Zotero

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Zotero

 z otero 
Screenshot of Zotero 5.0
Screenshot of Zotero 5.0 on macOS
Basic data

developer Roy Rosenzweig Center
for History and New Media
at George Mason University
Publishing year October 8, 2006
Current  version 5.0.89
( July 22, 2020 )
operating system cross-platform
programming language JavaScript
category Literature management program
License AGPL v3
German speaking Yes
www.zotero.org

Zotero [ zɔˈtɛro ] is a free , open source literature management program for collecting, managing and citing various online and offline sources. Zotero supports the processing of bibliographical information and literature lists, especially in scientific publications .

The program was originally developed as an extension for the Mozilla Firefox web browser . The literature database then appeared in a browser window. From 2011 Zotero was also in a standalone version (standalone) are available. With version 5 released in July 2017, Zotero only exists as an independent program that is independent of the Firefox web browser. As a platform-independent program, it runs under Microsoft Windows as well as Linux , macOS and other operating systems.

The software is developed by the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media at George Mason University and by freelance programmers. The name Zotero is derived from the Albanian word zotëroj ("grasp something quickly, master it ").

Functions

Collect bibliographic data

Zotero can be used to create a database of bibliographic information, comparable to a private library catalog. Not only books and essays, but also websites, films, legal texts, manuscripts, lectures, interviews and other sources can be included with information specific to the source. The data can be entered manually or automatically loaded into the database from the Internet. To do this, the program examines the websites currently being viewed by the user, such as digital libraries , online library catalogs ( OPAC ), Google Scholar or online booksellers such as Amazon.com, for bibliographic information and saves this in a local database with a click of the mouse. If it is a full text that is available online, such as an article or an e-book, Zotero can create a local copy of it. These Internet functions can be used with the help of a connector for Mozilla Firefox , Apple Safari (up to version 11), Google Chrome and Opera , which must be installed in these browsers as a plug-in ( add-on, extension ).

To identify and translate the metadata, the program uses its own parser ( called translator in the documentation ), but also open standards such as unAPI and COinS . With this standard, literature references from Wikipedia can also be adopted, provided they are marked with the literature template in the Mediawiki source text. In addition, Zotero imports and exports various metadata formats, including BibTeX , EndNote , MODS and RIS .

It is also possible to create a new entry just by specifying an ISBN , DOI or PMID , in which the missing bibliographic information is automatically added. Individual PDF files can also be stored in Zotero. The corresponding metadata is determined from the file. Since October 2018, Zotero has been using the Unpaywall project to identify legitimate free publications of PDFs if the reference management system encounters a payment barrier that prevents direct downloading.

Manage bibliographies and link data

The entries in the database can be supplemented with keywords (tags), notes and other metadata , cross-references between sources and any other files in the attachment. It is also possible to synchronize the database with a cloud server of your choice. The internet storage provided by Zotero ( Zotero Storage ) is unlimited free of charge for database entries; Storage space up to 300 MB is free of charge for saved files. The synchronization of the database enables problem-free use of Zotero on different devices as well as collaboration in teams ( groups ). The team library can be set up as public or only privately accessible with different user rights. Users and teams can present themselves on a homepage, make bibliographies publicly available, create and publish publication lists (from version 5.0) and network with one another ( follow ).

Automate references

Zotero provides literature references in footnotes, endnotes or running text citations as well as literature lists in different citation styles . The data can be transferred to the word processor either by dragging and dropping Zotero into the editor window or using a plug-in that is available for the Microsoft Word and LibreOffice Writer programs. Since October 2018 there is also an integration for Google Docs ; the Zotero connector for Google Chrome and Firefox adds a Zotero menu to the selection menu in Google Docs. If the plug-in is used, Zotero creates fields or bookmarks in the word processing file in which codes refer to the corresponding database entries. The inserted references are automatically reformatted as soon as a different citation style is selected in the settings. If the same source is referred to again later in the text, Zotero automatically creates an abbreviated bibliography or an " ibid. " Reference , depending on the citation style. The bibliography is also automatically supplemented, formatted and sorted.

There is an extensive collection of citation styles available that can be easily installed and used out of the box. This makes it possible to cite a large number of specialist journals, including German-language ones, directly when exporting the documents from Zotero. Some styles are programmed for a specific language, in others the language ( locale ) can be set so that, for example, a standard style such as that of the Chicago Manual of Style can also be used in German or other language texts.

Extensions

Since it is a free and open source software, you can contribute to its development, for example write down the software documentation, discuss the development of the program in forums and take part in the translation and even programming. Zotero is also open to a wide variety of extensions (plug-ins), some of which are accessible via the official site. The functionality of the existing program can be expanded with the following adjustments:

Citation styles

If a special style is required, for example for a certain trade journal, which is not available in the directory, the programming of the style code can be requested via an internet forum. It is also possible to change an existing style for your own purposes or to code new styles yourself. Basic knowledge of the Citation Style Language is required for this; simple changes can be made using a graphic editor.

Collaboration with bibliographic data sources

Users and software developers can also add additional parsers ( translators ) to download bibliographic data from previously unrecorded websites and library catalogs.

