Zotero won't save to web library

bschlen5

Hello,

I recently set up an account and have downloaded the Zotero desktop application and web browser plug in. Both are synched. I use Microsoft Edge. I can save to the desktop application, but nothing saves in the web library. It is completely empty. Could someone please tell me what is wrong and how I can fix it?

dstillman

See Changes Not Syncing.

bschlen5

Thanks for the link. Unfortunately, nothing listed is the problem. For whatever reason, nothing will save to online Web Library.

bschlen5

Sorry, just to clarify, I meant the web library that I view when I log into my online account. I can save things to the web library in the desktop application.

adamsmith

Re-read the linked page again -- at a minimum, you should provide the information requested in the last step, but since you missed that, please do make sure you've carefully checked all of the other ones.

bschlen5

Thanks for the input. However, I have no idea what linked page you are talking about or what I apparently missed.

bschlen5

Do you mean the page that the link from dstillman "Changes Not Syncing"?

adamsmith

The linked page is in dstillman's post above (https://www.zotero.org/support/kb/changes_not_syncing )

The part that you've definitely missed is

If you're still having trouble, post to the Zotero Forums (in your existing thread, if you have one) with a Debug ID for the first sync after making a change that doesn't sync (e.g., making a change to an item in the online library that doesn't appear in Zotero, or vice versa), along with a description of what's not transferring. Start debug output logging before making the change and keep it going until the sync has ended.

bschlen5

Okay, thank you so much for clarifying. I probably did miss stuff, since I mostly scanned the page that dstillman sent and only really read the areas that seemed pertinent to my problem. I guess I was expecting all this stuff to be much, much more user friendly. Anyway, while I appreciate your help, this seems a little too complicated for me.

adamsmith

I think you may just misunderstand what's actually happening:
Zotero saves items locally to your Desktop app. That sounds like it's working.
To get from the Desktop app to the website, the app needs to sync, that seems like it's not working. The steps in the troubleshooting page run you through why it might not be working. It's possible you'll have to run through all of them, but it's much more likely that a couple of the first ones will just fix this for you.

bschlen5

You might be right. I don't really know. I just re-read the steps, and I've done everything except that last step about debugging. I glanced at that debug page and it seems like a bit of a hassle. I might try that later when I have more time. I was hoping that Zotero would be relatively easy to use because it's supposed to be a time-saver.

adamsmith

The checkmark wouldn't be online, no. That's in the Zotero Preferences (in the App) --> Sync --> Choose Library.

I'd step back and look at the more basic things, though:
As per step 2.

Check the sync icon in Zotero on the relevant device (i.e. your desktop app). If it's still spinning, the sync process hasn't yet completed. Hover over the sync icon to see the current status.

The sync icon is the round green icon in the top right of the app, see the image on the sync documentation: https://www.zotero.org/support/sync

bschlen5

Thanks, I really do appreciate your input and advice. I checked and nothing appears to be spinning. On the desktop application, when I hold my mouse over the refresh arrow, it says "Last Sync: 1 hour ago." I'm really not sure what to do. When I have more time, I'll probably have to wait until I have a few hours to dedicate to this and then taken another look.

dstillman

You're almost certainly just syncing with a different account from the one you're logged into, which has never been synced. That's #5 on the Changes Not Syncing page — "Check your Zotero account details". We really do link to troubleshooting instructions for a reason.

bschlen5

I think you're right. The desktop version says bschle5 and the online account has bschlen5 as the username. Do you know how I would link them? I tried to register for a new account, but Zotero won't let me because bschle5 is already taken.

bschlen5

You were definitely right. I didn't need a new account. I just needed to log in with the bschle5 username. Now I can see the stuff in my web library. Thanks for all your help! It is safe to say I would not have noticed that without your help.