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Referencing tools

This guide will outline the most commonly used referencing tools. Mae'r dudalen hon hefyd ar gael yn a Gymraeg

Introduction and access

Mendeley reference manager is a free web and desktop reference management application. 

Access (Web)

  • Click 'Create Account' at top right of the home page and follow the steps to set up your account
  • You can use you University email address but if you use a personal email you can continue using it when you graduate or if you continue studying elsewhere
  • Create a password that is different from your University password
  • Complete the registration process
  • Open the relevant email account, University or personal and activate the link in the email sent from Mendeley

Access (Download)

  • Click 'Download' at top right of the homepage and follow the steps to download Mendeley to your computer.  You will only be able to do this on a computer owned by you and won't be able to do it on shared or USW equipment
  • Choose your operating system from Windows (V.7 and above) MacOS or Linux
  • Wait for product to download, following any prompts
  • Once the installation is complete you will be taken to the register/login page
  • You can use you University email address, but if you use a personal email you can continue using it when you graduate or if you continue studying elsewhere
  • Create a password that is different from your University password
  • Complete the registration process
  • Open the relevant email account, University or personal and activate the link in the email sent from Mendeley

Collecting references

Exporting directly from a database 

  • Use the Export option within the database to extract your references in BibTeX, EndNote, XML or RIS file format.

  • In Mendeley Reference Manager use the 'Import library' option > + 'Add new' menu and select the exported file to add its contents to your Mendeley library.

Using the web importer

  • Import references from the web directly to your Mendeley library with Mendeley Web Importer browser extension (available for Chrome and Firefox).
  • Find the browser extension in the browser app store and install it.  
  • Click on the web importer extension to import items to your library.

Drag and drop (if you have the pdf)

  • Add references to your Mendeley library by dragging and dropping a PDF into the Mendeley Reference Manager window. You can also drag multiple PDFs into your library at the same time. Mendeley will automatically extract the metadata from the PDF(s) and create a library entry.

Creating a new reference 

  • Select the 'Add entry manually’ option in the '+ Add new' menu to manually input the details of a reference. Select the appropriate document type and complete the fields to create a library entry.

Organising the references

Mendeley reference manager automatically organizes your references into smart collections.

  • Recently Added - Displays the references added to your library in the last 30 days.
  • Recently Read - Displays the references for PDFs opened in the last 30 days.
  • Favorites - ‘Star’ a reference to automatically add it to your ‘Favorites’ collection.
  • My Publications - This collection displays the publications that you have authored and claimed through the 'Scopus Author Profile'.
  • Trash - Displays the references that you have deleted from your library.

You can create your own custom collections by selecting the ‘New Collection’ button in the left hand navigation panel.  Add a references to a collection by dropping it onto a collection in the left hand navigation panel.

Using Mendeley Cite for MS Word

Downloading Mendeley Cite

  • From the 'Tools' menu, select 'Install Mendeley Cite for Microsoft Word'
  • This will take you to the app store for your default browser.  Select 'Get it now' to install Mendeley Cite.

Using Mendeley Cite to insert citations in-text

  • You will need to use Mendeley to insert citations in your document before you can format a bibliography.
  • Insert citations by positioning the cursor where you want to insert a citation in your document. Now go to the Mendeley Cite add-in window.

    On the 'References' tab in Mendeley Cite select the check box of the reference(s) you wish to insert.

  • Select ‘Insert citation’ to insert the reference into your document. If you wish to insert multiple references, simply select more tick boxes. 

Using Mendeley Cite to create a bibliography

  • After you have inserted one or more citations position the cursor where you want the bibliography to appear in your document and go to the Mendeley Cite add-in window.
  • Select the 'More' menu and select the ‘Insert Bibliography’ button in the drop down menu.
  • The bibliography will then be inserted in your chosen location.

The referencing styles available may or may not conform exactly to the USW guides for your referencing style, so please check and edit the reference when needed to comply.