Usage
Now we turn to a detailed exploration of the day-to-day use of
GRAMPS. First, we should point out that GRAMPS often offers more
than one way to do the same task. We'll try to point out some of
these alternatives where appropriate.
Starting a New Database
To start a new database, choose
FileNew. You will then be asked to give the new database a name.
&app; databases
&app; stores your data in a Berkeley database, sometimes
known as BSDDB. These files have ".grdb" as
their default extension. The extension is automatically
added to your filename.
Opening a Database
To open a database, either choose
FileOpen or click the
Open button on the Toolbar. The
Open database dialog will appear and you'll
see a list of files. If you don't see the file you're looking
for, make sure the All files filter is selected. (This dialog
has a "filetype" filter, meaning it may only be
showing files that have a certain extension.)
To open a recently accessed database, choose FileOpen Recent and select the filename from the list.
If you do not have "write permissions" for the
selected database, it will be opened in a Read Only mode. In
this mode, the data may be viewed, but no changes will be made
to the database. To indicate this mode, the title of the main
window will be appended with (Read Only)
text.
GRAMPS allows you to open certain databases that have not been
saved in GRAMPS' own file format. These include XML and GEDCOM
databases. But you should be aware that if the XML or GEDCOM
database is relatively large, you may encounter some performance
problems. These can be avoided by creating a new GRAMPS database
and importing your XML/GEDCOM data into it.
Opening XML and GEDCOM databases
XML and GEDCOM databases require all data to be held in
memory. GRAMPS' native grdb format does not. Thus, a database
with a grdb format can access data quicker and more efficiently.
GEDCOM Editing
Please keep in mind that some information in a GEDCOM file may
be lost during import into &app;. Simply opening and viewing
the file will not change it. However, if any changes were
made and they were not abandoned upon exit, exiting &app; will
save the data, with possible data loss.
Saving Changes to Your Database
GRAMPS saves your changes as soon as you apply them. This means,
for example, that any time you click OK
when using GRAMPS, your changes are immediately recorded and
saved. There is no separate "save" command (although
there is a "save as" command that we'll discuss later.)
You can undo changes you've made by selecting
EditUndo. If you select this
command repeatedly, your most recent changes will be undone one at
a time.
If you want to return your database to the way it was when you
opened it, select
FileAbandon changes
and quit. (This is just like quitting
without saving in other programs.)
If you would like to save your database under a different name,
you can do so by choosing FileSave as... and specifying
the name (and, optionally, the format) of your new database. Note
that "Save as" will allow you to continue editing the
newly saved database. If this is not what you want to do, you may
wish to use the "Export" command instead.
Importing Data
Importing allows you to bring data from other genealogy programs
into a &app; database. Currently, &app; can import data from the
following formats:
Another &app; database (having the "grdb" file
extension),
GEDCOM&app; XML&app; packageGeneWebImporting vs. opening
Please recognize that importing a database is different from
opening a database. When you import, you are actually bringing
data from one database into a GRAMPS database. When you open a
file, you are editing your original file.
To import data, select FileImport. The Import
database dialog will open, asking you to specify the
file you wish to import.
Data loss with some formats
It is important to note that the importing process is not
perfect for GEDCOM and GeneWeb databases. There is a chance
that some of the data in these databases will not be imported
into &app;.
The &app; database (grdb), &app; XML, and &app; package are all
native &app; formats. There is no risk of information loss
when import or exporting to these formats.
&app; database (grdb)
The native &app; database format is a specific form of
Berkeley database (BSDDB) with a special structure of data
tables. This format is binary and
architecture-dependent. It is very quick and efficient,
but not generally portable across computers with
different binary architecture (e.g. i386 vs alpha).
&app; XML
The &app; XML file was the default format for
older versions of &app;. Unlike the grdb
format, it is architecture independent and
human-readable. The database may also have references to
non-local (external) media objects, therefore it is not
guaranteed to be completely portable. The &app; XML
database is created by saving (
FileSave As...
) or exporting (
FileExport...
) data in that format
&app; package
The &app; package is a compressed archive containing the &app;
XML file and all media objects (images, sound files,
etc.) to which the database refers. Because it contains all
the media objects, this format is completely portable.
The &app; package is created by exporting (
FileExport...
) data in that format.
If you import information from another GRAMPS database or GRAMPS
XML database, you will see the progress of the operation in the
progress bar of GRAMPS' main window.
If you import a GEDCOM database, you will see the import dialog
shown in . The information in
the dialog is updated as the import progresses.
If a media file is not found during import, you'll be prompted
to take one of the actions indicated in .
If you don't have the missing file and have no possibility of
replacing it, click the Remove Object
button. This will remove the object that corresponds to the
missing file as well as all the references in the database to
that object.
If you're not sure where the missing file is, but think you
still have it or may be able to find it, click the
Keep Reference button. If and when you
find the file, you can simply copy it into your database
directory and have access to it through &app;.
If you can supply the missing file during the import
operation, click the Select File
button. This will copy the file you select in place of the
missing file. No references will be altered in the database.
To automatically use the selection made in this dialog for
all missing media files, check the Use this
selection for all missing media files box. This
will remember your choice and use it for all media files
missing during this import, so that no further dialogs will
be presented. Use this option if you anticipate many missing
files and want to deal with all of them in the same manner.
Exporting Data
Exporting allows you to share any portion of your &app; database
with other researchers as well as to enable you to transfer your
data to another computer. Currently, &app; can export data to
the following formats: &app; database (grdb), &app; XML, GEDCOM,
&app; package, Web Family Tree, and GeneWeb.
Export is saving a copy
When you export, you are saving a copy of the currently opened
database. Exporting creates another file with a copy of your
data. Note that the database that remains opened in your GRAMPS
window is NOT the file saved by your export. Additional editing
of the currently opened database will not alter the copy
produced by the export.
To export data, choose FileExport. This will
bring up the Export assistant. Its pages
will guide you through the format selection (see ), file selection, and format
specific export options (see ). After a final confirmation
page, the export will be performed according to the choices you
have made. At any time, you can click the
Back and revise any selection, and then
go forward to redo the export.
Exporting into the GEDCOM format
&app; allows you to export a database into the common GEDCOM
format. It provides options that allow you to fine tune your
export (see ).
Encoding
Since different languages use different characters, it is
important to tell a GEDCOM file what character set is used.
The two formats traditionally accepted are ASCII and ANSEL.
Since all ASCII characters are valid ANSEL characters,
GRAMPS does not provide an option for ASCII.
Because ANSEL is not commonly used, some genealogy programs
will accept ANSI (more commonly know as ISO-8859-1) and
Unicode character sets. Only select ANSI or Unicode if you
know any program that attempts to read the GEDCOM file will
understand these character sets.
Filter
The filter allows you to export a limited amount of data,
based on the criteria you select.
Target
While GEDCOM is a standard, not every program implements
it in the same way. This can lead to data loss. &app; can
reduce the data loss in some cases. You can tell &app;
what program is the target, and &app; will customize the
exported file for that program. If your program is not
listed, choose the "GEDCOM 5.5 Standard".
Copyright
Allows you to select a statement to describe your Copyright
claim.
No not include records marked private
Check this box to prevent private records from being
included in the exported file.
Restrict data on living people
Check this box to limit the information exported for living
people. This means that all information concerning their
birth, death, addresses, significant events, etc., will be
omitted in the exported GEDCOM file. If you choose this
option, you will be given additional options to limit
further the data on living people. For example, you can
choose to substitute the word "Living" for the
first name; you can exclude notes; and you can exclude
sources for living people.
Sometimes, it is not always obvious from the data if someone
is actually alive. &app; uses an advanced algorithm to try
to determine if a person could still be alive. Remember,
&app; is making its best guess, and it may not always be
able to guess correctly all the time. Please double check
your data.
Reference images from path
Check this box to tell GRAMPS to use the specific path for
your images when writing image references in GEDCOM.
This option allows specify where your image files are
located. This is useful when you are transfering your GEDCOM
file from one computer to another. It tells the program
that is importing the data where your images are.
Export into &app; formats&app; database (grdb) export
Exporting to the &app; native format will simply make a
copy of your data under another name. Exporting to this
format can also be useful if you have directly opened
an XML or GEDCOM file and would like to save it as the
grdb file.
&app; XML database export
Exporting into &app; XML format will produce a database
compatible with the previous versions of &app;. As XML
is a text-based human-readable format, you may also use
it to take a look at your data.
&app; package export
Exporting to the &app; package format will create a
compressed file that contains the database and copies of
all associated media files. This is useful if you want to
move your database to another computer or to share it with
someone.
Export to CD
Exporting to CD will prepare your database and copies of
all media object files for recording onto a CD. To
actually burn the CD, you will need to go to the GNOME
burn:/// location, which can be
accessed by navigating through Nautilus: After exporting
to CD, select GoCD Creator in the
Nautilus menu. Your database directory will show up. To
burn it to the CD, click the CD icon on the Nautilus
toolbar, or select
FileWrite to
CD in the Nautilus menu.
If a media file is not found during export, you will see the
same Missing Media dialog you encounter
with GEDCOM export.
Export into other formatsWeb Family Tree
Exporting to Web Family Tree will create a text file
that can be used by the Web Family Tree program.
Export options include filter selection and the ability
to limit data on living people to that of their family
ties.
GeneWeb
Exporting to GeneWeb will save a copy of your data into
a popular web genealogy format. To find out more about
GeneWeb and its format, visit
http://cristal.inria.fr/~ddr/GeneWeb/en/.
vCalendar and vCard
Exporting to vCalendar or vCard will save information in
a format used in many calendaring and addressbook
applications, sometimes called PIM for Personal
Information Manager.
Entering and Editing Data: Quick Start Overview
This section is designed to give you the basic knowledge necessary
to start putting your genealogical information into &app;. It
will explain how to enter people into the database and how to
specify their family relationships. (A more detailed explanation
will follow in the section entitled .)
First, let's identify the types of information you can enter into
your GRAMPS database. These include:
Personal information about an individual (names, addresses,
birth and death dates, etc.)
Information about an individual's relationships (marriages,
divorces, civil unions, etc.)
