Zotero 1.5b looks interesting

http://www.zotero.org/support/1.5_beta

Syncing

* Automatic synchronization of collections among multiple computers. For example, sync your PC at work with your Mac laptop and your Linux desktop at home. * Free automatic backup of your library data on Zotero’s servers. * Automatic synchronization of your attachment files to a WebDAV server (e.g. iDisk, Jungle Disk, or university-provided web storage).

Other New Features

* Automatic detection of PDF metadata. * Automatic detection and support for proxy servers. * Trash can with restore item functionality * Rich-text notes * A new style manager allowing you to add and delete CSLs and legacy style formats. * Support for Endnote® export styles

Yeah. Zotero 1.5 looks very similar to Mendeley, which has been generating a lot of discussion in several different threads here lately. But, Mendeley is proprietary and Zotero is 100% FOSS. I will use FOSS, unless the proprietary equivalent is A) Much better and B) I need the additional functionality. Zotero 1.5 will be, roughly, feature equivalent to Mendeley, EndNote, etc.

I'm using Mendeley right now too.

So far it's much more intuitive to import information from PDFs with it than Zotero 1.5b has been. I just point it at my folder of PDFs and it extracts the information.

The interface while similar between the two is easier to use in Mendeley.

The file synching between computers that Zotero offers though has my attention.

I have no religious objections to using proprietary or FOSS, I use whatever I have at hand that works the best for me.

Right now both are buggy but are getting closer to what I need/want.

havent checked out 1.5 yet, but a while back i read that it would incorporate a way to just save a portion of a snapshot. hope its there..

earlycj5 said: I'm using Mendeley right now too.

So far it's much more intuitive to import information from PDFs with it than Zotero 1.5b has been. I just point it at my folder of PDFs and it extracts the information.

The interface while similar between the two is easier to use in Mendeley.

The file synching between computers that Zotero offers though has my attention.

I have no religious objections to using proprietary or FOSS, I use whatever I have at hand that works the best for me.

Right now both are buggy but are getting closer to what I need/want.

I agree, neither application is perfect. Most of my PDFs are research papers and I can download the metadata easily from the relevant Journal site.

I actually prefer Mendeley's basic interface. I tend to find Zotero cramped.

But, I love the integration between Zotero and OpenOffice.org. From what I can see on the site, Mendeley offers integration with Word, but not Writer. Zotero integrates with both (although I don't know about the Mac versions).

In many ways, both applications are trying to solve the same basic problem / use case. They offer very competitive products. I would argue that either option is a better value than EndNote. I think it will be interesting to watch, as both technologies mature, to see how many people choose to use each application.

And, this conversation has caused me to think of a question regarding Zotero, but I'll start a separate thread for it.

gunksta said: I agree, neither application is perfect. Most of my PDFs are research papers and I can download the metadata easily from the relevant Journal site.

I actually prefer Mendeley's basic interface. I tend to find Zotero cramped.

But, I love the integration between Zotero and OpenOffice.org. From what I can see on the site, Mendeley offers integration with Word, but not Writer. Zotero integrates with both (although I don't know about the Mac versions).

In many ways, both applications are trying to solve the same basic problem / use case. They offer very competitive products. I would argue that either option is a better value than EndNote. I think it will be interesting to watch, as both technologies mature, to see how many people choose to use each application.

And, this conversation has caused me to think of a question regarding Zotero, but I'll start a separate thread for it.

Yes, I find either one better than EndNote!

Gah! I tried accessing Web of Science this AM, with Zotero enabled I get an error 404. Soon as I disabled it, it works again.

How much webspace Zotero offers for backing up your pdfs? Can you share pdf files with other users? With Mendeley it is 500Mb of webspace and you can share references but not pdfs with other users.