Graphical Java application for managing bibtex (.bib) databases

JabRef for Mac

JabRef 5.1

  -  167 MB  -  Open Source

Sometimes latest versions of the software can cause issues when installed on older devices or devices running an older version of the operating system.

Software makers usually fix these issues but it can take them some time. What you can do in the meantime is to download and install an older version of JabRef 5.1.


For those interested in downloading the most recent release of JabRef for Mac or reading our review, simply click here.


All old versions distributed on our website are completely virus-free and available for download at no cost.


We would love to hear from you

If you have any questions or ideas that you want to share with us - head over to our Contact page and let us know. We value your feedback!

  • JabRef 5.1 Screenshots

    The images below have been resized. Click on them to view the screenshots in full size.

    JabRef 5.1 Screenshot 1

What's new in this version:

Added:
- We added a new fetcher to enable users to search mEDRA DOIs
- We added a new fetcher to enable users to search "Collection of Computer Science Bibliographies".
- We added default values for delimiters in Add Subgroup window
- We improved responsiveness of general fields specification dialog window.
- We added support for importing ris file and load DOI
- We added the Library properties to a context menu on the library tabs
- We added a new field in the preferences in 'BibTeX key generator' for unwanted characters that can be user-specified.
- We added support for searching ShortScience for an entry through the user's browser.
- We updated EditionChecker to permit edition to start with a number.
- We added tooltips for most fields in the entry editor containing a short description.
- We added support for basic markdown in custom formatted previews
- We now show the number of items found and selected to import in the online search dialog.
- We created a new install screen for macOS.
- We added a new integrity check for duplicate DOIs. kopp
- We implemented an option to download fulltext files while importing.
- We added a progress-indicator showing the average progress of background tasks to the toolbar. Clicking it reveals a pop-over with a list of running background tasks
- We fixed the bug when strike the delete key in the text field.
- We added a BibTex key modifier for truncating strings.
- We added support for jumping to target entry when typing letter/digit after sorting a column in maintable
- We added a new fetcher to enable users to search all available E-Libraries simultaneously
- We added the field "entrytype" to the export sort criteria
- We added the possibility to change the display order of the fields in the entry editor. The order can now be configured using drag and drop in the "Customize entry types" dialog
- We added native support for biblatex-software
- We added a missing restart warning for AutoComplete in the preferences dialog.
- We added a note to the citation key pattern preferences dialog as a temporary workaround for a JavaFX bug, about committing changes in a table cell, if the focus is lost.

Changed:
- We improved the arXiv fetcher. Now it should find entries even more reliably and does no longer include the version (e.g v1) in the eprint field. forum#1941
- We moved the group search bar and the button "New group" from bottom to top position to make it more prominent. #6112
- When JabRef finds a .sav file without changes, there is no dialog asking for acceptance of changes anymore.
- We changed the buttons for import/export/show all/reset of preferences to smaller icon buttons in the preferences dialog. #6130
- We moved the functionality "Manage field names & content" from the "Library" menu to the "Edit" menu, because it affects the selected entries and not the whole library
- We merged the functionality "Append contents from a BibTeX library into the currently viewed library" into the "Import into database" functionality. Fixes #6049.
- We changed the directory where fulltext downloads are stored to the directory set in the import-tab in preferences. #6381
- We improved the error message for invalid jstyles. #6303
- We changed the section name of 'Advanced' to 'Network' in the preferences and removed some obsolete options.#6489
- We improved the context menu of the column "Linked identifiers" of the main table, by truncating their texts, if they are too long. #6499
- We merged the main table tabs in the preferences dialog. #6518
- We changed the command line option 'generateBibtexKeys' to the more generic term 'generateCitationKeys' while the short option remains 'g'.#6545
- We improved the "Possible duplicate entries" window to remember its size and position throughout a session. #6582
- We divided the toolbar into small parts, so if the application window is to small, only a part of the toolbar is moved into the chevron popup. #6682
- We changed the layout for of the buttons in the Open Office side panel to ensure that the button text is always visible, specially when resizing. #6639
- We merged the two new library commands in the file menu to one which always creates a new library in the default library mode. #6359

