Configuring Term Separators (Delimiters)
EndNote uses the delimiters in the Define Lists dialog to determine what punctuation separates the individual terms in the same field in a reference.
For example, if you import data from a source that uses semicolons (;) to separate keywords:
Adult, Age Factors; Astigmatism; Follow-Up Studies; Hospitals, University; Keratotomy, Radial; Myopia; Refraction, Ocular
you would want to be sure that the semicolon was selected as a separator for your Keywords term list. You would also want to be sure that the comma was not chosen because the commas in this example are used within some of the terms.
By default, EndNote uses the semicolon (;), backslash (\), and end-of-line markers as separators. Words or phrases entered on different lines in a field (by pressing Enter) are always interpreted as separate terms, but the other separators can be changed depending on your needs.
Note: Line breaks are the only allowable separators for Author and Journal lists, so the delimiter options cannot be changed for lists linked to the following fields: Author, Secondary Author, Tertiary Author, Subsidiary Author, Translated Author, Journal/Secondary Title, and Alternate Title.
To customize the delimiters for a term list:
- Open a library.
- If you have more than one library open, select a library from the drop-down list at the top of the dialog.
- From the Library menu, select Define Term Lists. (Each library has its own set of term lists.)
- Click on the name of the term list that you intend to modify.
- Click the checkbox to the left of the desired separator to select it (or to unselect it if it is already checked). The last checkbox provides a place to enter a custom term delimiter, if necessary.
- Close the Term Lists dialog to save your changes.