Information about an individual's parents and children
Sources that document your research
Keybindings
In addition to interacting with GRAMPS through menu items and
buttons, you can use its extensive set of
"keybindings." For more information, see .
Now let's take a quick look at how you can enter and edit these
various types of information.
To Add or Edit a Person
To add a person to the database, switch to the People View
() and then click the
Add on the toolbar. Enter any data you
know about this person into the Edit
Person dialog (see
for details).
To edit information about a person already
present in the database, select the person from the People View
and click the Edit
button on the toolbar.
Alternate ways of adding or editing a person
You can also use Add... and
Edit... menu items available under
Edit. Or you can right-click on the
person and select Add... or
Edit... from the context menu that pops
up.
To Specify a Relationship
To specify a relationship, select the person for whom the
relationship applies. Switch to the Family View
() and you'll see this individual
indicated as the "Active person".
Now a question: Does the person who will form the relationship
with the Active person already exist in the database? If yes,
click the middle button to the right of the Spouse box. You'll
then be able to browse through the list of people in the
database to select the one you want. If not, click the topmost
button to the right of the Spouse box. This will allow you to
add a new person to the database and to specify the
relationship this person has to the Active person.
Filtering
By default, GRAMPS filters the displayed list to show only
those people who could theoretically have a relationship with
the Active Person. That is, GRAMPS only shows those people
whose birth dates and death dates fit within the lifetime of
the Active Person. If you wish, you can add a person to the
list by clicking the + button. To
completely override the filter and display all people from the
database, check the Show all box.
To edit an existing relationship, double-click in the Spouse
box. If there is more than one relationship in the list, you can
select the spouse or partner you want from the list before
double-clicking.
Alternate ways of editing relationships.
Most of the functions described above are also available in
the context menu that pops up when you right-click.
To Specify Parents
To specify the parents for a person, highlight that individual
in the People View and then switch to the Family View (). Your selected person will be
indicated as the Active person. Click the
+ button to the right of the
Active person's parents list box. This
will bring up the Choose Parents
dialog. You will see three sections, one for father, one for
mother, and one for specifying the relationships between
everyone.
If the father and mother of the Active person are already stored
in your database, you can scroll through the lists and make your
selections. If they are not in the database, you can click
+ to add them.
Filtering
By default, GRAMPS will limit both lists to people who could
possibly be the parents (judged by the date of birth) of the
Active person. To override this, check the Show all box for
each list.
To specify parents of the Active person's spouse, switch to
Family View and then click the + button
to the right of the Spouse's parents list box.
To edit information about parents who are already present in the
database, move the mouse over the corresponding parents' box and
double-click.
Alternate ways of specifying parents
These functions can also be performed by right-clicking on the
parents' box and using the context menu that pops up.
To Specify Children
To specify children of an Active person, switch to the Family
View () and then click either the
second or the third button from the top right of the
children list box. The second button adds a child to the
database and to the family, while the third button adds a
child to the family who is already present in the database.
If using the third button, select a child from the list and
specify the child's relationship with father and mother using
menus at the bottom. If you want, you can add a person to the
list by clicking the Add... button. By
default, &app; will limit the lists to people who could
possibly be the child (judged by the date of birth) of the
active person. To override this, check the Show
all box.
The relationship of the child to the parents can be modified by
right-clicking in the children's box and using the context menu
that pops up. Again, most of the above functions are available
through this context menu.
Adding Photos and Other Media Objects
You can add photos and other media objects to individual people,
events, sources, and places. You can also add images that might
not be limited to a single person or event (for example, group
family photos).
If you want to add an image to a single person, switch to the
People View (), select a
person, and then click the Edit icon on
the toolbar. This will bring up the Edit
Person dialog (). Next, select the
Gallery tab, and click the
+ button to call up the Select
a media object dialog. Type a filename or browse to
find the image file you want and then provide a title for that
image. Keep adding images until you are done.
To add images related to a relationship (for example, a
marriage), switch to the Family View () and double-click on the Spouse box. This
calls up the Marriage/Relationship editor
dialog. Select the Gallery tab and click
the + button to add an image.
To add images related to a source or a place, first switch to
the Source View () or Place View
(). Select the source or place you
want and then either double-click on it or click the
Edit icon on the toolbar. Select the
Gallery tab and click the
+ button to add an image.
Finally, to add images that you want to include in the database,
but hare are not limited to any particular person, relationship,
source or place, switch to the Media View (). Then click the
Add icon on the toolbar to add an
image. If you have already added any images to any individual
galleries, you will also find them listed in the Media View.
Alternate way of adding images to galleries
An image can always be added to any gallery by using
drag-and-drop. Items can be dragged from the Media View, any
gallery, the desktop, the file manager or a web browser and
dropped on the target gallery, adding the image to the
gallery.
In any gallery, you can also use the
Edit to edit image information and the
- button and to remove the image
reference from that gallery.
Removing an image from a gallery
Removing a media object from a gallery does not remove the
image from the database. To completely remove the image from
the database, delete it from Media View by first selecting it
and then clicking the Remove icon on
the toolbar.
To Edit Sources and Places
To add a source or a place to the database, switch to the
appropriate Source View () or
Place View (). Then click the
Add icon on the toolbar to add a
source/place. Enter the information into the Source
Editor (or Place Editor)
dialog.
To edit information about sources and places already present
in the database, switch to the appropriate view, select an
entry you would like to view/modify, and then click the
Edit icon on the
toolbar. Alternatively, you may double-click on the entry to
edit it.
Enterng and Editing Data: Complete Description
The previous section offered you a quick overview of how to enter
and edit data in GRAMPS. This section continues that discussion in
much greater detail.
As we have seen above, GRAMPS offers you a series of Views. Each
of these Views gives you opportunities to enter and edit
information. In fact, you can often get to the same information
from different Views.
In GRAMPS, information is entered and edited through what we call
dialogs. Since we use that term frequently, we should define what
we mean by it:
A dialog is a pop-up window that provides one or more forms for
entering and editing data that fits a certain category. Examples
in GRAMPS include the Edit Person dialog and the
Marriage/Relationship dialog, among many others.
A dialog often includes a series of "notebook tabs" that
group the information into subcategories. For example, the Edit
Person dialog has notebook tabs for subcategories such as Events,
Attributes, Addresses, and Notes, among others.
Add, Remove, and Edit buttons
In most cases, GRAMPS uses a + to
correspond to Add, a
- correspond to
Remove, and an icon of a pen on a sheet
of paper to denote Edit. We will continue
referring to the latter as the Edit
button, while using + and
- to denote the two former buttons.
Editing Information About People
Information about people is entered and edited through the
Edit Person dialog. This dialog can be
invoked from different Views in the following ways:
From the People View:
Double-click the name of the person whose data you would
like to edit
Select the name by single click and
then click the Edit button on the
toolbar.
Select the name and then press Enter.
Select Edit... from the
Edit menu of &app;
Select Edit from the context menu
that appears upon right-click on the name.
From the Family View:
To edit active person's data, move the mouse into the
Active person box.
To edit Spouse's data, shift-click the
Spouse entry.
From the Spouse and
Children boxes you can select the
desired person, right-click, and use the context menu
that pops up.
From the Pedigree View:
Double-click in the box having the name of the person
whose data you want to edit.
In each of the above cases, the Edit Person
dialog will appear:
The top of the window shows the name of the person whose data is
being edited. Below this name are ten "notebook tabs"
containing different categories of available information. Click
any tab to view and edit its contents. Clicking the
OK button at the bottom will apply all
the changes made in all tabs and close the dialog
window. Clicking the Cancel button will
close the window without applying any changes. If any data in
any tabs were modified, an alert window will appear, prompting
you to choose from the following options: close the dialog
without saving changes, cancel the initial cancel request, or
save the changes.
Clicking OK will immediately save
changes to the database. There is no need for a Save
operation, since all changes are immediate.
If a tab label is in boldface type, this means it contains
data. If not, it has no data.
The tabs reflect the following categories of personal data:
General
The General tab contains general
information about the person. This includes
Given name, Family
name, Family prefix (such
as "de" or "van"),
Suffix (e.g. Jr. or III),
Title (e.g. Dr. or Rev.),
Nickname (Bob for Robert),
Type of the name (birth name, married
name, etc.) and Date and
Place of birth and death. Some of
these (Family name,
Type, and both
Place fields), also provide
"autocompletion" feature: as you type in these
fields, a menu appears below the field containing database
entries that match your
partial input. This gives you a shortcut by letting you
select an entry that already exists in the database rather
than having to type it all out. You can select the entry
using your mouse or using your arrow and
Enter keys.
The Edit (that is, the "pen and
paper" icon) next to the Family
name entry field invokes the Name
Editor dialog. This dialog allows editing the
preferred name in full detail (see ).
The Gender radio buttons offer the
choice of person's gender : male,
female, and
unknown.
Clicking the colored "LED" buttons located next
to the birth and death Date fields will bring up the
Date Selection dialog allowing
detailed modification of the date, see . Clicking either the
Edit button located next to the
birth and death LED buttons will bring up a dialog
allowing you to edit the birth or death details (see ).
The field ID displays the &app; ID
number which identifies the user in the database. This value
helps you distiguish between people who have the same name.
You may enter any unique value you want. If you do not provide
a value, &app; will automatically select a value for you.
The Image area shows the first image
available in the Gallery of this
person (if any exist).
Finally, the Information is complete
and Information is private check
buttons let you mark whether or not the person's record is
complete and whether or not the record is private.
Names
The Names tab lets you view and edit
any alternate names the person may have. The bottom part
of the window lists all alternate names for the person
stored in the database. The top part shows the details of
the currently selected name in the list (if any). The
buttons +,
Edit, and -
allow the addition, modification, and removal of an
alternate name from the database. Note that the Edit and -
buttons become available only when an alternate name is
selected from the list.
When you add a new name or edit an existing name, the Name
Editor dialog is invoked. This dialog is described in the
section below (see ).
Events
The Events tab lets you view and edit
any events relevant to the person. The bottom part of the
window lists all such events stored in the database. The
top part shows the details of the currently selected event
in the list (if any). The buttons
+, Edit, and
- allow you to add, modify, and
remove an event record from the database. Note that the
Edit and -
buttons become available only when an event is selected
from the list.
