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Zotero import (tool_import_zotero)

See also: Tools user guide · Developer reference

Import a Zotero bibliography exported as RDF/XML into a Dédalo Publications section (rsc205), mapping each reference's fields to components.

An administrator configures the field map first

A researcher exports from Zotero and runs the import, but the mapping from Zotero fields to Dédalo components lives in the tool's configuration. Setting it up is an administrator task.

What it's for

Zotero is one of the most widely used reference managers in academic and heritage research. This tool parses a Zotero RDF/XML export and ingests the matched fields into a section — typically Publications — so a curated bibliography does not have to be re-keyed by hand.

Concrete scenario: a museum's research department keeps the bibliography of an exhibition catalogue in Zotero. They export the collection as RDF/XML, open the import tool on the Publications section, and — with a field map configured (for example dc:title to the title component) — import. For each Zotero item, every predicate that has a matching map entry writes its value into the paired component on a new (or already-targeted) record, through the same write path the CSV and MARC21 imports use.

When to use it

  • You have references curated in Zotero and want them in a Dédalo Publications section.
  • A predicate-to-component map has been configured for the target section.

When NOT to use it:

  • To load Dédalo's own dedalo_raw exports back, use CSV import.
  • For a library MARC21 catalogue, use MARC21 import.
  • To fetch a single external resource's graph by IRI, use RDF import — it shares this tool's parser but resolves one live IRI rather than importing a file.

Before you can use it

The import reads a field map from the tool's configuration — a flat list of entries, each pairing an RDF predicate (such as dc:title) with the target component tipo. If the map is missing or empty, the import is refused. An administrator copies a full configuration into the Tools configuration section and edits it there before the tool can write.

How to export from Zotero

In Zotero, select the collection or items, choose Export…, and pick a RDF format (the export is RDF/XML). Save the file; that is what you drop into the tool. A plain Zotero JSON or a bibliography in another citation style is not the RDF/XML this tool parses.

Where to find it

The tool attaches to sections and surfaces on Publications-style sections once your profile is authorised for it and the section carries the tool in its configuration. It opens in its own window.

Using it, step by step

  1. Export your Zotero collection as RDF/XML.
  2. Open the tool on the Publications section.
  3. Drop or select the RDF/XML export onto the drop zone.
  4. Fill the Values form if the configuration renders one — those values apply alongside the mapped fields.
  5. Click IMPORT. The tool parses each item, applies the field map, and creates or updates records. The run is given a long timeout — wait for the success or error message, after which the view reloads.

Tips and gotchas

The mapping is flat — no bibliographic post-processing

Each predicate maps straight to a component value. There is no dedicated author-name flattening, issued/accessed date parsing, container-title resolve-or-create, item-type-to-typology lookup, or ISBN/ISSN-to-standard-number handling. If you need those, prepare the data accordingly or fix it after import.

Attached PDFs are not imported

Importing a PDF named by a Zotero attachment field, and extracting a first-page identifying image from it, is not implemented. The field map only maps a predicate to a component value. To attach PDFs to records, use Media file import after the bibliographic import.

Check a small export first

Import a handful of references, confirm the map lands the fields where you expect, then run the full collection.

  • MARC21 import — MARC21 library-catalogue import (shares the same write path).
  • CSV import — CSV import, including Dédalo's own dedalo_raw exports.
  • RDF import — the sibling RDF/XML tool whose parser this one reuses; that one fetches a live IRI, this one imports a file and writes records.
  • Media file import — media ingest, including PDFs, after the references are in.
  • Importing data — the per-component import-data contract.
  • Exporting data — the export side.
  • Developer reference — the import_files action, the field-map shape and the shared executor.