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Managing references: Zotero

A guide to some of the systems you can use to help with referencing

Zotero is a free reference manager, available as an extension to the web browser Firefox or as a desktop application called Zotero Standalone. You can store, organize all your PDFs and references. Zotero's groups gives you the ability to share & collaborate among participating group members.

Zotero connects with Microsoft Word and LibreOffice so you can easily add references to your work and create bibliographies. Zotero is installed with several popular citation styles, but there are an additional 8100 styles in the Zotero Style Repository.

You can easily sync your library of references between different versions of Zotero and between different computers. The free version of Zotero comes with 300 MB free storage, if you require more storage you can upgrade.

Please note Zotero is not officially supported by the Library so we may not be able to resolve any difficulties you are having with this software.

First steps

  1. Create an account with Zotero. You can use the web interface to access your library, sync with other devices and import new references.
  2. Download the Firefox extension or the standalone desktop application and connector/bookmarklet so you can start adding any articles you have already downloaded to your Zotero library.
  3. Install a Word Processor plugin so you can insert references directly into your documents.
  4. Start adding PDFs and references from your computer, Summon or your favourite database.
  5. If you are already using a different reference manager you can also import these into your library.

Further guidance

Although the Library does not support Zotero there is lots of guidance and support available from other websites:

Zotero Introductory Video

Zotero for Researchers

Zotero is both a reference manager and a research network. It enables researchers to connect and promote their work: