Zotero is a free user-friendly programme that helps you with collecting, organising, citing and sharing references to -and often including the full text of- sources (articles, books, data etc.).
In Zotero you basically start without an account and you save your references locally on your own desktop computer/laptop. When you want to synchronise and share your material with others you need to create an online account.
Because your Zotero library is on your computer, make sure you always make a good back-up!
Zotero is available for Windows, Mac, and Linux.
Recently a new version of Zotero was released, Zotero 7, read more about it in the Zotero blog.
Source: Boston College Libraries, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0W2ws-vYDY&feature=emb_logo
Zotero Support:
Install Zotero:
Open the .dmg and drag Zotero to the Applications folder. After installing Zotero you can eject and delete the .dmg file.
Activate the Zotero Connector in Safari via Settings > Extentions. Check the box left of the Zotero extension.
It's possible to only have an online account and you can add to the library online, but the online library is significantly more limited in its capabilities. For example Word processor integration, several search functions including advanced search, saving items into collections using the browser connector, any add-ons you may want to use, etc. aren't available online only.
Get going:
Create one or more folders (collections) in Zotero. Click on File > new collection >
Tips & tricks
For more information and support: https://www.zotero.org/support/installation
See also:
In order to import references you must have opened Zotero!
Option 1: from the source itself
If you find an article online, you save the title data and (frequently) the full text with the help of the browser extension. Do so preferably from the article itself, in that way you include the largest part of the infomation.
Option 2: from a database of search engine
If you search for literature in a search engine (Google Scholar, Scopus etc.), you can also save the references in Zotero by means of the browser extension. Select the publications you want to import in Zotero. Please note!: Only if there is a direct link to a PDF in the source, will it be automatically imported in Zotero. In the picture below that is only the case for the first two titles. Please be aware that you do not always get all title data from Google Scholar. That is why you always need to check them in your Zotero item.
Option 3: Semi-manually
Zotero has a way to add a reference, only by an ID. Use the magic wand and enter one of the IDs indicated:
Zotero uses the ID to find the data and add the reference. Check if the information is correct and complete.
Option 4: manually
If exporting from a database is not possible, you can also add sources manually.
Go to Zotero and click on the New item logo in the folder where you want to add the title Choose the right type (book, article etc) and enter all relevant data.
Tips & tricks
For more information and support see:
In Zotero you can organise your sources in several ways and add information them:
Tips & tricks
For more information and support see:
For more information and support see: https://www.zotero.org/support/duplicate_detection
1. The bibliography
You can make a reading list (bibliography) of a complete folder/collection or of a few specific titles from a collection.
- Click in the left screen on the collection/folder of your choice and choose "Create Bibliography from Collection" under the right mouse button(or Ctrl-click in case of a Mac), or select a few specific titles and choose "Create Bibliography from items"
- Choose a citation style
- Click on OK and tick the Bibliography box. Now you can choose from:
If you choose RTF or HTML, your bibliography is saved on your computer (in your Downloads folder).
For more information see https://www.zotero.org/support/creating_bibliographies.
If you want to know more about the citiation styles Zotero has to offer, go to https://www.zotero.org/support/styles.
2. Citing in Word
You can also include your Zotero library in Word. While writing you could add in-text citations to your text,after which the bibliography at the end of your text is automatically updated. Modifications and improvements to items in your Zotero library will be carried out in your documents by a simple procedure.
To do this you need to install the Zotero Word Plug-in (NB close Word when you are downloading, to avoid problems).
https://www.zotero.org/support/word_processor_plugin_installation
For more information and support see: https://www.zotero.org/support/word_processor_integration.
3. Citing in Google Docs
Google Docs support is part of the Zotero Connector for Chrome and Firefox.
You need to have Zotero opened to be able to use it in Google Docs.
A Zotero Connector for Safari supporting working with Google Docs is not available yet (available 'in the near future').
For more information and support see: https://www.zotero.org/support/google_docs
Tips & tricks
Creating groups in Zotero is a good way to share collections and to collaborate within a project or course.
In Zotero you basically start without an account and you save your references locally on your own desktop computer/laptop. When you want to synchronise and share your material with others you need to create an online account.
If you don't see the group in Zotero, select synchronising in the right hand top corner.
You can always leave a group via the "Leave" button, top left on the group page.
Only group owners can delete a group. Log in on Zotero Groups, go via "Manage profile" to the "Group Settings" page and choose 'delete'.
There are no limits to the number of group members. Groups are set apart from your standard, personal collections in My Library, so you can have them both separately. You can drag items from one group to another.
NB. Because the collections are set apart, updates to an item in one group are not automatically carried out to that same item in another group.
For more information see https://www.zotero.org/support/groups
See also:
Zotero saves your references locally on your own desktop computer/laptop. When you want to use Zotero on several devices, have a look at the synchronisation options.
We strongly recommend you to make a backup of your Zotero database. Synchronising alone is not enough.
You can also export your references by right-clicking on the item or on the collection and to select Export Collections or Export Items.You can also export your entire library to a file by choosing Export Library in the Files menu, choose an export format (for instance RIS or BibTex) and save the file. Later on, you can import this file again (or into another programme).
See also: