Another metadata extraction experiment

Several months ago I was comparing how well Mendeley and Zotero reference managers ingested digital content and "spat out" formatted APA citations.

In that first metadata extraction experiment, I used four article PDFs ranging in date from 1989 to 2011. I did not try other resources commonly referred to in graduate study, such as conference proceedings or -- ahem -- books.  (Let's not forget books!)

So, this time I will try a basic webpage (actually, a Flickr image), a conference proceeding from an online database, and a book. For the book, I "grabbed" its data from the Amazon.com web page.

First, I must acknowledge that both Mendeley and Zotero provide multiple avenues for adding content to your library, from "single-click" technology to manual entry, if necessary. I decided to put the single-click option to the test because the functionality of this option is going to make or break the tool, at least in my mind.

When you install Zotero, built-in icons/buttons appear in your browser's location bar. Mendeley provides a web importer button that you can drop-and-drag into your bookmarks toolbar.

So, here we go again.  As in my initial post, I utilized both Mendeley's and Zotero's capability for inserting formatted citations by drag-and-drop technology straight into the text editor of this blog. (The drag-and-drop piece is almost flawless within both applications, but I personally prefer Zotero's split-screen format that integrates with my browser and mimics the iTunes interface.)

For comparison purposes, I added my manually formatted APA citations first, with the Mendeley and Zotero citations following. I changed the text color within citations to indicate deviations from APA or missing information.

Manually formatted APA citations:

Belshaw, D. (2010, Oct. 3). Pragmatism, critical theory and post-structuralism. Retrieved from http://www.flickr.com/photos/dougbelshaw/5046693346/

Jorgensen, M.W., & Phillips, L.J. (2002). Discourse analysis as theory and method. London: SAGE Publications Ltd.

Williams, M.K., Wetzel, K., Foulger, T., Kisicki, T., & Giacumo, L. (2011). Explicitly addressing TPACK in preservice teacher curriculum. In M. Koehler & P. Mishra (Eds.), Proceedings of Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2011 (pp. 4429-4434). Chesapeake, VA: AACE.

  
Mendeley drop-and-drag citations:

Missing author name. pragmatism, critical theory and post-structuralism. (n.d.). Retrieved February 16, 2012, from http://www.flickr.com/photos/dougbelshaw/5046693346/

Jorgensen, M. W., & Phillips, L. J. (2002). Discourse Analysis as Theory and Method (p. 230). Missing place name: Sage Publications Ltd. Retrieved from http://www.amazon.com/Discourse-Analysis-as-Theory-Method/dp/0761971122

Williams, M. K., Wetzel, K., Foulger, T., Kisicki, T., & Giacumo, L. (n.d.). Explicitly Addressing TPACK in Preservice Teacher Curriculum. Missing editors' names, Proceedings of Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2011 (Vol. 2011, pp. 4429 - 4434). Missing place and publisher. Retrieved from http://editlib.org/p/37030

Zotero drop-and-drag citations:

Belshaw, D. (2010, October 3). Pragmatism, Critical Theory and Post-structuralism. Retrieved February 16, 2012, from http://www.flickr.com/photos/dougbelshaw/5046693346/

Jorgensen, M. W., & Phillips, L. J. (2002). Discourse Analysis as Theory and Method (1st ed.). Missing place name: Sage Publications Ltd.

Williams, M. K., Wetzel, K., Foulger, T., Kisicki, T., & Giacumo, L. (20110307). Explicitly Addressing TPACK in Preservice Teacher Curriculum. Missing editors' names, Proceedings of Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2011 (Vol. 2011, pp. 4429–4434). Missing place and publisher. Retrieved from http://editlib.org/p/37030

I hate to say it, but I still think it's a draw. What do you think?

Another metadata extraction experiment