Question 1

EndNote vs Zotero — which is better?

Accepted Answer

Both have strengths: EndNote has more comprehensive journal format support (30,000+ styles), more common in STEM and medicine; Zotero is free and open-source with better Chinese literature support and rich plugin ecosystem. For Chinese academic theses, Zotero may be more convenient; for English SCI journal submissions, EndNote is more recommended.

Question 2

Chinese character encoding garbled when importing from CNKI — how to fix?

Accepted Answer

When exporting from CNKI, select "GB/T 7714-2015" format (not UTF-8). When importing in EndNote, select "EndNote Import" and confirm encoding is "Default". If still garbled, try exporting in .ris format — EndNote handles Chinese better in .ris.

Question 3

How to merge multiple citations into one in EndNote?

Accepted Answer

After inserting multiple citations in Word (with spaces between each), select all citation markers (not the parentheses), click "Convert to Bibliography" in the EndNote plugin. Note: once merged, you cannot delete individual references — unmerge first.

Question 4

Can EndNote automatically detect duplicate references?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Library > Find Duplicates scans and marks completely duplicate entries. However, EndNote will not automatically merge "different versions of the same paper" — preprints and published versions of the same article are treated as different entries and require manual judgment.

Question 5

How to recover from EndNote library corruption?

Accepted Answer

EndNote auto-backs up .enl files as .enlx format in the same folder. On corruption, use File > Open Library to open the corresponding .enlx backup file. If backup is also corrupted, try third-party repair tools or reimport from databases.

EndNote Complete Tutorial | From Installation to Mastery for Academic Citation Management

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