Plea for multiple user support

EndNote EndNote Product Suggestions
1

I’d like to see more attention to multiple users of the same libraries, styles, filters, etc. I work in a company with 40+ EndNote users, all of whom use the same styles, filters, and connections. Libraries are shared across many users. It is very difficult at present to maintain these files properly. If everyone stores their files locally, then all updates have to be pushed out or each user has to perform the update (which they won’t do). But if everyone’s program works off one set of files on the network server, EndNote runs very slowly. Neither of these is a great option, and now that there’s no way to choose a save location, you can’t tell where you’re saving anything. (That last part is absolutely my LEAST favorite feature of the newer versions.)

In addition, why can’t we get simultaneous access to a library? RefMan has it. Without it, users have to merge local copies and the record numbering changes. Then they have to reinsert references every time they reformat. Even simultanoues read-only access would be a huge improvement.

2

With regard to the first plea.   We found these instructions to be very helpful.  Note that the network folder location command should NOT have quotes around it.  At least that didn’t work in our installation - we had to remove them:  ENX4Inst.exe CFDIR=< path_to_content_folders>

With regard to plea two , I would love it if at least it worked similar to Word.  If someone else has it open, it offers to let you open the existing library in a read only mode and tells you who has it open already.  The structure of Endnote vs Ref Man is so totally different, I doubt there will ever make it possible to have multiple users editing it at the same time.  There are users at our institute that  prefer  Ref Man for just this functionality though. 

 

Changing the Default Content File Location (from EndnoteX4 help)

Content files include output styles, filters, and connections files. These are typically installed in the EndNote program folder. For example:

C:\Program Files\EndNote X4\Styles
C:\Program Files\EndNote X4\Filters
C:\Program Files\EndNote X4\Connections

However, you may want to install the default content files in a folder other than the EndNote program folder. You may want to use a common, shared folder for all users in your organization.

Note: Remember that EndNote compiles style, filter, and connection file lists from both the default installation folder and a user’s personal content folders. For information about setting a personal folder location, see Folder Locations Preferences.

Below are two methods that an administrator could use to run the installer and tell EndNote to relocate the “main” content file locations. The < path_to_content_folders> should be set to the parent path of the content folders.  For instance, if the Styles, Filters, and Connections folders are located at D:\ Shared\Content, that path should be used for CFDIR.

Method 1:  Specify a custom folder path via command line

This method will work for most users, who install EndNote by launching the installer. To install EndNote with a custom content file folder setting:

For EXE installations:   

ENX4Inst.exe CFDIR=”< path_to_content_folders>”

For MSI installations:   

msiexec.exe /I ENX4Inst.msi CFDIR=”< path_to_content_folders>”

Method 2: Specify a custom folder path via transform  

This method is for site system administrators, who want the end user to install or deploy the application without the user changing settings.  

Update the value of the “ CFDIR” property in the Property table, save the transform, and create the group policy object to deploy the installer with the transform. (See the transform documentation for the tool you are using, such as Orca.)

3

By the way, I find that EndnoteX4 is also much more forgiving with respect to matching a reference even if it originally came from a different library with a different record number, but it has been merged into the “master” library.  I am not sure how that works, but it was a pleseant surprise!

4

Regarding multi-user access, have you given EndNote Web’s group sharing a try? It would be helpful to know if that helps alot, somewhat, or not at all.

  • Mathilda, the EndNote team