Swipe, Save, Read — The Complete Discovery Guide

Finding relevant academic papers shouldn't feel like a second job. ZiNote turns paper discovery into something you can do in five minutes over morning coffee — just swipe through cards, save what matters, and let the app learn what you care about.

This guide walks you through everything: the Discover screen, the five action buttons, how your swipes shape future recommendations, and a reading strategy that keeps you on top of your field without burning out.

The Discover Screen: Your Daily Paper Feed

When you open ZiNote, the Discover screen is the first thing you see. It presents one paper at a time as a card — no cluttered lists, no endless scrolling through search results.

What's on each card

Every card shows you the essentials at a glance:

Title — the paper's full title, front and center
Authors — who wrote it, so you can spot familiar names instantly
Source — the journal, conference, or preprint server where it was published
Date — when it was published or last updated
Abstract preview — the first few lines of the abstract, giving you just enough context to decide

You don't need to read the full abstract to make a decision. In fact, for most papers, the title and source alone tell you whether it's worth a closer look.

Swipe gestures

The core interaction is simple:

Swipe right — save the paper and tell ZiNote "I want more like this"
Swipe left — skip the paper and tell ZiNote "less of this, please"
Double-tap — instantly translate the title and abstract

That's it. No menus, no dropdowns, no configuration screens. Just swipe.

The Five Action Buttons

Below each card, you'll find five buttons that give you more control than swiping alone. Think of them as power-ups for when you want to do more than just save or skip.

Skip

What it does: Dismisses the paper. It won't appear in your feed again.

When to use it: The paper isn't relevant to your work. Maybe the topic is adjacent but not quite right, or you've already read it elsewhere.

What it tells ZiNote: "Show me less of this kind of paper." Every skip nudges the recommendation system away from similar content.

Read

What it does: Opens the full paper in ZiNote's built-in browser. No switching apps, no hunting for PDFs.

When to use it: The title and abstract caught your eye, and you want to skim the full text right now — check the figures, scan the methodology, or read the conclusion.

Pro tip: You can read the paper and then decide whether to save or skip. Reading doesn't automatically save it.

AI Summary

What it does: Generates a structured summary of the paper, breaking it down into key sections:

Main contributions — what the paper claims to achieve
Methods — the approach or technique used
Innovations — what's new compared to existing work

When to use it: You're on the fence. The title sounds interesting, but the abstract is dense or vague. The AI summary gives you a clearer picture in seconds, so you can make a confident save-or-skip decision.

When not to use it: If you already know from the title that you want to save it or skip it, don't slow yourself down. Save the AI summaries for the papers that genuinely make you pause.

Translate

What it does: Toggles between Chinese and English translation of the card content.

When to use it: You've come across a paper in a language you're less comfortable reading, and you want to understand the title and abstract before deciding. Also useful for sharing paper details with colleagues who read in a different language.

Double-tap shortcut: Remember, you can also double-tap the card itself to trigger translation without reaching for the button.

Save

What it does: Saves the paper to your Liked list. If you have Zotero sync enabled, it automatically appears in your Zotero library too.

When to use it: This paper is relevant. You want to come back to it, cite it, or read it in depth later.

What it tells ZiNote: "Show me more papers like this." Every save strengthens the signal for similar topics, methods, and sources.

How Your Behavior Shapes Recommendations

Here's what makes ZiNote different from a static search engine: every swipe teaches the system what you care about.

You set your research keywords when you first set up the app. ZiNote then automatically searches across all academic sources — you never have to pick databases, journals, or preprint servers manually. The system handles that for you.

But keywords are just the starting point. Your swipe behavior refines everything:

Right-swipe (save) tells the system: "This is what I'm looking for. Find me more papers with similar topics, methods, and sources."
Left-swipe (skip) tells the system: "This isn't quite right. Show me less of this kind of content."

Over time, your feed becomes increasingly personalized. Papers that match your demonstrated interests rise to the top. Papers that drift from your focus quietly drop away.

You never need to manually adjust the algorithm. There are no sliders, no relevance scores to tweak, no source filters to manage. Just keep swiping honestly — save what matters, skip what doesn't — and the system adapts.

The more consistently you swipe, the faster the recommendations improve. Even a few days of regular use makes a noticeable difference.

The Three-Round Reading Strategy

Not every paper deserves the same amount of attention. Here's a practical approach that lets you cover a lot of ground without getting stuck.

Round 1: Fast Swipe (3 seconds per paper)

Goal: Triage your entire daily feed as quickly as possible.

Look at the title and source only
Don't read the abstract unless the title is ambiguous
Swipe right if it looks relevant, left if it doesn't
Aim for about 3 seconds per paper

This round is about volume. You're not making perfect decisions — you're making fast ones. It's okay to be generous with saves here. You'll filter further in Round 2.

Most days, you can clear your entire feed in under five minutes.

Round 2: Review Saved Papers with AI Summaries

Goal: Separate the truly important papers from the merely interesting ones.

Open your Liked list
For each saved paper, tap the AI Summary button
Read the structured breakdown: contributions, methods, innovations
Ask yourself: "Does this actually matter for my current work?"
Remove anything that looked good at first glance but doesn't hold up

After this round, you should be down to a handful of papers that genuinely deserve your time.

Round 3: Deep-Read the Best 1-2 Papers

Goal: Engage deeply with the most relevant work.

Pick one or two papers from your refined list
Use the Read button to open the full text
Read the introduction, methods, and results carefully
Take notes, highlight key findings, consider how it connects to your work

This is where real understanding happens. By the time you reach Round 3, you've already filtered out the noise. You're spending your deep-reading energy on papers that actually matter.

"All Caught Up"

At some point, you'll swipe through your last card and see the "All Caught Up" message. This means you've reviewed every paper ZiNote found for you today.

This is a feature, not a limitation. ZiNote is designed to give you a finite, manageable set of papers each day — not an infinite scroll that eats your afternoon. When you see "All Caught Up," you're done. Close the app and get back to your actual research.

New papers arrive based on your keywords and evolving preferences. Come back tomorrow, and there will be a fresh set waiting for you.

Start Discovering Smarter

The best way to get comfortable with ZiNote is to just start swiping. Set your keywords, open the Discover screen, and work through your first batch of papers. Don't overthink it — your instincts about what's relevant are usually right, and the system learns fast.

Within a week, your feed will feel like it was hand-picked for you. Because, in a way, it was — by you, one swipe at a time.

Ready to try it? Open ZiNote, head to the Discover screen, and swipe through your first ten papers. You'll be surprised how quickly it clicks.