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Citing Sources

Organizing References with Zotero

Collections

Zotero allows you to organize your references into Collections. Collections are groups of items on a particular topic, such as all your research for a project or paper. Individual items can be added to multiple Collections. To start a new collection, click the "New Collection" button in the top left corner of Zotero. 

Click on the images to view a larger version. 

To start a new collection, click the "New Collection" button in the top left corner of Zotero. 

Type in a title for the Collection and click OK.

Type in a title for the Collection and click OK.

The Collection will appear underneath "My Library."

The Collection will appear underneath "My Library."

Subcollections

You can also create Subcollections within your main Collections. To create a Subcollection, right-click on a Collection, and select New Subcollection.

To create a Subcollection, right-click on a Collection, and select&New Subcollection

Enter a title, click OK, and the Subcollection will appear underneath the original Collection.

Enter a title, click OK, and the Subcollection will appear underneath the original collection

Adding items

To add items to either a Collection or Subcollection, drag the item into the Collection folder.

To add items to either a Collection or Subcollection, drag the item into the Collection folder.

You can also save items to a folder while using the Zotero Connector. Simply select the folder you want to add the item to (in Zotero) before clicking on the Zotero icon in the toolbar.

Simply select the folder you want to add the item to (in Zotero) before clicking on the Zotero icon in the toolbar.

 

Tags

Tags (or keywords) can be assigned to items to help with organization and to quickly find items. You can view all tags assigned to items in the current folder in the bottom-left corner of Zotero.

You can view all tags assigned to items in the current folder in the bottom-left corner of Zotero.

To view all tags in your Library, click the color boxes icon underneath the current tags and select Display All Tags in This Library.

To view all tags in your Library, click the color boxes icon underneath the current tags and select Display All Tags in This Library.

Adding tags

To add a tag to an item, select the item in Zotero and click the Tags tab.

Click the Add button, type in the name of the new tag, and press the  Enter/Return key.

Click the Add button, type in the name of the new tag, and press the Enter/Return key.

Colored tags

Up to 9 tags in your library can be assigned a color for easy visibility of important tag topics. To assign a color, right-click on a tag and select Assign Color...

To assign a color, right-click on a tag and select Assign Color...

Click on the grey box next to "Color," select a color, and click SET COLOR.

C:\Users\monique.clark\OneDrive - UMass Global\Documents\Zotero LibGuide\Set color.png

The assigned tag will now be in the color selected. A box in the corresponding color will also appear next to the items with the assigned tag.

A box in the corresponding color will also appear next to the items with the assigned tag.

Notes

Notes can be added to your Zotero library, either as standalone notes, or attached to individual items as child notes.

Child notes

To add a child note, first select an item you would like to attach it to, then click on the New Note button.

To add a child note, first select an item you would like to attach it to, then click on the New Note button.

Select Add Child Note.

Select add child note

Start typing and the new note, visible underneath the parent item, will be saved as you type in a new window.

Start typing and the new note, visible underneath the parent item, will be saved as you type in a new window.

Standalone notes

To create a standalone note, do not select any items. Simply click the New Note button and select New Standalone Note. 

To create a standalone note, do not select any items. Simply click the New Note button and select New Standalone Note. 

Start typing and the note will appear in your library as an individual item.

Start typing and the note will appear in your library as an individual item.

Standalone notes

Files (or links to files) can be added to your Zotero library. These files can either be standalone items, or attached to a reference as a child item. These files will count towards the 300MB of free storage space that Zotero provides for its users. If you choose to add the file as a link, the file will not take up space in your Zotero account, but will instead link to the file saved in your computer.

Drag and drop

To add an attachment, you can drag a file from your system's file browser and drop it into the center Zotero pane, a collection on the left pane, or into a reference item. The last option will create a child item.

To add an attachment, you can drag a file from your system's file browser and drop it into the center Zotero pane, a collection on the left pane, or into a reference item. The last option will create a child item.

Another way to add an attachment is to add it directly from Zotero.

Add Child File

To add a child item, select a reference item, click on the "Add Attachment" paperclip button, and select either Attach Stored Copy of File... or Attach Link to File... and select the file you want to add.

To add a child item, select a reference item, click on the "Add Attachment" paperclip button, and select either Attach Stored Copy of File... or Attach Link to File... and select the file you want to add.

Add Standalone File

To add a standalone item, click on the "New Item" button, and select either Store Copy of File or Link to File... and select the file you want to add.

To add a standalone item, click on the "New Item" button, and select either Store Copy of File or Link to File... and select the file you want to add.

Note: It is recommended to always add files as child files, as standalone files cannot be used with many of Zotero's features, including citing, because they do not contain any bibliographic data.