Skip to Main Content
PolyU Library

Reference Management Tools for Academic Writing

A Comprehensive Guide for EndNote, Mendeley and Zotero

Share References

Sharing references allow you to work effectively with your collaborators in a group project. You can share your EndNote library with your collaborators so that all parties can add, edit or remove references at the same time. You can also share references from a particular Group in your EndNote library.

The table below summarizes 4 ways to share your references in EndNote. If you don't need to update the references with your collaborators simultaneously, you may consider sharing your references with a traveling library or a compress library which are less complicated when comparing to share the entire library and a group of references.

 

 

 

4 ways that user A
can share references
with collaborator B



Share the Entire Library

Share a Group of References

Export a Traveling Library

Share a Compress
 Library

What will be shared?

- References

- Groups

- PDFs

References in a selected group
ONLY

References inserted
in a Word document ONLY

-References

-Groups

-With/without PDFs

Can collaborators edit references at the same time?

Yes, if "Read & Write" permission is selected.

Yes, if "Read & Write" permission is selected.

No

No

Do collaborators need to have EndNote online account?

Yes

Yes

No

No


Do check if you have the right to share full-text articles with other researchers, in particular for non-PolyU users. Remember, EndNote does not prevent you from sharing content, but this does not mean that you have the permission and the right to distribute the full-text of these articles.

How to Share References

To avoid loss of your references, we recommend that you backup your EndNote library using either one of the following options:

Save as a compress library is particularly helpful if you wish to send your EndNote library to another person. This is because this process will generate only one file which can be easily sent via cloud drive or attached in your email. 


  1. Click on File.

  1. Select Compress Library (.enlx)...

  1. Select With or Without File attachments, All References in the Library, Selected Reference(s), or References in Group/Group Set, then click on Next.


  1. An .enlx file is generated for backup purpose. You can also send the .enlx file to your collaborators for sharing purpose.


You can learn more about creating an archived copy of an EndNote library from the official video below (starting from 0:47 to 3:40):


Creative Commons License

Except where otherwise noted, the content of this guide is licensed under a CC BY-NC 4.0 License.