EndNote Basic

What is it? 

Expanded Endnote Basic is online software that helps you to collect and manage a library of citations and output them in any of over 6000 bibliographic formats.  You can input groups of references from databases or add them in one at a time.  Your Endnote Basic library is fully searchable, can be organized into groups, and can be shared with other researchers.  By downloading the Cite While You Write plug-in for Microsoft Word, you can access your library and instantaneously format your bibliography as you write your paper. Expanded Endnote Basic accounts are free for anyone with a UNR NetID. 

Some alternatives:

There are many other reference manager applications available, some free.  Examples of popular ones include Mendeley and Zotero.  Each has its strengths and weaknesses.

If you only need some help formatting a few citations in MLA, APA or Chicago, try out the Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL).

For More Help

From within EndNote Basic, click on “Help” in the top right corner of the screen to access a wide variety of tutorials and helpful topic pages.

For help on EndNote Desktop, check out the EndNote Video Tutorials.

Go to Web of Science (requiring your NetID and password), then choose “EndNote” along top bar, and Register. Once you have registered, you will be taken back to Web of Science. Once again choose "Endnote", agree to terms, and you will be taken to your new account.

 Note:  You do not need to use a UNR email address, and, once the account is set up, you will be able to use the email address and password to access EndNote Basic directly. 

Users must revalidate their accounts at least once a year by logging in from on-campus.  If you are unable to come to campus, but are still a valid member of the UNR community, a work-around is to log onto Web of Science (which will require your UNR NetID) then use the "Sign In" option on the top left (NOT "Endnote") using your Endnote Basic username and password.  This should reset your account for another year.  

In your Endnote Basic account choose the FORMAT/CITE WHILE YOU WRITE PLUGIN tab. 

Cite While You Write note:  After downloading the plug-in, you may need to set the “application” to Endnote Online.  You do this by opening Microsoft Word, and:

• Windows: click on the Endnote tab, then “preferences” and “application”.  Change “Endnote” to “Endnote Online”.  Enter http://my.endnote.com in the URL box (if it is not already there), enter your Endnote Online username and password, and check the box labeled “remember my username and password”.  Click “OK”.
• Mac: choose Tools, then Endnote, then Cite while You Write Preferences.  Choose the “Application” tab. Click the radio button for Endnote Online, put http://my.endnote.com in the URL box (if it is not already there), enter your Endnote Basic username and password, and check the box labeled “remember my username and password”.  Click “OK”.

Note: Cite While You Write does not work with Word Online in Office 365; Use a desktop version of Word.

Windows 10 users may encounter the  "class not registered" error when working with the Cite While You Write MS Word plugin. This is most likely to happen when the plugin is newly installed in Word.  The fix is as follows:

1. Open MS Word
2. Click on "EndNote" to open the CWYW toolbar. At this point the error message will occur - go ahead and close it.
3. Choose "Preferences" from the CWYW toolbar, then "Application".
4. Change the application to "EndNote Online" (this may be a radio button choice or a drop-down menu).

Your copy of Word should now be correctly mapped to your EndNote Basic account.  You may need to close Word and reopen it for the change to be active.

Individuals leaving the University will retain their Endnote Basic account, but will be limited to a short list of output formats. To continue to access the full list of formats, they may either export their EndNote library to the EndNote desktop product, backup the library for import into a new EndNote account at their future institution, or export their library into another citation management system, such as Zotero.