Access the Database
- Details
- Published on 30 December 2010
- Written by Wesley Wildman
- Hits: 7904
Access the Database
The IBCSR Research Review Database is hosted as a group within Zotero, which is an add-in to the web-browser Firefox, or a standalone program freely available to users of certain operating systems. After you become a member of IBCSR, you will receieve an email inviting you to join the Zotero group. When your membership expires, your access to the database also ends. If you lose the original invitation to join the group, don't worry. Just email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for a new invitation.
Here are the steps you need to take to access the IBCSR Research Review Database.
First, you need to install the (free) Firefox web broswer.
Second, you need to install the (free) Firefox add-in called Zotero or the (free) standalone Zotero application.
Third, you need to create an account with Zotero so that you can access Zotero groups.
Fourth, you need to respond to the email invitation from IBCSR to join the group for the IBCSR Research Review Database.
Fifth, after you accept the invitation to join, you will see the group in your Zotero account under the "Groups" tab. You can view items from the database by clicking on the Group's name and then on the Group Library link.
Sixth, you can create a version of the database on your local machine, after which you can edit, download, create bibliographies, and so on. The way to do this is to use the Zotero add-in for Firefox. It appears in the bottom right corner of the Firefox window. Click on it to bring up the Zotero browser interface to your local data.
Seventh, you can syncronize your local data with the data in the IBCSR Research Review Database. To do this, click the syncronize button (the circling arrow). Make sure you have set up access to your Zotero account first, or the syncronize operation won't be able to access online data. You enter your Zotero account information into the form that opens when you select Preferences under the Actions menu (the cog button).
You can get basic information about how to use the Zotero add-in from the Support and Documentation option under the Actions menu (the cog button). Other articles on this page explain basic operations such as exporting and searching some or all of the IBCSR Research Review Database.
Enjoy!
Search the Database
- Details
- Published on 18 December 2010
- Written by Wesley Wildman
- Hits: 6628
Search the Database
The IBCSR Research Review Database went live in January, 2011. The same search algorithms, selection procedures, and abstract-writing principles used to produce IBCSR Research Review are also used to construct the IBCSR Research Review Database. This database is gradually expanding, moving from the present backwards in time to the earliest research in the scientific study of religion, which is around the late 1980s (see the history of publications at the bottom of this page). Each new issue of IBCSR Research Review also increases database holdings moving month by month into the future. The resulting index is the best place to find everything ever published in the English language on the scientific study of religion.The main way to find the information you need is to search the IBCSR Research Review Database. Here are the steps to follow.
First, open the Zotero add-in within the Firefox web browser (see the article on accessing the database if you need help with this).
Second, syncronization of your local database with the online version of the database should begin automatically. If you want to initiate syncronization manually, click the Sycronize button.
Third, now you are ready to search items. There are several approaches.
Method 1: type text into the search box in the Zotero add-in. This will search all fields and display the records that satisfy the search. This method will also allow you to search in the online database using the search box at the top of the Zotero group window.
Method 2: you can click the search button to open a window and initate a search operation. The search window displays results. You can also save a search. The saved search appears under the "My Library" collection. Unfortunately, this method only works for the My Library collection so, if you want to use this method, you have to move items into the My Library collection first.
Method 3: you can use the category system to filter results and to limit the applicability of search-box entries.
Method 4: on the Zotero site, you can type a subject phrase under "Tags" to limit the subject tags, and then click on one or more subject tags to display items described by those subject tags.
You can find out more about searching by consulting the Zotero documentation.
