validate_doiLABSCO SUMMARY
The anti-hallucination use is the one to set up first.
One line in a system prompt — validate the DOI before citing, drop the citation if validation fails — turns a fabricated reference from something a reader catches into something the model catches. The credential design deserves a note too: the setup command can put the key in the OS credential store and leave only a reference in the client config, and it refuses to overwrite an existing credential unless you explicitly ask. Batch tools exist for a reason; a bibliography checked one call at a time will burn a day's quota fast.
What it is
A citation layer for models that invent references. It checks whether a DOI actually exists, resolves messy citation text back to the real paper, formats references in the style a journal wants, and keeps saved collections you can import into and export out of. It returns citation metadata only — not PDFs or full text.
What you get
- A DOI checked for existence, a book looked up by ISBN, a paper recovered from garbled citation text, and up to 50 citation strings resolved in one request —
validate_doi,lookup_isbn,reverse_lookup,batch_resolve - Corpus search with author, category and citation facets, plus an API health check —
enhanced_search,health_check - A DOI formatted in any of 2900+ CSL styles, several formatted at once, a list of DOIs batch-checked, styles found by name or paged through, and grouped in-text markers generated —
format_citation,batch_format,verify_references,search_styles,list_styles,group_cite - ORCID profiles searched and fetched, and a profile's publications indexed so they become searchable —
orcid_search,orcid_profile,ingest_orcid - Signed-in collections: list, add one or many, import BibTeX and RIS, export as BibTeX, search within, check duplicates, correct an entry's metadata, merge entries, tag, reorder, remove and delete —
list_collections,add_to_collection,batch_add_to_collection,import_bibliography,export_collection,search_collection,check_duplicates,update_entry_metadata,merge_entries,update_tags,reorder_collection,remove_from_collection,update_collection,delete_collection - Sharing and cross-collection moves — a shareable link created, revoked or viewed by token, collections merged, entries moved —
share_collection,unshare_collection,view_shared,merge_collections,batch_move_entries - Your plan and remaining lookups —
usage
Requirements
No key for basic lookup and formatting: an anonymous server gets 20 lookups/day, and a free account raises that to 60. Collection tools need OOKCITE_API_KEY. One command sets everything up — npx @turtletech/ookcite-mcp setup detects supported clients and writes their config, and setup --connect creates the Free plan and stores the key in the platform credential store so only a reference goes into client config. The package is @turtletech/ookcite-mcp (0.6.1) on npm, also installable through cargo binstall ookcite-mcp or as a prebuilt binary. Key lookup follows OOKCITE_API_KEY, then OOKCITE_API_KEY_COMMAND, then OOKCITE_API_KEY_FILE, then the platform credential; with none set the server starts anonymous. Set OOKCITE_MCP_READ_ONLY to 1 to hard-disable every collection mutation.
Setup effort
One command — npx @turtletech/ookcite-mcp setup
USE CASES
01
Catching invented references before they reach a draft
Validate each DOI as it is proposed and drop the ones that do not resolve, instead of discovering the problem at review.
02
Recovering a paper from a half-remembered citation
Hand over the messy text and get the actual record back, rather than searching by fragments of a title.
03
Reformatting a bibliography for a different journal
Find the CSL style by name and reformat the whole list in one batch call.
04
Keeping a project bibliography clean while revising
Import your .bib file into a collection, then search it and check for duplicates as you add sources, exporting BibTeX back out when you need it.
05
Running it in a review pipeline that must not mutate anything
Start with collection mutations hard-disabled so the same server can check citations in CI without any chance of editing a saved collection.
38 tools
Listed in project docs. Your client may show a different list.
lookup_isbnreverse_lookupbatch_resolveenhanced_searchhealth_checkformat_citationverify_referencesbatch_formatsearch_styleslist_stylesgroup_citeusageorcid_searchorcid_profileingest_orcidlist_collectionsadd_to_collectionbatch_add_to_collectionimport_bibliographyexport_collectionsearch_collectioncheck_duplicatesdelete_collectionupdate_collectionremove_from_collectionupdate_entry_metadatamerge_entriesupdate_tagsreorder_collectionshare_collectionunshare_collectionview_sharedmerge_collectionsbatch_move_entriesgenerate_citation_keysexpand_journalnormalize_bibliographyBEFORE YOU INSTALL
What to know first
Tools you get
38 tools named in the project's documentation.
Requires
npx on PATH
Optional
OOKCITE_API_KEY in your environment
Where it runs
The documented client runs the server on your machine.
INSTALLATION
Connect your client
Server setup
TERMINAL
npx @turtletech/ookcite-mcp setupMCP Clients
Any MCP client
ANY MCP CLIENT · JSON
{
"mcpServers": {
"ookcite": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@turtletech/ookcite-mcp"
]
}
}
}The key is optional — lookup and formatting work without it; the collection tools need it. Either run npx @turtletech/ookcite-mcp setup --connect, which keeps the key in your system's credential store, or add "env": {"OOKCITE_API_KEY": "your_key_here"} to the block above, as the README's "With an API key" example does.
