export to bibtex - unbalanced brackets

s3bber
Hello,

I have a problem exporting my library to bibtex.
The exported file contains a bibtex entry named "file". In most cases that is fine, but in some the amount of curly bracket is not correct.
In this special case it looks like that:

file = {Moritomo et al. - 1997 - Enhanced electron-lattice coupling in La_{1-x}Sr_{.pdf:\\win.desy.de\home\hubers\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\desy.default\zotero\storage\ZMTGUNXG\Moritomo et al. - 1997 - Enhanced electron-lattice coupling in La_{1-x}Sr_{.pdf:application/pdf}

At the end there are two curly brackets missing. This obviously destroys the entire entries after that entry.

Is there a way to fix that? Or at least, is there a way to choose which bibtex entries are generated by zotero? I do not need the entry "file" or "abstract".
  • adamsmith
    Obviously this should be fixed generally, but until then, you should be able to unselect "attachments" when exporting bibtex which should get rid of the "file" field.
  • s3bber
    Do you mean the "Translator Options" in the "Export..."-window? That is and always unselected. Also "Export Notes" is not selected.
    But I guess you mean something else?! I don't know, where I can select or unselect special fields, e.g. I also do not need the field "abstract" in bibtex. Thx
  • adamsmith
    edited July 24, 2012
    that's what I meant, yes - but you're right that doesn't get rid of the file link, though it probably should.

    It looks like the problem here is not the export but the filename itself - Zotero cuts the title off after x characters when it creates filenames. In almost all cases that works, but here it makes the cut in the middle of two curly braces and chaos ensues.
    Dan should probably have a look at that.

    edit: as a workaround you should be able to manually fix the filename in the right hand panel by clicking on the file-label (printed in bold) and checking "rename associated file".
  • s3bber
    okey, but thanks anyway. maybe I just copy it to another location, so the file path is a little bit shorter.

    But is there a way to select certain fields?
  • adamsmith
    edited July 24, 2012

    But is there a way to select certain fields?
    no.
  • FHeimburger
    not really a solution either, but I run my Zotero-produced bibtex files through Jabref which has an option to completely remove certain fields. Can't say off the top of my head whether Jabref would be stumped by the bracket issue above (and am not on a computer where I can test), but it might be worth an attempt.
  • s3bber
    so you generated your bibtex file with zotero and edit it with jabref and create a second bibtex file?!
    I never used jabref before, but thx for the tip!
  • FHeimburger
    yes, I essentially use jabref to do some 'cleaning up' on the Zotero-produced file - I started doing that when there wasn't an option to exclude notes from bibtex export (and the resultant gigantic bibtex files kept making my latex compilations grind to a halt), but I still do it to strip abstracts plus sometimes DOI/ISBN if the style I'm working with insists on using them and I haven't got time to modify it.
  • Simon
    that's what I meant, yes - but you're right that doesn't get rid of the file link, though it probably should.
    When we didn't include the file info unless exporting the attachments, people complained.

    I'm not sure what this is supposed to look like when there are braces, but I assume something needs to be escaped.
  • s3bber
    but wouldn't it be nice, if one can choose between the generated entries in bibtex. Maybe for the start something like "required field" "optional fields" "all fields" ?!
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