Integrating Citations and References: Obsidian vs. External Reference Managers (Zotero, etc.)

Knowledge management
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I’ve been exploring different ways to manage my citations and references alongside my notes in Obsidian, and I’m curious about how others handle this part of their workflow. I know there are some great plugins for Obsidian, like the “Citations” plugin, that allow for integration with BibTeX and Zotero, but I’m wondering about the broader pros and cons of keeping everything within Obsidian versus using an external reference manager like Zotero, Mendeley, or EndNote.

Here are some questions to prompt a discussion:

  1. Workflow Integration: How do you integrate your reference management with Obsidian? Do you keep everything within Obsidian, or do you use an external manager and link to it?
  2. Pros and Cons: What do you see as the key advantages and disadvantages of using Obsidian for reference management versus an external tool? Are there specific features you find indispensable in either approach?
  3. Customization vs. Automation: Obsidian offers a lot of customization, while tools like Zotero offer more automation. Which do you prefer, and why?
  4. Best Practices and Tips: If you use Obsidian for citation management, what are your best practices or tips for keeping everything organized and efficient? What plugins or workflows have you found most helpful?
3 Likes
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Hi,

My ideal workflow looks as follows:

  1. I have the citation and the pdf article in Bookends
  2. I create the corresponding file in obsidian. Here I summarize the main points, list some quotes etc.
  3. I link the obsidian file to the corresponding bookends reference so I can open the pdf with just a click.
    When I write an essay on Obsidian I just past and copy the reference from Bookends (Bookends calls this “floating citation”), add page number and other variables that will turn in proper form when I convert the document from markdown to word. Bookends also manages the bibliography.

I tried the citation plugin, which works with Zotero, but I am not technologically savvy so it seemed a bit complicated to me (it’s my fault I know).
Hope this helps! I also would be curious to learn how other people manage the process.

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I do not have a perfect solution. Working with two databases in Zotero and in Obsidian as well was my initial toolset. But to manage two systems in parallel is no fun. Zotero plug-ins for Obsidian are complicated.

Today I prefer the Obsidian plugin „Book search“.

1 Like
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This is true—having to manage multiple systems is definitely a con of using an external reference manager. Does something like using cite keys mitigate this problem?

Book Search is a great plugin. I used it for awhile. Combined with the popular movie lookup script, it can turn Obsidian into a useful reference manager.

A disadvantage I see to using Obsidian as a reference manager is that the metadata can get messy if you’re not careful. My tendency is to collect metadata that turns out to be unnecessary.

This is great! Thanks for sharing! I hadn’t heard of Bookends, but it seems useful.