Academic research toolkit (citation export, archiving, reference managers)

Category: Feature request Priority: P2 Area: research-tools Reports: 2 Status: Open

Summary

Two power users — an academic researcher and a student of knowledge — each sent long, structured multi-part proposals to turn Qaf into an integrated research environment. Between them they cover: exporting citations in APA/traditional formats (volume, page, publisher, print year), integration with Zotero/Mendeley/EndNote, madhhab/creed comparison tables generated from approved texts, viewing scanned original book pages (PDF) to verify quotes, specialized dictionaries linked to technical fiqh/hadith terms in context, an API for universities and research centers, conversation archiving (naming, folders/projects, pinning, deletion warnings, trash), export to Word/PDF/TXT/Markdown with re-import to resume a project, in-chat search with auto-generated index and bookmarks, answer ratings (like/dislike with reasons) plus favorites and error reporting, a personal research library of user-uploaded sources (PDF, Word, manuscripts) with scoped search (Qaf-only / user-only / combined), and audio/video transcription with scholarly references. Abdellatif replied point by point to the second proposal, committing to export formats, like/dislike, and user-uploaded sources, and asking for examples of good in-chat search implementations.

What users say

Omi Abi — omi20124@hotmail.com

An academic researcher who says Qaf has saved him significant time reaching the contents of the classical "mother books". He proposes six features: (1) automated academic citation export in approved formats (APA, traditional footnote: volume, page, publisher, print year); (2) direct export of results/references to Zotero, Mendeley, EndNote; (3) tools to generate comparison tables between fiqh madhhabs and creedal positions based on approved texts; (4) viewing the scanned original book page (PDF) to match the text and verify the citation directly; (5) specialized dictionaries linked to rare/technical fiqh and hadith terms, one click in context; (6) an API so universities and research centers can embed the smart search engine. He also hopes research and waqf institutions will sponsor the project so it stays free for every student and researcher. Abdellatif thanked him and said he will bring the proposals to the team.

أتمتة التوثيق الأكاديمي: إضافة خيار لتصدير الإحالات المرجعية بصيغ التوثيق المعتمدة (مثل: APA والحاشية التقليدية: الجزء، الصفحة، دار النشر، وسنة الطبع).

Automating academic citation: adding an option to export references in approved citation formats (e.g. APA and the traditional footnote: volume, page, publisher, and print year).

مهند المهدى / أبو سيف حسني بن عبد الحميد — saif4101@gmail.com

A student of knowledge (alternate email saifsyf49@gmail.com) who uses Qaf to transcribe and organize scholarly lessons. Sends a formal six-axis proposal ordered by priority: (1) conversation archiving — auto-save with known retention (at least a month), user-chosen names, created/updated dates, expected-deletion date, deletion warnings, a pin button to exempt from auto-delete, folders/projects, temporary trash; (2) export outside Qaf's servers to Word/PDF/TXT/Markdown (and personal cloud like Google Drive/OneDrive), plus an "import previous conversation" option to resume where he stopped; (3) search and navigation inside long chats — internal keyword search with result counts, auto index of headings in a side list, remember last position, bookmarks on important messages, jump-to-top/bottom; (4) per-answer like/dislike with reason, favorites in topical folders, copy/export/regenerate, and reporting errors in text or attribution; (5) a personal research library of uploaded sources (PDF, Word, manuscripts, transcripts) with scoped search — Qaf library only, user sources only, or combined — and strict answer rules (only from the selected files, precise attribution with file name/volume/page, distinguishing verbatim text from summary); (6) transcribing audio and video with scholarly references for further reading. Abdellatif replied to each axis: folders and export will be considered/built, like/dislike will be added, user-uploaded sources is "an excellent idea we will work on", and he asked for examples of apps that do in-chat search well.

مجموعة من المقترحات التطويرية التي أرجو أن تسهم في زيادة نفع المنصة، وتيسير استخدامها، وتحويلها إلى بيئة بحثية متكاملة تخدم الباحث وطالب العلم.

A set of development proposals that I hope will increase the platform's benefit, ease its use, and turn it into an integrated research environment serving the researcher and the student of knowledge.

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