To Log into ComWriter you need an active browser (Google Chrome, Apple Safari, or Firefox are recommended).

1. Click SIGN UP on the ComWriter home page
2. Fill in your details and click the CREATE MY ACCOUNT button. You will be sent an email to verify your email address. 
3. Return to the ComWriter home page and click LOG IN
4. ENTER your username and password
5. Click LOG IN

If you can’t find your verification email:

1. Check your spam folder, as it sometimes goes there
2. Log on using your Facebook account, and your email address will be authenticated via Facebook
3. Try Signing Up again, you may have entered the email address incorrectly
4. If you still can’t get access, contact the Support desk to manually activate your account: support@comwriter.com

After you create your table in Excel, follow this procedure:

Step 1:

1. Copy your table in Excel
2. Open Microsoft Word and right click to select ‘paste special’
3. Select ‘Picture (PNG) [see 2 below]
4. Click OK

Step 2:

1. The table will be inserted as a picture
2. Click on the picture and click ‘Save as picture’ and place it on your desktop as this will make it easier to find and add into ComWriter
3. Go to ComWriter and you can now add your Table as an image

See Also:

• How do  import a chart from Microsoft Excel?

After you create your chart in Excel, follow this procedure:

1. Create your chart
2. Select the chart and right click with your mouse
3. Click ‘Save as picture’ and place it on your desktop as this will make it easier to find and add into ComWriter
4. Go to ComWriter and you can now add your Chart as an image

See Also:

• How do I import a table from Microsoft Excel?

In ComWriter, you do not need to know how to format a citation in your discipline style (e.g., APA, Harvard, Chicago); all you have to do is Add the resource, and Insert a link to the resource in your text, and ComWriter will do all the formatting for you. Follow these easy steps:

1. On the Research tab: Add your reference/resource using ‘Add’ or ‘Find’ 
2. On the Projects tab, Start a New Project
1. Open your project
2. Activate the cursor inside a paragraph
3. Click ‘Insert citation’ (see 1 on image below)
4. Select the resource you added
5. Customize the resource, as required
1. Add a citation prefix (e.g., see, refer, as cited in)
2. Pinpoint a Page number or Page span of numbers, if required
3. Add a citation suffix, if required (e.g., as an example)
4. Include ‘Author in text’, if required, and use the drop list to add a ‘s, or ‘ to the last author’s name, if required 
6. Click Insert and a blue (ref) tag will appear in your paragraph (see 2 on image below)
7. Click on the blue tag and you can see what resource you have added. You can also edit the citation, or add anotherresource, if required (see 1 on image below)
8. When you export your project, the citation will be automatically formatted based on the style you chose when you started the project

See Also

• Creating a bibliography
• Video guides

Multiple footnotes can be added consecutively in text. Use the ‘Insert footnote’ function, and just add each one after the last. To create a separator between each footnote, move your cursor between the footnote markers AFTER all the footnotes have been added, and then superscript the comma (if required).

Tips

• When you add additional footnotes, add the footnote BEFORE adding the intervening comma as superscript, otherwise the second footnote will be superscripted to the first (i.e., set higher than the first).

Currently, any format changes made to any writing object will be applied to ALL writing objects in that section (i.e., cover, preliminaries, body, addenda). This keeps your output looking consistent and professional.

If you need a specific style for a single object, try customizing ‘Heading 5’ and use that. Typically, most writing projects don’t need 5 levels of heading, so this one is a ‘spare’, and can be used as you require.

Contact the Support Desk if you need further assistance.

The use of writing objects (the text boxes you write in) is a new concept for word processors. Currently, there are a number of technical difficulties that prevent us from reflecting your style choices in the browser. However, your style choices will appear in your exported document.

The use of writing objects (the boxes you write into) is a new concept for word processors, so there are still a few technical issue for us to work out. To realign the list, grab the moving icon on the right-hand side and lift the object as if you were about to relocate it. Place (or drop) it back again, and the list and outline should be aligned.

Different browsers work in different ways. If you started a new project and can’t see it on the Projects dashboard, refresh your browser.

In Microsoft Word you can save objects added into your document as pictures by using the option found on the right click: ‘Save as picture’. An alternative process is to create your images in powerpoint, select all, and then save as image.