Attributes
The Attributes tab lets you view and
assign attributes to the person. You have complete freedom
to define and use attributes. For example, attributes
might be assigned to describe the person's physical
characteristics or personality traits.
Note that each attribute listed in the
Attribute dialog consists of two
parts: the Attribute itself and a Value associated with
that Attribute. This so-called "Parameter-Value" pairing
can help you organize and systematize your research. For
example, if you define "Hair color" as an
Attribute for a person, "Hair Color" will become
a selectable Attribute for all other people. The Value of
Hair Color for person A might be red, and brown for person
B. In similar fashion, you might define an Attribute like
"Generosity" and use the Value of
"Enormous" to describe a particularly generous
person.
The bottom part of the dialog window displays the list of
all Attributes stored in the database. The top part shows
the details of the currently selected attribute in the
list (if any). The buttons +,
Edit, and -
let you add, modify, and remove an attribute record from
the database. Note that the Edit
and - buttons become available only
when an attribute is selected from the list.
Addresses
The Addresses tab lets you view and
record the various addresses of the person. The bottom
part of the window lists all addresses stored in the
database. The top part shows the details of the currently
selected address in the list (if any). The buttons
+, Edit, and
- allow you to correspondingly add,
modify, and remove an address record from the
database. Note that the Edit and
- buttons become available only
when an address is selected from the list.
Some reports allow you to restrict data on living
people. In particular, that option will omit their
addresses.
Notes
The Notes tab provides a place to
record various items about the person that do not fit
neatly into other categories. To add a note or modify
existing notes simply edit the text in the text entry
field.
The Format option lets you set the
way the note will appear in reports and web pages. If you
select "Flowed," the text generated will have single
spaces put in place of all multiple spaces, tabs, and
single end-of-line characters. A blank line inserted
between two blocks of text will signal a new paragraph;
additional inserted lines will be ignored.
If you select the Preformatted option, the text in reports
and web pages will appear exactly as you enter it in the
Notes dialog.
Sources
The Sources tab allows you to view
and document the sources for the information you
collect. These might be general sources that do not
describe a specific event, but which nevertheless yield
information about the person. For example, if Aunt
Martha's memoirs mention her great-grandson Paul, the
researcher may assume that this Paul actually existed and
cite Aunt Martha's memoirs as the source that justifies
this assumption.
Sources which document specific events are best
recorded as sources of the event (under the
Events tab) instead of as a source
of the person. The person's
Sources tab is best used for
any sources not specificly connected to any other data.
The central part displays the list of all source
references stored in the database in relation to the
person. The buttons +,
Edit, and
- allow you to correspondingly
add, modify, and remove a source reference to this
person. Note that the Edit and
- buttons become available only
when a source reference is selected from the list.
Gallery
The Gallery tab lets you view and
store photos, videos, and other media objects that are
associated with the person. The central part of the window
lists all such media objects. Any object in the form of a
valid image file will result in the display of a thumbnail
view of the image. For other objects such as audio files,
movie files, etc., a corresponding file type icon is
displayed instead.
The first available image in the gallery will be also
displayed in the Image area in
the General tab.
The buttons +,
Select,
Edit, and -
let you add a new image to the database, link to an image
already stored in the database, modify an image, and
remove a given media object from the person's gallery.
Note that the Edit and
- buttons become available only
when a media object is selected from the list.
Removing a media object from a person's gallery does
not remove it from the database. It only removes the
reference to that object from this person's record.
Internet
The Internet tab displays Internet
addresses relevant to the person. The bottom part lists all
such Internet addresses and accompanying descriptions. The
top part shows the details of the currently selected
addresses in the list (if any). The buttons
+, Edit, and
- let you add, modify, and remove an
Internet address. The "Go" button (represented by
an icon having a green arrow and yellow circle) opens your
web browser and takes you directly to the highlighted
page. Note that the Edit,
-, and Go
buttons become available only when an address is selected
from the list.
LDS
The LDS (Latter Days Saints) tab lets
you view and edit information about LDS ordinances of the
person. These are LDS Baptism, Endowment, and Sealed to
Parents ordinances, as labeled inside the tab. Each
ordinance is described by its date, LDS temple, and Place
where it happened. An additional pop-up menu,
"Parents," is available for the Sealed to
Parents ordinance. Each ordinance can be further described
through the selections available in the Status pop-up
menu. It can also be include notes and references to
sources through the corresponding
Sources... and
Note buttons.
Editing Dates
This section describes how to enter and modify dates. Since
dates are so important in genealogical research, GRAMPS takes
special care to preserve and use any date information available.
Information can be entered into a date field by directly typing
it or by invoking the Date selection dialog. Both methods will
be discussed below, but first, we will cover some important
features of dates as they are used in GRAMPS.
Date types
Dates in GRAMPS are classified according to the following types:
Regular
A "regular" date is one which includes a specific
day, date, or month. It can be complete (e.g., June 6, 1990)
or partial (e.g., July 1977).
Before
A "before" date is one that can only be identified
as occurring before a certain day, month, or year.
After
An "after" date is one that occurs after a certain
day, month, or year.
Range
A "range" describes a time period during which the
event occurred. For example, "between January 1932 and
March 1932."
Span
A "span" describes a time period during which a
condition existed. For example, "from May 12, 2000 to
February 2, 2002."
Date formats and parsing rules
GRAMPS recognizes dates entered in a variety of formats. The
default numeric format is that which is conventional for the
environment is which GRAMPS is operating; that is, DD.MM.YYYY
for most European countries, MM/DD/YYYY for the U.S., and so
on.
Besides exact dates, &app; recognizes many dates that are
not regular: before, after, about, ranges and spans. It also
understands the quality: estimated or calculated. Finally,
it supports partial dates and many alternative calendars.
Below is the list of date entry rules to allow precise date
parsing.
Date parsing rules
The list only applys to the English version of GRAMPS. If
you are using localized version of &app;, your version may
or may not provide a localized date parser. At the time
of this writing, localized parsers exist for French, German,
Russian, Finnish, Dutch and Spanish languages.
If the localized parser is available for your version,
chances are that other rules are in effect. If there is no
manual in your language yet, you may try following your
instinct and go with the common ways of denoting dates in
your language. If all else fails, use the Date
selection dialog described below.
Regular single dates can be entered just as you would
write them. Examples: May 24, 1961 or January 1,
2004.
Dates that are not regular should start with the
quality: estimated or
calculated, if applicable.
Example: est. 1961, or calc 2005. (Note that a quality
does not need to be specified for regular dates.)
After the quality should appear the type. If the type is
before, after,
or about, you scan specify the type by
writing "before", "after" or
"about". If the type is a range, write
"between DATE and DATE", and if the type is a
span, write "from DATE to DATE". patterns, where
DATE is a single date.
Examples: est from 2001 to 2003, before June 1975, est
about 2000, calc between May 1900 and January 1, 1990.
Partial dates are entered simply by omitting unknown
information. Examples: May 1961 and 2004.
Alternate calendars are calendars other than the Gregorian
calendar. Currently, &app; supports Hebrew, French
Republican, Julian, Islamic, and Persian alternate
calendars. To specify the calendar other than the
default Gregorian, append the name of the calendar to
the date string, e.g. "January 9, 1905 (julian)".
Date Validity Indicators
&app; uses color circles to indicate the validity of the
entered date.
Date LED buttons
The color circles are also referred to as the LED buttons.
Clicking on an LED button will invoke the Date
selection dialog described in detail below, see
A green circle means that the date is valid and complete
regular date (e.g. May 24, 1961). In simple terms, green
means that the date corresponds to a unique date.
Yellow circle means that the date is valid but is not a
regular date. This could be the date of a different
type: a before date (before May 25, 1962), an after date
(after May, 1960), an about date (about May 23, 1961), a
range (between May 1, 1961 and May 31, 1961), or a span
(from May 1, 1961 to May 31, 1961). It can also be a
complete single date, but with quality of Estimated or
Calculated. Finally, it could be a partial date, i.e. a
regular quality single date missing some portion,
e.g. May 1961 or 1961.
While partial dates do not uniquely define the day, they
allow at least for some type of comparisons between the
dates.
Red circle means that the date is not recognized as a
valid date (e.g. "Christmas week of 61", or
"the summer when I had surgery"). In such a
case the date will be stored as a text string and
therefore cannot be compared other dates. As you can
see, it is best to avoid such date entries. It would be
better, for example, to enter a date of "December
1961" and then to add the note "Christmas week
of '61."
Graphical User Interface for Entering Dates
While the above parsing rules provide a guide for you to type
in most common dates, you can also use Date
selection dialog. The dialog is particularly useful
for building a complex date or for simply insuring that your
information is entered in a way GRAMPS will understand. The
Date selection dialog can be invoked by
clicking the colored circle button next to the date entry
field.
The Calendar menu lets you choose a
calendar other than the default Gregorian. The
Quality menu gives you the choices of
Regular, Estimated, or Calculated. The
Type menu allows you establish the exact
date type: Regular, Before, After, About, Range, Span, and
Text only. You can set the Date by
setting the day, the month, and the year. In the event that
your date type is Range or Span, the Second
date will be activated. Finally, the Text
comment text entry field allows storing an
arbitrary text string along with the date.
If you have an important comment to make about a date, you
are better off doing so in a Note that corresponds to the
event than in the Text comment field of the Date selection
dialog. We recommend this for the following reason: If you
enter a date by typing it directly into the date field (that
is, not via the Date selector dialog), your entry will be
copied and stored as the text comment string when GRAMPS
parses the entered text. Thus, any comment that may have
been there prior to the parsing will be overwritten.
Editing Information About Relationships
Information about relationships is entered and edited through
the Marriage/Relationship Editor
dialog. This dialog is invoked from Family View by
double-clicking the Spouse box
You can also invoke this dialog by right-clicking inside the
Spouse box and selecting "Edit relationship" item
from the context menu that pops up.
