Zotero Citation Management: Saving Citations

Single Book or Article 
Zotero works behind the scenes as you research online. When you navigate to a book or article on a library catalog or database page, or even a site like Amazon.com or the New York Times, you'll see a book or page icon appear in the address bar of your browser. Just click the icon and Zotero will automatically save the citation. 

List of Several Books or Articles
​If you're on a page that lists several books or articles, you will see a folder icon instead. Click the folder to see a list of all the items on the page. Check off the ones you want to save.

Other Websites
Zotero can't automatically capture citation information from every type of webpage, but you can still add them to your Zotero library. Right-click on the page/web article you wish to save, and choose "Save to Zotero" from the menu that appears. Once it is saved in your Zotero library, you can add information about the author, etc. if you wish (doing so will make your bibliography pages much easier to craft). 

As part of your citation information in your Zotero library, a snapshot of the webpage will be attached to the citation. This snapshot includes the page's text and images, so if the page is ever removed, the link is changed, or you are working offline, you will still be able to view your copy.

Organizing Your Library
You can create folders which Zotero calls "collections" to organize your references. With Zotero, a reference can be in more than one collection at a time. Collections may be useful if you have research projects in multiple classes. 

To get started, open your Zotero application to open your library. At the top left, click the folder icon with the green plus sign to name and create a new collection. Repeat this step for any additional collections needed.

Zotero - Saving, Organizing and Finding Items from ZoteroVideo

Chrome Connector

Firefox Connector

Safari Connector

NOTE: The connector looks a little different in different browsers, but the way it works is the same. The icon will change from a book to an article or other icons as you look at different information in your research.

Adding Content Manually

There may be times when you need to add an item to your library manually.  If so, use the green "plus" icon and choose the type of item from the dropdown list.  A window will open with the appropriate fields to complete for that item type.

Attaching Files 
Zotero automatically saves PDF files along with citations when possible (you can change this in the preferences menu if you wish). Attachments take up space in your Zotero account -- you get 300 MB free and can buy more space if needed.

You can attach files manually by dragging a PDF (or other file) into your Zotero pane.  Dropping a file onto a collection, or in between library items, will copy it into your library as a standalone item.  Dropping it onto an existing item will attach it to that item.  This is the easiest way to attach a copy of an article to its entry in your library.

Each item also has an Attachments tab in the right column.  You can attach files by clicking the Attachments tab and then the Add button.