[MLZ] Word index fields break "Insert Bibliography" (I think...)

nathan.hopson

Using fully updated Zotero Multilingual (MLZ).

Trying to index a Word document with a concordance file.

I can insert the Zotero bibliography first, but then the entire source list becomes part of the index. I can manually edit this, but given the length and number of citations and index entries I'd like to be able to do the following: add index codes from the concordance file first (automatically, with AutoMark), and then Insert Bibliography from the Zotero toolbar. However, doing so gives me nothing. Are the index fields interfering with Zotero? Or is there another issue here?

As always, your expertise and generosity is appreciated.

nathan.hopson

Well, the problem is more serious than I initially believed.

Here's what I did and how I know that things are not good:
I created the Index w/ AutoMark. I then created a new document in Word, set DocPrefs to the correct citation format, and pasted all of my citations into it. I then attempted to add a bibliography from the Zotero toolbar, and it just hangs. Forever.
I've tried this method several times, always with a completely blank, unedited document. Sometimes "Zotero Insert Bibliography" just switches window focus back to Firefox, and other times it inserts {Citation} into the document. In both cases, after that there is no progress, no twitching, nothing.

This is a VERY URGENT issue since my deadline is less than a week away.

Simon

Can you reproduce this with standard Zotero?

nathan.hopson

I'd prefer not to try, as I assume there is a risk of losing multilingual data.

adamsmith

Here's the issue: MLZ is marked as experimental software for a reason - there is exactly one person - Frank Bennett - supporting it, and he has a full time professor's job.
Simon wrote the word plugins and probably has better insight into any issues that can come up, so if this is a more general issue - and it could be, I doubt Zotero has been tested with autoMark - but there is just no way he or the rest of the Zotero team at GMU can support a fork like MLZ.

To test this with regular Zotero, you can easily install vanilla Zotero into a separate Firefox profile and transfer your database so that there is no risk of data loss.

Rintze

Maybe this works?

1) Insert the Zotero bibliography
2) (optional) use the "Zotero Remove Codes" button [Warning: make sure you do this in a copy of your original document]
3) Cut and paste the bibliography into a different document
4) Index the Word document
5) Put back the bibliography

nathan.hopson

Rintze: Thanks for the suggestion. In the end I did something similar to that, and was able to satisfactorily prepare the document.

Here's what I did:
As above, created new document, set doc prefs, etc.
After pasting in the footnotes containing all of my references, I ran the following Visual Basic script to remove all indexing codes (again):

Sub DeleteIndexEntries()
Dim doc As Document
Dim fld As Field
Set doc = ActiveDocument
For Each fld In doc.Fields
fld.Select
If fld.Type = wdFieldIndexEntry Then
fld.Delete
End If
Next
Set fld = Nothing
Set doc = Nothing
End Sub

(Found here: http://is.gd/xAVSDG)

I then (and this appears to have been the critical step!) clicked "Zotero Refresh" on the toolbar. This fixed the broken reference(s), after which I was able to insert the source list in the normal manner.

After I submit this document (it's my dissertation) I might go back and try some of the methods suggested, but for now this was a good enough workaround.

fbennett

I live in the JST timezone, so I was sleeping soundly during this exchange. Very glad to find that it has a happy ending!

@nathan.hopson: When the waters are calm and after you submit, it would be great if you could try reproducing the error in standard Zotero. That would be valuable information.