Getting multiple authors in list view?

[T]

I have several articles with the same first author and the same year, but different second (third, etc.) authors. Is it possible to have the List window show "Smith and Barnes" or "Smith & Barnes" or "Smith et al" or something like that?

Thanks,
t

[Jon]

No, that's not an option. You can use View Formatted, however, to display any information about a selected reference (Ref with Abstract is a format we provide for this), so you can move down the list (using the down arrow, if you like) and quickly see which reference is the one you want.

Jon
Sonny Software

[Jonathan Adrain]

I've often wondered why so few reference managers offer this option, because it would make a huge, huge difference to the ease with which large databases could be browsed and understood. The only program I ever recall seeing this in (though I'm sure there are probably others) is ProCite, one of the competing programs bought out by Thomson in the 1990s. Back when EndNote was a good product supported by a decent company, this was the feature I most hoped to see with each upgrade (before realizing that each upgrade really served only to charge you $100 to maintain compatibility with Word).

Jon - if it's ever possible to add this feature in a major Bookends upgrade down the road, you'd get my money for it.

Jonathan

[Jon]

Jonathan, it would be easy to add it.

There are several possibilities:

1. First author, with initials/first name (like now)
2. All authors, with initals/first name
3. Two authors: Smith, AB & Jones, RL
Three or more authors: Smith, AB et al.

Or all three could be options.

What do people want?

Jon
Sonny Software

[Jonathan Adrain]

There are several possibilities:

1. First author, with initials/first name (like now)
2. All authors, with initals/first name
3. Two authors: Smith, AB & Jones, RL
Three or more authors: Smith, AB et al.

Hi Jon-

This would be great. My personal preference would be to have all authors - users could control how much they want to see by altering the width of the Authors field in list view. So many papers are multiauthored these days that a certain amount of information would still get lost in "et al." But if it's possible to have all three ways available, maybe set in the Preferences for List, that would seem to be the way to go, as noone will have cause to be irritated by the change (though it's so useful to be able to see multiple authors that I think most users would prefer it). Regardless of how it's implemented, this would be a hugely useful addition.

Jonathan

[nicka]

Just to say that I would also like this very much and that showing all authors (option 2) would be my preference too.

I look forward to seeing this feature when Jon has time to do it!

[Jon]

Hi nicka,

It's penciled in for 8.0.5 (along with allowing dashes for repeated names in bibliographies).

Jon
Sonny Software

[T]

Another feature is sort of along these lines: Since you'll have a string that details the author list (Smith and Barnes OR Smith et al), it might be nice to be able to have this string be the default string for attachments. For the first one, the file name might be:

"Smith-Barnes_2004_First-3-words.pdf"
OR
"Smith-et-al_2003_First-3-words.pdf"

where the "first three words" come from the title. This would 1) prevent collisions and 2) provide for more useful filenames.

Since you're working on the multiple author problem, this is another issue I've run into.

Thanks,
t

[Jon]

Well, Bookends takes care of collisions automatically by appending a random number, so I don't think that's a problem. I think making the name reflect the number of authors is not a bad idea, but I'm not keen on the title thing -- and frankly I'm not sure I see its utility.

Jon
Sonny Software

[T]

The main reason for the title is if you're searching the filesystem or sending the file off to a colleague. Sometimes you know the author year, sometimes you can recognize the subject matter from the title. You're right that the multiple authors with year is the most important, but if you're poking around with that section of code, I thought I would suggest thinking about the overall naming convention too.

Anyone else have a preference of file naming conventions?

T

[Jon]

But Bookends keeps that info, and of course much more, for you. Looking through hundreds (or more) attachments in the Finder is really inefficient.

The scenario I suggest is this:

1. Search Bookends for the ref you want to send.
2. Right-click (or Control-click) on the attachment's name in the Keywords field -> contextual menu that offers to show you the file in the Finder.
3. Now you have the file highlighted in the Finder -> drag and drop it in your email to send.

Jon
Sonny Software

[T]

That sounds reasonable, but the multiple author names would still be nice, since you'll have the algorithm worked out.

Thanks,
T

[Jon]

I agree. I'll add it in 8.0.5.

Jon
Sonny Software

[Jon]

I've added this feature to the 8.0.5 alpha. I'd like feedback from interested individuals on the implementation, though. I do not want to offer dozens of variations, just some basics that should do for the large majority of needs. These are (in Preferences)

Display names: First only, Multiple, All.

Here is how it would work:

First only ->
Smith, JR

Multiple ->
Smith, JR
OR
Smith, JR & Jones, MOR
OR
Smith, JR et al.

All ->

Smith, JR; Jones, MOR; Thurn, AL; Simon, BB; Williams, R

Your comments are welcome...

Jon
Sonny Software

[Guest]

I've added this feature to the 8.0.5 alpha. I'd like feedback from interested individuals on the implementation, though. I do not want to offer dozens of variations, just some basics that should do for the large majority of needs. These are (in Preferences)

Display names: First only, Multiple, All.

Here is how it would work:

First only ->
Smith, JR

Multiple ->
Smith, JR
OR
Smith, JR & Jones, MOR
OR
Smith, JR et al.

All ->

Smith, JR; Jones, MOR; Thurn, AL; Simon, BB; Williams, R

Your comments are welcome...

Jon
Sonny Software

Hi Jon - This would be great. The only small tweak that would make it more conventional to look at and understand (and you or others may disagree about its utility) is for the All -> option - Would it be possible instead of separating authors with semicolons to use commas, with an ampersand before the last? That is, basically the format for Multiple, but for more than two authors instead of, e.g., "Smith, JR; Jones, MOR; Thurn, AL" you'd get "Smith, JR, Jones, MOR & Thurn, AL". This would render the authors in conventional citation style which to me at least is easier to grasp at a glance. It's not a big deal (ProCite used the semicolons, but for some reason I find them more difficult to glance at and process than conventional citations). Perhaps others would prefer the semicolons.

Regardless, thanks a lot for implementing this feature.

Jonathan