Microsoft Word does not enable image files to be created from tables. So, follow this procedure to create an image of your table:

1. In Word, copy the table
2. Open Excel, and use ‘Paste Special…’, then select ‘Microsoft Word Document Object’ (Note: this option will only appear if you have copied the table in Word first)
3. Once you have pasted the table, right click on the table and use the ‘Save as picture’ option
4. Save the picture to your desktop as this will make it easier to find and add into ComWriter

Microsoft Word does not provide an export for references stored in their system, so it is not possible to import them into ComWriter. We do, however, have a massive online library of book and journal articles (more than 2 billion) so you should be able to find your record easily.

Alternatively, you will need to add them manually using the ‘Add’ resource form.

We have been asked many times about comparing other products with ComWriter. While we are a bit biased (!) here is a list of the differences.

Positives for Scrivener:

• Offline writing
• Notes
• Cork-board view

Negatives for Scrivener:

• No in-built bibliographic tool
• Formatting is done as you write
• It is a bit technical to ‘compile’ output
• No collaboration

Here is a quick comparison of the differences.

Positives for ComWriter:

• Bibliographic tool built in, complete with importing data from WorldCat, CrossRef & Wikipedia
• Style Guides are custom and more accurate than tools like Zotero, Endnote
• Write online
• Format all your text with one click of the mouse to any style guide
• Maintain custom style guides

Negatives for ComWriter (on our to do list):

• Preview of style (due Dec-2015)
• Notes (due Jan-2016)
• Collaboration (due Jan-2016)

The fonts you see in the writing editor have been set in the Style Guide you are using. The Style Guide you choose has the fonts set based on pre-defined style requirements. Typical academic fonts are:

• Paragraph & Lists: Times New Roman, double line spacing, 12 pt
• Headings: Arial, double line spacing,with varying sizes depending on the heading level (1-5)

These have been saved in the pre-defined style already.

To change a font, means changing the Style Guide. To customize a style guide:

1. Click on the ‘Options’ menu on the left-hand side of the writing object
2. Select ‘Format’ and a menu will appear
3. Make the changes
4. Click Save as new to create a custom Style Guide, or if you have done this already, click Save. Note: a ‘Custom style guide’ needs to be maintained by you. If you need assistance, please contact the Support Desk.

Tips:

1. Currently, any format changes made to any writing object will be applied to ALL writing objects in that section (i.e., cover, preliminaries, body, addenda). This keeps your output looking consistent and professional.
2. If you need a specific style for a single object, try customizing ‘Heading 5’ and use that. Typically, most writing projects don’t need 5 levels of heading, so this one is a ‘spare’, and can be used as you require. 

ComWriter has 19 reference types when compared with 5 from EndNote and only 4 from other bibliographic tools. Our references cover:

• International material (Treaty & UN official document)
• Judicial material (7 types)
• Legislative material (10 types)

 ComWriter also surpasses every other reference type (e.g., books & journal material) so that references are always accurate.

Student Plan is FREE

• Create unlimited writing projects
• Add, find, import and store unlimited bibliographic records
• Find bibliographic records from WorldCat, Crossref & Wikipedia
• Apply style guides to projects (common, institution, journal) at any time
• Customize style guides to use on any project

coming soon:

• Collaborate with up to 3 other team members

Researcher Plan US$6 per mth or $66 pa

• Access history versions
• Add resources to groups
• Store attachments on bibliographic records

coming soon:

• Collaborate with unlimited team members
• Task management
• Chat with team members
• History slider
• Share group of resources
• Add, maintain and share lists (abbreviations, definitions, words or phrases)

When reference data is created for a bibliography, sometimes some data fields are missing or not available. When the ‘publisher’ or ‘place of publication’ is missing ‘n.p.’ is put where these data field normally go. ‘n.p’ means: no publisher, no place

If you are using Google Chrome, you can access the Thesuaurus as follows:

• Highlight the word/term
• Right click with your mouse to revea the drop menu
• On the drop menu click on ‘Look Up In Dictionary‘
• To change a word/term you have already entered, you will have to manually type any new word/term you require

Currently, equations can only be added as an image.