Juris-M : multilingualism and legal citations

Since 2010 there has been a variant of Zotero with Juris-M , which reacts to the special needs in two areas of application: citations from legal sources and multilingual citations. This variant was called Multilingual Zotero (MLZ) until 2015 . It is being developed in parallel to Zotero and does not differ from it in principle, but only offers additional functions: Legal citations can be defined differently and very flexibly, modularly depending on the legal system. In many database fields, entries translated into other languages ​​or writing systems can also be created (e.g. authors, titles or location information in Chinese characters, in Latin transcription and in German translation). The Abbreviation Filter from Juris-M offers the possibility to define different indexes of abbreviations for magazines , series , classics etc. in parallel. Depending on the writing project, it is not only possible to choose citation styles as in the regular Zotero, but also different writing variants by the same author, title, etc., as well as specific abbreviation systems. Juris-M's personal bibliographic databases are compatible with Zotero and are synchronized via the user account on zotero.org.

Mobile operating systems

For some time now, the development of Zotero clients for mobile operating systems has been advanced. The Zotero Bookmarklet now exists , which saves bibliographic data from browsers on mobile devices directly into its own database.

There are also several apps for iOS (e.g. BibUp, PaperShip ) and Android (e.g. Zandy, Zed Lite ) as well as cross-platform apps (e.g. BrowZine ) that were not officially developed by Zotero .

Fundraising took place for the operating system-independent Zotfile ; The development of a free app for Android should also be financed through crowdfunding .

Controversy

On June 4, 2009, Thomson Reuters dismissed a lawsuit alleging that the Zotero project was reverse engineering the implementation of the EndNote reference management format .

literature

  • Marie Flüh: Zotero . In: forTEXT. Research literature digitally . June 3, 2019 ( fortext.net ).
  • Jason Puckett: Zotero. A guide for librarians, researchers, and educators . 2nd Edition. Association of College and Research Libraries, Chicago 2017, ISBN 978-0-8389-8931-9 .

Web links

Commons : Zotero  - collection of images, videos and audio files

References and comments

  1. ↑ Release 5.0.89 . July 22, 2020 (accessed July 23, 2020).
  2. ^ Licensing. April 26, 2015, accessed December 9, 2016 .
  3. ^ The Etymology of Zotero. January 28, 2008, accessed December 9, 2016 .
  4. ↑ A connector was available up to Safari 11 . Since version 12, Safari can only work with Zotero via a bookmarklet . The reason for this is the closure of the interface for Safari extensions by Apple. You have not been able to install free extensions since Safari 12, and according to the developers, the Zotero connector cannot be brought into the Mac AppStore: Zotero Safari Extension not working with new OS beta 10.14 . In: Zotero Forums. Discussion since June 8, 2018. Also: Why can't I install the Zotero Connector in Safari 12? . In: Zotero Knowledge Base. September 18, 2018. Retrieved September 19, 2018.
  5. ^ Zotero and Wikipedia. May 13, 2011, accessed December 9, 2016 .
  6. ^ Zotero . In: CHIP Online . ( chip.de [accessed on March 5, 2018]).
  7. ↑ Available for beta testing: new PDF recognizer . In: Zotero Forums . ( zotero.org [PDF; accessed March 5, 2018]).
  8. ↑ Improved PDF retrieval with Unpaywall integration. (PDF) In: Zotero Blog. October 9, 2018, accessed October 11, 2018 .
  9. ↑ Changes in 5.0. July 10, 2017, accessed July 13, 2017 .
  10. ↑ Integration in word processing programs. June 20, 2014, accessed December 9, 2016 .
  11. ^ Zotero Comes to Google Docs. In: Zotero Blog. October 19, 2018, accessed October 23, 2018 .
  12. ↑ google docs. In: Zotero Documentation. Retrieved October 20, 2018 .
  13. ↑ More than 8500 citation styles available in the Zotero Style Repository. Retrieved April 14, 2017 .
  14. ↑ Plugins for Zotero. June 21, 2017, accessed July 13, 2017 .
  15. ↑ Request new citation styles. June 20, 2014, accessed December 9, 2016 .
  16. ↑ Citation Styles. July 15, 2014, accessed December 9, 2016 .
  17. ↑ CSL Visual Editor. Retrieved December 9, 2016 .
  18. ^ Juris-M website
  19. ^ Juris-M: Support for legal and multilingual scholarship. Retrieved January 29, 2020 .
  20. ^ Zotero Mobile. February 8, 2017, accessed July 13, 2017 .
  21. ↑ Patrick Mineault: Zotero Reader for Android. May 6, 2013, accessed December 10, 2016 .
  22. ↑ Sean Takats: Thomson Reuters Lawsuit Dismissed. June 4, 2009. Retrieved July 13, 2017 .
  23. ↑ Statement from George Mason University on Center for History and New Media's Zotero Software ( Memento November 1, 2008 in the Internet Archive )
  24. ^ Hans-Joachim Baader: Zotero open source project sued. October 1, 2008, accessed July 13, 2017 .