EssayReview ForumI currently have PDFs in Downloads, browser bookmarks, links in a notes app, and citations in a document called “sources final 2”. It is getting bad.
What is the simplest system that still works for a research paper with maybe 30 to 40 sources?
How do you organise sources without losing everything?
One reference library for citations and PDFs, plus one reading table. My table has four columns: source, useful claim, page number, and where I might use it.
Do not build a complicated tag system before you know what your argument is. Broad topic tags are enough.
rename the pdf when you download it. author-year-short-title. sounds boring because it is boring, but you will thank yourself when “download (47).pdf” disappears.
Add a backup that does not depend on one device. I sync the library, but I also export a copy of the references and notes at major milestones.
And open a few saved PDFs while offline. A link is not the same as having the paper.
Priya S. wrote:
Do not build a complicated tag system before you know what your argument is.
I needed to hear this. I was about to spend an afternoon designing folders instead of reading. I’ll use one library, a basic reading table, and simple topic tags.
Also save the exact search terms that found good sources. When you need five more papers two weeks later, that little note is more useful than trying to recreate your whole search from memory.