Product Overview: Paperpile
Paperpile is a web-based reference manager designed to simplify the process of managing, citing, and sharing research papers and references. Here’s a detailed look at what the product does and its key features.
What Paperpile Does
Paperpile is an online tool that helps researchers and academics organize their research papers, references, and citations in a streamlined and accessible manner. It integrates seamlessly with the Google ecosystem, utilizing Google Drive for storage and Google Docs for collaboration.
Key Features and Functionality
Integration with Google Ecosystem
- Paperpile uses your Google account for authentication, ensuring secure access without storing your password. It connects to your Google Drive to store PDFs, but only accesses files uploaded via Paperpile.
Organization and Management
- Users can organize their papers using folders, labels, and stars. The platform allows real-time searching of the library and quick lookup of papers online.
- It automatically fixes references with incomplete data and cleans up duplicates, keeping the library organized and clean.
Importing and Exporting
- Papers can be imported directly from Google Scholar, PubMed, ArXiv, and thousands of supported publisher sites using the Paperpile browser extension. Users can also upload PDFs from their hard drive or drag and drop them into the Paperpile window.
Annotation and Highlighting
- Paperpile features a robust annotation tool that allows users to highlight important parts of papers in different colors and add comments. Highlights and notes can be synced into the document itself, and users can print beautiful summaries of their highlights and notes.
Citation Management
- The platform supports various citation styles and allows users to quickly copy and paste formatted citations. It also supports LaTeX/BibTeX formatting.
Collaboration
- Paperpile enables collaborative work by allowing users to share references via private sharing links, which can be accessed by anyone, not just Paperpile users. It also supports shared folders and integrates with Google Docs for collaborative writing.
Accessibility
- Paperpile is accessible on multiple platforms, including Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS, and works within web browsers. While it is best used with Google Chrome, it is also in beta for Safari and Firefox.
Storage
- Paperpile leverages Google Drive for storage, providing 15GB of free storage and eliminating the need for additional cloud storage subscriptions. This ensures that users have ample space for their PDF files.
Additional Features
- The platform includes a feature to look up similar journal articles, aiding in research, especially from science databases.
- Plugins are available for Microsoft Word, and a plug-in for MS Word is in development, although the service is currently heavily reliant on Google and Google Drive.
Pricing and Availability
- Paperpile offers a free 30-day trial. After the trial, it is available at $2.99/month for academic use and $9.99/month for business use. For users affiliated with certain institutions, such as the University of York, Paperpile may be available at no additional cost.
In summary, Paperpile is a powerful and user-friendly reference manager that integrates well with the Google ecosystem, providing robust features for organizing, annotating, and sharing research papers, making it an invaluable tool for researchers and academics.