My preferred reference management software is Zotero. I switched from RefWorks Proquest to Mendeley several years ago (it is 2020 now), and liked the switch for a while. However, time-and-time again, I found that the only solution to a particular problem was "switch to Zotero." This happened frequently enough and for things that were important enough (e.g. collaborative literature reviews on OverLeaf), that I tried Zotero out. The final nail in the coffin of Mendeley for me was that they had encrypted their databases pretty much immediately after Zotero announced a Mendeley to Zotero importer interface despite touting the unencrypted nature of their databases beforehand. I'm aware of EndNote and have used it just a bit. I don't know if it can do the same things that make we want to stick with Zotero.
Read the intro to Zotero
Zotero groups are a great way to collaborate with other people on your team.
If you're OK with using google chrome as a browser, EndNote Click (formerly Kopernio) (invite link) is a great extension for downloading the PDF. It links to your BYU access (also works with UoU access and many other organizations). You can drag and drop the downloaded file into Zotero. If the reference entry is already there, you can add the PDF by dragging it into the existing reference.
I would also recommend using Web of Science and Science Direct (both of these are BYU library links and require logging into your BYU account, otherwise use your organization-specific links or the the general WoS and SC links) as ways to conduct keyword searches and look forward and backward at papers. In other words, if you're looking at a specific paper, you can look at papers that cite it and papers that it references (kind of like moving up or down in a genealogical tree). I've found using both databases gives a pretty comprehensive picture - one tends to make up for where the other is lacking. In my experience, finding the right search keywords and key papers that you can forward- and back-track is the name of the game for literature searches.
When you find/add references, make sure to add the PDF as well so that searches in Mendeley search through the whole text of the paper instead of just the title and abstract. It's also really useful for highlighting and making annotations.
This is a non-trivial task. Think carefully about the folder names and directory structure. This should be dynamically updated. Ask yourself: does the paper I'm about to add fit into an existing folder with a sufficient amount of detail, or is it different enough to create a new folder? Taking the time to think about directory structures in addition to following other suggestions in this document will save a lot of time and headaches during the writing process.
Submit an interlibrary loan request. If you do this through the "BYU get access" button, it automatically fills in the details of the document for you.
Cite while you write plugins. See Overleaf document
It's complicated for new versions of Mendeley, but it's only complicated because Mendeley encrypted their databases in response to the Mendeley importer Zotero announced and introduced. This raised a red flag (with respect to Mendeley) for me. See the following resources:
- mendeley_import (zotero.org)
- migrating-from-mendeley-to-zotero (forums.zotero.org)
- Adios_Mendeley GitHub repo
- How do I create or restore a backup of my Mendeley database? (referred to in the migration steps I believe)
Taken from @BYU-Materials-Innovation/training/ (private repo)