Have you been meaning to set up an appointment with Artes Research to ask about research data management for your project, an aspect of your research workflow, or a specific DH tool? You can now come to one of our drop-in sessions, and we will help you on the spot!

Some areas that we can help with:

• • Getting started with Zotero
  • Optimizing Zotero use with an existing Zotero library
  • Suggesting DH tools or methods for your specific research questions
  • Providing resources for various DH and RDM tools
  • Advice on DMPs
  • Advice on scholarly communication
  • Advice on Lirias
  • … and much more!

Our first drop-in session will take place on Tuesday 20 June from 14h-16h in the Erasmushuis (LETT 01.16). All question are welcome, but during this session we will be giving special attention to advising on Zotero. If you were unable to attend our workshop on Zotero in May or would like further advice after following the workshop, please feel free to drop in!

After the summer, we will organize these drop-in sessions on a regular basis, more details will follow!

This event is only open to KU Leuven researchers and staff. 

Do you need a better system to organize your reference materials? Or do you already work with a reference manager like Zotero, but feel that you’re not taking advantage of all the features of the software? Come join us to learn more about the various Zotero functionalities!

Programme

This session will start with an introduction to the basic functionalities of Zotero including the various ways to add references to your Zotero library, how to incorporate citations into your Microsoft Word documents using the Zotero plug-in, setting up a tagging system, annotating references in Zotero, and generating bibliographies.

Following this introduction, the hands-on session will take place in small groups. During this portion of the workshop, participants will try out all the basics while a group leader is available to help with issues or answer questions. Finally, the workshop will close with a Q&A session and the opportunity to learn about more advanced features of the software.

Practicalities

Target audience: KU Leuven researchers and staff
Date: Monday 15 May 2023
Time: 14:00 – 16:00
Location: MS Teams (link will be sent to participants a few days before the workshop)

The training is free of charge but registration is required. To see full details about the training, including the required preparations, and to register, please visit the OneButton event page.

Recap Zotero workshop

On the 16^th of June the Artes Research team joined forces with the research support services from the Faculty of Law to help PhD researchers get started with Zotero, a free online reference manager. The session was a success with an attendance of around 30 researchers, who were all eager to dive into the world of reference management.

*Please note, these materials were created based on version 6 of the Zotero software; the interface received a major update with version 7. While the interface looks different, Zotero 7 still has the same features as previous versions, however, some plug-ins may no longer be supported.

We kicked off the workshop with an introduction to the basic functionalities of Zotero. Nele Noppe of the Artes Research team shared her knowledge on the various ways to gather references to a personal Zotero library, gave an in-depth explanation on how to organize a library with tags, folders and collections and zoomed in on several topics such as the integration of Zotero in Word which allows you to create in-text citations, footnotes and bibliographies among other things. Of particular interest was the analysis of Zotero plugins.  Zotero has a very wide range of plugins that add extra functionality and connect Zotero with other software and platforms. As there are numerous plugins, we have made a list of plugin recommendations with a short explanation of their use, which we have included in this post (see below).

This was followed by an introduction to Juris-M by Patrick Allo from the Faculty of Law. Juris-M is a Zotero offshoot with extra features for law research and multilingual bibliographies.

During the next part, the participants had the chance to bring this new information into practice.  Everyone was assigned to a breakout room with a group leader. During the next hour Leah Budke, Nele Noppe, Patrick Allo and Rebecca Burke guided their group through some basic exercises in Zotero.  In preparation for this workshop, the researchers had been asked to gather a few sources to experiment with. These sources were used to test out the functionalities of Zotero, including how to import a reference with the Zotero browser plugin, how to create a bibliography, and more.

If you weren’t able to attend the workshop, you can still consult the documentation provided by Nele Noppe. Her presentation is available on Zenodo here. We also have a few blogposts on how to get started with Zotero. Here you can find part 1 and part 2. Keep an eye out on the blog for future Zotero workshops or check out the Kubic classroom sessions.

