gramps/gramps2/help/C/getstart.xml

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<chapter id="gramps-getting-started">
<!--
User Manual for Gramps - a GTK+/GNOME based genealogy program
Copyright (C) 2003-2005 Alexander Roitman
This document is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify
it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or
(at your option) any later version.
This document is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
GNU General Public License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software
Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple Place, Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307 USA
-->
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<!-- $Id$ -->
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<title>Getting Started</title>
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<para>
In this chapter, we'll begin with the basics. We'll show you how
to start &app; and how to get help when you need it.
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</para>
<!-- ================ Getting Started Subsection ====== -->
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<sect1 id="gramps-start">
<title>To Start GRAMPS</title>
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<para>
You can start &app; in the following ways:
</para>
<variablelist>
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<varlistentry>
<term>From the <guimenu>Applications</guimenu> menu</term>
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<listitem>
<para>Select &app; from the list of programs displayed in
your computer's Applications menu. (The location and
appearance of this menu vary slightly from one distribution
of Linux to another. On the default GNOME desktop, you'll
find &app; in the
<menuchoice><guimenu>Applications</guimenu><guisubmenu>Other</guisubmenu></menuchoice>
menu.</para>
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</listitem>
</varlistentry>
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<varlistentry>
<term>From the command line</term>
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<listitem>
<para>
If you're adept with Linux and like to work from the command
line, you can start &app; by calling up a terminal window,
typing <command>gramps</command>, and then pressing
<keycap>Enter</keycap>.
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</para>
<para>
If you would like GRAMPS to open a specific database or to
import a specific file on startup, you can supply the filename
as a command line argument:
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</para>
<para>
<filename>gramps filename.grdb</filename>
</para>
<para>
where <filename>filename.grdb</filename> is the name of
the file you want to open. The command line provides many
more ways to start &app; and perform different tasks. The
detailed reference to the command line options is found
in <xref linkend="append-cmdline"/>.
</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
</variablelist>
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</sect1>
<!-- ================ Getting Started Subsection ==== -->
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<sect1 id="run-1st-time">
<title>Running GRAMPS for the first time</title>
<para>
The first time you run the program, GRAMPS will display the
&quot;Getting Started&quot; dialogs. Follow the directions that
guide you through <guilabel>Researcher information</guilabel>,
<guilabel>Numerical date formats</guilabel>, <guilabel>Alternate
calendar support</guilabel>, and <guilabel>the LDS
extensions</guilabel> sections. You should find them to be
self-explanatory.
</para>
<note id="note-dialog">
<title>Dialog boxes</title>
<para>We'll make frequent reference in this manual to
dialogs. A dialog is simply a pop-up window into which you can
enter information.</para>
</note>
<para>We recommend you enter your personal information when GRAMPS
prompts you for it. GRAMPS uses this information strictly so it
can create valid GEDCOM output files (which require information
about the files' creator). If you wish, you can choose not to
supply this information, but be aware that unless and until you
do, any GEDCOM files you export will not be valid.</para>
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<!-- ==== Figure: Getting Started Druid Window ==== -->
<figure id="druid-fig">
<title>GRAMPS Getting Started Window: Researcher Information</title>
<screenshot>
<mediaobject>
<imageobject>
<imagedata fileref="figures/researcher.png" format="PNG"/>
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</imageobject>
<textobject>
<phrase>Shows Researcher Information Window. </phrase>
</textobject>
</mediaobject>
</screenshot>
</figure>
<!-- ==== End of Figure ==== -->
<tip id="preferences-tip">
<title>Entering personal information</title>
<para>This information can be entered at any time in the
Preferences dialog, under the Database/Researcher Information
category.</para>
</tip>
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</sect1>
<!-- ================ Getting Started Subsection -->
<sect1 id="choose-db-start">
<title>Choosing a database on startup</title>
<para>
If &app; is started without a database selected, the following
window will appear prompting you to choose one to open.
</para>
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<!-- ==== Figure: Open existing/new database window ==== -->
<figure id="first-open">
<title>Open Database Window</title>
<screenshot>
<mediaobject>
<imageobject>
<imagedata fileref="figures/first-open.png" format="PNG" />
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</imageobject>
<textobject>
<phrase>Shows Open Database Window.</phrase>
</textobject>
</mediaobject>
</screenshot>
</figure>
<!-- ==== End of Figure ==== -->
<para>To open a database that you have recently opened, choose the
top selection, select your database from the menu and
click <guibutton>OK</guibutton>.</para>
<para>To open an existing database you have not recently opened,
choose the middle selection and click
<guibutton>OK</guibutton>. &app; will then ask you to specify the
name of the database you wish to open. </para>
<para>As you might guess, to create a new database, choose
&quot;Create a new database&quot;</para>
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<note id="file-notdir-note">
<title>Selecting file</title>
<para>
If you're familiar with version 1.0.X of GRAMPS, you'll note
that version 2.0 does not require you to select a directory in
which to store the database.
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</para>
</note>
</sect1>
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<!-- ================ Getting Started Subsection ==== -->
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<sect1 id="get-help">
<title>Obtaining Help</title>
<para>
GRAMPS has a <menuchoice><guimenu>Help</guimenu></menuchoice> menu
that you can consult at any time. It includes the following items:
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</para>
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<variablelist>
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<varlistentry>
<term>User manual</term>
<listitem>
<para>
An electronic version of the manual that you can access while you work in GRAMPS.
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</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
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<varlistentry>
<term>FAQ</term>
<listitem>
<para>A list of Frequently Asked Questions about &app;.</para>
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</listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term>GRAMPS home page</term>
<listitem>
<para>A link to the GRAMPS' project web site.</para>
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</listitem>
</varlistentry>
<varlistentry>
<term>GRAMPS mailing lists</term>
<listitem>
<para>
Gives you direct access to GRAMPS' mailing list archives.
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</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
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<varlistentry>
<term>Report a bug</term>
<listitem>
<para>
Choose this item to file a bug report in our bug tracking
system. (Remember, &app; is a living project. We want to
know about any problems you encounter so we can work to
solve them for everyone's benefit.)
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</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
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<varlistentry>
<term>Show plugin status</term>
<listitem>
<para>
Use this item to display the status of any plugins you may have added.
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</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
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<varlistentry>
<term>Open example database</term>
<listitem>
<para>
Select this item to load the example database that is
included in your GRAMPS package. This database is composed
of fictitious people and serves as a useful example for
learning how to work with GRAMPS.
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</para>
</listitem>
</varlistentry>
</variablelist>
</sect1>
</chapter>