Using Papers: FAQ

Yes, Papers is available on iPad; we recommend accessing and using your Papers Library using your preferred web browser app (e.g. Safari, Chrome, Firefox).

No, as of April 11th, 2024, the browser extension is not compatible with iPad web browser apps. For now, the best way to add references to your Papers Library on iPad is by using a unique identifier such as a DOI.

Yes, SmartCite appears to work best when used through Microsoft 365 in the web app browser on iPad.

The most reliable method is to use your preferred web browser app (e.g. Safari, Chrome, Firefox) to log into your Papers account and add articles using a unique identifier such as a DOI or PMID.

• If you are able to open the PDF in your web browser app, you can also export the PDF to the Papers iPad app.

• To add a Book to your Papers Library, you will need to create a manual entry.
• In your Papers Library, click +Add and select Create Manual Entry...
• At the top of the pop-up panel, select the type of reference from the dropdown menu and select Book
• Fill in the appropriate fields with as much of the following information as you have:
  • Author, Title, Edition, Year, Publisher, Access Date
• Click Save to add the reference to your library.

• To add a Book Chapter to your Papers Library, you will most likely need to create a manual entry.
• In your Papers Library, click +Add and select Create Manual Entry...
• At the top of the pop-up panel, select the type of reference from the dropdown menu and select Book Section
• Fill in the appropriate fields with as much of the following information as you have:
  • Author, Title of Chapter, Title of Book, Edition, Year, Publisher, Access Date
• Click Save to add the reference to your library.

• To add an entry from UpToDate to your Papers Library, you will most likely need to create a manual entry.
• In your Papers Library, click +Add and select Create Manual Entry...
• At the top of the pop-up panel, select the type of reference from the dropdown menu and select Book Section
• Fill in the appropriate fields with as much of the following information as you have:
  • Author, Title of Entry, Editor, Year, Access Date, URL
• Click Save to add the reference to your library.
• Tip: The editor (T W Post), place published (UpToDate), and publisher (UpToDate) fields will always be the same.

• To add a website page to your Papers Library, you will most likely need to create a manual entry.
• In your Papers Library, click +Addand select Create Manual Entry...
• At the top of the pop-up panel, select the type of reference from the dropdown menu and select Web Page
• Fill in the appropriate fields with as much of the following information as you have:
  • Author, Title of Webpage, Name of Website/Publisher, Date Published, Date Updated, Access Date
• Click Save to add the reference to your library.

You can export a single citation for a reference in your desired format by selecting the reference in your library and exporting it to your desired format.

• Note for iPad Users: Use Papers in your web browser app (e.g. Safari, Chrome, Firefox) to use citation exporting features.

You can manually edit the metadata on a reference to adjust the automatic formatting by inserting a tilde ("~") after the organization name.

You can either manually proofread the citation after it has been generated, or you can manually edit the metadata on a reference to adjust the automatic formatting by following instructions provided by their support page.

You will most likely have to manually edit the generated citation in your document after Papers has exported it. Some situations are too nuanced for automatic citation generators and require some extra proofreading. Be sure to follow appropriate formatting rules for AMA, APA, or any other citation format accordingly to ensure proper formatting. Reach out to a librarian for help if you are unsure!

• Tip: The most common errors automatic citations make are usually with the capitalization of the article title and the journal abbreviation

We recommend using Microsoft 365 in your web browser of choice and signing in using your MWU login information.

The web version of Papers automatically attempts to merge duplicates as you import references to your library. However, in some cases, duplicate references may still occur and may require some manual removal.

As an alternative, you can install and use the desktop application version of Papers from the Papers Download Center page as it has some advanced settings to assist with merging duplicates when importing articles.

If you are seeing duplicated references in your exported reference list from Papers, you may have duplicate references in your Papers library. There is no automated tool to check for duplicates built into Papers, so you may have to locate and remove the duplicate manually. To do this, a method might be to sort your Papers library by author or title and finding the duplicate.