Adding a Quotation

Citavi distinguishes between different types of quotations and provides fields for each type:

icon_direct_quotation_small

Direct Quotation for information that you type in exactly as it appears in the original text (ex. a definition).

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Indirect Quotation for information that you reformulate in your own words (paraphrase).

icon_summary_small

Summary for a short description of the contents of a chapter or section. (If you want to summarize an entire book or journal article, use the Abstract field.

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Comment for your thoughts on an author's statements.

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Image quotation for graphics found within a reference. File quotation for film or music files found within a reference.

Hint

Use the Comment feature to distinguish between the author's thoughts and your own. You can add a comment to a quotation that you have already added. Select the Quotation and then click New > Add comment to item. If you want to save an overall comment on the work, use the Evaluation field.

Adding a Text Quotation

  1. In the Reference Editor, switch to the reference you want to quote and click the Quotations & comments tab.
  2. Click New.
  3. Select the correct quotation type (see above).
  4. Write a concise summary of the quotation in the Core statement field. If you do not enter anything, Citavi will automatically enter the first few words of the quotation.
  5. Type the text in the Quotation box. Do not forget to place direct quotations in quotation marks!
  6. Enter the page number(s) the quotation is taken from in the Page range field. Click the blue Page range label to choose a different type, for example columns, section numbers or margin numbers.
  7. Add Keywords if desired.
  8. Click Categories or press F9 to assign categories to the quotation. Select the checkboxes for the categories you want to assign. (See Assigning Categories). The Modified field will automatically update with your initials and the date. Click OK to finish.
  9. Click Groups or press F9 to assign groups to the quotation. Select the group you want to assign (see Creating Groups). Click Add. You can also assign multiple groups.

Hint:

If you are excerpting multiple quotations from the same page, you can change the order of the quotations. Just drag the quotation to change the order.

Adding an Image or File Quotation

  1. In the Reference Editor, switch to the Quotations & comments tab of the reference you want to quote and click New > Image or file.
  2. Enter a Caption for later publication.
  3. Click Add file. Choose the file and click Open. Citavi supports the following file types: Windows Bitmap (.bmp), TIFF (.tif, uncompressed or with LZW compression), JPEG (.jpg), GIF (.gif), or PNG (.png).
  4. Add a detailed Description for your own use.
  5. Enter the page numbers the quotation is taken from in the Page range field, if applicable.
  6. Citavi enters the file path in the Location field.
  7. Enter Keywords, Categories, or Groups if desired.

Hint:

For videos, you can enter a time span, such as 01:34-03:55 by clicking Page range and choosing Other as the numbering type.