Managing your Zotero library effectively
1 Introduction to Collections, Tags, and Related Items
Kris Joseph
In this module, we provide an overview of the three main organizational features in Zotero: , , and . This video outlines where each of the features “lives” in the Zotero interface, and addresses how each feature is different. The next three modules will look at each of these features in detail.
Learning Objectives
At the end of this module you will understand:
- Where to find collections, tags, and related items
- How each of these three features are different from one another
Collections are one of the three main features used to organize and maintain your Zotero library.
They are used to logically organize your Zotero entries into "folders" and "sub-folders," and you can set them up using any scheme that works for you. Some people create collections according to topics and sub-topics; others use them to divide material by course or semester.
An Zotero entry can be a member of more than one collection.
Tags are one of the three features for organizing your Zotero library. A tag is any string of text -- either created by you or imported from a database -- that describes an item in Zotero. T
ags can be subject keywords, geographic or chronological information, workflow/status information, and more. Unlike collections, there is no way to create "sub-tags" for a tag.
All tags are visible in the tag selector, which is in the bottom left area of the Zotero user interface.
A features used to show that two Zotero items are connected in some way. Related Items appear on the "Related" tab of an individual Zotero entry's information pane. The nature of the relationship can be arbitrary. For example, chapters of the same book; linking a journal article to other articles it mentions; etc.
Unlike tags and collections, you cannot search for related items. This feature is just a nice way for to illustrate connections between Zotero items that are of interest to you.
