EndNote X9 essentials

4.1 Add attachments

EndNote allows you to add attachments such as PDFs and Word documents to references in your library. This is a useful way to store your research in one place.



  1. Download and save the PDF to your computer
  2. Highlight the reference in your Library
  3. Right mouse click on the reference or select the References menu
  4. Click on File Attachments then Attach File
  5. Navigate to the file on your computer and click Open
  6. Select another reference in your Library and a box will appear asking if you want to save the attachment
  7. Click Yes.

The attachment will then display in the PDF Viewer tab and a paper clip icon will appear next to the reference.

Activity: Download the PDF for the Cyber security report to your computer and attach to the reference created in activity 3.2

4.2 Highlight and annotate PDFs

The PDF toolbar allows you to highlight and make notes in your PDFs.

  1. To open the PDF in a new window, click the Open PDF icon
  2. Click the Highlight Text icon to highlight within the PDF
  3. To add notes click on the Sticky Note icon (the comments box can be resized).

Activity: Open the Cyber security PDF in your EndNote Library. Highlight the title of the report and add a sticky note

4.3 Find full text

The Find Full Text ** feature searches for the full text of selected references and, if a PDF is found, attaches it to the reference. Find Full Text only works for journal articles with a Digital Object Identifier (DOI), though some databases may restrict full text downloads, even when a DOI has been assigned. This functionality works best when using computers on a Curtin campus. If EndNote does not automatically attach the PDFs, you will need to manually add them.



  1. Highlight the required reference(s) in your library
  2. Click on the Find Full Text icon undefined in the toolbar or select the References menu and Find Full Text
  3. If a PDF is found it will automatically be attached to the reference along with the PDF URL and appear int the PDF Viewer tab.

If you are using this feature from an off-campus computer, you need to add the OpenURL path:

  1. Select the Edit menu in your EndNote library and choose Preferences
  2. Click on Find Full Text and enter: http://sfx.library.curtin.edu.au/sfx_local in the OpenURL Path box
  3. Insert =http://link.library.curtin.edu.au/openurl in the Authenticate with box
  4. Click OK.