The top of the window shows the names of the people whose
relationship is being edited. The main part of the window
displays seven notebook tabs representing different categories
of information about the relationship. Click any tab to view or
edit the information it contains. The bottom part has
OK and Cancel
buttons. Clicking the OK button at any
time will apply all the changes made in all tabs and close the
dialog window. Clicking the Cancel button
at any time will close the window without applying any
changes. If any of the data in any tab is modified, an alert
window will appear that will prompt you choose between closing
the dialog without saving changes, canceling the initial cancel
request, or saving the changes.
Clicking OK will immediately save
changes to the database. This version of &app; does not have
a separate saving function, all changes are immediate.
If a tab label is in boldface type, this means it contains
data. If not, it has no data.
The tabs provide the following information categories of
relationship data:
General
The General tab lets you edit the
Relationship type. The available types (such as Married,
Unmarried, etc.) can be chosen from the drop-down
Relationship type menu. The
GRAMPS ID field displays the ID
number which labels this relationship in the database. The
Last changed label shows the last
time the relationship was modified. Finally, the
Information is complete check button indicates whether the
record of this relationship is complete or not.
Events
The Events tab lets you view and edit
events relevant to the relationship. The bottom part
displays the list of all such events stored in the
database. The top part shows the details of the currently
selected event in the list (if any). The buttons
+, Edit, and
- let you add, modify, or remove an
event record from the database. Note that the
Edit and -
buttons become available only when an event is selected
from the list.
Attributes
The Attributes tab lets you view and
edit particular information about the relationship that
can be expressed as attributes. The bottom part displays
the list of all such attributes stored in the
database. The top part shows the details of the currently
selected attribute in the list (if any). The buttons
+, Edit, and
- let you add, modify, or remove an
attribute. Note that the Edit and
- buttons become available only
when an attribute is selected from the list.
Notes
The Notes tab lets you view and edit
notes associated with the relationship. These could be any
comments which do not naturally fit into the
"Parameter-Value" pairs available to
Attributes. To add a note or modify existing notes simply
edit the text in the text entry field.
The Format option lets you set the
way the note will appear in reports and web pages. If you
select Flowed, the text generated will have single spaces
put in place of all multiple spaces, tabs, and single
end-of-line characters. A blank line inserted between two
blocks of text will signal a new paragraph; additional
inserted lines will be ignored.
If you select the Preformatted option, the text in reports
and web pages will appear exactly as you enter it in the
Notes dialog.
Sources
The Sources tab lets you view and
edit the sources which provide evidence for the
relationship. These might be documents that refer to the
relationship, but which do not necessarily document it
officially. For example, if Aunt Martha's memoirs mention
that her great-grandson Paul was married, the researcher
may take this as evidence of the relationship between Paul
and his wife existed and cite the memoirs as the source
for this assumption.
Sources that document specific events such as marriages
or divorces are better filed in relation to those
events, under the Events tab.
The central part of the Sources window displays the list
of all source references associated with the
relationship. The buttons +,
Edit, and -
allow let you add, modify, and remove a source reference
to this relationship. Note that the
Edit and -
buttons become available only when a source reference is
selected from the list.
Gallery
The Gallery tab lets you store and
display photos and other media objects associated with the
relationship. The central part of the window lists all
such objects and gives you a thumbnail preview of image
files. Other objects such as audio files, movie files,
etc., are represented by a generic GRAMPS icon. The
buttons +,
Select, Edit,
and - let you add a new image, add a
reference to an existing image, modify an existing image,
and remove a media object's link to the relationship. Note
that the Edit and
- buttons become available only when
a media object is selected from the list.
LDS
The LDS (Latter Days Saints) tab
displays information about the LDS Sealed to
Spouse ordinance. The data can include date,
LDS temple, and Place. The status of the ordinance can be
described through the selections available in the
Status pop-up menu and can also be
referenced in the corresponding
Sources... and
Note buttons.
Editing Information About Sources
To edit source data, switch to the Sources View and select the
desired entry in the list of sources. Double-click that
entry or click the Edit icon on the
toolbar to invoke the following Source
Editor dialog:
The main part of the window displays four notebook tabs
containing different categories of information. Click a tab to
view or edit its contents. The bottom part of the window has
OK and Cancel
buttons. Clicking OK will apply all the
changes made in all tabs and close the dialog window. Clicking
the Cancel button will close the window
without applying any changes.
Clicking OK will immediately save
changes to the database (write on disk). All changes are
immediate.
If a tab label is in boldface type, this means it contains
data. If not, it has no data.
The tabs provide the following information categories of
source data:
General
The General tab lets you define basic
information about the source: its
Title, Author,
Abbreviation, and
Publication information. You can type
this information directly into the adjacent fields.
Note
The Note tab provides a place to
record various information about the source that does not
fit neatly into other categories. To add a note or modify
existing notes simply edit the text in the text entry
field.
Data
The Data tab displays
"Key/Value" pairs that may be associated with
the source. These are similar to the
"Attributes" used for other types of GRAMPS
records. The difference between these Key/Value pairs and
Attributes is that Attributes may have source references
and notes, while Key/Value data may not.
The central part of the window lists all existing
Key/Value pairs. The buttons + and
- let you add and remove pairs. To
modify the text of Key or Value, first select the desired
entry. Then click in either the Key or Value cell of that
entry and type your text. When you are done, click outside
the cell to exit editing mode.
Gallery
The Gallery tab lets you store and
display photos and other media objects associated with a
given source (for example, a photo of a birth
certificate). The central part of the window lists all
such media objects and gives you a thumbnail preview of
image files. Other objects such as audio files, movie
files, etc., are represented by a generic GRAMPS icon. The
buttons +,
Select,
Edit, and -
let you add a new image, add a reference to an existing
image, modify an existing image, and remove a media
object's link to the source. Note that the
Edit and -
buttons become available only when a media object is
selected from the list.
References
The References tab lists all the
database records that refer to this source, if any. The
list can be ordered by any of its column headings:
Type, ID, or
Name. Double-clicking an entry allows
you to view and edit the record.
Only primary objects can be shown in the
References tab: Person, Family,
Event, Place, or Media object. Secondary objects
such as Names and Attributes can only be accessed
through the primary objects to which they belong.
Editing Information About Places
To edit information about places, switch to the Places View and
select the desired entry from the list of places. Double-click
that entry or click the Edit button on
the toolbar to bring up the following Place
Editor dialog:
The main part of the window displays seven notebook tabs
containing different categories of information. Click a tab to
view or edit its contents. The bottom part of the window has
OK and Cancel
buttons. Clicking OK will apply all the
changes made in all tabs and close the dialog window. Clicking
the Cancel button will close the window
without applying any changes.
Clicking OK will immediately save
changes to the database). All changes are immediate.
If a tab label is in boldface type, this means it contains
data. If not, it has no data.
The tabs represent following categories of place data:
General
The General tab you view and edit the
basic information about the place: the
Title which labels it in the
database, City, Church
parish, County,
State, Country,
Longitude, and
Latitude. You can type this
information directly into the adjacent fields.
Other names
The Other names tab lets you view and
edit other names by which the place might be known. The
bottom part of the window lists all other names of the
place stored in the database. The top part of the window
shows the details of the currently selected name in the
list (if any). The buttons +,
Edit, and -
let you add, modify, and remove a name record. Note that
the Edit and
- buttons become available only
when a name is selected from the list.
Note
The Note tab displays any comments or
notes concerning the place. To add a note or modify
existing notes simply edit the text in the text entry
field.
Sources
The Sources tab lets you view and
edit sources relevant to a place. The central part of the
window lists all such source references stored in the
database. The buttons +,
Edit, and -
let you add, modify, and remove a source reference
associated with a place. Note that the
Edit and -
buttons become available only when a source reference is
selected from the list.
Gallery
The Gallery tab lets you store and
display photos and other media objects associated with a
given place. The central part of the window lists all such
media objects and gives you a thumbnail preview of image
files. Other objects such as audio files, movie files,
etc., are represented by a generic GRAMPS icon. The
buttons +,
Select,
Edit, and -
let you add a new image, add a reference to an existing
image, modify an existing image, and remove a media
object's link to the place. Note that the
Edit and -
buttons become available only when a media object is
selected from the list.
Internet
The Internet tab contains Internet
addresses relevant to the place. The bottom part of the
window lists all such Internet addresses stored in the
database. The top part shows the details of the currently
selected address in the list (if any). The buttons
+, Edit, and
- let you add, modify, and remove
an Internet address. The Go button
(represented by an icon with a green arrow and yellow
circle) opens your browser and takes you to the web page
corresponding to the highlighted Internet address. Note
that the Edit,
-, and Go
buttons become available only when an address is selected
from the list.
References
The References tab indicates any
database records (events or LDS ordinances) that refer to
a place. This information cannot be modified from the
Place Editor dialog. Instead, the corresponding database
record (e.g., a birth event) has to be brought up and its
place reference edited.
Editing Information About Media Objects
To edit media data, switch to the Media View and select the
desired entry in the list of sources. Double-click on that
entry or click Edit on the toolbar to
invoke the following Media Properties
Editor dialog:
A thumbnail preview of the object is presented, along with a
summary of its properties (ID, path, and object type). The
central part of the window displays five notebook tabs
containing different categories of information. Click a tab to
view or edit its contents. The bottom part of the window has
OK and Cancel
buttons. Clicking OK will apply all the
changes made in all tabs and close the dialog window. Clicking
the Cancel button will close the window
without applying any changes.
Clicking OK will immediately save
changes to the database (write on disk). All changes are
immediate.
If a tab label is in boldface type, this means it contains
data. If not, it has no data.
The tabs represent the following categories of media data:
General
The General tab lets you view and
edit the object's Title and Date. You can type this
information directly into the corresponding fields. For
the Date, you can also enter information by clicking the
LED button and invoking the Date
selection dialog.
Every media object is referred to by its Path. The user
is responsible for keeping track of the object
files. GRAMPS will only reference and display the
contents, not manage the files themselves.
Attributes
The Attributes tab lets you view and
edit particular information about the media object that
can be expressed as Attributes. The bottom part displays
the list of all such attributes stored in the
database. The top part shows the details of the currently
selected attribute in the list (if any). The buttons
+, Edit, and
- let you add, modify, or remove an
attribute. Note that the Edit and
- buttons become available only
when an attribute is selected from the list.
