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  User's Guide to EndNote


Overview

EndNote is a software program that helps you store and manage citation information for the resources that you find in the course of your research, including books, journal articles, and other materials. You can either enter citation information by hand or automatically import it from most research databases. You can then use EndNote to generate bibliographies and insert citations directly into Microsoft Word documents, using the citation style of your choice (MLA, APA, Chicago, and many others).

Saint Anselm College has acquired a site license for EndNote. This means that all faculty, staff, and students are entitled to install EndNote on their office computer and on one home computer for professional/academic use. Contact the IT Help Desk to receive an installation CD. Note that both PC and Mac versions are available.

There is also a web-based version available called EndNote Web. This enables you to store and manage citations from any computer, not just the one where you have installed the desktop version of EndNote. Most of the features available in EndNote are also available in EndNote Web. To set up your online account, visit the EndNote Web website from any on-campus computer. Once you have references in your Web account, you can easily transfer them into your desktop version by selecting “EndNote Web” from the Tools menu in EndNote Desktop and following the on-screen instructions.

Creating an EndNote Library

The first step is to create an EndNote library, which is essentially a collection of references to books, articles, and other research materials. There are three principal ways to add references to your library:

1) Manual Entry
  • Select "New Reference" under the References menu
  • Choose a Reference Type corresponding to the type of material represented by the citation
  • Enter the citation information for your item into the appropriate fields
    • Enter as much information as needed to create a complete citation in the desired format
    • For items with multiple authors, enter their names on separate lines under the Author heading
    • Avoid abbreviations of journal or author names if possible
    • Author names can either be entered as "Lastname, Firstname" or "Firstname Lastname"
  • Close the New Reference window to automatically save the new citation to the active library
2) Direct export
Some databases, such as JSTOR and all EBSCOhost databases (Academic Search Premier, MLA, PsycINFO, etc.), allow you to directly export references into EndNote. Generally, this involves the following process (with the details varying for each database). Be sure to have EndNote open prior to exporting references.
  • Run your search in the database
  • Mark the desired items in your Results list
  • Access the folder or page containing the saved/marked items
  • Export these items to EndNote
EndNote may prompt you to select the library in which you wish to save the references. The references will then automatically appear in the chosen EndNote library.

3) Import using EndNote filters
Other databases, such as WorldCat and all CSA databases (Biological Sciences, Criminal Justice Abstracts, Philosopher's Index, etc.), require you to save references to a text file and then import them into EndNote using filters. The filter parses the citation information into the appropriate EndNote fields. This process involves the following steps; again, details will vary by database.
  • Run your search in the database
  • Mark the desired items in your Results list
  • Access the folder or page containing the marked items
  • Save or export these items to a text file, saving it to your computer
  • Use the "Import" command under EndNote's File menu to import the references into your library
  • When prompted for an Import Option, select the import filter corresponding to the database from which you obtained the citations
  • If importing citations in non-English languages, select "Unicode" (either UTF-8 or UTF-16) as the Text Translation option. This will help to successfully import characters that use accent marks and other diacritics.
Be aware that citation information may not always transfer correctly into EndNote, especially for specialized materials like conference papers and dissertations. Thus, it is important to double-check your references, and select the "Edit References" option under the References menu to make any needed revisions. For assistance with using either the direct export or import methods with one of the library's research databases, please contact
Jeff Waller.

Creating Bibliographies and Citing References in Microsoft Word

You can generate a bibliography in Microsoft Word using some or all of the references available in an EndNote library.

  • In EndNote, use the Bibliographic Output Style drop-down box (located on the toolbar) to choose the desired citation style. If your preferred style isn't one of the choices listed, choose the "Select Another Style" option, which opens a full list of all supported citation styles (including MLA, APA, Chicago, and many styles associated with specific journals). Click the desired style and press the Choose button
  • In your EndNote library, click all the references to be included in your bibliography (holding down the Ctrl key as you select each one)
  • Select "Copy Formatted" under the Edit menu to copy them to the clipboard
  • In your Microsoft Word document, paste in the bibliography by clicking Edit-Paste (or Ctrl-V). Note that EndNote-generated citations are not always correct, so be sure to double-check them against a citation style guide
To add citations as you compose a paper, take advantage of the Cite While You Write program that is embedded into Microsoft Word when you install EndNote.
  • As you type your paper, when you wish to insert a citation to an EndNote reference, select "EndNote / Find Citations" under the Tools menu
  • In the Find box, enter a search term (such as the author's last name or a word from the title) that will locate the reference you wish to cite, and press the Search button
  • Select the desired reference and press the Insert button
  • You can adjust the appearance of the citation by selecting "EndNote / Format Bibliography" under the Tools menu, and modifying settings as desired
Further Help

For more detailed guidance on using EndNote (including its advanced features), see the
Tip Sheets and video tutorials available on EndNote's website. If you have questions on how to transfer citations from Geisel Library's research databases into EndNote, please contact Jeff Waller. For technical questions about installation or system requirements, contact IT Help.



 

 

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