Skip to Main Content
XClose

Library Services

Home

UCL LIBRARY SERVICES

Mendeley

Guide to using Mendeley reference management and social citation sharing software

Can I identify and remove duplicates in my library?

Mendeley Reference Manager automatically de-duplicates references when they are imported, so it will not create a new reference for any imported references that are already in your library. It is not always able to detect where you have a duplicate reference, however, so it is good practice to check new references against your existing library as you add them, and to delete any duplicate references.

Can I duplicate a record in my library?

No, it is not possible to duplicate a record in your library. You might have a need for this if, for example, you want to have separate records for different sections or chapters of the same book. If you import the same record twice, the automatic merging of duplicates feature in Mendeley automatically merges the new record with the existing record. It is not possible to turn of the automatic merging of duplicates.

Where you require individual records for multiple sections of chapters of a book, for example, we recommend entering the records manually. It is possible to import individual records for a target book chapter using the Web Importer, but a record imported in this way is likely to require considerable amendment to ensure it is accurate, and there is therefore often little to gain over entering the record manually.

Does UCL have an institutional subscription to Mendeley?

UCL does not have an institutional subscription to Mendeley. However, Mendeley Reference Manager is installed on all Desktop@UCL computers.

Are there storage limits with a free Mendeley account?

With a free Mendeley account you will receive 2GB of personal storage space. You can sign up for a Premium plan to purchase more space. 

How do I add letters with accents?

When manually editing your reference details you can add special characters using the Character Map tool available within Windows on your computer. Search for Character Map using the Windows search box in the bottom left of your screen, and copy and paste the required characters into Mendeley.

If you have the DOI of the reference you could try using the DOI lookup tool to check whether another version of the article includes special characters. See Checking reference details.

I am having trouble with the Mendeley Web Importer. Is there anything I can do?

The Mendeley Web importer does not work equally well for all websites. If it is not working satisfactorily you could:

  • Try using the web importer using a different view of the article. For instance, if you are looking at a page of search results, try clicking into the detail page for a particular article and try using the Web importer for that.
  • Try an alternative method of adding the document details to Mendeley. This usually involves exporting a file and opening it in Mendeley or importing it to Mendeley Web. See Exporting from online resources.
  • Try uninstalling and re-installing the web importer.

I am importing references into Mendeley and they are incomplete. Can I update them?

How can I share my Mendeley Library with a colleague?

You can create a Group to share references with other people using Mendeley. For more information about the different types of Groups, please see Sharing References - Mendeley Groups.