Firefox hangs after attempted Endnote import

deevybee
I tried to import a very large Endnote file - 17800 references.
I got an error message.
Unfortunately, since then, Firefox just hangs on me when I open the zotero pane, and runs very slowly otherwise.
I tried uninstalling and reinstalling zotero. However, when I reinstall, my old libraries are still there and the hanging problem recurs.
I don't mind losing the library - I was a newbie just playing around with options. If I could start again with a clean slate, that would be good.
I have decided against using for my Endnote collection, but would like to use zotero for storing other material.
  • ajlyon
    See http://www.zotero.org/support/zotero_data -- you can close Firefox and delete the entire Zotero data directory.

    When importing, try breaking the file into smaller pieces to isolate the problematic citations. And when you get the error message, we'll need you to report the Error ID (see http://www.zotero.org/support/reporting_bugs) and post it here, so we can figure out what's going wrong.
  • deevybee
    Ah, but I can't do *anything* once I've opened the zotero pane.
    I just get frozen firefox.
  • ajlyon
    Yes. Close Firefox. Delete the Zotero data directory. Open the Endnote export file and put about 1/3 of it in a new file. Open Firefox, import that 1/3 of the library. Make sure everything is working fine. Repeat with the next piece. There are sometimes hard-to-pin-down issues with Endnote's RIS export (mainly because they play fast-and-loose with the specification, but we uncover Zotero bugs sometimes too), so there may well be a single citation that is causing trouble.

    If you get the error message and Firefox is indeed hung, copy down the text before closing Firefox. Post the information here.

    Also, a library of 17000+ items will take a while to open when you first click on the Zotero pane, unless your computer is particularly fast. Still, there should be no overall Firefox performance hit until you activate the Zotero pane for the first time. Dan, the core developer for these things, may be able to provide more advice for working efficiently with libraries of this size.
  • deevybee
    Thanks. I was about to reply to say I couldn't locate the zotero data directory without getting into zotero! But miraculously, the freezing has stopped.
    I had already put the aborted Endnote import into the trash, so I've now emptied the trash (not sure if I'd done that before. Suspect not, and maybe that was the problem?).
    So many thanks: I am functional again.
    But I think I will at least for the time being restrict my zotero use to non-endnote type things. It would take some fiddling I suspect to get my 'label' endnote field converted to tags, which would be needed for it to be useful to me, and I also wonder whether it'd be just too slow for such a big collection.
  • adamsmith
    for the next time:
    http://www.zotero.org/support/zotero_data#locating_your_zotero_library
    has instructions for finding the zotero folder in the file system of all common operating systems - using the Zotero advanced tab is just a short cut.

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