EndNote Help & Installation

Open EndNote

Start / Programs / EndNote 
     [If asked.....   Unless you want to use EndNote Web, choose “Do not integrate with EndNote Web at this time” – “Finish.”]

Create an EndNote library

1. Select “Create a new library” --  OK.  Or, select “Open an existing library.”
        (You may need to go to “File” / “New” to create a new library.)
2. Name the file and location for your library.  It will have the extension:  .enl   (You will also have a .Data directory saved.)
3. Click “Save” and your EndNote Library will open. The “library” is where your references will be stored. The .Data directory will be in the same location as the .enl file -- it stores files you upload and the information necessary for the .enl file to operate.

To enter a citation manually

1. Click “References” in the top toolbar, and select “New Reference.”
2. Select a “Reference Type” (e.g., Journal Article) from the Reference Type dropdown menu at top, and then enter the reference information in the appropriate fields.
3. When finished entering information, click “SAVE” and then close the entry box.
4. To edit, click "Edit" on the top of the right column of your library.

To select a format (output) style and view the reference

1. On the right column, select "Summary" and you will see the output style in the bottom box. The default is "Annotated" - click the dropdown menu and select from the standard list or choose “Select Another Style…” to see the full list. Click “Choose” when you find the style you need.
2. Your reference should change to that style.

To import a PDF (only pdfs with a DOI)

1. Click "File" / "Import" / "File" (or "Folder" if you have a folder of pdfs).
2. Choose the pdf from its location on your computer, and click "Open."
3. Select "PDF" as your Import Option, then click "Import"
4. If the article has a DOI, the full citation should appear with the pdf attached.  If no DOI, you may need to type the reference information manually, or import it from a database!

Manage Your References 

• There is no limit to the number of references, but it is recommended that you not exceed 100,000!

• Edit References:  Click on the reference in the reference list, and the metadata will show in the right column. Click "Edit" at top.
  • Add File Attachments:  Scroll down on the right column to "File Attachments" and click "+ Attach file." You may attach multiple pdfs, Word docs, images to a reference, but only one audio or video file.
  • Add Keywords to your references to be able to search and find them later (especially if the title is not descriptive). This can also help you to organize your library by topic
  • Add Research Notes if you wish so that you can keep track of why or why not this article is useful.

• Sort References:  Click on the header (Author, Year, etc) in the reference list to sort all references by that category.

• Create Groups:  It can be very useful to create groups to organize your references (under “Groups” / “Create Group”)

Work in the Cloud...

EndNote was not designed for compatibility with cloud storage (DropBox, Sharepoint, Google Drive, iCloud). While you can use the service to keep a backup copy or share a compressed copy of your database file(s), we do not recommend opening and/or using the database from that location. If you have your database files saved to Dropbox or any cloud storage, we recommend you copy the files to another location on your computer or remote drive before you open them.

TIPS

Work in the Cloud...

EndNote was not designed for compatibility with cloud storage (DropBox, Sharepoint, Google Drive, iCloud). While you can use the service to keep a backup copy or share a compressed copy of your database file(s), we do not recommend opening and/or using the database from that location. If you have your database files saved to Dropbox or any cloud storage, we recommend you copy the files to another location on your computer or remote drive before you open them.

It is necessary to double-check every reference, especially those exported from certain databases.  Look at:

Author.  Place multiple authors on separate lines. Use lastname, firstname...

Corporate author names. When entering a corporate author, you should follow it with a comma (eg, Smithsonian Museum,) – otherwise EN treats it as an individual author.  EN assumes everything before a comma is a last name.

Capitalization. In some cases, you’ll need to manually change the entry from all caps.

Title.  Some databases add descriptive information to a title to indicate the topic.

If your citation style requires that you use full journal names, and the exporting database provides only abbreviations, you may need to import a journal list.  See Knowledgebase entry.