Fixed:
- We fixed an issue where entry preview tab has no name in drop down list. #6591
- We fixed to only search file links in the BIB file location directory when preferences has corresponding checkbox checked. #5891
- We fixed wrong button order (Apply and Cancel) in ManageProtectedTermsDialog.
- We fixed an issue with incompatible characters at BibTeX key #6257
- We fixed an issue where dash (-) was reported as illegal BibTeX key #6295
- We greatly improved the performance of the overall application and many operations. #5071
- We fixed an issue where sort by priority was broken. #6222
- We fixed an issue where opening a library from the recent libraries menu was not possible. #5939
- We fixed an issue with inconsistent capitalization of file extensions when downloading files. #6115
- We fixed the display of language and encoding in the preferences dialog. #6130
- Now the link and/or the link description in the column "linked files" of the main table gets truncated or wrapped, if too long, otherwise display issues arise. #6178
- We fixed the issue that groups panel does not keep size when resizing window. #6180
- We fixed an error that sometimes occurred when using the context menu. #6085
- We fixed an issue where search full-text documents downloaded files with same name, overwriting existing files. #6174
- We fixed an issue when importing into current library an erroneous message "import cancelled" is displayed even though import is successful. #6266
- We fixed an issue where custom jstyles for Open/LibreOffice where not saved correctly. #6170
- We fixed an issue where the INSPIRE fetcher was no longer working #6229
- We fixed an issue where custom exports with an uppercase file extension could not be selected for "Copy...-> Export to Clipboard" #6285
- We fixed the display of icon both in the main table and linked file editor. #6169
- We fixed an issue where the windows installer did not create an entry in the start menu bug report in the forum
- We fixed an issue where only the field abstract and comment were declared as multiline fields. Other fields can now be configured in the preferences using "Do not wrap the following fields when saving" 4373
- We fixed an issue where JabRef switched to discrete graphics under macOS #5935
- We fixed an issue where the Preferences entry preview will be unexpected modified leads to Value too long exception #6198
- We fixed an issue where custom jstyles for Open/LibreOffice would only be valid if a layout line for the entry type default was at the end of the layout section #6303
- We fixed an issue where a new entry is not shown in the library if a search is active #6297
- We fixed an issue where long directory names created from patterns could create an exception. #3915
- We fixed an issue where sort on numeric cases was broken. #6349
- We fixed an issue where year and month fields were not cleared when converting to biblatex #6224
- We fixed an issue where an "Not on FX thread" exception occured when saving on linux #6453
- We fixed an issue where the library sort order was lost. #6091
- We fixed an issue where brackets in regular expressions were not working. 6469
- We fixed an issue where multiple background task popups stacked over each other.. #6472
- We fixed an issue where LaTeX citations for specific commands (autocites) of biblatex-mla were not recognized. #6476
- We fixed an issue where drag and drop was not working on empty database. #6487
- We fixed an issue where the name fields were not updated after the preferences changed. #6515
- We fixed an issue where "null" appeared in generated BibTeX keys. #6459
- We fixed an issue where the authors' names were incorrectly displayed in the authors' column when they were bracketed. #6465 #6459
- We fixed an issue where importing certain unlinked files would result in an exception #5815
- We fixed an issue where downloaded files would be moved to a directory named after the citationkey when no file directory pattern is specified #6589
- We fixed an issue with the creation of a group of cited entries which incorrectly showed the message that the library had been modified externally whenever saving the library. #6420
- We fixed an issue with the creation of a group of cited entries. Now the file path to an aux file gets validated. #6585
- We fixed an issue on Linux systems where the application would crash upon inotify failure. Now, the user is prompted with a warning, and given the choice to continue the session. #6073
- We moved the search modifier buttons into the search bar, as they were not accessible, if autocompletion was disabled. #6625
- We fixed an issue about duplicated group color indicators #6175
- We fixed an issue where entries with the entry type Misc from an imported aux file would not be saved correctly to the bib file on disk #6405
- We fixed an issue where percent sign ('%') was not formatted properly by the HTML formatter #6753
- We fixed an issue with the SAO/NASA Astrophysics Data System fetcher where textbackslash appeared at the end of the abstract.
- We fixed an issue with the Science Direct fetcher where PDFs could not be downloaded. Fixes #5860
- We fixed an issue with the Library of Congress importer.
- We fixed the link to the external libraries listing in the about dialog
- We fixed an issue regarding pasting on Linux. #6293

Removed:
- We removed the option of the "enforce legal key"
- We removed the obsolete External programs / Open PDF section in the preferences, as the default application to open PDFs is now set in the Manage external file types dialog
- We removed the option to configure whether a .bib.bak file should be generated upon save. It is now always enabled
- We removed the built-in list of IEEE journal abbreviations using BibTeX strings. If you still want to use them, you have to download them separately