It is possible to work collaboratively with Zotero by sharing references and PDF files. To do so, a Zotero account is required.
Creating a group
Setting and modifying group settings
After creating a group, it is possible to modify a few settings.
Working with groups in Zotero
If synchronization is activated in Zotero, groups will appear in the left column under your library and collections.
However, you can access groups without using Zotero by accessing them directly through the Zotero Web site.
It is possible to copy references from your library to a group.
You can also work from a group collection without the references appearing in your personal Zotero library.
Sharing files using groups
It is possible to share PDF files in a private group or a public, closed membership group. Modifications made to PDF files by a group member are visible by other members.
Of note, the size of files shared in a group counts towards the online storage space of the group owner (for Zotero, each user has 300MB of free online storage space; group files are counted as part of the space allocated to the group owner; additional storage space may be purchased).
Task for learning: Create a Group with Private Membership. Optionally, invite at least one member to the Group.
Review question:
If you have questions, or if you run into problems that the course does not address, e-mail the University of Ottawa Library at bibliolibrary@uOttawa.ca.
This online course is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International license. Unless otherwise stated, it is attributed to Mish Boutet, and is based on handouts by Patrick Labelle (also under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).
[How to Use Zotero online course updated: November 8, 2022]