I think that this has been discussed before. You can use the call number field instead. Is the record number in your exported file?

I transfer my database from EndNote to Zotero, but I have the impression the record number in EndNote , which is very useful for me as all my articles printed are classifed with this number, have not been imported.

It's a really bad idea to build a filing system around what is in effect an internal database number. You might consider transitioning away from that as you can.

Possible Alternative: exporting via RefMan(RIS) exports EndNotes RecordNumber as "ID". This is not recognized in the import, but if you happen to know what the field should be called correctly you could edit the export-file and search-replace "ID" with that fielname.
For me this doesn't work, if I export all References in this Format Zotero will throw an import error. Somehow the RefManRIS File is corrupt... It only works for exports with a few references at a time.

Thanks for your offer! I sent them to you a while ago; did you get them? (I sent them as ch....e...@f.. :)

other question, same goal: what could I replace the *ID* tag with, so Zotero will put the ID-Value into the Call-Nr.-Field?

thanks, I've seen your comment above already. I mostly agree with you, but wether or not it is a good idea to try preserving those numbers in zotero you must leave up to me (knowing the situation and the alternatives).

So I see this has gone a bit cold, but I had the same issue, Google brought me here (so it MUST be true!) and I needed to spend some time trying to figure it out. Its now 2am, and I have failed, but here's info to stop you repeating the dead-ends I've hit.

(Wrestling with End(-of-days-)note X2, and a large library approaching 3000 records).

First pass, very similar to haddock's suggestion in 2008.

Opened RIS output style for editing, ("save as" first, just in case...), then in each ref type of the bibliography inserted "CN - `Record Number|". ("CN" is the RIS field tag for call number). Unfortunately, Endnote itself doesn't follow this faithfully even though I used its own "insert field" command to do so. The txt file shows "CN - `Record Number|" for some records, but others correctly, e.g. "CN - 2981". It also inserted line breaks between the CN field and the ER field, even though I was careful to follow its format when editing the style. Interesting.

Also interesting is that Zotero will label some as having a call number 0000, others 0001, 0002, etc, (maybe 5-20 each, with less of them the higher the call number value it assigns), throw a few call numbers in that actually look like the ID number I was trying for, and list absolutely nothing for the vast bulk of the rest.

I can also tell you that trying to delete these and other failed imports, and emptying the trash, have frequently cause Firefox to freeze, crash once so badly I needed ctl+alt+del, and a couple of times just have to restart firefox. For the last, I recommend you install a firefox add-on that installs a restart button (search add-ons with "restart").

Second pass: Have also attempted to edit the txt file in MS Word, but also failed so far. I tried find-and-replace (ctl+H), substituting "ID " with "CD " (the double space stops me screwing up words or "ID" acronyms in the records). Its done the same thing as above.

This suggests that a) Word is doing something weird to the text file that replicates the error described above, which seems unlikely or b) apart from Endnote not recognizing its own code, Zotero itself has a problem importing anything in the CN field, (or at least CN values that are a straight four digits).

In fact, my computer was running extremely slow when trying to import them (I'm writing this in Chrome browser).

This IS the 6th time I've imported the library tonight. I've deleted the records each time, but... I wonder if there is a problem with records be compared and filtered against something on a Zotero server? When I tried to empty the trash, Firefox froze so badly I had to ctl+alt+del to get out.

Anyone got more recent, functioning ideas?

B

Hi noksagt, thanks for getting back to me on this. Hopefully this reply will answer you questions and you might [written gratefully!] help me get past this hurdle.

I really don't care for Endote (E) save to get past the exporting problem into Zotero (Z), but I take your point. Unfortunately, I can't find any pattern, and I am pretty sure now this is a Z problem.

I can get an export of 2812 records in RIS format. I can do a find-and-replace of all record numbers ("ID") to label them "CN" no problem. The, after Zotero chews through that large load, it lists, say, the first 20 or 50 references as having call number 0000. Then there's another bunch that come in as having call number 0001. Then another (less of them) having call number 0002. And so on until the teens, where it seems to peter out to just a couple of duplicates (e.g. only two records having call number 0015), and then it starts using (what I assume are) the original CN values from the corrected export file (they look right).

I tried your advice on doing things in batches. I chose a little over 200 records, did the same as above, and then ran into the same problem. Here's a sample of two from the RIS export that will display as call number 0000.

TY - JOUR
AU - Jørgensen, LL
AU - Primicerio, R
PY - 2007
TI - Impact scenario for the invasive red king crab Paralithodes camtschaticus (Tilesius, 1815)(Reptantia, Lithodidae) on Norwegian, native, epibenthic prey
SP - 47-54
JF - Hydrobiologia
VL - 590
IS - 1
N1 - Impact scenario for the invasive red king crab Paralithodes camtschaticus (Tilesius, 1815)(Reptantia, Lithodidae) on Norwegian, native, epibenthic prey
PM - PMCID
CN - 2880
ER -
TY - ADVS
AU - Al Jazeera
PY - 2010
TI - Malaysia: Killer bite
N1 - 101 East
N1 - Al Jazeera
Y2 - 21 October
UR - http://english.aljazeera.net/programmes/101east/2010/10/2010101275343405218.html
CN - 2879
ER -

Also, as a request-to-developers, I'd suggest a right-click option to stop the syncing process. I can start it, but once its in train, I can't see a way to cancel.

Regards 'have to' c+a+del out of FFox, it was a case of the whole program being frozen for several minutes. Perhaps, as you suggest, it just needed time for such a large batch.

Advice and wisdom gratefully received.

B

aha! I gleaned it from another forum thread somewhere (nope, no idea where), but can't recall, and very likely got confused. Just looked and can't find it either.

This doesn't explain, however, the numbering 'system' that Zotero DOES come up with. That is puzzling. Why work for some, not others?

The problem with tagging it as M1 or M2 is that I wish to sort the Zotero library by the Endnote record number to aid with transition (that's how my mind works in navigating the references). Unfortunately, I can't see any way to get it to do so.

Another note to developers: being able to sort records by more fields than just given in Zotero now would be great.

Cheers aj

B

So you're saying that the import puts the sequential numbers in the Call Number field? That's very odd, since the RIS translator doesn't even touch that field (since RIS has no way of specifying a call number).

The two entries above imported fine for me. You can send me a chunk of entries that replicates the issue-- my email address is posted on my forum profile.