what does "store references in document" actually do?

odoyle81

Can someone provide me with an example of exactly how this would work and what it accomplishes?

Thanks!

adamsmith

if you have Word, you can look at the items as stored in the reference y pressing alt+F9 - they're stored in a format called CSL JSON.
What it accomplishes is that another person using Zotero is able to work with that document and all references, even without having those references in her/his Zotero library.

Currently, the feature doesn't accomplish anything for working with non-Zotero users, but in the medium run it will allow people to create collections/exports based on items cited in a document and will allow people to import references from other peoples documents - no idea when those features will arrive, though. (As I mention in the other thread, this would also be possible to do for third party developers)

odoyle81

ok thanks.

rwielage

Hi. We need to deliver a few documents to a client such that they can make changes, including adding to the reference list. Each document has over a hundred references. We don't want to give the client access to our group library. How is this best handled?

adamsmith

just sending the document with the store references in document setting enabled (which is the default) should allow that. Probably a good idea to test this out quickly on a computer w/o the group library you've been working from, but I don't see any reason this wouldn't just work.

rwielage

Great! I brought over a document to a new install of Zotero and was able to add a reference. Is there a way to import the references from the document into the library I'm working with?

adamsmith

no, unfortunately that's currently not possible.

rwielage

Is there a way to export the references from our zotero group library and send them to our client for import into their zotero library so they work with the document?

adamsmith

no. Obviously you can export the references, but they wouldn't be tied to the document anymore. Groups are still the only way to achieve that.

rwielage

If we copy the references to a different group that is only shared with that client, will the reference in that group work with the document?

adamsmith

no, not either. You'd have to re-insert them from that group.

fbennett

Really? I thought that a URI history was stored on items when dragged across group boundaries, so that they would continue to work. Is that assumption incorrect?

adamsmith

The URI history is saved, but I thought that was currently basically without effect (except to prevent dragging the same item again). But I'm not sure, so unless Dan or Simon chime in with something definite this may be worth trying.

Simon

In a beta version of Zotero 3.0, we saved all of the URIs in the document, but we eventually stopped because someone could conceivably edit a reference in their library but not the group, and it would be better to format with the version of the reference stored in the document than the version linked to the group in that case.

rwielage

This is to let you know how this worked out. We set the document settings to store references in the document. We created a folder in our group library, moved all references into that folder and exported them. We imported them into a new library at the client.

The client is able to 1) cite a previously-cited reference from the library and the reference number in the citation is the same as previous citations of that reference in the document, 2) a second entry for the source is NOT created in the document reference list, and 3) one can make a change to the reference in the client's library and the change will propagate to the reference list in the document.

I request that this become a documented feature of zotero and that it not be broken in future updates.

librarianlea

Hi,

This is a handy thread but I notice that it was started in 2012.

I'm looking for an update on the basics of what "store references in document" does.

I've seen the description "allows other users to work with your Zotero citations and bibliographies without using a Zotero group" https://www.zotero.org/support/word_processor_plugin_usage

A professor has asked me what would happen if she shared a document with citations from My Library, without using a group. What could a Zotero-using partner do with these citations? Are any problems likely to happen?

I created an MS Word document with in text citations and bibliography from items in My Library, then played with the file on a computer with a new Zotero installation.

When I added citations, the bibliography automatically incorporated them - lovely! I was able to switch citations styles successfully.

But I wasn't able to suppress author names, add page numbers, or edit a citation or bibliography.

Is that the common experience? It seems reasonable to me because these references aren't in the Zotero client on the new computer, but then I'm not familiar with the capabilities and limits of storing references in a document.

Thanks!

adamsmith

But I wasn't able to suppress author names, add page numbers, or edit a citation or bibliography.

no, this should all be possible. What exactly happened when you tried?

librarianlea

I used a different computer to get exact info on what was happening, but the set up for the "new Zotero library" machines should be identical.

When I opened the doc, I clicked into the gear to change the style. The little insert/edit citation box came up. I searched for a reference from the local Zotero library, that let me choose a style. And after that the gear icon let me switch styles w/out adding extra citations. Edit bibliography worked like a charm this time around.

I clicked on a citation then Edit citation. I was able to add the page number and suppress author for one citation. After that, the edit citation command seemed to bring up that first citation with the page number and suppress author checked, for every other citation that I tried to edit.

Then, not sure how I managed this, I got a pop up asking "Replace this Zotero field?" I did not choose wisely. The text stayed in the document, but the citations and bibliography didn't have any editable info.

I redownloaded the file from my email, tried again, got the same initial impression that I had to add a new citation before I could change styles. This time around I was able to edit all citations and bibliography with no problem.

Ugh, I can tell that some of this is me trying to learn about collaborating without groups while I'm still practicing how to insert and edit.

Do the steps that I mentioned sound like a reasonable approach to sharing a document without group citations? (if you subtract user errors)

I really want to tell this professor "just use a group!" but I should become familiar with standard expectations for settings like "store references in document."

Thanks for your help!

adamsmith

Do the steps that I mentioned sound like a reasonable approach to sharing a document without group citations? (if you subtract user errors)

yes. Really the main thing you need to watch out for is entering the same citation from two different libraries, since that would cause it to show up twice. I.e. if you're citing something that's already in the document, always pick it from the list under "Cited," not "My Library" (that's in the red-framed Quick format citation dialog after searching for a citation.

librarianlea

Good deal, thanks!