Plugin recommendations

Plugin recommendations from Nele Noppe and Patrick Allo 

• For everyone: ZotFile, which adds all sorts of handy PDF functionality to Zotero. If you notice that a PDF-related feature described in the presentation linked above doesn’t seem to appear in your Zotero, it’s probably because you don’t have ZotFile installed yet. 
• For those who work with a lot of PDFs that are not searchable because the PDF pages are just images, not text you can select: Zotero OCR, which performs optical character recognition on PDFs to make them searchable. Setup has a number of technical steps, but the instructions are very clear. 
• If you do your writing in a program that isn’t Microsoft Word: Zotero word processor plugins to cite Zotero items from a range of other programs.  
• If your writing program isn’t covered by a plugin: First, double-check the list of plugins to make sure there’s nothing that covers your situation. If there’s nothing, you can still use the plugin RTF/ODF Scan for Zotero to create a workaround and connect your favorite writing program with your Zotero library. 
• For those who currently have a big library of PDFs in a manual folder-based system and want to switch to Zotero: Zotero Folder Import 
• To quickly start bringing order to a Zotero library: Zotero Storage Scanner looks for missing attachments and duplicate items. 
• For people who want to use Zotero for note-taking: Better Notes has useful functionality for organizing your notes and visualizing connections between them.
• For those who want to apply simple but inspiring data visualizations to their Zotero library: Zotero Voyant Export connects Zotero with the Voyant visualization software. 
• If you work in LaTeX: Better BibTex for Zotero is for you. The plugin also enables integration with some additional writing programs, though we haven’t tested this.  

Sources here; sources there; sources everywhere! Do you need help finding a better system to organize your reference materials for your Phd project? You are in luck! The Artes Research team in collaboration with research support from the Faculty of Law will offer a workshop to help PhD researchers get started with the reference management software Zotero.

What can you expect?

The session will start with an introduction to the basic functionalities of Zotero including the various ways to add references to your Zotero library, how to incorporate citations into your Microsoft Word documents using the Zotero plug-in, setting up a tagging system, annotating references in Zotero, and generating bibliographies. Following this introduction, the hands-on session will take place in small groups. During this portion of the workshop, participants will try out all the basics while a group leader is available to help with issues or answer questions. Finally, the workshop will close with a Q&A session and the opportunity to learn about more advanced features of the software that could be particularly helpful for PhD researchers.

Practical details:

• Date of workshop: Thursday 16 June
• Time: 14h-16h CEST
• Venue: MS Teams
• Target audience: first- and second-year PhD researchers have first priority
• Deadline to register: Tuesday 14 June
• Registration: via OneButton

Required preparations:

• Create a Zotero account (free)
• Download the *Zotero desktop app
  • Open Microsoft word to check if the Zotero plug-in has been installed correctly; this should happen automatically; you will find it in the menu bar
• Install the Zotero web browser connector (available for Chrome, Safari, and Firefox browsers)
• Join the Artes Digital Scholarship Community on Zotero
• Prepare a list of 10 sources you use (or will use) in your research (PDFs, an article open in an academic database like JSTOR, an existing bibliography, …); these will be used during the hands-on portion of the workshop

If you register for the workshop, please make sure to complete the preparations on or before Tuesday 14 June. If you are having trouble with any of the required preparation, do not hesitate to get in touch via artesresearch@kuleuven.be, and we will help you get set up!

*Legal researchers who prefer to use Juris-M, can install the Juris-M desktop app and connector instead of the regular Zotero app. Juris-M is a branch of Zotero that works better with legal sources, but is otherwise identical to Zotero (version 5) and will also allow you to use a Zotero account and join the Artes Digital Scholarship Community.

*Please note, these materials were created based on version 6 of the Zotero software; the interface received a major update with version 7. While the interface looks different, Zotero 7 still has the same features as previous versions, however, some plug-ins may no longer be supported.

A few weeks ago we announced a new series that would help you get set up in Zotero, a free reference manager that enables you to collect, organize, cite and share research. As a follow-up to the first blogpost, we will take you through the next steps on how to collect and organize references in Zotero.

