LyX, LyZ and Zotero.

In the workflow blog, I provided a brief introduction to LyZ, the plug in that links Zotero and LyX. However, I have had some trouble getting all of this to work and thought I should provide some additional direction. The following is ripped off from Derek Wolfson's really great pdf on the subject.

So, how do you create BibTeX (*.bib) file and link Zotero and LyX (this assumes that you have LyZ installed)?

1. In Zotero, select a citation and click on "Cite in LyX".

2. A prompt will appear asking if you want to create a new BibTeX database. Press "OK", name the file, and save.

3. In LyX, click Insert > List/TOC > BibTeX Bibliography.

4. Goto Document > Settings > Bibliography and change Citation Style to Natbib and Natbib style to Author-year

There, you should be all set - that was pretty easy.

But what is the best way to get your references into Zotero? There are a couple of ways to do this. First, you can use the copy/paste approach given in the previous blog, i.e., get Google Scholar to have the option to import into BibTeX and then cut/paste into the BibTeX database. I sometimes use this when I’m in a rush. Alternatively, simply click on the Zotero button in Firefox - it brings the citation straight into the library!

A variation on this problem is suppose you’ve returned to you work at a later date and now, you want to add more references to a previously created BibTeX file. The above approach won’t work because you don’t want to make another BibTeX file. The solution in this case is easy: like above, Zotero prompts you to start a new database (OK) or select an old one (Cancel). So just hit “Cancel” and it adds the citation right to the *.bib file!!!

One problem that I noticed. When adding a reference to LyX using Zotero, it automatically defaults to author (year), e.g. Post et al. (1998). I did A LOT of searching for this and couldn't find a solution. Its inconvenient but not a killer.