Now that we have covered note-taking, it is a good time to cover managing references! Zotero is a free tool that helps you collect, manage, and cite your research sources. The app can be installed as an extension in your browser, or you can use the standalone version.
Zotero is, at the most basic level, a reference manager. It is designed to store, manage, and cite bibliographic references, such as books and articles. In Zotero, each of these references constitutes an item….
Every item contains different metadata, depending on what type it is. Items can be everything from books, articles, and documents to web pages, artwork, films, sound recordings, bills, cases, or statutes, among many others.
If you are using the browser plugin, as you are researching you can easily add the source to the Zotero database. If working with books and other in-hand items, you can manually add the sources to your standalone Zotero database.
Zotero works via plugin with Microsoft Office and OpenOffice, allowing you to easily insert your citations into the document you are working on. You can also generate a bibliography. All of the most common bibliographic styles are available (Chicago, APA, MLA, etc.).
Best of all, your reference sources can be organized by folder and searched.
Great tool for older students — and free!
Additional Resources
Zotero Quick Start Guide
For getting up and running quickly.
Zotero Basics
Great instructions at Purdue.
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