This chapter tries to explain the process of the installation. There are some things you should consider before you actually install the software. These will be discussed in the second section. The technical details of the installation on various platforms can be found in the remaining sections of this chapter. But first we start with a brief overview of installing and running refdb for those who never read manuals.
These are the essential steps to get your reference database up and running:
Follow the installation instructions for either Unix/Linux or Windows.
Finish the installation by setting environment variables and by creating the internal databases.
Start the application server refdbd, either manually or as a daemon, as explained in the OS-specific installation sections.
Create one or more reference databases.
Add one or more users that are permitted to work with this database.
Add bibliography styles.
Now it is up to the users to populate the database with references, run their queries, create bibliographies, and whatever they may desire.