Import/export bibliography of a Word document to ZOTERO

[Bougau]

Bonjour!

Maybe Zotero, finally, will help me (us) to resolve what is for me a
source of frustration. I explain my problem (I'm french speaking, so
excuse my english...). I'm not a developer, but I try to made some
suggestions.
Writing a paper with WORD using the Zotero's plug-in: it's easy,
friendly, very useful. At this time, my paper is "connected", via
ZOTERO, to all others items I quote in foot/endnotes. It's perfect!
BUT, if I send my paper (and worst, made a PDF of it, what is very
usual...) to someone using ZOTERO, all "connections" between my new
paper and the "docs-items" I quote are "lost".

My dream: <b>a plug-in to "attach" my bibliography in "ZOTERO format"
to my WORD paper (or its PDF format), and export these collection of
items to any ZOTERO library</b>. So, when someone will add my paper to
his library in ZOTERO, he could "import" also the items of my
bibliography, and create a "related link" to my paper. Maybe, it's not
clear, but there is the same idea in others words.

The bibliography attached to my paper is a collection of 8, 12, 50
items. My general idea is to find a way to attach this small
collection of tiems to my paper. IF it was possible, when I send my
paper, I'll send also a small "Zotero-collection", that could be add
to any other Zotero library.
How to do that?! Some suggestions...

1) logically, my papers should be automatically add to my ZOTERO
library and "export" in one of my collections, at least as a
"unpublished" or "manuscript" paper. How? Add 2 new icons on Zotero
toolbar:
a) "Add this paper to ZOTERO as a new item": a form opens where I just
have to write the informations in the right fields. CA these metadata
can be "attached-saved" to my paper as "properties" of Word or PDF doc
(a plug-in to modify the fields of actual "properties" of these
formats?). Maybe, XML format can do something like that? It's possible
to import a Endnote's library to Zotero, it should be possible to
import a Zotero collection to an other Zotero collection!

b) "Add the items of your bibliography as "related"? Yes/No. If YES,
the items in my bibliography are "export" as "related" to my paper.
"Export"? BUT, these references are already in my collections: I made
my bibliography with them! It's just add links between items: one item
to many items / many items to one item.
Simple! But I can't really help to program it.

For me, this kind of application will have a lot of profits for every
one and for all research: keep "docs quoted" and "docs-quoting"
related together; possibility of an history of the works quoted and
read (in which doc? when? By who?, etc.)...
I don't know if it's clear, and probably many people have already
think about this kind of applications, but I never found it. Probably,
Zotero' team will realise my dream.

Thanks,
Luc (Montréal, Québec, Canada)

[Bruce D'Arcus]

Bougau wrote:

> Maybe Zotero, finally, will help me (us) to resolve what is for me a
> source of frustration. I explain my problem (I'm french speaking, so
> excuse my english...). I'm not a developer, but I try to made some
> suggestions.
> Writing a paper with WORD using the Zotero's plug-in: it's easy,
> friendly, very useful. At this time, my paper is "connected", via
> ZOTERO, to all others items I quote in foot/endnotes. It's perfect!
> BUT, if I send my paper (and worst, made a PDF of it, what is very
> usual...) to someone using ZOTERO, all "connections" between my new
> paper and the "docs-items" I quote are "lost".

Yes, this is design limitation/bug that has come up more than once here.
There was a LONG thread about it some time back. It's a major problem,
and I hope it gets fixed sooner rather than later.

Bruce

[Dan Stillman]

On 1/9/08 4:36 PM, Bougau wrote:
> I don't know if it's clear, and probably many people have already
> think about this kind of applications, but I never found it. Probably,
> Zotero' team will realise my dream.
>

Thanks very much for the suggestions. What you describe is more or less
our goal for the not-too-distant future. Zotero items could be shared
simply by sharing a document, and Zotero will automatically grab the
relevant data from the Zotero server if it's not available locally.

Without using the Zotero server, you might need to send along an RDF
file containing the items as well, but Zotero could perhaps A) automate
this process with a "Package" button in the plugin that would have
Zotero create an RDF file with the necessary items or B) have a toggle
button in the plugin toolbar to include all the necessary metadata as
RDF in a hidden field in the document itself.

[Bruce D'Arcus]

Dan Stillman wrote:

> Without using the Zotero server, you might need to send along an RDF
> file containing the items as well, but Zotero could perhaps A) automate
> this process with a "Package" button in the plugin that would have
> Zotero create an RDF file with the necessary items or B) have a toggle
> button in the plugin toolbar to include all the necessary metadata as
> RDF in a hidden field in the document itself.

But keep in mind both OOXML and ODF are very similar zipped archives of
(mostly) XML files. You can just embed the file directly in the archive.

And, of course, ODF 1.2 will have RDF support baked in to exploit this
package structure.

Bruce

[Bougau]

> Dan Stillman wrote: ... you might need to send along an RDF

> > file containing the items as well, but Zotero could perhaps A) automate
> > this process with a "Package" button in the plugin that would have
> > Zotero create an RDF file with the necessary items

This kind of "Package" could be, also, a very good way for marketting
Zotero to new users! Downloading or opening a "Zotero - WORD
document", a pop-up ask: "Do you want to add the items in bibliography
in your Zotero collection?" Yes/No. If someone dont have it: "Do you
like to download ZOTERO to do keep bibliography "alive".

Luc

> Brue