Collecting references

There are many ways to gather references in Zotero. We will explain the three main possibilities to do this in the desktop app.

1. The first possible way to add a reference is to enter it manually. This will probably feel familiar for those who are not used to working with a reference manager, but it can be more time-consuming than the other options. To add a reference manually, click on ‘New item’ () > choose the type of reference you want to add > manually fill in all the information in the right-hand pane. If you have a file on your computer, you can also add the reference via drag and drop to Zotero.
2. The easiest way to add a reference is via an identifier. Zotero can search for relevant information online via identifiers such as a Digital Object Identifier (DOI), an International Standard Book Number (ISBN), or others. You can locate this information on the title page of an academic article or, for a book, on the back cover next to the barcode or on the page with the copyright information. Additionally, ISBN numbers are available on publishers’ websites or anywhere e-books are sold. Click on ‘add item(s) by identifier’()> type or paste the identifier > press enter. All the metadata is automatically added to the reference. This is a quicker and often more exhaustive way of adding a reference compared to adding it manually. A handy default feature is that Zotero automatically downloads any attachments it finds online. If an article is Open Access, Zotero will download the pdf. The blue dot next to the reference indicates there is a file attached. To open the file, click on the reference and the link will appear. If you prefer to save your PDF files in a different location, you can disable the automatic download feature in the general preferences menu.
3. The third way to add a reference to Zotero is by using the Zotero connector. Zotero can pull citation metadata about sources directly from web pages into the Zotero desktop app. If you have downloaded the Zotero connector, you should find the Zotero button in your browser (often in the top right corner). It should say ‘Save to Zotero’. Click on the icon and the reference will appear in your Library. This works with academic publications and other types of sources, including standalone PDFs, websites and social media. Zotero will also add the pdf or a web page snapshot to the reference as an attachment.

As you get more familiar with Zotero you will learn of more advanced ways to add references via structured data formats such as BibTex. Want to know how to do this? Keep an eye on our blog because there is a good chance a future blogpost will guide you through it!

Organizing references

All the references you collect will be saved in your Library. To keep your research structured and clear, Zotero offers multiple ways to organize your references.

1. The first is by creating Collections or folders. Click on ‘New collection () and give the collection a name. To view which collections a given reference is in, you can select the reference in the main viewing pane, then push the control key (Windows), the option key (Mac) or the alt key (Linux), and the relevant collections will be highlighted. Any references that have not been subdivided into a collection will appear in ‘Unfiled items’. Sometimes you might accidentally add the same reference to Zotero multiple times. If this happens, you will be able to locate these references in the tab called ‘Duplicate Items’. If you want, you can choose to merge your duplicates here. By managing duplicate items, you are able to ensure that the Zotero plug-in for Word will function properly and your bibliographies will be correctly formatted and accurate. Additionally, it prevents any confusion when using the note function for taking research notes.
2. Tags are a useful way to assign keywords to a reference and group them together. Select a reference > go to the ‘Tags’ tab on in the right pane > click ‘Add’. An item can have as many tags as necessary. Tags appear in de bottom left pane. If you click on a tag, you will see all the references connected with this tag. By default, tags will also be assigned when you import references into Zotero, but this feature can be disabled in the general preferences if you prefer working with your own customized tagging system. If you want to go one step further, you can also color-code your tags by right clicking on a tag in the tag pane in the bottom left and then selecting ‘Assign color’. The color you assign to a tag will show up to the left of the reference when viewing your references in the main panel. You can also see the color-coded tags when viewing the tags for a particular reference.
3. You can link different references together with the related references This can be used to indicate which references are cited by that item. Click on the reference > go to the tab ‘Related’ in the right pane > ‘Add’ > choose the reference you want to link with > click ‘ok’.
4. The ‘Notes’ feature allows you to add a text note as an attachment to a reference. Select the reference > go to the ‘Notes’ tab > Add > type out your note. Notes can also be added by right clicking the reference in the main viewing pane and selecting ‘add note’ or by clicking the note button () on the top center menu. If you use the note feature to take research notes, it is helpful to know that these research notes can be exported in PDF form. To do so, right click on the reference in the main viewing panel and select ‘Generate report from item’. This will give you an overview of the reference including the full reference information, the tags you have assigned (if any), and the notes you have taken that are connected to this item. This is not only an excellent feature if you prefer to work both digitally and in analog form, but also if you would like to take periodic back-ups of the research notes you have created in the Zotero platform.

