Re: Program for organizing pdf reprints (p 2)

(cont from p 1)

WorkLife framework-

Mathematica specific, it isn't really a PDF database specifically but much more in that it is an interesting diary / note system. You -can- use it as a sort of database for your PDFs if you use Mathematica . I've been using a version of MMa that WorkLife isn't quite compatible with yet, but played around this summer using 5.2 and saw some excellent potential there if you're a MMa fiend. I'm sure once the versions get synched up I'll be using it again, as I am a MMa fiend.

Pros- integration into a comprehensive tech computing environment. Cons- same :)

BibDesk -

I've used BibDesk for quite a while to keep my BibTeX in ship shape. The features keep getting better, seems to remain solid.

When I migrate older papers in I wish that there was better 'grab the information from PubMed' feature like Papers, and a nifty 'find similar papers' like Think. Still, easy enough to work with, you'll be busy if you have a bunch of papers to add... The scripting feature is also useful - clean up capitalizations, massage citations. Lately I've been making the shift from the Think-world because the citation information combined with Spotlight has proven to be more useful than the 'see also' functionality, overall.

Pros- free and well supported despite this :), features continue to expand, designed for BibTeX (again, useful in my world). Cons- not the prettiest cow at the state fair, but the pros make up for that. Did I mention it's free?

EndNote -

Well, I used it in the mid 90s, back when FrameMaker existed for the Mac <snif>. Haven't seen it since....

Summary-

Basically I'd like to mate the innards of BibDesk and DEVONthink and put them in a prettier package like Yep or Papers. Depending on your needs each has something to offer, I'd suggest playing with each to see how it fits into your workflow.

flip phillips

http://www.skidmore.edu/~flip

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