Zotero

To use Zotero, download & install the two components (software and browser plugin):

>> Download & Install Zotero <<

Zotero is a free, open source research management tool designed to help you gather, organize, store, annotate, and share all types of resources used in your research, assignments, or dissertation. 

Zotero can run on Linux, macOS, iOS, and Windows.  Chromebook use requires Linux set-up; directions are here.

​With Zotero, you can do the following:

• Organize your resources by project/ folders or with tags
• Create APA formatted reference lists 
• Import citations directly from library databases, as well as research websites like Google Scholar or PubMed
• Insert in-text citations and references lists directly in Microsoft Word or Google Docs
• Store your work to the cloud with 300mb free web storage. 

NOTE: When using any citation manager, you must always check your content and citations for accuracy and proper formatting.

Register for a Zotero Training Session

Note that this calendar includes "library office hours" hosted by Tammy Ivins. These are drop-in times for general library questions, but you can bring your Zotero questions. 

Zotero On Demand is a one-on-one support service providing basic troubleshooting and technology instruction on Zotero, an open-source citation management tool.

Areas of Assistance

• Reviewing installation requirements for the Zotero Citation Manager or Zotero browser plugin;
• Addressing specific questions on adding resources, creating bibliographies, and annotating documents in Zotero;
• Troubleshooting basic functionality of Zotero and its associated tools;
• Account issues and access.

This session is not intended to provide a broad overview of Zotero and its features. To learn more about using Zotero please register to attend the Introduction to Zotero Citation Manager webinar by visiting the Library Events Calendar.

IMPORTANT: Provide detailed information about your Zotero issue or specific questions in the booking form.

>> Schedule a Zotero on Demand Appointment <<

• When I use Zotero to make APA citations, the titles are all in upper case instead of sentence case.

  • Make sure your titles in Zotero are in sentence case (first word & proper nouns only capitalized): 

    1. Right-click on the item's title in the Info pane and choose “Sentence case”.

    2. You will then need to capitalize any proper nouns manually, as well as any words after a colon. Learn more about sentence case

  • You only need to do this once, and then Zotero will always use the correct case for that item, no matter what citation style you're using.

  • See in action! Watch a video demo

• The plugin isn't showing up in Microsoft word!
  • If you just installed Zotero, try restarting your computer. 
  • Otherwise, see Manually Installing the Zotero Word Processor Plugin or Word Processor Plugin Troubleshooting.
• When I go to my Web Library at zotero.org, I don't see all the features you talk about
  • Please download & install the Zotero software (for Mac, iOS, Windows, and Linux). 
  • The Web Library is a great backup way to access your library in a pinch, but it does not have all the features of the full software.
• I'm having trouble importing sources to Zotero,
  • Make sure you have installed & are using the Zotero Connector in your preferred web browser - it is the best way to add sources. 
  • Still having issues? Try the Magic Wand button in Zotero to add an item by DOI, ISBN, etc (aka: "Add Item by Identifier"). 
• The source I want to add doesn't have a DOI, ISBN, etc - what do I do? 
  • This can happen sometimes with sources like white papers or reports from nonprofit and government agencies (example of a government report). 
  • In those cases, you may have to manually add the source to Zotero.
    • Just click the green “New Item” button at the top of the middle pane and select the desired item type from the drop-down menu. Learn more about the different item types (report, document, etc) available in Zotero
    • An empty item of the selected item type will now appear in the center column. You can then manually enter the item's bibliographic information via the right-hand pane.