Among the numerous packages on the market, Reference Manager is an excellent choice because of its well-designed, clear interface and exceptionally smooth operation. The package is user-friendly, fast (even with large databases), and simple to learn. Within minutes, an experienced computer user can start operating the software. Both the help utility and the manual are clear and self-explanatory.

The package provides many pre-designed journal formats. If one wants to resubmit a rejected manuscript to another journal, the burden of changing the style of the reference list is entirely eliminated, because the package quickly reformats the references to the new journal's specifications. The formatted bibliographic output can be generated as a file compatible with any of several popular word processing programs. In this way, attributes such as boldface, italics, superscripting, and underlining are preserved when the bibliography is attached to the manuscript.

The main and probably the only significant disadvantage of this package is its price, which is high for many end-users. A minor drawback is the license agreement, which allows the user to create only one database larger than 200 references alongside multiple small databases (the main database may contain as many as 65000 references). This means that several researchers (such as residents in a department) cannot maintain individual database files. The package owner may, however, install the single database on several computers (such as those at work and at home). Reference Manager is also available as a Macintosh package identical to the Windows version; this allows the user to move the database from one system to the other. Research Information Systems provides, besides standard technical support by telephone and fax, an Internet support option. The site at http://www.risinc.com gave valuable introductory information and the option of downloading a free demo of the package.