An equation editor is on our future enhancement list.

See Also:

• How do I add images?

Yes you can. There are two ways:

1. The STUDENT PLAN is always FREE

2. If you’d like to upgrade to the RESEARCHER PLAN, then you can invite friends and for everyone that signs up, you both get a free month. So, invite 12 friends and get 12 months for free:

• Go to Account Details
• Find the section ‘Invite Your Friends’
• Click the + button and add their name and email, then click send email, all done!
• When that person signs up to ComWriter then 30 days free use will be automatically added to your account. Your friend will also get 30 days free. 

Tips:

• Your friend must activate their account for the offer to be added to their (and your) account
• Make sure you are on the Researcher Plan before inviting your friends

In ComWriter, you do not need to know how to format a citation in your discipline style (e.g., APA, Harvard, Chicago); all you have to do is Add the resource, and Insert the resource into your text, and ComWriter will do all the formatting for you. Follow these easy steps:

Create a stand-alone bibliography:

On the Library tab:

1. Add a Project (if you don’t already have one) by clicking + Add Project 
2. Add your references/resources using ‘Add Resource‘ function, and remember to click the check box (on the bottom of the form) ‘Add to project’ by selecting your Project name
3. Click ‘Export Bibliography‘ and select the Project name and the Style (styles already added to My styles will be listed) you would like to export in and click Export
4. Your bibliography will be placed in your Downloads file

Create a bibliography in your project:

On the Projects tab: 

1. Open your project, or Start a new project
2. Click ‘Addenda’ (because bibliographies usually go in the back matter)
3. Open the Add menu and select ‘Smart List’
4. Select the list ‘References’
5. Select option: either the ‘Bibliography’ or the ‘Cited Resources’ 
6. Click Add and a blue Smart List Marker will be added to your project outline
7. When you export your project, the resources associated with your project will be automatically added to the Bibliography in the style you chose when you started your project, and positioned exactly where you added the smart list. Remember to add a Heading.

See Also

• Citing a resource

In ComWriter, you do not need to know how to format a citation in your discipline style (e.g., APA, Harvard, Chicago); all you have to do is Add the resource, and Insert a link to the resource in your text, and ComWriter will do all the formatting for you. Follow these easy steps: 

1. On the Research tab: Add your reference/resource using ‘Add’ or ‘Find’ 
2. On the Projects tab, Start a New Project
1. Open your project
2. Activate the cursor inside a paragraph
3. Click ‘Insert citation’ (see 1 on image below)
4. Select the resource you added
5. Customize the resource, as required
3. Add a citation prefix (e.g., see, refer, as cited in)
4. Pinpoint a Page number or Page span of numbers, if required
5. Add a citation suffix, if required (e.g., as an example)
6. Include ‘Author in text’, if required, and use the drop list to add a ‘s, or ‘ to the last author’s name, if required 

See Also

• Creating a bibliography
• Video guides

Yes you can. What will happen is this:

1. You will be refunded for the balance of the days outstanding [expiry date minus current date x daily subscription rate; i.e. pro-rata for the balance]
2. You will be billed for the new subscription charge, as at the effective date you requested the change

Yes you can. In fact we recommend you try the Faculty plan for the trial period so you get to check out all the awesome features like these:

– export to Word

– save and restore history

– share styles

– access Public resources (coming soon)

– import Resources from other software (coming soon)

If you can’t find your verification email:

1. Check your spam folder, as it sometimes goes there
2. Log on using your Facebook account, and your email address will be authenticated via Facebook
3. Try Signing Up again, you may have entered the email address incorrectly
4. If you still can’t get access, contact the Support desk to manually activate your account: support@comwriter.com; but send the email from your email account so we know the correct address

Currently we do not provide plagiarism checking. But we will put that on our todo list.

ComWriter exports your project to PDF, and PDF is a valid file format for the following plagiarism software:

• Turnitin
• Ephorus

Yes you can. In fact, if you are adding lots of resources, this would be an excellent way to move from the writing editor to Add resources without having to close the editor.

However, we do advise against having the writing editor open for more than one project, as performance could be slowed.