# Validate Bib

> Validate bibliography entries against citations in all manuscript files. Find missing entries and unused references.

- Skill: `brycewang-stanford/validate-bib-4` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add brycewang-stanford/validate-bib-4`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/brycewang-stanford/validate-bib-4/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Research & Search
- Author: brycewang-stanford (https://skillmd.com/u/brycewang-stanford)
- Updated: 2026-09-09
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/brycewang-stanford/validate-bib-4

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## Validate Bibliography

Cross-reference all citations in manuscript files against bibliography entries.

### Steps

1. **Read the bibliography file(s)**: Find `.bib` files in the project.

2. **Scan manuscript files** for citation commands:
   - LaTeX: `\cite{}`, `\citet{}`, `\citep{}`, `\citeauthor{}`, `\citeyear{}`
   - Extract all citation keys

3. **Cross-reference**:
   - **Missing entries (CRITICAL):** Citation keys in `.tex` files without matching `.bib` entries
   - **Unused entries (INFO):** `.bib` entries not cited anywhere
   - **Potential typos:** Citation keys that look similar to existing entries (edit distance <= 2)

4. **Check entry quality**:
   - Required fields present (author, title, year, journal/booktitle)
   - Author formatting consistent
   - Year values reasonable
   - No encoding issues in special characters

5. **Report** findings with severity levels.

### Notes
- Missing entries are CRITICAL because they cause compilation warnings.
- Unused entries are informational -- the user may want to keep them for future use.