;
--text: #ECEFF4;
--accent: #88C0D0;
/* Solarized Dark */
--background: #002B36;
--surface: #073642;
--text: #839496;
--accent: #268BD2;
PDF Reader Dark Mode
### How It Works
1. Applies CSS filter to PDF viewer canvas
2. Inverts luminance while preserving hue
3. Special handling for:
- Figures/images: excluded from inversion
- Highlighted text: color preserved
- Annotations: maintain original colors
- Links: distinct clickable appearance
### Settings
- Brightness: 80-120% (adjustable)
- Contrast: 90-110% (adjustable)
- Invert images: on/off (default off)
- Sepia filter: 0-100% (for warm tones)
Integration with Other Plugins
### Compatible Plugins
- **Zotero Style** — Custom columns work in dark mode
- **Zotero PDF Translate** — Translation overlay themed
- **Better BibTeX** — Citation dialog themed
- **Zotero Actions Tags** — Tag colors adapt to dark background
### CSS Customization
For advanced users, override via userChrome.css:
Zotero profile → chrome/userChrome.css
Scheduled Dark Mode
{
"schedule": {
"enabled": true,
"darkStart": "18:00",
"darkEnd": "07:00",
"useSystemSunrise": true,
"transition": "gradual"
}
}
Use Cases
- Night reading: Comfortable PDF reading in low light
- Eye health: Reduce blue light and screen glare
- Consistency: Match OS/IDE dark mode preferences
- Long sessions: Extended literature review comfort
- Presentation: Professional dark UI for screen sharing