Hi. I've been using the database that I've built myself to keep track of the literature. However it started to show signs of unreliability, and to be honest it's not as useful as a proper reference managing software. My university is being extremely slow about getting me EndNote (been waiting since January). I've decided to go for the OpenSource option but I wanted to take your views first. Have you used JabRef or any other free software that you can recommend please? I want to transfer everything to the new software before I lose any more valuable time. Thanks in advance.

i use jabref. it does everything i need so no complaints here.

That's good to hear. Thank you for your reply.

oh yeah, it's big plus for me is that it is java based so it runs identically in windows and linux :)

Thank you for your replies. It seems to be compatible with Microsoft Word too, but is it my imagination? I've had a look at the help pages of LyX after you've mentioned it, but I couldn't find if it's compatible with Acrobat, can I produce PDF files from that program? Thank you again.

MrRoboto, it sounds great. And I know what you mean about being distracted by making the text look nice. Because my background is Art&Design, I always find myself correcting and laying out the page as I write. Which is silly in a way, time consuming and it drifts the mind away from the actual reason. I'll definetly try LyX/LaTex. Thanks for the advice.

Does anyone know if JabRef can be used to insert citations into MS Word? Do you need an add-on?