Writing is hard.  It is also time consuming.  Yet, I constantly see students and faculty that do not take advantage of a simple tool to make writing easier.  Bibliographic software has tremendous advantages that can make the writing process easier and move more quickly.

References are important for identifying the source of ideas and letting readers know where they can look for additional information.  However, the amount of time spent on references and citation styles far outweighs their value.  

I cringe when I hear from students that receive more feedback on the quality of their citation method than the quality of their ideas.  References and citation styles are simple a tool.  An important one, but not more so than the quality of ideas and prose.

As with any tool, can we find one that works better, easier, or more efficiently than the one we’re using?

Fortunately, bibliographic software provides all of these advantages.

For more than a decade now, I’ve been using the software program Endnote to manage all of my references.

Specifically, there are four advantages of using Endnote or most any bibliographic software package.

1.  Manage a large number of references.

I have nearly 1,200 references in the program at the moment and I can’t imagine using any other system to manage my references and bibliographies.  The search function makes finding a specific reference a breeze.  The program allows me to easily manipulate them or share references with my research assistant.

2. Insert references into a Word document.

This is one of my favorite functions.  Endnote allows you to insert a reference into the text of a Word document.  From there, the program creates an in-text reference and can automatically format your bibliography.  During subsequent revisions, if you delete a section, the program is smart enough to know whether a reference should be eliminated from the bibliography.  No more hunting through a paper for a reference or cross-checking a bibliography to make sure everything is included.  This function alone is worth the price of the software!

3.  Create multiple citation styles.

When using bibliographic software, changing between different citation styles is literally as easy as a push of a button.  You can instantly switch from MLA to Chicago to APA.  Most journals I publish in use APA and I probably could do a paper in APA by hand.  But when I run into a journal that wants a different style, I would be lost without the software to help me.

4.  Save time!

Ultimately, the single biggest reason to use bibliographic software is that it saves an unbelievable amount of time.  There is still a time investment to add the reference information and to insert it into Word.  However, this time is trivial when considering how much time it takes to do the entire process by hand.

Bibliographic software is a must-have tool for any graduate student or faculty member.  You need to start using it right now.  The software can free you up from the mundane work of references and bibliographies so you can focus on what matters— your ideas!