Do you want to experiment with collecting and gathering references in Zotero? We have the perfect place for that! Visit our own Zotero group: the Artes Digital Scholarship Community! We have created a Sandbox folder for you to experiment to your heart’s content. This group is packed with information on digital scholarship, and we post regular updates on new resources. You are very welcome to join the community or browse through the information we have collected.

*Please note, these materials were created based on version 6 of the Zotero software; the interface received a major update with version 7. While the interface looks different, Zotero 7 still has the same features as previous versions, however, some plug-ins may no longer be supported.

Would you like to download information about your sources with the click of a button instead of painstakingly typing out bibliographic data? Would you like to automagically insert correct references into your publications in any citation style? Would you like to focus on writing your articles, chapters, books, and so on, and never, ever craft a references section by hand again?

As a reference manager Zotero can (and maybe even should) become one of your primary tools. Not only is it free, it’s also easy to use. Zotero helps you collect, organize, cite and share research. Since its creation in 2006, Zotero has become one of the most widely used citation management tools and is supported in more than thirty languages.

Never heard of it? No need to panic. We’re here to explain how you can set up Zotero yourself and dive into the wonderful world of reference management. This post is the first in a series that will help you to get to know the many options Zotero offers to support your research process and to better manage your research data.

Getting started

1. Register

Register for a free Zotero account here. This will allow you to sync and access your library from anywhere, back up all your attached files, and join groups like our own Artes Digital Scholarship Community.

2. Download

Zotero offers a web application as well as a desktop application. We advise you to use the desktop application as it provides more options than the web version. You can download the desktop application from the Zotero download page. Download the Zotero connector as well, as it automatically senses different types of content as you browse the web and allows you to save those resources, including relevant metadata, to Zotero with a single click.

3. Synchronize

After you complete the set-up, open the Zotero desktop application. Go to Edit > Preferences > Sync and enter your Zotero account details. You can choose which libraries you want to sync. By default, Zotero will sync your local data with the Zotero servers whenever changes are made. This will enable you to work with your data from any computer with Zotero installed.

4. Optional: Join a group

Within Zotero you can create or join groups. As a member or owner of a group you can collaborate remotely with project members or colleagues within related areas (publicly or privately), set up web-based bibliographies for classes you teach, and so much more.  It’s a great way to discover other people with similar interests and the sources they are citing. If you want to join a Zotero group, log in to the Zotero website, search for groups here or go to the group URL, and click on the ‘Join’ button. Depending on the group setup, you will be admitted automatically or after a group admin approves the request.

A great starting point is the Artes Digital Scholarship Community. This Zotero group  is packed with resources on digital scholarship for KU Leuven researchers, students, and staff, curated by the KU Leuven Libraries Artes research team.  When you join, you can add your own resources, see the content of attachments, and search this group right from your own Zotero desktop application. If you’re not a group member, you can still browse and search the content of the group.

As you can imagine, this post was just the tip of the iceberg on Zotero. Keep an eye on our blog for an upcoming post on how to gather and process references!

In the blog series “Researcher questions” the Artes Research team shares some common and/or pertinent questions that we get from researchers at the Faculty of Arts. The goal of the series is to share the advice that we give more broadly, as it might be helpful to others as well or make you consider something you had not thought about before.

“How will you apply metadata?” This question appears on every data management plan template. In workshops and resources like our research data management (RDM) guide, we talk about how using metadata to add structure to the content of research materials can improve the quality and potential of a project in countless often unexpected ways. Still, such brief and theoretical explanations don’t always make it clear what might be the point of using metadata to turn your specific research materials into structured data.

