To use RevMan, you will need to:

• download RevMan
• complete the RevMan tutorial (available through the RevMan file that you've downloaded)

Cochrane Information Specialists often work with authors on their reviews and they may be responsible for checking or editing various sections of the review in RevMan.

To edit a review, you will need to check it out. You also have the option to download a copy of a review without checking it out, but it is unlikely you will need to do this. If you just want to look at a review, then you can do this through Archie.

8.5.1 Checking reviews in & out

Reviews are stored in Archie. If you check out a review from RevMan, you will get the latest version of the review and no one else can access it. You would do this if you needed to make edits to any sections you have responsibility for. For example, you may be responsible for ensuring all the references in the review follow the Cochrane Style Manual, and you may also be responsible for checking and editing the 'Search Methods' sections.

Another useful tool for Cochrane Information Specialists is the RevMan 'Validation' tool. If a review contains an error, it will not be published in the Cochrane Library. The validation tool helps you to find these errors.

You can validate as you type the review in RevMan by clicking the 'Validate' button on the menu bar, or selecting it from the ‘Tools’ menu. Alternatively, you can get a validation report in Revman by selecting 'File menu', then 'Reports', then 'Validation Report', or you can run an overall validation check in Archie.