Notes
The Note tab provides a place to
record various information about the source that does not
fit neatly into other categories. This area is
particularly useful for recording information that does
not naturally fit into the "Parameter/Value" pairs
available to Attributes. To add a note or modify existing
notes simply edit the text in the text entry field.
References
The References tab indicates any
database records that refer to a given media object. The
list can be ordered according to any of its column
headings: Type,
ID, or
Name. Double-clicking an entry allows
you to view and edit the corresponding record.
Only primary objects can be shown in the
References tab: Person, Family,
Event, Source, or Place. The secondary objects such as
Names and Attributes, although able to refer the media
object, will only show up through their primary objects
to which they belong.
Editing Information About Events
Events are edited through the Event
Editor dialog. This dialog can be accessed from
either the Edit Person dialog or the
Marriage/Relationship dialog.
The central part of the window displays five notebook tabs
containing different categories of information. Click a tab to
view or edit its contents. The bottom part of the window has
OK and Cancel
buttons. Clicking OK will apply all the
changes made in all tabs and close the dialog window. Clicking
the Cancel button will close the window
without applying any changes.
If a tab label is in boldface type, this means it contains
data. If not, it has no data.
The tabs provide the following information categories of
the event data:
General
The General tab lets you view and
edit basic information about the event: its
Type, Date,
Place, Cause,
and Description. You can type this
information directly into the adjacent fields. The type
can be selected from available types listed in the Event
type drop-down menu. The rest of the information can be
typed in the appropriate text entry fields. Checking the
Private record box marks the event record as private and
allows it to be omitted from reports.
Sources
The Sources tab lets you view and
edit sources relevant to an event. The central part of the
window lists all such source references stored in the
database. The buttons +,
Edit, and -
let you add, modify, and remove a source reference
associated with a place. Note that the
Edit and -
buttons become available only when a source reference is
selected from the list.
Note
The Note tab provides a place to
record notes or comments about the event. To add a note or
modify existing notes simply edit the text in the text
entry field.
Witnesses
The Witnesses tab lets you view and
edit witnesses to the event. The central part of the
window lists all such witnesses stored in the
database. The buttons +,
Edit, and -
let you add, modify, and remove a witness reference to
this event (see ). Note
that the Edit and
- buttons become available only
Editing Source References
Source references connect a Source to another object and allow
you to provide additional information about the source. When
adding source references to events, places, etc., the following
dialog appears:
The dialog includes two main headings, Source
selection and Source
details. Source selection
displays the Title of the Source, its
Author, and Publication
information. The Title can be
selected from the available sources listed in the drop-down
menu. If the source you are referencing is not already in the
database, you can enter it by clicking
New... and filling out the invoked
Source Editor dialog.
The Source details section indicates the
details associated with the particular reference to this Source:
Confidence,
Volume/Film/Page,
Date, Text, and
Comments. You can choose the Confidence
level from the Confidence drop-down
menu. The remaining details can be typed in the corresponding
text entry fields.
Information in this dialog is specific to the particular
reference. A single source can be referenced many times,
and all such references will have in common the overall
source information. This dialog lets you provide
reference-specific data, such as relevant quotes, comments,
confidence, page numbers, etc., to further specify and
document the reference.
Names
Names are edited through the following Name
Editor dialog:
The top of the window shows the dialog title including the
name of the person whose name is being edited. The central
part of the window displays three notebook tabs containing
different categories of available information. You can bring
any tab to the top for viewing or editing by clicking on the
appropriate tab heading. The bottom part has
OK and Cancel
buttons. Clicking the OK button at any
time will apply all the changes made in all tabs and close the
dialog window. Clicking the Cancel
button at any time will close the window without applying any
changes.
The tab labels reflect the presence of corresponding
information: if the tab contains any data, its label appears
boldface; if the tab has no data then its label appears
regular (not bold).
The tabs provide the following information categories of the
name data:
General
The General tab allows editing of
general information about the name: given name, family
name, patronymic (a form of father's name used in some
languages, e.g. Russian), family prefix, suffix, title,
and type of the name. The information can be typed in
the appropriate text entry fields. The family name and
the type can be also selected from available choices
listed in the appropriate drop-down menus. Options allow you to adjust
specific grouping, sorting, and displaying properties of
this name, as well as to provide the date corresponding
to the name. The Grouping field
provides an alternative grouping node for a given name,
overriding the default grouping based on the family
name. This may be necessary with similar family names
that need to be grouped together -- for example Russian
names Ivanov and Ivanova are considered the same, but
difference in gender is reflected in different
spelling. To enable typing into this field, check the
Override check button. The
Sort as and Display
as determine the manner in which the name
appears in the People View and in the reports. The
Date can provide information on the
validity of this name -- use spans as necessary. Check
the Private record box to mark this
name record as private. This will give you a chance to
omit this name from being included in reports, if you
choose so among the report generation options.
Sources
The Sources tab displays
information about sources relevant to this name and
controls allowing its modification. The central part
displays the list of all such sources' references stored
in the database. The buttons +,
Edit, and
- allow you to correspondingly
add, modify, and remove a source reference to this
name. Note that the Edit and
- buttons become available only
when a source reference is selected from the list.
Note
The Note tab displays any notes
concerning the name. To add a note or modify existing
notes simply edit the text in the text entry field.
The Format option allows you to set
the appearance of the note in the output (i.e. in
reports and web pages). Selecting
Flowed will replace all multiple
spaces, tabs, and single end-of-line characters with
single space in the output. The two consecutive new
lines (i.e. an empty line) denote a new paragraph.
Selecting Preformatted will honor
all multiple spaces tabs, and new lines, so that the
output will appear as it is entered into the text entry
field.
Attributes Attributes are edited through the following
Attribute Editor dialog:
The top of the window shows the dialog title including the
name of the person whose attribute is being edited. The
central part of the window displays three notebook tabs
containing different categories of available information. You
can bring any tab to the top for viewing or editing by
clicking on the appropriate tab heading. The bottom part has
OK and Cancel
buttons. Clicking the OK button at any
time will apply all the changes made in all tabs and close the
dialog window. Clicking the Cancel
button at any time will close the window without applying any
changes.
The tab labels reflect the presence of corresponding
information: if the tab contains any data, its label appears
boldface; if the tab has no data then its label appears
regular (not bold).
The tabs provide the following information categories of
the attribute data: General
The General tab allows editing of
the most general information about the attribute: name
of the attribute and its value. The information can be
typed in the appropriate text entry fields. The
attribute name can also be selected from available
choices (if any) listed in the Attribute
drop-down menu. Check the Private
record box to mark this attribute record as
private. This will give you a chance to omit this
attribute from being included in the reports, if you
choose so among the report generation options.
Sources
The Sources tab displays
information about sources relevant to this attribute and
controls allowing its modification. The central part
displays the list of all such sources references stored
in the database. The buttons +,
Edit, and
- allow you to correspondingly
add, modify, and remove a source reference to this
attribute. Note that the Edit and
- buttons become available only
when a source reference is selected from the list.
Note
The Note tab displays any notes
concerning the attribute. To add a note or modify
existing notes simply edit the text in the text entry
field.
The Format option allows you to set
the appearance of the note in the output (i.e. in
reports and web pages). Selecting
Flowed will replace all multiple
spaces, tabs, and single end-of-line characters with
single space in the output. The two consecutive new
lines (i.e. an empty line) denote a new paragraph.
Selecting Preformatted will honor
all multiple spaces tabs, and new lines, so that the
output will appear as it is entered into the text entry
field.
Addresses Addresses are edited through the following
Address Editor dialog:
The top of the window shows the dialog title including the
name of the person whose address is being edited. The central
part of the window displays three notebook tabs containing
different categories of available information. You can bring
any tab to the top for viewing or editing by clicking on the
appropriate tab heading. The bottom part has
OK and Cancel
buttons. Clicking the OK button at any
time will apply all the changes made in all tabs and close the
dialog window. Clicking the Cancel
button at any time will close the window without applying any
changes.
The tab labels reflect the presence of corresponding
information: if the tab contains any data, its label appears
boldface; if the tab has no data then its label appears
regular (not bold).
The tabs provide the following information categories of the
address data:
General
The General tab allows editing of
the most general information about the address: date,
street address, city or county, state or province,
country, the postal code, and the phone number. The
information can be typed in the appropriate text entry
fields. Check the Private record
box to mark this address record as private. This will
give you a chance to omit this address from being
included in reports, if you choose so among the report
generation options.
Sources
The Sources tab displays
information about sources relevant to this address and
controls allowing its modification. The central part
displays the list of all such sources references stored
in the database. The buttons +,
Edit, and
- allow you to correspondingly
add, modify, and remove a source reference to this
address. Note that the Edit and
- buttons become available only
when a source reference is selected from the list.
Note
The Note tab displays any notes
concerning the address. To add a note or modify existing
notes simply edit the text in the text entry field.
The Format option allows you to set
the appearance of the note in the output (i.e. in
reports and web pages). Selecting
Flowed will replace all multiple
spaces, tabs, and single end-of-line characters with
single space in the output. The two consecutive new
lines (i.e. an empty line) denote a new paragraph.
Selecting Preformatted will honor
all multiple spaces tabs, and new lines, so that the
output will appear as it is entered into the text entry
field.
Witnesses
Witnesses are edited through the following Witness
Editor dialog:
The top of the window shows the dialog title. The central part
of the window displays information about the witness. The
bottom part has OK and
Cancel buttons. Clicking the
OK button at any time will apply all
the changes made and close the dialog window. Clicking the
Cancel button at any time will close
the window without applying any changes.
The witness name can be entered in two ways, depending upon
whether the witness is a person already stored in the database
or not (unrelated person).
If the person you would like to add as a witness is in fact
a member of the database, it is better to use the first
method below.
Person from the database
If the person's data are stored in a database, check
Person is in the database box. Then
click the Select button to invoke
Select Person dialog. Choose the
person from that dialog and click the
OK button. The
Person text field will display the
name of the person you selected.
Even though the person's name is displayed in the
Person field, it is not available
for direct editing.
