Getting collections from Zotero for Firefox to Zotero Standalone for Windows

brubakerpa
I have used Zotero for Firefox for some time for graduate school (seminary) research projects, on my old laptop. However, that laptop's hard drive died, and I'm now working on a Windows 8.1 desktop. Today I went to Zotero's website (for the first time since losing my laptop). When I logged on in their online site, all my old work was there. Then I downloaded Zotero for Windows Standalone, with the Chrome plugin (and I understand it has the plugin to work with my new version of Word). Now I cannot find my old work.
How can I find this old work now, and get it onto my new computer, new version of this software?
  • brubakerpa
    Question: I've moved from using Firefox to mostly using Chrome as my browser now. Does Zotero not work well with Chrome? Is Chrome still unsupported? Do I need to download the Firefox browser and use that when searching for research and writing?
  • brubakerpa
    I meant to say with the Chrome Connector above in first post. I found the Zotero icons in my Word doc (under add ins); but when I try to add a citation ("insert a citation" is all I can find; I'd really like to open my Zotero collections and add more citations to an existing collection), it says "Word could not communicate with Firefox. Please ensure Firefox is running and try again..."
    What gives? What to do next?
  • adamsmith
    you'd have to run Zotero Standalone in addition to the Chrome Connector. It doesn't sound like that's the case?
  • brubakerpa
    Thanks for posting! Three questions:
    1. So when I'm in a Word doc writing--do I have to open the Zotero Standalone app too? I already have my Chrome browser running when I write.
    2. When I downloaded Zotero onto this new computer yesterday, I didn't know what I was doing and loaded the Chrome Connector before I downloaded the Zotero Standalone; then when I realized Standalone should have been loaded first, I clicked a link to load the Chrome Connector too (though I'm not sure it did anything because maybe it detected that was already there)--so I'm wondering if I made a problem there?
    3. Does Zotero work as well in Chrome as it does with Firefox? Should I, can I, load the Firefox Connector too, and when researching use Firefox as my first choice?
  • aurimas
    So when I'm in a Word doc writing--do I have to open the Zotero Standalone app too? I already have my Chrome browser running when I write.
    Yes, you need to have either Zotero Standalone or Firefox with Zotero installed open if you want to insert citations into documents. Other browsers do not have full-featured versions of Zotero.
    When I downloaded Zotero onto this new computer yesterday, I didn't know what I was doing and loaded the Chrome Connector before I downloaded the Zotero Standalone; then when I realized Standalone should have been loaded first, I clicked a link to load the Chrome Connector too (though I'm not sure it did anything because maybe it detected that was already there)--so I'm wondering if I made a problem there?
    No, the order does not matter.
    Does Zotero work as well in Chrome as it does with Firefox? Should I, can I, load the Firefox Connector too, and when researching use Firefox as my first choice?
    Zotero Standalone in combination with Zotero connector for Chrome can do almost everything that Zotero for Firefox can. One advantage of having Zotero in Firefox is automatic proxy redirection (and possibly something else I'm not remembering right now).
  • brubakerpa
    Thank you adamsmith and aurimas!
    I want to take down my questions now--I realize I needed to spend more time with this new Zotero, poke around on it a little, look at user forums. I did that some this morning, and got the Zotero look I'm familiar with with the Standalone product. First, I found the downloaded program on my programs list. Then I pinned it to my start menu and to my taskbar. Now I could easily open it. Next, I found I needed to go to Tools-->preferences-->sync, and enter my UN and PW there; then click the sync button on the right side of the Zotero pane. Presto, all my old work was there, synced to my new computer, Standalone product, and I could pick up on the old work I'd already done for revising I need to do.
    So thank you, both of you commenters, and thanks to user forums and helps too, and thanks to all for a great research and writing assistance tool!
    Actually, one question again: what does "automatic proxy redirection" mean, what does it do? (Though I'm sure this is a stupid question that I could answer for myself with a little more poking around...)
  • aurimas
    When visiting websites, Zotero can automatically redirect them through a proxy server (e.g. University library proxy)
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