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EndNote Tutorials

EndNote is a citation management tool used by researchers, faculty, and students to store, organize and cite references. This guide is to show how to use EndNote effectively.

Search PubMed in EndNote

If you are looking for a particular reference, you may search for it in a remote database directly from EndNote. This is particularly easy when the database is publicly accessible, for example: PubMed, so that you do not need to authenticate your access. However, I would not recommend using this search function if you are performing a topic search, which should be conducted in a relevant database. 

To search PubMed from EndNote:

The online search feature in EndNote 20 and later versions has been much improved, while in EndNote X9 and earlier, there are three icons: Local Library Mode, Online Search Mode (Temporary Library), and Integrated Library & Online Search Mode on the upper left corner. Users need to choose the Online Search Mode to avoid putting irrelevant references in their libraries. Below are the steps to online searching from EndNote 21 or 20: 

  • First, you need to have an internet connection.
  • Open EndNote (v. 21 or v. 20), on the left pane. There is a category called ONLINE SEARCH. PubMed is listed below that.
  • Click on PubMed (NLM) under ONLINE SEARCG on the left navigation pane.
  • The Search interface on the right will reflect PubMed search boxes. Enter the terms to search. In this search mode, I usually search by title in order to increase the likelihood to get a matching item.
  • If too many items were retrieved, you may either refine your search by adding more search terms or click Clear search and rerun the search with a refined search strategy. 
  • If you find the desired reference(s), simply highlight the reference(s) you would like to keep. Then click the + sign in a circle on the upper right above the references. The reference(s) will be added into your library. 

Search NLM Catalog in EndNote

If what you want to find is a book reference, you may search for it in the Library of Congress (LC) online catalog. To search the LC catalog from EndNote, here are the steps:

  • First, you need to have an internet connection.
  • Open EndNote (21 or 20), on the left pane, there is a category called ONLINE SEARCH. Library of Congress is listed below that. 
  • Click on Library of Congress under ONLINE SEARCH on the left navigation pane.
  • The Search interface on the right will reflect Searching Library of Congress. Enter the terms to search. In this search mode, I usually search by title in order to increase the likelihood to get a matching item.
  • If too many items were retrieved, you may either refine your search by adding more search terms or click Clear search and rerun the search with a refined search strategy. 
  • If you find the desired reference(s), simply highlight the reference(s) you would like to keep. Then click the + sign in a circle on the upper right above the references. The reference(s) will be added into your library.