Once you've installed and set up EndNote, you can start building your Library. The main ways of adding references to your Library are:

Manual entry

Create a new record and enter the references' details

Direct export

Export from the library catalogue, databases, Google Scholar and more...

Import from PDF

Import PDFs and let EndNote try and find the matching details for you

You have the option to manually create an entry in your library for any reference materials you can’t capture.

Follow the steps

1. From the References menu, select New Reference (Command or Ctrl+N). This opens an empty Reference window.
2. Select a reference type from the Reference Type list at the top of the window.
3. Enter bibliographic data into each of the fields in the reference. When you are finished, close the reference to save it or click on File > Save and add it to the library.

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Allows you to mark items and export them into your EndNote library.

Export from the Library catalogue

Use the 'Send To' options found on a record page, or click the " icon on the results page select 'EndNote desktop (RIS)' or 'EndNote web'. To export multiple items use the to save to Favourites then export.

Export from Google Scholar

Use the and select 'EndNote' OR add a direct 'Import into EndNote' link via menu > Settings > Bibliography manager change to 'Show links to import citations into' and select EndNote. To export multiple items you will need a Google Account, use the to save items to My Library then export

Export from databases

Please note, not all databases or platforms/websites will have an export option for EndNote.

Check for citation or share options.

• If there is an option, download the EndNote option and open the file.
• If there isn’t an option, you will need to manually create a new reference within EndNote.

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Import filters

In some cases, a 'direct export' option may not be available. Instead, you'll need to save your references to a file, then use an import filter to import the file's contents into your EndNote library.

Choose an import filter

When using Google Scholar, users may decide to trace resources back to the Library Collection using the ‘Fulltext at UniSA’ link.

If the user then downloads a citation from the Library Collection record, EndNote will prompt the user to ‘Choose An Import Filter’. Users should select the RefMan RIS filter.

NOTE: The filter will only need to be selected when accessing the citation in this way and not if the user has searched directly for the same resource in the Library Collection.

If the filter you require is not supplied with EndNote, search for it here:

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This will only work 100% with PDFs which include a DOI (Digital Object Identifier), it will not work on scanned copies of PDFs. For references that EndNote does not find the details, add some information e.g. author and title, learn to use the Find Reference Update option (see video in Edit references box below).

NOTE: PDFs are stored in the .data file associated with your EndNote library.

Three ways to import references from PDFs:

1. Import a single PDF

To import a single PDF that you have already saved to your PC:

1. Go to File > Import > File...
2. Select Choose..., browse to the relevant PDF, then select Open
3. From the Import Option drop-down menu, select PDF
4. Select Import

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2. Import multiple PDFs from a folder

1. Go to File > Import > Folder...
2. Select Choose..., browse to the relevant folder, then select OK
3. From the Import Option drop-down menu, select PDF
4. Select Import

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3. Set up a PDF folder for automatic import

To set up EndNote to automatically import references in this way:

1. macOS: click on the EndNote icon > Preferences; Windows: Edit > Preferences
2. Navigate to the section PDF Handling and select the "Enable automatic importing" check box to enable automatic importing of your PDFs. 
3. Select the folder from where you want EndNote to import your PDFs into your library. Download or copy your PDF files to this folder for automatic importing and renaming. 

After EndNote runs the import operation, EndNote creates a subfolder called Import within the Auto Import Folder. EndNote also saves a copy of each PDF to this folder. Please note that EndNote does not import PDFs from sub folders within the Auto Import Folder.

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If your records are missing information e.g. DOI, volume/issue numbers use the Find Reference Updates option. EndNote will search for updates and display any found for you to review. You can then choose to update all fields, update empty fields or edit reference manually.

1. Select one or more references (highlight them) from the Reference List or open a reference in the Reference window.
2. From the References menu, select the Find Reference Updates option to open the Review Available Updates dialog.
   Note: Click the Find Reference Updates icon from the tool bar if you are updating a reference from the Reference window.
3. All updates are highlighted in blue in both the Available Updates and the My Reference panels. For each update that EndNote finds for a record, you can:
   - Click the Update All Fields button to update all the fields in the My References panel with updated information from the Available Updates panel.
   - Click the Update Empty Fields button to update every empty field in the My Reference panel with the new information from the Available Updates panel.
4. If necessary, edit information in the fields in the My Reference panel.
5. When done, click Save Updates to save your changes.
6. Click Yes when the EndNote dialog appears prompting you to save your changes.

Note: If you have selected more than one reference, click the Skip button to skip a reference that you do not wish to update.
Note: All fields within the My Reference panel will display even if they are empty.

Watch the video below (48 sec)

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1. In EndNote menu, go to Tools > Output styles

2. Choose a reference style (e.g. APA 7th) from the short list

• If a reference style is not available, go to Tools > Output styles > Open Style Manager
• In the separate window, scroll the list to find the desire style (you may select any style and type an alphabet name to jump to the desired style)

3. Select your style, then close the window

4. Go to Tools > Output Styles. Your style should now be in the short list

NOTE: The output style should be visible in the edit tab (right-hand side). You can now edit your reference if needed.

Always check with your course lecturers and tutors about which referencing style you are expected to use.

The most common referencing output styles come preinstalled in EndNote. Customised styles will need to be installed separately.

1. Find the location where you downloaded the style. Double-click on the style file to open it. It should open in the EndNote program.  Alternatively, right click on the file and select 'Open with', then select EndNote.
2. In EndNote go to the "File Menu" and choose "Save as".
3. Remove the word "copy" from the end of your style's name, click the Save button. Close the window.
4. In EndNote select Tools > Output Styles > Open Style Manager.
   Tick the box for your preferred style.
   Close the box. You can now select your style from the Output Styles list.
5. Ensure your style is also selected in Word.

It is better to find a style closest to what you need and make small changes rather than creating a whole new style.

1. Open EndNote.
2. Select Tools > Output styles > Open Style Manager...
3. Select an output style that is close to the style you need to create.
4. Click the Edit button.
5. Make any changes you wish.
6. Choose Save As from the File menu, give this copy of the style a new name, and click Save (i.e. don’t save over the original style).

NOTE: the style will be saved on your computer in your ‘My Documents\EndNote\Styles’ folder.

To use AGLC4 Style with EndNote you will need to download and save 2 small files. The below webpage from University of Technology Sydney provides access and explains the installation process.

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To use Harvard UniSA Style with EndNote you will need to download and save this file:

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Term lists maintain consistency and accuracy in your EndNote library. To edit an Author's name or add an abbreviated journal title you can edit a term list or import a ready-made list.  

Edit a Term List

'Open Term List' via the 'Library' menu and select a list. Once you have edited a term it will replace the original in the term list but will not change references in your library. Use the 'Find and Replace' via the 'Library' menu.

Import Term List

EndNote provides ready-made journal term lists, e.g. Bioscience, Chemical, Law, Medical and Humanities that can be imported into your library. Use this for output styles that requires abbreviated journal titles.

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