Hopefully not, because there are several software-based citation managers available for students and researchers to create, compile and use citations with just a few clicks.

Victoria Riese, a clinical informationist at Welch Medical Library, recommends two solutions available to Johns Hopkins users when they log in at my.jhu.edu: RefWorks and EndNote (see "Chart: Refworks Versus EndNote").

Riese recommends starting with RefWorks, which is free to users through the library’s subscription. “Once you get comfortable using that, you can purchase EndNote if you want something more sophisticated,” she says.

Both programs export and save citations from online databases. Then, the programs can convert the citations to almost any style formatting— AMA, MLA or styles specific to particular journals.

“One main difference between the two,” says Riese, “is that EndNote allows you to attach files like PDFs to your citations and lets you record notes or highlights in the files. This makes EndNote more of a one-stop shop for citations and research.”

RefWorks and the latest version of EndNote both allow users to access their citations from anywhere they have online access and let users share citations with other users.

Riese says students and researchers are also using free tools like Zotero and Mendeley. Each has an option to install a button on your Web browser to add sources such as wikis and websites to your citation list quickly, and both are accessible through apps that can be used with a mobile device.

Even if users aren’t using citations managers to create reference lists, Riese says the programs can serve as a helpful resource to keep articles all in one place. “Nobody likes being that person who remembers an article from five years ago but can’t find it now,” she says.

Are you using any particular application to organize your research? If so, let us know by commenting on this article.