Citation managers are tools to help you collect, organize, cite, and share your research sources.
They allow you to:
Choosing a citation manager is a matter of personal choice. Research can easily be imported from one citation manager to the next, so you can easily switch if you find one you like better. There are free and paid citation managers, and for general research, a free platform will provide all the tools you need.
Desktop App
System Requirements: MacOS 10.11 or later, Windows 7 or later, Linux
Zotero Connector: Chrome, Firefox, Safari
Cost: Free for up to 300mb of storage, paid package for more storage
Plugins: Word (Mac & PC), LibreOffice
Annotates PDF’s: No
Collaboration: Create groups to share sources
Compatible Apps:
Desktop & Web-based
System Requirements: MacOS 10.10 or later, Windows 7 or later, Linux
Web Importer: Chrome, Firefox
Cost: Free for up to 2GB of storage, paid package for more storage
Plugins: Word (Mac & PC), LibreOffice
Annotates PDF’s: Yes
Collaboration: Create up to 5 groups with 25 members each
Compatible Apps:
Web-based
Cost: Free for up to 2GB of storage
Plugins: Word (Mac & PC)
Annotates PDF’s: No
Collaboration: Share folders
Compatible Apps:
Adobe Reader is a free application that allows users to view, print, sign, and annotate PDF's. This simple, but powerful, tool is great for highlighting text.
There are lot of great organizational apps on the market. Many are free, or provide free trials. Some are text based, while others organize information into visual graphics. Below are just a few to get you started.