Move invalid fields to Extra when changing the item type

When changing the item type of a Zotero item, could any populated field be moved to Extra if it is invalid for the new type?

Let me give two examples to illustrate this.

1. Sometimes a thesis is imported to Zotero as a Journal Article, with the DOI field populated. When changing the type to Thesis, the value of the DOI field will be lost, unless it's manually copied to Extra.

2. When changing the item type from Report to Conference Paper, the Series Title will become invalid. You might want that information to go to the Conference Name or Proceedings Title. Such mappings could require manual inspection. If the fields were moved to Extra, one could deal with this later on.

With Zotero's JavaScript API, one can batch convert item types. However, the data loss mentioned above could be a problem. Unless this would break some Zotero functions, it would be great if any invalid field could be moved to Extra, even if it's clearly inappropriate for the new type. The information could still be useful. You might want to put it to a valid field by hand or just leave it in Extra. Not having to worry about data loss would be a plus.
Sign In or Register to comment.