If this sounds like you, you may like to check out metadata-related pages from the user guides of the tools you would use to add metadata to your materials: reference managers, image management programs, online exhibition platforms, qualitative data analysis software, and so on. Such pages show directly how metadata application would work for you in practice, in accessible language and often with clear screenshots and recognizable examples from academic research.

Check out these examples:

Welcome to another overview of new digital scholarschip resources added to the Artes Digital Scholarship Community on Zotero (learn more about this group and join with your Zotero account to get the group’s resources right in Zotero on your desktop). It’s a brief one; we’re currently reading a lot of excellent data management plans from new PhD researchers, which will be their own blog post sometime in February.

In this edition: a fantastic new open access resource on data management in linguistics, unfortunate mishaps in publication and data management, more Zotero tips, and a long read for the weekend about the practicalities of supporting open access publishing at KU Leuven.

Welcome to another summary of new digital scholarschip resources added to the Artes Digital Scholarship Community on Zotero (learn more about this group and join with your Zotero account to get the group’s resources right in Zotero on your desktop).

In this edition: reference management tips and tricks, essential reading for those starting out with research on social media or other user-generated content online, a guide to organising and supporting citizen science projects, musings about the role of software in research, a warning shot for researchers who keep data on Google services (sorry), and for inspiration, a very lovely and fascinating visualization of character relationships in The Witcher:

• Want to start using a reference manager like Zotero, but worried about laboriously transferring every single reference in the long list of sources that you’ve been keeping in Word or elsewhere? AnyStyle converts a list of references into a structured format that can be imported by reference managers and other programs: Keil, S. (n.d.). AnyStyle.io. Retrieved December 23, 2021, from https://anystyle.io/
• We always recommend using a reference manager like Zotero to automatically generate bibliographies for your articles and ensure that your references section is complete and correct. If you haven’t used a reference manager, however, you can still use Recite to automatically check whether your in-text citations match your list of references: 4cite Labs. (n.d.). Recite: APA and Harvard citations checked instantly. Retrieved December 23, 2021, from https://reciteworks.com/
• A humorous interlude on reproducibility: Ben Golub. (2021, December 24). Economics paper with secret data be like https://t.co/wmUk2N4lrZ [Tweet]. @ben_golub. https://twitter.com/ben_golub/status/1474213075268128772
• A great summary of what researchers should keep in mind when using data from social media in their projects: Centre for Data, Culture, and Society. (2021). Social media research: Ethical guidance for researchers at the University of Edinburgh. The University of Edinburgh. https://www.cdcs.ed.ac.uk/files/2021-09/Social_Media_Ethics.pdf
• A basic and essential guide to the ethical considerations that come with researching online materials: franzke, aline shakti, Bechmann, A., Zimmer, M., Ess, C., the, & Association of Internet Researchers. (n.d.). Internet Research: Ethical Guidelines 3.0. Retrieved January 10, 2022, from https://aoir.org/reports/ethics3.pdf
• A practical guide designed to assist those organising and participating in a citizen science project to get the most out of the experience: Group, L. C. S. W. (2021). Citizen Science Skilling for Library Staff, Researchers, and the Public. LIBER Citizen Science Working Group. https://doi.org/10.25815/hf0m-2a57
• An engaging example of network analysis and data visualization applied to textual data from the popular “Witcher” novels: Janosov, M. (2021, December 23). A Network Map of The Witcher. Nightingale. https://nightingaledvs.com/a-network-map-of-the-witcher
• On the crucial role of software in research, which is difficult to recognize within the traditional academic publication model: Jay, C., Haines, R., & Katz, D. S. (2021). Software Must be Recognised as an Important Output of Scholarly Research. International Journal of Digital Curation, 16(1), 6. https://doi.org/10.2218/ijdc.v16i1.745
• And finally, a scary reminder that external cloud services exert sometimes unexpected amounts of control over the data posted there, and that scholarly data on cloud services is in danger if it’s flagged as a “potential policy violation”: Khalili, J. (2021, December 15). Google Drive could soon start locking your files. TechRadar. https://www.techradar.com/news/google-drive-could-soon-start-locking-your-personal-files