Thursday, November 6, 2008

Write-n-Cite III "cite" links not working

Occasionally, Write-n-Cite III users will click a "cite" link and end up waiting fruitlessly, and seemingly forever, for the insertion of RefWorks code. Sometimes Word will stop responding to mouse and keyboard clicks.

If this happens, you will probably end up having to close Write-n-Cite and Word. There are several things you might want to try.

Before trying these it is important to determine whether you are using the correct version of Write-n-Cite. With Windows Vista or Word 2007, you must use Write-n-Cite III. With Macs you must use Write-n-Cite 2.5 or 2.0 (Write-n-Cite 2 is no longer available for download but if you downloaded it in the past, it will still work with versions of Word for Mac that PREDATE Word 2008. For Word 2008, you must install Write-n-Cite 2.5)

If you have installed the correct version of Write-n-Cite, here are the things you might need to try:
A. Sometimes restarting your computer will fix the problem. After restarting your computer, you can reopen your document, open Write-n-Cite, log-in, try inserting a citation. If Word freezes again, you may be able to use the task manager to close Word and Write-n-Cite. Try clicking the Ctl/Alt/Delete keys to reach the task manager. If you reach the task manager try ending the Word and Write-n-Cite tasks. If this doesn't work, you'll have to restart the computer.
B. Sometimes there's a problem with your Word document that can be easily fixed. After restarting the computer or ending Write-n-Cite and Word with the task manager, try opening a new (blank) Word document, open Write-n-Cite, click one of the "cite" links. Is code inserted promptly in the new document? If so, there may be a problem with your old document. You can usually solve this problem easily by creating a new copy of your document, To create a new copy of your document,1) use Word's "Edit" menu to select "Select all"; 2) use Word's "Edit" menu to select "Copy"; 3) open a new (blank) Word document; 4) use Word's "Edit" menu in the new (blank) document to select "Paste"; 5) the new document should now be an identical copy of your old document; 6) save the newly created copy of the old document with a new name; 7) open Write-n-Cite from within the newly created copy; 8) try clicking on a "cite" link. Hopefully the cite links will work in the new copy of your document.
C. If options A and B don't work, try reinstalling Write-n-Cite. Be sure you close Microsoft Word before you install Write-n-Cite. To reinstall Write-n-Cite, 1)use an internet browser to go to your RefWorks account (go to RefWorks not Write-n-Cite), 2) place your cursor over the RefWorks "Tools" menu and select "Write-n-Cite", 3) a pop-up window with download links will appear, 4) click on the appropriate download link, 5) if you are using Internet Explorer you will need to click "Run" a couple times -- Be sure you say "Yes" when asked whether you want to uninstall the old version of Write-n-Cite, 6) when the uninstall is complete proceed to the installation, 7) you will need to click "Next" several times and then "Finish", 8) Say "NO" when asked whether you want to start Write-n-Cite now. Now open a blank Word document, open Write-n-Cite and try inserting a citation. If this works open the document of interest and try inserting a citation in that document.
D. If these steps don't work, let us know (we may have heard of some additional things to try). Alternately, you may wish to contact Refworks tech support. To contact RefWorks Tech Support, open your RefWorks account, place your cursor over the "Help" menu and click on "Contact Us."