Tuesday, 10 August 2010

Referencing

I watched the video of Zeroto with great interest.  It made compiling bibliographies look so easy.  No more cards, usually written in a hurry and therefore difficult to deciper, and always with something missing from at least a quarter of them.  No more boxes to loose or drop.  Both the Medical Library and the UL tool box documentation gave good instructions on how to use this tool.  References can be collected as you consult each document and stored away correctly, no missing bits, ready for retrieval when required.  And all by simply clicking the mouse.  In addition, a few more clicks and the bibliography is formatted to the style of your choice.  No more pages covered in tipex and having to be re-typed before submission.  The potential time saving is enormous.  It all seems too good to be true.  I did not compile a bibliography and so I do wonder if it has limits and what they are. Is it as friendly as it appears?  I have not used Endnote or Mendeley and so cannot comment.  I suspect what tool you use depends on what you are use to and like and whether it does what you want it to.
This is a tool we can promote in our libraries, together with Endnote and Mendeley, giving users the choice.  Users can then select what tool they use, if not limited by their Faculty or Department which might have a preference.  It can also be used by librarians when compiling reports, writing articles and demonstrating to users.  One of ithe really good things about it is that it can help to combat plagiarism.  If users form the habit of downloading their references at the time of making their notes, it will be easier for them to acknowledge where they obtained their information and thus avoid plagiarizing. 
I will be investigating further with a view to promoting these referencing tools to our readers.

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