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I am using Zotero to collect my references then exporting them as a BibTex file and then I cite them in Latex. This is all fine but I often struggle to find the relevant citation tag.

I would like to know how to find the citation tag easily as the search function in either WinEdt or TexWorks doesn't appear to work in BibTex files. I have been selecting everything pasting in to Word and then searching that way.

Is there a Latex editor that I can use to search through the BibTex file or ideally modify the tags in Zotero (I appreciate that this is not a Zotero forum so not expecting an answer there).

Thanks in advance

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    By citation tag, do you mean bibtex key?
    – user11232
    Commented Mar 24, 2014 at 13:02
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    Well, .bib files are just text files (so are .tex files), so you can open them with any editor (Notepad, Notepad++, TeXworks ...), and you can search them then of course. See for example libguides.mit.edu/content.php?pid=55482&sid=406343 (look for How do I cite references in my document?).
    – moewe
    Commented Mar 24, 2014 at 13:49
  • @HarishKumar I mean the text that I need to cite: \cite{Authors et.al}
    – dpel
    Commented Mar 24, 2014 at 13:55
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    Have you considered switching to a dedicated bibtex editor like BibDesk or Jabref? Both have a zotero-like GUI, and are far easier to integrate into your LaTeX workflow. With BibDesk, you can even get TeX previews of how your bibliographical references will look when typeset.
    – Gene G.
    Commented Mar 24, 2014 at 15:01
  • If you're willing to forgo a flashy GUI, Emacs's RefTeX mode makes it super-easy. With RefTeX-mode enabled, all you do is type C-c [ (where C-c usually means 'Crtl + c'); this pops open a little 'window', where you can specify a regular expression to search the current .bib file, and pull out all listing matches for you to choose from. This list will search the whole entry, so if all you remember is part of the title or what journal the article was in, you just type that part in. Easy!
    – jon
    Commented Mar 24, 2014 at 17:25

5 Answers 5

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Winedt offers this functionality. You type \cite{} then this window opens:

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where you can search the entries.

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Upon selecting and clicking Insert you will get \cite{E.L.dasilva2000}.

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This is another way using JabRef.

Open the .bib file in jabref. JabRef offers a push function for several editors. Choose your editor as below:

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You can do some customization at Options → Preferences as below:

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Now keep the cursor in your editor where you want to insert the cite command. Go to jabref and select the bib entry to be inserted and press the push button. The \cite{key} will be inserted in the editor.

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I would recommend doing this in Zotero itself. You can do so most easily using the "Zotero better bibtex" add-on. The add-on adds two key functionalities to Zotero's bib(la)tex handling 1. It adds a function (technically an export translator) to Zotero that allows you to get bibtex citekeys from Zotero items via simple drag&drop 2. It allows you to specify custom citekeys in Zoter's "Extra" field.

With those two functions in place, you can skip the text/bibtex editor entirely. See the add-ons github page for detailed documentation.

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With sublimetext and LatexTools, you can type \cite{ Sublime Text opens a window:

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Search and select in this window to insert the \cite{bibkey}.

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With inlage:

Type cite{ and a window with all bibtex keys in the associated bib file opens like this:

enter image description here

Here one can choose the key and insert.

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