Using Index Medicus/MEDLINE journal abbreviations with APA 7th author date

NadiaKateButler

Hi there,
I would like to use Index Medicus/MEDLINE journal abbreviations with APA 7th author date. There are some instructions on the web: Configure Zotero Settings: Open your Zotero desktop application, go to Edit > Preferences (or Zotero > Settings on Mac) > Advanced > General, and click "Config Editor".
I am on a Mac. There is no Edit, no Preferences, no Settings in the Menu. If I go to "Document preferences", there is an "Advanced Options", but it has nothing below it except "Store citation as bookmarks". There is no "Config Editor". Do I have an old version of Zotero? I would appreciate your help! Thank you!

adamsmith

No, those instructions are completely wrong. The config editor exists (the settings are in Zotero, not the word add-on, where you are looking), but it has nothing to do with this. The only way to add journal abbreviations to a style that doesn't otherwise use journal abbreviations is to edit the style itself. Basic instructions are here, the short version is that your looking for lines containing
<text variable="container-title" ....
and then add form="short" to them, but it's not entirely trivial to get this right for APA style.
General instructions here:
https://www.zotero.org/support/dev/citation_styles/style_editing_step-by-step

NadiaKateButler

Thank you! I will let you know how I go.