EndNote: How to Add Full-Text PDFs to Your EndNote Library

Manually attach a PDF to an existing reference

Purpose

This method is useful when you already have the PDF of a reference saved on your computer or USB, or for references that do not have a DOI This method is carried out for one reference at a time, not multiple reference simultaneously.

Instructions

1. In your EndNote Desktop library, select (click) the reference you would like to attach the PDF to, then:

• press the Attach File button within the Summary tab on the right panel, then select file and press the Open button.

OR

• File Attachments > Attach File > select file > press the Open button.

2. Click on any other reference to bring up a "Do you want to save the changes you made to the reference?" pop-up box. Click Yes.

3. Repeat steps 1-2 for each other reference you want to attach a PDF to.

PDF documents can be imported into EndNote. If the reference is already in your library the PDF will be attached to that reference, it not, then a new reference will be created and the PDF attached to it.

For any PDF files that contain a DOI (Digital Object Identifier) within the metadata of the file or on the first two pages of the document, the information is sent to CrossRef and PubMed who send back the bibliographic information, when it is found, and imports it into your EndNote library.  EndNote must have internet access during the import process. Any PDF's that do not have a DOI, the document will still be imported but an entry will need to be created from the information on the document (view the tab above for help on creating an entry). Note: Entries cannot be created from scanned copies of pdf documents.

1. Open your EndNote library
2. Go to File and select Import
3. Choose Folder
4. Click the Choose button and navigate to, and select the required folder. If you have selected a folder that contains subfolders check the 'Include files in sub-folders' box to include these files in the import. If you wish to create a group set in EndNote from these sub-folders tick the option to 'Create a group set for this import'.
5. Set the Import Option to PDF
6. The Duplicates dropdown menu gives you three options relating to the management of duplicates. Choose your preference from here.
7. Click Import.
8. The references are placed in a temporary group called 'Imported References'.         

Any EndNote entries that are created using this method should be checked for accuracy and and completeness. It may be necessary to edit entries where there are errors.

In most databases, you can directly export references into your EndNote Library.

Direct export option varies from database to database. Some allows only single record export while others allows select and export multiple records into your EndNote Library. 

To select and export multiple records:

• Conduct a search, and select the records you wish to export.
• Go to your Selected Items, they may be in a Marked Items section or a Temporary Folder.
• Select a Direct Export function, and choose EndNote Desktop or RIS format (EndNote).
• Follow the prompts on your browser to export the records into EndNote.
• The records will now appear in the Imported References folder of your Endnote Library. 
• It's a good idea to check your references for any errors and edit if necessary.

​Direct export is available from a number of databases including EBSCOhost, Informit, JSTOR, Ovid, ProQuest, ScienceDirect, Scopus, Web of Science, Sage journals, Google Scholar.

This feature allows you to convert a PDF file into EndNote™ with minimal typing and copying by extracting Digital Object Identifiers (DOI) from PDF file. The system matches DOI information with data available from CrossRef (www.CrossRef.org) by capturing bibliographic content and creating a new EndNote reference.

To import a PDF file:

1.     Open the library into which you want to import the reference.

2.     From the File menu, select Import > File to open the Import File dialog.

3.     Click the Choose button to locate and open the file you want to import from your hard drive.

4.     Select the needed PDF file, and then click Open.

5.     Select PDF from the Options list.

6.     Select an option from the Duplicates list:

Import All: Imports all, including duplicates.

Note: The reference is generated once the PDF is imported, and if we re-import the same PDF, it won't create a new reference; instead, the PDF will be linked to the existing reference, as shown in the screenshot:

Discard Duplicates: Imports all, except duplicates.

Import into Duplicates Library: Duplicate references are imported into a library called File-Dupl.enl, where ”File" is the name of the library into which you are importing (Only applicable when references are imported, not PDFs)

By default, a reference is considered a duplicate when the Author, Year, Title, and Reference Type match a reference already in the library.

7.     Select a Text Translation option. The default value is No Translation.

8.     Click Import to import the file to your library.

When the import is complete, the new record is stored in the Imported References group and will include bibliographic information given for the Digital Object Identifier (DOI) mined from the PDF file such as title, author, volume, issue, page, year, and DOI.

Note: Please be aware that the following instruction is based on using Chrome, and other browsers may display slightly differently.

1. Create a Google Account.

• In order to use the personalized features of Google Scholar, such as 'My library', you'll need to create a free Google account. 

2. Conduct a search in Google Scholar.

3. Save articles to 'My library'.

• To save an article, click the star icon below the search result

• To see your saved articles, click 'My library'

4. Export references to EndNote.

• In 'My library' select the references you would like to export to Endnote
• Click on the Export button and select 'EndNote'

• Click on the download file  'citations.enw' appears at the bottom of the screen.

5. Your references will now appear in the Imported References folder in your EndNote Library. It's a good idea to check the references for any mistakes and edit them if necessary.