Set up Zotero in 4 steps!

1. Create an account using your Carleton email address. This will get you unlimited free storage for PDFs and other documents. Signing up with a personal email address will get you 300MB of free storage.
   • Visit the Zotero login page and Register for a Free Account 
2. Install the Zotero program on your computer
   • Visit the Zotero homepage and click the Download button.
3. Install the Zotero browser connector. 
   • Visit the Zotero Browser Connection page from your preferred browser and click install.
4. Configure preferences!
   • Scroll down for configuration instructions and hints!

Having trouble or want support before class? Book an appointment with Hannah Chapman Tripp!

Configure Zotero's Preferences

Open Settings

1. Windows users, click Edit > Settings
2. Mac users, click Zotero > Settings

Sync to your Zotero Account

1. In Settings, click the "Sync" tab.

2. Enter your Zotero username and password.

3. This will sync your Zotero account and all your citation information to the cloud so you can access it anywhere.

Set up the "Library Lookup" option

1. In Settings, click the "General" tab.

2. In the "Locate" section, click on the menu to the right of "Resolver." In that menu, hover over North America, and in the next menu that opens, find and select Carleton College. Close this window.
3. This will set up Zotero to find resources using Gould Library's catalog.

A few hints...

1. HINT: If the Zotero connector isn't communicating with your Zotero application, go to Zotero.org and log in with your Zotero account. This will let your browser, and therefore the connector, know who you are, and it will be able to send citations to your Zotero application again.
2.  HINT: In some browsers, you may have to "Pin" the Zotero Browser Connector in order to make it visible in your toolbar. 

Add items via the browser extension...

The icon for the browser extension will change depending on what you're looking at in your browser. Just click the icon and Zotero will automatically save the citation. Here's more information on how to do that.

If you're on a page of search results with many items, you'll see a folder icon instead. Click this to get a list of all the items on the page, and check off the ones you want to save.

Add items via identifier...

1. Copy an identifier like a DOI (digital object identifier), ISBN (International Standard Book Number), PubMed ID among others.
2. Click the wand icon at the top of the center pane.
3. Paste the numeric identifier in the text box (you can also paste a list of identifiers).
4. Press enter.

This can be very effective method to enter items into your library. One of the advantages is a very limited need to supplement the citation information in your items.

Add items manually...

You can directly enter citation information for an item into Zotero.

1. In Zotero, click the icon that looks like a sheet of paper with a plus (+) sign at the lower right corner.
2. Select the type of item you want to add.
3. Fill in the citation information in the boxes provided.

If you wish, you can drag PDFs or image files onto the resulting entry for the item.

Drag and drop PDFs into Zotero...

Drag & Drop onto an existing citation

Dropping a PDF onto an existing item will attach it to that item.

Each item also has an Attachments tab in the right-hand column. You can attach files by clicking the Attachments icon () and then the plus (+) next to Attachments.

Drag & Drop without an existing citation

You can also drag a file directly into your Zotero library without first having a citation for it. Once you've done that, you can right-click (command click on a Mac) on the new file and select one of these options:

1. "Retrieve Metadata for PDF"
   Zotero will attempt to read and find citation information for this file automatically. If it fails, you can go on to step 2.
2. "Create Parent Item"
   Zotero will give you a blank set of fields, and you can fill in the citation information manually.

Option One: Integrating Zotero with Microsoft Word or Google Docs

Zotero offers word processing plugins for Word and LibreOffice, and the Zotero Connector (for Firefox, Chrome, Safari, and Edge) provides similar functionality in Google Docs. These add a Zotero toolbar to your word processor that allows you to add citations to your document while you write.

To add a citation:

1. Place your cursor where you want the citation or footnote to appear
2. Click "Add/Edit Citation"
3. In the resulting red box, search for the the reference you want to cite (when you select a reference, you may click on that reference to add page numbers)
4. Hit the ENTER key to insert the citation into your document.

At the end of your paper, place your cursor where you'd like your bibliography to appear and then click the "Add/Edit Bibliography" option.

You may change citation styles using the "Document Preferences" option.

Option 2: Drag and Drop

You can drag and drop references from Zotero into your document. This works with any text box, including email.

1. Select your citation style by going Zotero's Preferences > Export > Default Format.
2. Drag and Drop citations and bibliography
   1. Drag an item to your document to create a bibliographic entry
   2. Hold down the SHIFT key and drag an item to your document to create a citation.

Option 3: Copy and Paste

1. Select the references or collections you want to include.
2. Right-click one of the selected items and choose Create Bibliography From Item.
3. Choose the bibliographic style you want, and select the output format: Save as RTF or HTML, copy to clipboard or print. (The RTF file format is compatible with all word processors.)

After you've registered for a Zotero account and gotten yourself all set up (see the "Getting Started" tab above), you can create or be added to a Group Library.

Creating a Group

1. Go to Zotero.org
2. Log in (top right corner of the page)
3. Go to the "Groups" tab
4. Click "Create a New Group"
5. Choose if the group will be Public or Private.

Adding people to a Group

1. Go to Zotero.org
2. Log in (top right corner of the page)
3. Go to the "Groups" tab
4. Under the name of group you want to add members to, click "Members Settings."
5. Under "Member Invitations," click the "Send More Invitations" link.
6. Put new members' email addresses in the box separated by a comma or one in each line.

The larger your group or longer-term your project, the more these practices will matter!

Setting up the structure

Storage:

Have a group member with a Zotero membership create the library to maximize storage.

Inbox:

• Create a designated "inbox" space to collect items before processing.
• Use a personal Zotero library or a subfolder as an inbox.
• Alternatively, use a tag to identify new items for processing.

Folder Workflow Notes:

• Create a standalone note in the main Group library to outline the group's workflow.
• Define how tags, folders, and "related" items are used.

Tag Dictionary:

• Create a standalone note named "_TagDefs" to define tags.
• Apply every tag to this note for easy reference.
• Update this note whenever you create a new tag.

Folder Content Notes:

• Create a standalone note in each sub-folder to describe its purpose.

Automatic Tags:

• Uncheck the "Gather subject headings from databases" option in Zotero Preferences to avoid clutter.

Number of Tags:

• Limit the number of tags and folders to maintain organization.
• Aim for a balance that groups items meaningfully without overwhelming the system.

Workflow Tags: 

• Use tags or folders to track procedural steps like "needs ILL" or "follow up."

Saving/organizing items

Fix Zotero Record:

• Verify and correct any metadata errors, such as capitalization, spelling, or data inaccuracies.

Get PDF:

• Manually download and drag in PDFs if Zotero fails to automatically retrieve them.
• Configure Zotero to streamline full-text retrieval.

Rename PDF:

• Rename PDFs from parent metadata to improve organization and avoid generic filenames.

Share Zotero Record to Subfolder:

• Share a single item with multiple subfolders to avoid redundant copies.

Use the Related Function:

• Utilize the "related" function to link related items, such as different versions of a work or citations.
• Establish a shared understanding of how to use the "related" function to maintain consistency.