Q:

How to install zotero in ubuntu? 

I download the tar.bz file from the home page of zotero, extract it and run the file 'run-zotero.sh', but it open zotero rather than install it.  How to install it?  Any help or suggestion will be appreciated! 

A:

I suggest you add a ppa so that the program gets updated regularly:
sudo apt-add-repository ppa:smathot/cogscinl 

Say yes/press enter to accept any requests. 
sudo apt-get update

wait for it to complete, then:
sudo apt-get install zotero-standalone

This will install the program. 

A:

As of 2019, the preferred way of installing Zotero is by using Emiliano Heyns' packages. 
Run the following instructions on your terminal:
wget -qO- https://github.com/retorquere/zotero-deb/releases/download/apt-get/install.sh | sudo bash
sudo apt update
sudo apt install zotero

For additional information about the provided packages, see the README file. 
Other answers should be considered obsolete, Sebastiaan Mathot's packages being no longer maintained. 

A:

This project is designed to automate installation.  It worked for me with 13.04.  To install it, run the following in your terminal: 
wget https://raw.github.com/smathot/zotero_installer/master/zotero_installer.sh -O /tmp/zotero_installer.sh
chmod +x /tmp/zotero_installer.sh
/tmp/zotero_installer.sh

and answer the questions.  If you want it to be installed globally, you will need sudo on the last command:
sudo /tmp/zotero_installer.sh

