get-paper

Purpose

This Skill searches Google Scholar using Chrome DevTools MCP tools, presents search results to the user for selection, and retrieves BibTeX entries for selected papers. It automates the manual process of searching Google Scholar, clicking "Cite", and copying BibTeX. This Skill does NOT use Semantic Scholar MCP — it operates entirely through browser automation.

Trigger

Activates when the user asks to:

• Search Google Scholar for a paper
• Get BibTeX from Google Scholar
• /get-paper <search query>

Workflow

Step 1: Navigate to Google Scholar

• Call mcp__chrome-devtools__list_pages to check browser state.
• If no page is open on scholar.google.com, call mcp__chrome-devtools__navigate_page to https://scholar.google.com.
• If already on Google Scholar, reuse the current page.

Step 2: Search

• Take a snapshot to find the search box element.
• Fill the search box with the user's query using mcp__chrome-devtools__fill.
• Click the Search button using mcp__chrome-devtools__click.
• Wait for results with mcp__chrome-devtools__wait_for (text: ["Cited by"]).

Step 3: Present Results

• Take a snapshot of search results.
• Extract the top 5-8 results: title, authors, venue, year, citation count.
• Present them as a numbered list to the user.
• Ask the user which paper(s) to retrieve BibTeX for (support multiple selections).
• If the user's query is an exact title and the first result is a clear match, skip asking and auto-select it.

Step 4: Get BibTeX (for each selected paper)

For each selected paper:

1. Click Cite: Click the Cite button (haspopup="menu") for the selected result.
2. Wait for dialog: Wait for ["BibTeX"] text to appear.
3. Click BibTeX link: Click the BibTeX link inside the Cite dialog.
4. Read BibTeX: Wait for ["@"] to appear on the new page. Take a snapshot and extract the full BibTeX entry text.
5. Navigate back: Go back to the search results page (mcp__chrome-devtools__navigate_page type=back).
6. Close dialog if open: If the Cite dialog is still showing, click Cancel.

Step 5: Output

• Display all collected BibTeX entries to the user.
• Ask the user if they want to append these entries to a specific .bib file.
  • If yes, read the target bib file, check for duplicate keys, and append new entries.
  • Default target: manuscript/references/references.bib (if it exists in the current project).

Output Contract

Output	Format	Condition
bibtex_entry	BibTeX text	Always produced
Paper metadata	Numbered list with title, authors, venue, year, citations	Always presented before selection

Edge Cases

Situation	Handling
Google Scholar CAPTCHA or rate-limit	Inform the user and stop
No results found	Inform the user, suggest alternative keywords
BibTeX page fails to load	Retry once, then inform the user
Multiple papers selected	Loop through Step 4 for each selection
Cite dialog not closing	Navigate back to force close

Notes

• BibTeX keys from Google Scholar are auto-generated (e.g., wang2024assessing). Do not modify them unless the user asks.
• This skill uses Chrome DevTools MCP tools only. It does NOT use Semantic Scholar MCP.
• Multiple papers can be fetched in one session by repeating Step 4.

Prerequisites

This Skill requires Chrome DevTools MCP server to be configured in Claude Code. To enable it:

1. Open Claude Code settings.
2. Navigate to MCP Servers.
3. Add the Chrome DevTools MCP server.
4. Ensure a Chrome browser is running with remote debugging enabled.

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Skill: get-paper