Unrelated person
If the person is not in the database, make sure that
Person is in the database box is
unchecked. Then enter the name or any description of a
person into the Person text entry
field. This information is stored as entered, and this
is the only place it is stored. In other words, there
is no reference to that person in the entire database
except for this witness reference. If the person is in
fact a member of the database, it is advised to use the
former method.
The Comment text area allows you to enter
any comments concerning the witness. To add a comment or to
modify existing comments simply edit the text in the text
area.
Merging records
Sometime several records in the database turn out to be
describing the same object: same person, same place, or same
source. It could happen either when the data is entered twice
by mistake, or when new information reveals that the two
entries refer to the same person. It can also happen after
importing GEDCOM obtained from a relative, whose database
overlaps with your existing data.
Whenever you detect duplicate records, merging them a useful
way of correcting the situation.
To make a merge, exactly two records have to be selected in
the appropriate view (People View, Sources View, or Places
View). This is accomplished by selecting one entry and then
selecting another person while holding down
Ctrl key.
Merge People
There are two ways of merging personal records:
Compare and Merge and Fast
Merge, both available from the
Edit menu.
Merging people does not discard any information with
either method. The decisions you make during the merge
only affect which data will become primary and which will
become secondary for the resulting merged record.
Compare and Merge
When exactly two people are selected, choose
EditCompare
and Merge... to invoke
Compare People dialog.
The dialog allows you to make a decision on whether or
not the selected records should be merged. If you
decide that the records should not be merged, despite
similar names, you may click
Cancel to close the dialog
without making any changes. If you decide to proceed
with merging, select the appropriate
Select radio button to specify
the record to be used as the source of primary data,
then click Merge and close.
The data from the other record will be kept as
alternate data. Specifically, all names from the other
record will become alternate names of the merged
record. Similarly, parents, spouses, and children of
the other record will become alternate parents,
spouses, and children of the merged record, and so on.
Fast Merge
When exactly two people are selected, choose
EditFast
Merge to invoke
Merge People dialog.
The dialog allows you to quickly merge two records,
specifying the record to be used as the source of
primary data. The data from the other record will be
kept as alternate data. Specifically, all names from
the other record will become alternate names of the
merged record. Similarly, parents, spouses, and
children of the other record will become alternate
parents, spouses, and children of the merged record,
and so on.
If you are not certain whether or not you need to
merge the records, or which record to specify as the
source of primary data, use Compare and
Merge method described above..
Merge Sources
When exactly two sources are selected, choose
EditCompare and Merge... to invoke Merge
Sources dialog.
The dialog allows you to make a decision on whether or not
the selected records should be merged. If you decide that
the records should not be merged, despite similar titles,
you may click Cancel to close the
dialog without making any changes. If you decide to proceed
with merging, choose the appropriate radio button to specify
the title, author, abbreviated title, publication
information, and the ID to be used for the merged record,
then click OK.
Merge Places
When exactly two places are selected, choose
EditCompare and Merge...
to invoke Select title dialog.
The dialog allows you to make a decision on whether or not
the selected records should be merged. If you decide that
the records should not be merged, despite similar titles,
you may click Cancel to close the
dialog without making any changes. If you decide to proceed
with merging, choose the appropriate radio button to specify
the title of the merged record, or specify
Other and enter new text, then click
OK.
Navigation
As long as any database is open, &app; is focused on a single
person usually referred to as an Active person. This allows
you to view or modify the data concerning this person, his or
her immediate family, etc. Navigating in the database (i.e.
moving from person to person) is in fact nothing else but
changing the Active person. This section describes many
alternative ways to navigate through the database using both
the complex and the convenient interfaces &app; provides. All
these ways eventually accomplish the same thing, but some are
more convenient than others, depending what you are doing in
&app; at the moment.
Using the People View
The most intuitive way to select an active person is to use
the People View (see ). When in
the People View, just select the name of the desired person
from the list by clicking that list entry. The person you have
selected becomes active. The statusbar updates to reflect the
change of the active person.
Using the Family View
When in the Family View (see ),
you can easily navigate between the members of the displayed
family as follows:
To make the currently selected spouse the active person,
click the double-arrow button to the right of the active
person box. Alternatively, right-click into the spouse
box and select Make the selected spouse an
active person item from the context menu.
To make the currently selected parents the active family
(thereby making father the active person and mother the
selected spouse), click the right-arrow button to the
right of the active person's parents box. Alternatively,
right-click into the active person's parents box and
select Make the selected parents the active
family item from the context menu.
To make the currently selected spouse's parents the active
family (thereby making father the active person and mother
the selected spouse), click the right-arrow button to the
right of the spouse's parents box. Alternatively,
right-click into the spouse's parents box and select
Make the selected parents the active
family item from the context menu.
To make the currently selected child the active person,
click the left-arrow button to the right of the children
box. Alternatively, right-click into the children box and
select Make the selected child an active
person item from the context menu.
In addition to this, &app; provides an extensive set of
keyboard navigation options. The detailed reference to the key
bindings is found in the .
Using the Pedigree View
The Pedigree View (see ) also
allows you to move along the family tree. The benefit of this
method is that you can see more than one generation of the
family tree. Also, you can jump directly from a great-grandson
to a great-grandfather without going through the intermediate
generations.
Note that after changing the active person in the Pedigree
View, the display is re-adjusted to show four generations,
starting from the newly selected Active person. When in the
Pedigree View, you can easily navigate between the members of
the displayed family tree as follows:
To make any displayed person the active person,
double-click the line that connects to the left side of
the corresponding box.
To make a child of the currently active person (if any)
the active person, click the left arrow button to the left
of the corresponding box. If there is more than one child,
the button expands to the menu listing the children to
choose from.
To move the whole family tree one generation back, click
on the corresponding right arrow button on the right-hand
side of the display area. Clicking the upper button will
move the tree along the paternal line. Clicking the lower
button will move the tree along the maternal line.
Clicking either of these buttons is completely equivalent
to double-clicking the lines connecting to the left of the
corresponding boxes for father and mother.
You can also quickly access any of the spouses, siblings,
children, or parents of any displayed person. To do this, move
the mouse over the desired person's box and right-click to
invoke a context menu. The appropriate menu items will contain
submenus listing all spouses, siblings, children, and parents
of the corresponding person.
Advantages of using right-click menusDirect access to spouse and siblings
Complete lists of all member of all categories, not only
the preferred members.
Setting the Home Person
One and only one person in the database can be selected as the
Home person. Once the Home person is selected, moving to that
person becomes a matter of a single click, regardless of which
view you are using at the moment.
To set the Home person, first navigate to that person using
any method you like. Then choose
EditSet Home person.
Once this is done, you can move to the Home person from
anywhere in the database by simply clicking the
Home icon on the toolbar. You can also
choose
GoHome
from the menu or select Home item from
any context menu available on the right click.
Using history-based tools
&app; also features a powerful set of history-based navigation
tools. These tools are similar to those commonly used in web
browsers. They include Back and
Forward items available from the
Go
menu, context menus (available in People, Family, and Pedigree
views), and the toolbar buttons. They also include the list of
the recent selections available under the
Go
menu that allows you to jump directly to any of the recent
selections. Finally, right-clicking on the
Back and Forward
toolbar buttons invokes the popup menu with corresponding
portion of the history. Select any item from the menu to jump
directly to it.
Bookmarking People
Similar to setting the Home person, you can bookmark other
people from the database to simplify further navigation. To bookmark
a person, first navigate to that person, then choose
BookmarksAdd bookmark.
To move to that person from anywhere in the database, choose
BookmarksGo to bookmarkPerson's name.
You can manage your bookmarks by choosing
BookmarksEdit bookmarks....
This opens the following Edit Bookmarks
dialog with the list of bookmarks and the controls to modify
this list.
Finding records
To find a record in a database, first switch to the
appropriate View that provides the list of the desired
records: People, Sources, Places, or Media. Then start typing
the name of a person or the title of a Source, Place, or Media
object that you are looking for, respectively. You may also
press Ctrl+F to turn on the search mode, but
simply staring to type is also enough.
As you type, the first record in the list that is compatible
with your input will be selected.
Finding People
For more complex people searches you may want to use
filters. Enable filter controls by choosing
ViewFilter,
select the desired filter, and click Apply.
For details, see Generating Reports
Reports are the most common form of the output produced by
genealogical research. The majority of genealogical software
puts a lot of emphasis on developing nice looking reports. &app;
is no exception in this regard, offering a choice of a variety
of reports. &app; can generate reports in a multitude of open
formats, both text based and graphical. &app; can also produce
screen based reports that are convenient for viewing a summary
of your database. Finally, &app; can generate a web site
suitable for immediate posting on the Internet. All of these are
almost infinitely flexible. If you wish to modify or extend the
default format of &app; report, you can design and choose the
style for each of your reports.
All reports can be accessed through the menu by choosing
ReportsReport TypeParticular Report.
Alternatively, you can browse the complete selection of
available reports along with their brief descriptions in a
Report Selection dialog invoked by clicking
the Reports icon on the toolbar.
Substitution Values
Many of the graphical reports allow you to customize the
information on the display. Variable substituions are used
to substitute date for a particular symbol. There are two
styles of variables. The difference between the two styles
is how empty data is handled.
The first style of variables are preceeded by a '$'. If
the variable evaluates to an empty string, the variable is
replaced with the empty string. The second style of
variables are preceeded by a '%'. If the variable evaluates
to an empty string, the line that contains the variable is
removed from the output.
$n/%n
Displays the person's name in the form of FirstName LastName
$N/%N
Displays the person's name in the form of LastName, FirstName
$i/%i
Displays the GRAMPS ID associated with the person.
$b/%b
Displays the person's date of birth
$B/%B
Displays the person's place of birth
$d/%d
Displays the person's date of death
$D/%D
Displays the person's place of death
$s/%s
Displays the name of the person's preferred spouse in
the form of FirstName LastName
$S/%S
Displays the name of the person's preferred spouse in
the form of LastName, FirstName.
$m/%m
Displays the marriage date of the person and the preferred
spouse.
$M/%M
Displays the place assocated with the marriage of the
person and the preferred spouse.
Books
Currently, the only available report under this category is
the Book Report.
The Book Report creates a single document (i.e. a Book)
containing a collection of graphical and textual reports.
