Bug 420571 - Feature Request: Export/Import annotations to/from an XML file or the clipboard, using a toolbar button or context menu entry in the Reviews/Annotations side panel
Summary: Feature Request: Export/Import annotations to/from an XML file or the clipboa...
Status: REPORTED
Alias: None
Product: okular
Classification: Applications
Component: general (show other bugs)
Version: unspecified
Platform: Other Linux
: NOR wishlist
Target Milestone: ---
Assignee: Okular developers
URL:
Keywords:
: 427474 (view as bug list)
Depends on:
Blocks:
 
Reported: 2020-04-25 14:26 UTC by Laura David Hurka
Modified: 2021-08-17 13:21 UTC (History)
4 users (show)

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Description Laura David Hurka 2020-04-25 14:26:52 UTC
SUMMARY
Some people wish Okular could save annotations in a separate XML file instead of inside the PDF document, which is a feature which will not come back. But it may be useful to be able to export all annotations, to import them in another document.

USE CASE
1. Write a lecture script and deploy it as PDF to your students
2. Students are annotating the script with their questions
3. Students send back a lot of annotated PDFs
4. Open each PDF, copy all annotations, paste them in your own PDF
5. Be well prepared for your next lesson :)

CURRENT STATE
You have to keep all PDFs of each single student, because each contains a single question. You need to switch tabs frequently.

EXPECTED STATE
You have all questions in one PDF, so you can comfortably go trough them.

RELATED following features should be implemented to make this feature easy to use
Bug: 197726 Show annotation comment text in the annotations side panel
D21364: Indicate annotation type by icon in the annotations side panel
D21376: For highlight annotations, show highlighted text in the annotations side panel
Order annotations by y-position on the page.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
I suggested this already in Bug: 394775, because its reporters might have an opinion on this.
Comment 1 Albert Astals Cid 2020-04-25 21:58:48 UTC
Honestly, it seems like the "i have a hammer everything i see are nails" problem.

You should just find a better way to ask your students than via a PDF file and annotations.
Comment 2 Nate Graham 2020-04-28 14:48:07 UTC
Yeah I kind of have to agree with Albert here. Your workflow is clever, but seems like it's trying to force Annotations into something it's not really designed to do.

Seems like you might be better served using a collaborative document program like LibreOffice online (or Google docs...) and having your students use the Track Changes feature to add comments and annotations.
Comment 3 Nate Graham 2020-10-12 18:17:26 UTC
*** Bug 427474 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***
Comment 4 Oliver Sander 2021-08-17 13:21:17 UTC
The two phabricator diffs mentioned in the first post look interesting in their own right.  David, can I motivate you to submit them as gitlab merge requests (and maybe even adopt them wholesale)?