Citations/Bibliography not "active"

Context:
I was given a paper that was written to add and edit; the original author used zotero (stand-alone, w/chrome/ and w/MS Word) for in-text citations and bibliography. I also received his Zotero library which I uploaded into my zotero.

The citations and bibliography appear to be active in the document (i.e. they are "grey" and if I toggle the field code, the proper code appears).

Problem:
1. The bibliography and citations do not update if I add, remove or change a reference .
2. When I add a reference manually, I can't match the citation style that is used.

What I've tried and result unsuccessful:
1. Library transfer/syncing
2. Parsed the bibliography in Any Style
3. Reference extractor
4. https://www.zotero.org/support/kb/changes_not_syncing

Any suggestions before I manually rebuild the in-text citations and bibliography is most helpful; this is a big paper with >170 references.

Thank you!
  • I also received his Zotero library which I uploaded into my zotero.
    How? Unless you're using his actual data directory, the citations in the document won't be linked to the items in the library. You can continue to use the citations in the document, but only with their embedded metadata. If you want to use the same citation elsewhere in the document, you would want to select from the Cited section of the search results in the citation dialog.
    1. The bibliography and citations do not update if I add, remove or change a reference .
    I'm not sure exactly what you mean by this. You should be able to continue using the document normally. Existing citations just won't be linked to your library in any way.

    2. When I add a reference manually, I can't match the citation style that is used.
    You need to have the same citation style installed on your computer. If you already used the plugin without that, the citation style would've been reset to something you had installed, and you'll need to install the style and select it from the document preferences.
  • 1. Re: Zotero Library: He exported his library and I imported it. How do I link it to my library?

    2. Re: Updating bibliography/Citations: If I add a new reference let's say between Ref #32 and Ref #34...does Zotero renumber the references/bibliography to insert a new one?

    3. Re: Citation Style: How do I find out which citation style the original author used? Or how can I change the style of the whole paper at once to match?
  • edited March 31, 2020
    He exported his library and I imported it. How do I link it to my library?
    You can't — as I say, this would only work if you were actually using his database files directly instead of your own. For collaborating on a document, you would want to be citing from a shared group library from the beginning. Or you can just continue to use the citations in the document, but if you need to edit any of the metadata you'd need to delete and reinsert all instances of the citation.
    If I add a new reference let's say between Ref #32 and Ref #34...does Zotero renumber the references/bibliography to insert a new one?
    Yes, unless "Automatically update citations" is disabled, in which case you'll see new citations with an underline and will need to click Refresh.
    How do I find out which citation style the original author used?
    Ask the original author, and install it from the preferences.
  • ok! Thanks so much for your help!
  • edited April 14, 2020
    3. Re: Citation Style: How do I find out which citation style the original author used?
    Reference Extractor should show which CSL style was selected. See https://twitter.com/rintzezelle/status/1141186640288899072/photo/1 for an example.
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