The main systems.
WHAT STYLES DIFFER IN
How citations appear in the text How references are formatted The order of elements Punctuation
WHAT THE BROAD APPROACHES ARE
Author and date in the text, with an alphabetical list Numbered citations, with a numbered list Notes at the foot of the page or the end
WHAT DETERMINES WHICH
Your discipline and your institution.
WHAT TO DO
Ask, and use the specified style exactly.
WHAT TO NEVER DO
Mix styles Approximate a style from memory
WHY
Inconsistency is immediately visible and loses marks.
WHAT TO OBTAIN
The official guide for the style, and follow it.
WHAT TO PAY ATTENTION TO
Punctuation and order, which differ subtly How to handle several authors How to handle sources with no author or date How to cite online material
WHAT TO USE
A reference manager, which formats automatically.
WHAT TO STILL DO
Check the output.
WHY
Reference managers produce errors from incomplete records.
