DrJJWMac wrote: ↑Thu Sep 30, 2021 7:16 pm
I create a BibTeX file solely at the point where I am compiling my final document. Putting in the citations is the last step in the processing. In the meantime, I use citation keys stored in Bookends, trusting that, once I am done, the BibTeX file generated at the end from Bookends will be complete. I do not need BibTeX auto-export each time I add a new citation. I probably never will. In this light, convince me why I should change my approach and also join the call to have auto-export of a BibTeX file built in to Bookends. Explain to me what benefit I am missing in a way that I (as an engineer) can appreciate.
I think you need to understand two things:
1) the citation autocompelete feature in Texstudio (or any other tex software that autocites/compeletes your citation).
2) a bibtex file that is at the root of your tex system. Look at the screenshot I put above. zLib is put in my Library folder.
The zLib.bib is managed by Better Bibtex. Every change I made in Zotero is reflected there. Whether I am writing a shoft paper, or a number of papers papers side by side, or a dissertation, any article or book in my Zotero library is under my fingers via the Texstudio's auto-cite feature.
- assume you are drafting an paper. You find an interesting article in your bookends library, you want to cite it. In your case, you cite it using BE citation (if I understand you correctly), and change citation to bibtex format after you finish the draft, and export your cited papers from Bookends to Bibtex format.
That is a lot of work if you break it down.
Step 1: insert BE citation (you might use the tex format here, in that case, you reduce the friction a bit)
Step 2: mark the papers that you cited
Step 3: export the cited papers
Step 4: change the format of the citation from BE to tex format.
If you avoid step 2, the option is to export the whole library--which could be time taking.
For me (Better Bibtex via Zotero), it is just one step. I simply write
\cite{ on my draft. Texstudio pops up all the available references, click the article. That is the end of the story. I don't need to look back to it, it is already synced & cited.
Further, assume you find an interesting article from a publisher; want to cite it. For the Zotero system, the only thing you need to do is download the metadata. Once you put it in Zotero, it is in your tex-editor as well.
- Note that, it is also a good habit to compile your documents occasionally to see everything is going fine. I don't wait to the last point to compile and see
- Personally, I prefer to read my drafts on the pdf output. For that, I constantly compile. It is pleasant to see the references are correctly set on my draft as well. If I want to send my draft to an editor, or a friend, the references need to be there. For that, I don't want to want to the last point to compile, or insert my references.
is it clear?