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Library DIY

Navigating UWG library resources and research

Tools to organize or create citations

For shorter research assignments you might simply use a Word document that includes all of your citations and notes. For longer assignments, a citation management program may be better. This page has information on:

  • tools for quickly creating citations
  • tools for managing citations for larger projects
  • Microsoft Word's citation features

Note: Citations generated through these tools can contain errors. Be sure the citation follows the citation style you are using. More on Style Guides 

The best way to write a correct citation is to be familiar with the style you are using, practice using it, and check the manual. If you are being graded on having correctly-formatted citations, you want to make sure you know how to write one regardless of the tool you are using.


Other citation management questions? Ask a librarian!

Tools to generate quick citations

Citation generators allow you to enter your source's bibliographic information (such as title and author for a journal article, web page, or book) in order to produce a citation in your selected format. 

Below is a selected list of quick citation generators:

Library databases: Many library databases, including GALILEO databases, have built-in citation generators. Click on a "Cite" button. Some databases have titles, journals, or author names in all capital letters and then reproduce this in the citation and you'll need to correct that. Always double-check the citations created by the databases to make sure they don't have capitalization errors.

BibME

  • Generate citations and bibliographic references for MLA, APA, Turabian, and Chicago styles.
  • Look up your reference by URL, title, or ISBN. 
  • Create a free account and save your references for future use.

Citation Machine

  • Create citations and bibliographic references for MLA, APA, Turabian, and Chicago styles.

EasyBib

  • Create citations and bibliographic references for MLA, APA, Turabian, and Chicago styles.
  • Look up sources by URL, title, and ISBN.

KniteCite

  • Create citations and bibliographic references for MLA, APA, Turabian, and Chicago styles.
  • Create citations for multiple source formats (e.g. multimedia, radio program, film).

Tools to manage all of my citations

Citation management software programs allow you to: 

  • download citations from many websites and databases
  • electronically store and organize the citations and insert them into your paper
  • cite sources while writing

The library provides support and instructions for using the following citation management tools:

Note: Many library databases also allow you to gather sources in a folder that is accessible while searching in that database. EBSCO databases, for example, have this function. However, keep in mind that you will probably still need a way to organize your sources when no longer accessing the given database.

Microsoft Word citation features

In Microsoft Word you can also set your default document layout to different citation styles. Below are videos on how to choose your preferred style layout.

APA Style

Turabian/Chicago Style

MLA Style