Consequently, this allows for a very rich set of documents
that &app; can produce.
When Book Report is selected, the following book configuration
dialog appears:
The Book name text entry field is used to
save the book (a set of configured selections) for future use.
The top pane lists the items available for inclusion in the
book. The bottom pane lists the currently selected items in
the order they will appear in the book.
The horizontal set of buttons by the Book
name field operates on the whole book. Click the
Clear button to clear all items from
the current book. Click the Save button
to save the current book (under the name typed in the
Book name text entry field) for future
use.
Saving the book also saves the configuration for each item.
Click the Open button to load the book
from the list of previously saved books. Finally, click the
Edit books button to invoke the
editable list of available books.
The vertical set of buttons to the right of the bottom pane
operates on the selected book item. Click the
Add button to add selected item from
the available list to the current book. Click the
Remove button to remove an item from
the current book. Use Up and
Down to change the items order in the
current book. Click the Setup button to
configure the options of the selected item of the current
book.
The configuration dialogs invoked by
Setup are item-specific. If you choose
not to configure the item, same defaults will be used for all
needed options. The common option for almost all book items is
the center person: the person on whom the item is
centered. Thanks to this option, you can create a book with
items centered on different people (e.g. your mom's and dad's
ancestors as separate chapters). By default, the center person
is set to the active person.
Almost all items available for inclusion in the book are
textual or graphical reports, and are therefore available in
the form of standalone reports. The exception is the following
items which are only available as book items:
Title Page
This item produces a customized Title page. You can
configure the text of title, subtitle, and the footer of
the page. An image can be optionally placed between the
subtitle and the footer. Because of its
configurability, this item can be used to create title
pages for the whole book, its chapter, or even a single
item.
Custom Text
This item produces a page with three paragraphs, each
containing custom text. The appearance of the text can
be adjusted by using custom styles. This item was meant
to be used for epigraphs, dedications, explanations,
notes, and so forth.
Code Generators
This category contains reports that produce code intended to
be run through the computer, rather than the usual formatted
output for human reading. The only code generator currently
available in &app; is the Relationship Graph producing the
GraphViz description of the graph.
The Relationship Graph creates a complex relationship graph in
GraphViz format. The GraphViz dot tool can
transform the graph into postscript, jpeg, png, vrml, svg, and
other formats. GraphViz tools are freely available from the
GraphViz
site. Specific options for this report include filter
and number of generations considered, as well as several
GraphViz-specific options related to pagination, color, and
details of the graph.
If you are not interested in GraphViz code itself and just
want to generate graphical output, &app; can do it for you
under the hood. Look for Relationship
Graph in the Graphical Reports category, Graphical Reports
Graphical reports represent information in forms of charts and
graphs. Most of the options are common among graphical
reports, therefore they will be described only once, at the
end of this section. The few options which are specific to a
given report will be described directly in that report's
entry.
The following graphical reports are currently available in
&app;:
Ancestor Chart
This report generates the chart of people who are
ancestors of the Active person. Specific options include
the number of generations considered and the format of
the displayed entries.
Ancestor Chart (Wall Chart)
This report is similar to the Ancestor Chart report. It
provides more options which make it useful for
generating huge charts suitable for a poster or a wall
chart. These options include the ability to compress the
report (getting rid of an empty space) and the option to
fit the whole chart on to a single page. In the latter
case, the contents of the chart is scaled down
appropriately.
Descendant Graph
This report generates a graph of people who are
descendants of the Active person. Specific options
include the format of the displayed entries.
Fan Chart
This report produces a chart resembling a fan, with Active
person in the center, parents the the semicircle next to
it, grandparents in the next semicircle, and so on, for a
total of five generations.
Relationship Graph
This report creates a complex relationship graph in
GraphViz format and then converts into graphical output
running it through the the GraphViz
dot tool behind the scene. Specific
options for this report include filter, options for
dates and places for the events, and whether to include
URLs and IDs for individuals and families. There are
also several GraphViz-specific options related to
pagination, color, and details of the graph.
Statistics Chart
This report can collect and display a wealth of
statistical data about your database. Specific options
include filter, sorting methods, and additional birth-
and gender-based limit for inclusion into statistics.
You can also set the minimum number of items to qualify
for the bar chart, so that the charts with fewer items
will generate a pie chart instead. The Chart
Selection tab allows you to check which
charts you want to include in your report.
Timeline Graph
This report outputs the list of people with their
lifetimes represented by intervals on a common
chronological scale. Specific options include filter,
sorting method, and the title of the report.
Common options for graphical reports are the filename of the
output, the format of the output, selected style, page size
and orientation. Optionally, the reports can be immediately
opened with the default application.
The options used in reports are persistent: each report
remembers its options used last time.
Text Reports
Text reports represent the desired information as formatted
text. Most of the options are common among text reports,
therefore they will be described only once, at the end of this
section. The options which are specific to a given report will
be described directly in that report's entry.
The following text reports are currently available in &app;:
Ahnentafel Report
This report lists the active person and his or her
ancestors along with their vital data. The people are
numbered in a special way which is an established
standard called Ahnentafel. The active person is given
number 1. His or her father and mother have numbers 2
and 3, respectively. This rule holds for every person
while going back in generations: father's parents are
numbered 4 and 5, and mother's parents are numbered 6
and 7, fathers always numbered with even and mothers
with odd numbers. Therefore, for any person having
number N in this tree, the numbers of father and mother
are 2N and 2N+1, respectively.
Complete Individual Report
This report provides individual summaries similar to
that of the Individual Summary report. The advantage of
this report is the specific filter option. Depending on
the filter choice (active person only, his or her
descendants, his or her ancestors, or entire database),
the report may contain from one to many individual
summaries. Another option for this report is the
inclusion of source information when listing events.
Comprehensive Ancestors Report
This report produces a comprehensive description of
ancestors of the active person. The highlights of this
report include elaborate layout, images of children,
present and former spouses, and source
citations. Specific options: number of backward
generations to consider, whether to cite sources, and
whether to break pages between generations.
Descendant Report
This report produces a brief description of descendants
of the active person. Specific options: number of
forward generations to consider.
Detailed Ancestral Report
This report covers in detail the ancestors of the active
person. It includes vital data (birth and death) as well
as marriages. Specific options: number of backward
generations to consider, as well as a variety of options
regarding the exact contents to include.
Detailed Descendant Report
This report covers in detail the descendants of the
active person. It includes vital (birth and death)
information as well as marriages. Specific options:
number of forward generations to consider.
FTM Style Ancestral Report
This report creates an ancestral report similar to that
produced by the Family Tree Maker (tm) program. It
covers in detail the active person and his/her ancestors
It includes vital information as well as marriages,
children, and notes. Specific options: number of
backward generations to consider.
FTM Style Descendant Report
This report creates a descendant report similar to that
produced by the Family Tree Maker (tm) program. It
covers in detail the active person and his/her
descendants. It includes vital information as well as
marriages, children, and notes. Specific options: number
of forward generations to consider.
Family Group Report
This creates a family group report, showing information
on a set of parents and their children. Specific
options: the spouse (available only if the active person
has more than one spouse).
Individual Summary
This report produces a detailed summary on the active
person. The report includes all the facts known to the
database about that person.
Common options for text reports are the filename of the
output, the format of the output, selected style, page size
and orientation. For HTML reports, there is no page
information. Instead, HTML options include the choice of the
HTML template, either available in &app; or a custom template
defined by you. Optionally, the reports can be immediately
opened with the default application.
The options used in reports are persistent: each report
remembers its options used last time.
View Reports
View reports are representing overall summaries of the
database information available immediately for on-screen
viewing. The following view reports are currently available
in &app;:
Number of ancestors
This report displays the number of ancestors of the
active person.
Summary of the database
This report displays the overall statistics concerning
number of individuals of each gender, various incomplete
entries statistics, as well as family and media
statistics.
Web PageThe only available report in this category
is the Narrative Web Site report. It generates a
web site (that is, a set of linked web pages), for
a set of selected individuals.
Narrative Web SiteIntroduction
&app; 2.0.6 introduced the Narrative Web generator.
The new tool provides considerably more functionality
than the older web generator. Instead of using HTML
templates to customize the pages, CSS style sheets are used.
More information is now displayed about each person,
along with information about sources, places, and media
objects. Introduction pages can be added to provide additional
information, such as family history.Selecting the output
Genealogy records can generate a lot of files. Many web
servers have a difficult time with many files in a single
directory. The Narrative Web Generator strives to keep the
number of files per directory to a managable level. To do
this, a hierarchy of directores is created. The generated
files names are not intuitive, but are unique per person.
Subsequent runs will geneate identical file names, making
it easy to replace files.
By default, the output files are written to the specified
directory. Because of the number of files and directories
that are created, it may be difficult to transfer the files
to an external web host. To aid in this, you may directly
create a gzip'd tar file to more easily upload the data.
This is the format that should be used if you would like
to take advantage of the free genealogy page hosting at the
GRAMPS web hosting site.To select the gzip'd tar file, select the Store
web pages in .tar.gz archive option.Applying a filter
Like the previous web page generator, and most of the other
&app; reports, you can control what is included in the output
by choosing a filter. Several default filters are provided for
you, but you are free to use the Custom Filter Editor tool to
create your own.Any person matching this filter who is not excluded due
to the privacy rules, will be included in the output. The default
filter includes all people in the database.Applying a style sheetGRAMPS provides six built in style sheets for your web page.
Each of these style sheets produces a unique look for your pages.
The generated style sheet is named narrative.css.
You may edit this file if you wish to further customize your
site.
If you make modifications to your style sheet, you need to be aware
the regenerating the pages with the same output directory will
overwrite your changes to this file. To prevent this from happening,
make sure you choose No style sheet for subsequent
runs.Character set encoding
Because of GRAMPS internationalization ability, the default character
set for the HTML pages is UTF-8. This provides support for virtually
all characters.The Apache web server is sometimes misconfigured to override
the character set specified in an HTML page. This causes problems with
the UTF-8 character set generated by GRAMPS, distorting characters on
the screen.If your web server is misconfigured and you do not have priveledge
to fix the configururation, you may solve this problem by overriding the
default character set to match what your web server may be expecting.Copyright noticeInternational copyright law reserves all rights to your data.
