Adding References

There are three ways to add a reference to your library: auto-cite from an identifier, enter it by hand, or import a file. This page covers the first two. For files, see Import & Export.

Auto-cite from an identifier

Auto-cite fetches metadata (title, authors, journal, year, and more) from an identifier so you do not have to type it.

1. Go to References and add a new reference.
2. In the Auto-Cite panel, choose the identifier type and paste the value:
   • DOI - for example 10.1038/nphys1170
   • PubMed ID (PMID)
   • ISBN - for books
   • URL - a web page or article link (arXiv, bioRxiv, and medRxiv links are detected automatically)
3. Click to fetch. The plugin fills the reference fields from the source.
4. Review the result, adjust anything, and publish.

Auto-cite can also look up authors and works through ORCID, Crossref, OpenAlex, and Semantic Scholar.

If a lookup fails

• Not every work has a DOI. Older papers may only have a PubMed ID or ISBN.
• If no identifier returns a match, enter the reference by hand (below).
• Lookups depend on external services being reachable from your server. See Troubleshooting.

Enter a reference by hand

1. Go to References and add a new reference.
2. Choose the Type (Journal Article, Book, Book Chapter, and so on - see Reference Types).
3. Fill in the fields that apply to that type - title, authors, year, container title (journal or book), volume, issue, pages, publisher, DOI, ISBN, URL, and so on.
4. Optionally assign Reference Categories and Reference Tags.
5. Publish.

Editing and organizing

• Every reference is a standard WordPress post, so you can edit, trash, and restore it normally.
• Use categories and tags to group references (see Reference Library).
• Reference edits are versioned; you can compare and roll back revisions.