Short answer
First decide what you need to do: find papers, choose which papers qualify, review the evidence, or write. CiteFlow starts after you have collected the PDFs. It helps one person read, compare, search, and cite those local files.
This guide covers CiteFlow. Check requirements and download options before you begin.
On this page
When to use this method
A CiteFlow project works well when one person needs to read, retrieve, compare and cite a defined set of PDFs. It does not provide shared live editing, formal screening, protocol reporting or database-wide discovery.
Before you start
Write one research question. Decide whether you are doing an informal review or a formal systematic review. Discovery finds papers. Screening chooses which papers qualify. Evidence review reads and compares the chosen papers. Writing turns checked evidence into your own work.
Check where CiteFlow fits
CiteFlow helps with local PDF reading, page-linked notes, retrieval and citation drafts. Define any discovery, screening or collaboration requirements separately; these are not provided by its local evidence workspace. Use the research-workspace guide to check the supported tasks and limits.
Plan each research stage
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Find the papers
Use academic databases and save the search words you used. You should end with a set of candidate papers.
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Choose which papers qualify
Record the inclusion criteria and the list of qualifying papers before evidence review. CiteFlow does not perform formal screening, duplicate removal or protocol reporting.
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Review the evidence
Use CiteFlow when one person needs local PDFs and page-linked notes. You should be able to reopen the page behind every important note. A local project does not provide a synchronized team library.
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Choose the citation style
Choose APA 7, MLA 9, Chicago 18 Author-Date, Chicago 18 Notes-Bibliography, or IEEE as required by your school or publisher. Treat every generated citation as a draft and compare it with the source details before submission.
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Check whether a lookup uses the internet
Reading, notes, exact search and installed OCR run locally. Source preparation can query a DOI or title online and retrieve matching publisher records; title translation can run automatically. Manual entry alone does not prevent these requests. Review Network & data before importing sensitive sources.
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Write from checked pages
Reopen the source page before using a note. You should see the words and context that support the claim. Check OCR, metadata, semantic matches, and citation drafts before writing.
Which research workflow fits?
Check which stages CiteFlow supports before starting the project.
Scroll the table horizontally on a narrow screen.
| Primary need | CiteFlow fit | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Read and compare collected PDFs | Open the local source set in CiteFlow | Check that every needed PDF opens correctly. |
| Keep evidence notes | Link notes to source pages | Reopen the original page and check the context. |
| Prepare citation drafts | Review supported citation styles | Check author, date, title and page details yourself. |
| Discover or formally screen papers | Outside CiteFlow's scope | Document these stages separately before local evidence review. |
| Edit a shared library live | Outside CiteFlow's scope | A local project does not provide automatic team synchronization. |
Workflow mismatches
- Using a local organizer as the literature discovery method
- Treating semantic similarity as evidence quality
- Trusting OCR or citation output without checking the source
- Sending a sensitive DOI or title to an online lookup without reviewing it
Checkpoint: Research workflow checks
- Discovery and screening requirements are documented.
- Every note can be reopened at its source.
- Critical claims and citations are verified against the original.