You own the data, and people must get your permission to use it.
In genealogy, however, sharing data is a common ideal. It this case, you
may wish to grant the user more rights.While the default for GRAMPS is to place a notice indicating that
all rights are reserved, we give you the option to place your site under
one of several of the Create Commons licenses. With a Creative Commons
license, you grant user's certain permission to use your data without
requiring them to contact you directly for permission.See the Creative
Commons web site for more information.Controlling page generationThree additional pages can be generated by the web page generator.
The Home page is a page that will display an image and a whatever text
you wish. To enable this page, choose a Media Object
from the Home Media/Note ID menu on the Page
Generation tab. If the Media Object contains an image, the image
is displayed at the top of the page. If the Media Object contains a Note,
the Note's text is used for the text of the page. A second page, the
Introduction page, works similarly. Just choose the Media Object in the
Introduction Media/Note ID menu.If you choose to include a contact page, the researcher information
stored in the database is displayed, along with the information specified
in the Publisher contact/Note ID menu. Please use
this page with caution,
since you may consider your contact information to be private.PrivacyPrivacy of personal information is an important issue on the web
today. &app; tries to give you control over the information that is presented.
&app; provides two options to control the privacy of your information.
If you select the Do not include records marked private
option, any data that is marked as private will not be displayed on the
generated site. If you select Restrict information on living people,
&app; will attempt to determine which people have the potential of still
being alive, and will omit these people from the database. Some countries
have laws that indicate that a certain number of years must pass after
someone's death before information can be published. The Years
to restrict from person's death option allows you to specifiy
how many years a person must be deceased before the information is included.
Please note that it is your responsibility to double check all
information in the pages for any privacy information. &app; cannot be held
responsible for any privacy issues.Adding custom code your pagesIf you are not interested in customizing your pages, you may skip
the section.The previous web generator allowed you to customize your pages
using HTML templates. Your data would be substituted for certain markers
in the code.This method proved to be too cumbersome for most users. The Narrative
Web Page Generator introduces a simpler mechanism. On the Page
Generation tab, you may specify text (including HTML code) that
will be inserted into each page, separately for the header and the
footer.To create this code, you need to create a Media Object marked as an
internal note. To create this, add a new Media Object in the Media View,
and select the internal note option. You may then enter your HTML code.
To insert the code from the internal notes into the web pages,
select the appropriate Media Objects from the HTML user
header and HTML user footer menus.
Two div sections will be added to the pages - userheader and userfooter.
The corresponding HTML code is inserted into the HTML page surrounded by div
markers. You can customize your style sheet to provide additional formatting
and positioning information to control these sections.Running Tools
&app; tools allow you to perform various types of analysis of
your genealogical data. Typically, the tools do not produce
output in form of printouts or files. Instead, they produce
screen output immediately available for the
researcher. However, when appropriate, you can save the
results of running a tool into a file. Tools present one of
the major strengths of &app; compared to the most genealogical
software.
The tools can be accessed through the menu by choosing
ToolsTool SectionParticular Tool.
Alternatively, you can browse the complete selection of
available tools along with their brief descriptions in a
Tool Selection dialog invoked by clicking
the Tools icon on the toolbar.
Analysis and Exploration
This section contains tools which analyze and explore the
database, but do not alter it. The following analysis and exploration
tools are currently available in &app;:
Compare individual events
This tool compares events across the selected group of
people. The people for this comparison are chosen with
the use of custom filters. The custom filters can be
created in the Custom Filter Editor (see ) that can be invoked by
clicking the Custom Filter Editor
button. The resulting table produced by this tool can be
saved as a spreadsheet.
Interactive descendant browser
This tool builds a tree with the active person being the
root. Children branch from their parents in the usual
manner. Use this tool for a quick glance of a person's
descendants.
Double-clicking on tree node will bring up the
Edit Person dialog allowing to
view or modify the personal data.
Database Processing
This section contains tools which may modify your database.
The tools from this section are used mostly for finding and
correcting errors in the data. The following database
processing tools are currently available in &app;:
The modifications will only be performed upon your explicit
consent, except for the automatic fixes performed by
Check and repair database tool.
Check and repair database
This tool checks the database for integrity problems,
fixing the problems it can. Specifically, the tool is
checking for:
Broken family links. These are the cases when a
person's record refers to a family while the
family's record does not refer to that person, and
vice versa.
Missing media objects. The missing media object is
the object whose file is referenced in the database
but does not exist. This can happen when the file is
accidentally deleted, renamed, or moved to another
location.
Empty families. These are the family entries which
have no reference to any person as their member.
Parent relationship. This checks all families to
ensure that father and mother are not mixed up. The
check is also made that parents have different
gender. If they have common gender then their
relationship is renamed to "Partners".
Extract information from names
This tool searches the entire database and attempts to
extract titles and nicknames that may be embedded in a
person's Given name field. If any
information could be extracted, the candidates for
fixing will be presented in the table. You may then
decide which to repair as suggested and which not to.
Find possible duplicate people
This tool searches the entire database, looking for the
entries that may represent the same person.
Fix capitalization of family names
This tool searches the entire database and attempts to
fix the capitalization of family names. The aim is to
have conventional capitalization: capital first letter
and lower case for the rest of the family name. If
deviations from this rule are detected, the candidates
for fixing will be presented in the table. You may then
decide which to repair as suggested and which not to.
Rename personal event types
This tool allows all the events of a certain name
to be renamed to a new name.
Reorder &app; IDs
This tool reorders the &app; IDs according to the
defaults of &app;.
Debug
This section contains debugging tools that are not of general
interest for many of the users of &app;. If you're not
interested in debugging or developing &app; you may safely
skip this section.
Python evaluation window
Enter expression into the Evaluation
Window, get the output in Output
Window. Any errors should end up in the
Error Window.
Reload plugins
Makes an attempt to reload all plugins.
This tool is itself a plugin, but it will not reload itself!
Show uncollected objects
Provides the window listing all uncollected objects.
Depending on the system settings, recently abandoned GUI
objects may still be uncollected.
Utilities
This section contains tools allowing you to perform a simple
operation on a portion of data. The results can be saved in
your database, but they will not modify your existing data.
The following utilities are currently available in &app;:
Custom Filter Editor
The Custom Filter Editor builds custom filters that can be
used to select people included in reports, exports, and
other tools and utilities. This is in fact a very powerful
tool in genealogical analysis.
When you launch it, the User defined
filters dialog appears that lists all the filters
(if any) previously defined by you. Click the
Add... button to define a new filter.
Once you have designed your filters, you can edit, test, and
delete selected filters using the
Edit...,
Test..., and
Delete buttons, respectively. All the
filters displayed in the list will be automatically saved
along with your database and will be available with
subsequent sessions of &app;.
The changes made to the filters only take effect when you
click the Apply and close button.
Clicking the Add... button invokes the
following Define filter dialog:
Type the name for your new filter into the
Name field. Enter any comment that
would help you identify this filter in the future into the
Comment field. Add as many rules to the
Rule list as you would like to your
filter using Add... button. If the
filter has more than one rule, select one of the
Rule operations. This allows you to
choose whether all rules must apply, only one (either) rule
must apply, or exactly one (either) rule must apply, in
order for the filter to generate a match. If your filter has
only one rule, this selection has no effect.
Check Return values that do not match the filter
rules to invert the filter rule. For example,
inverting "has a common ancestor with I1" rule will match
everyone who does not have a common ancestor with that
person).
Clicking the Add... button invokes
the following Add Rule dialog:
The pane on the left-hand side displays available filter
rules arranged by their categories in an expandable
tree. For detailed filter rule reference, see . Click on the arrows to
fold/unfold the appropriate category. Select the rule from
the tree by clicking on its name. The right-hand side
displays the name, the description, and the values for the
currently selected rule. Once you are satisfied with your
rule selection and its values, click
OK to add this rule to the rule list
of the currently edited filter. Clicking
Cancel will abort adding the rule to
the filter.
A filter you have already designed may be used as a rule
for another filter. This gives you nearly infinite
flexibility in custom-tailoring your selection criteria
that can be later used in most of the exports, reports,
and some of the tools (such as comparing individual
events).
Scratch Pad
This tool provides a temporary note pad to store database
records for easy reuse. In short, this is a sort of the
copy-and-paste functionality extended from textual objects
to other types of records used in &app;.
Scratch Pad makes extensive use of drag-and-drop technique.
To invoke Scratch Pad, either choose
ToolsUtilitiesScratch Pad
or click the ScratchPad button on the
toolbar. The following window will appear:
Scratch Pad supports addresses, attributes (both personal
and family), events (both personal and family), names, media
objects references, source references, URLs, and of course
textual information of notes and comments. To store any type
of these records, simply drag the existing record on to the
Scratch Pad from the corresponding editor dialog. To reuse
the record, drag it from the Scratch Pad on to the
corresponding place in the editor, e.g. Address tab,
Attribute tab, etc.
Some objects are showing the link icon on the left. This
indicates that dragging such selection will produce a
reference to an existing object, not copy the object
itself.
For example, the media object file will not be duplicated.
Instead, the reference will be made to an existing media
object, which will result in the local gallery entry.
Scratch Pad storage is persistent within a single &app;
session. Closing the window will not lose the stored
records. However, exiting &app; will.
Other toolsGenerate SoundEx codes
This utility generates SoundEx codes for the names of
people in the database. Please visit the NARA Soundex Indexing page to
learn more about Soundex Indexing System.
Relationship calculator
This utility calculates and displays the relationship
of any person to the active person.
Verify the database
This utility allows you to verify the database based
on the set of criteria specified by you.
Difference between Verify tool and previously
described Check tool
The Check tool detects inconsistencies in the
database structure. The Verify tool, however, is
detecting the records that do not satisfy your
particular criteria.
For example, you may want to make sure that nobody in
your database had children at the age of 98. Based on
common sense, such a record would indicate an
error. However, it is not a consistency error in the
database. Besides, someone might have a child at the
age of 98 (although this rarely happens). The Verify
tool will display everything that violates your
criteria so that you can check whether the record is
erroneous or not. The ultimate decision is yours.