Harry Lande M Sc

harrylande
I need help with zotero. When I go to zotero.org, I usually do not see the menu bar with file, edit etc. What's more, I have zotero installed in MS word but, when I try to use it, I get a message "Word could not communicate with zotero". Can you please help?
  • dstillman
    zotero.org is a website. All Zotero documentation is referring to the actual Zotero app that you run on your computer. That's where you'll see the menus, and that's what you need open while citing in Word.
  • harrylande
    Thank you for your reply. Unfortunately, it is still unclear to me how to do zotero citations in MS word. I still get a message: "word could not communicate with zotero". Should I have zotero in the background? Please reply as soon as you can.
  • adamsmith
    You need to have Zotero installed and open, yes.
  • harrylande
    I am sorry to be writing again. I have zotero in the background on my PC but it is still not possible to do citations. Whenever I try, there is the message :"Word could not communicate with zotero". It is frustrating. As far as I know, zotero is installed as well as the connector I tried, however, to do a connection with google chrome but there was a message that that was not allowed. Perhaps that has something to do with the problem.
  • adamsmith
    Is this your computer or one managed by an institution? And is it possible you're running Zotero and Word with different accounts (e.g. Zotero as an administrator, Word as a regular user)?
  • harrylande
    Dear Adam Smith,
    Thank you for your email. The computer is my own. It is located in my house. It is possible that I am using zotero and word with different accounts. I do not really know. I looked up the matter and I could not get clarity.
  • adamsmith
    Check for the things here: https://www.zotero.org/support/word_processor_plugin_troubleshooting#error_or_non-responsive_plugin_buttons
    The instructions have a link for how to check whether one of the apps is running as an administrator.
  • harrylande
    Dear Adam Smith,
    I am sorry. I followed the instructions for determining if zotero was administrative I went to task manager and details. There was a list but I could not find zotero or MS word on the list. The contents seem to be in alphabetical order.
  • harrylande
    Dear Adam Smith,
    I would just like to add that I have rarely gone to task manager and I was frightened to see that the files were described as disabled or not allowed. I hope that that does not make a difference.
  • dstillman
    edited February 10, 2022
    Can you take some screenshots of 1) Zotero open on your computer and 2) the error you're getting in Word and either upload them somewhere (e.g., Dropbox or Google Drive) and provide a link here or email them to support@zotero.org with a link to this thread?
  • harrylande
    Dear Adam Smith,
    The following URL should provide access to my zotero page. As you can see, there is no file, edit etc. menu at the top left. I hope that what I have sent is satisfactory.

    https://drive.google.com/file/d/1wXLh_GoZaQhZhLjzJtZ-vFWmUmAyjYon/view?usp=sharing
  • adamsmith
    That's still looking at the website.
    Zotero, the installed desktop software, looks like this:

    See the quick start guide for installing and opening Zotero: https://www.zotero.org/support/quick_start_guide
  • harrylande
    Dear Adam Smith,
    My problem was solved. I simply reinstalled zotero and the citations facility became available. Sorry that I did not get back to you sooner and thank you for your help.
  • harrylande
    Dear Adam Smith,
    As I wrote, I now have the citations facility in my ms word. The strange thing, though, is that I need to re-install zotero and zotero connector every time for the menu bar consisting of "file, edit, view etc." to appear. It seems that I do not have zotero citations without this bar. Can you help me?
  • DWL-SDCA
    edited February 13, 2022
    It is likely that you are (still) trying to connect the online version of Zotero with the Word software on your computer. You should not need to repeatedly reinstall. Something quite fundamental is wrong. Either there is something curiously misconfigured about your computer or you are still trying to use the web version instead of the Zotero program that is on your own computer.

    I suggest that (except for setting up syncing) that you "forget about and ignore" Zotero.org for the next few days. The power of Zorero is realized via the software version that resides on your notebook or desktop computer. Close your browser. Open your Zotero program and open Word. Do you see the Zotero ribbon in your Word program? File, Edit, View is something different. You should see the Zotero TAB that you can use to see Zotero-specific icons in a Zotero ribbon. See the icons here: https://www.zotero.org/support/word_processor_plugin_usage
    If you don't see those icons tell us more:

    What version of Zotero is installed on your computer?

    What is your operating system and version?

    what version of Word (the full version description numbers)?

    You can try further troubleshooting yourself by looking at the following documentation:
    https://www.zotero.org/support/word_processor_plugin_troubleshooting

    However, if you need further assistance, please ask but provide more details and explain your problem using different words. We may not understand the true nature of your issue.
  • harrylande
    Dear Adam Smith, thank you for your email. Indeed the zotero-specific icons do appear on the screen in MS word (if you mean add/edit citation etc.) The version of zotero is 5.0 for windows. The operating system is windows 10. The version of Word is : version 2201 (Build 1482720192) I hope I got all that correct. I am thinking that possibly the problem is that the zotero connector connects to microsoft edge and I have had problems with Edge. Can you help me with those? As I wrote, the menu with "file, edit etc." does not usually appear on the zotero screen but, when it does, zotero works perfectly. What can I do to ensure that they appear?
  • harrylande
    Sorry. I did not notice that the questions are for the case that the Zotero ribbon does not appear. Perhaps I need to install to google chrome rather than to microsoft edge.
    Can you explain how to do that, if necessary? You wrote that I could be " still trying to use the web version instead of the zotero program". I am not sure how to remedy that.
    Best wishes,
    Harry Lande, M. Sc.
  • dstillman
    edited February 14, 2022
    You're just still misunderstanding what's a website and what's a program you run on your computer. I assure you you don't have to reinstall Zotero each time. You just need to launch the Zotero program you've already installed on your computer rather than opening zotero.org in your web browser.

    If you're having trouble with this, I'd recommend asking someone to walk you through this in person or via screen sharing.
  • DWL-SDCA
    @harrylande If you are who I think you are and working in Cork, (even if you are someone else) ask your university reference desk librarians for Zotero assistance. Someone there can help you solve your problems with Zotero in less than 5 minutes while looking over your shoulder at your screen. You are "set" on a basic misconception that is making everything far more complicated than it should be. The basics of Zotero are simple and straightforward once you see how it works.
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