RootsMagic: pros and cons

LesleyB · Post by **LesleyB** » Fri Jan 06, 2006 7:46 pm

Hi Rab
When you get around to designing the program,

I'd like text boxes for:

1. Deaths: the death informant, usual residence at time of death and age at death! ('cos perceived age at death doesn't always agree with the "date of death - date of birth = " arithmetic!!)

2. Marriages: Minister's name and witnesses at marriages, and a box for thier relationshipto bride and/or groom, if known.

3. Births: Birth informant

4. Occupations

...and probably quite a few other things!

Best wishes
Lesley

Rab · Post by **Rab** » Fri Jan 06, 2006 9:19 pm

LOL, look out for "Rab's Genealogy Doofer 2027" when it hits the shelves.

Good idea. With FTM I usually record the informants in the notes of the source data. That only appears though in specific reports as far as I have seen. You can though put in multiple occupations in FTM which is one good thing.

One thing I liked when using "The Master Genealogist" which is not apparent in FTM2005 is the automatic inserting of dates and facts for individuals. For example as soon as you create an individual any census dates for the living period of that person are automatically inserted. It might not sound much but when you have lots of returned for lots oof individuals it takes away some of the monotony. If you enter a child too then that child fact automaticall appears in the facts of their parents when you open a window. That sort of thing for informants too would be good if they are included in your tree.

CatrionaL · Post by **CatrionaL** » Fri Jan 06, 2006 9:51 pm

lbathgate wrote: I'd like text boxes for:

1. Deaths: the death informant, usual residence at time of death and age at death! ('cos perceived age at death doesn't always agree with the "date of death - date of birth = " arithmetic!!)

2. Marriages: Minister's name and witnesses at marriages, and a box for thier relationshipto bride and/or groom, if known.

3. Births: Birth informant

4. Occupations

Hi Lesley

Not wanting to do Rab out of a job, but...........

The Legacy Deluxe program has a wee text box which can be opened up alongside births, deaths, christenings and burials and in which witnesses and any other info or queries can be placed.. There's also a mariage notebook, to use in the same way.I also have the possibility of entering all the occupations with their dates and places, though only one is permanently "on show"

regards from a happy Legacy user

Catriona :

Rab · Post by **Rab** » Fri Jan 06, 2006 9:53 pm

CatrionaL wrote:Not wanting to do Rab out of a job

Be my guest. Who wants to work when you have time to play.

LesleyB · Post by **LesleyB** » Fri Jan 06, 2006 11:08 pm

Hi Catriona
I use Legacy Deluxe, but I had forgotten about those little boxes

However, I like to put all the death info in in the same area along with the cause of death in the notes section. I do use the marriage notes though, but when I started I didn't put in all the info, witnesses & etc. - I do now. I thought that if there had been little boxes for this info I might have been more disciplined from the begining! ....(fat chance!!)

Are you using the "events" area for occupations? I know there is an "occupations" label in there. I tend to put the whole lot in chronological sequence in the "general notes" bit. Maybe I should use "events" more....glad you made me think about this!

Best wishes from a probably not-entirely-efficient user of the program's many features

Lesley

Rab · Post by **Rab** » Fri Jan 06, 2006 11:34 pm

I haven't used Legacy but I know what you mean from the other applications I have used. It would be good to have informants available on the info screen. It would be good if you could choose an informant from your existing tree, where applicable, so you could place that person in a location by date when you later look at their details and for any report on that person.

LesleyB · Post by **LesleyB** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 12:00 am

Hi Rab

It would be good if you could choose an informant from your existing tree, where applicable, so you could place that person in a location by date when you later look at their details and for any report on that person.

Now that is a good idea!!
I sometimes have sons or daughters noted for a person with scanty info dates for the very reason that they were an informant and little else is known about them. On first look at it, if I've not been up that branch for a bit, I'm flummoxed as to where the heck I got that person from - why are they there??? Only a dig around in the notes reveals the reasoning behind it. But following the recent post above, if I was using "events" in Legacy I could in fact add a category called "informant" (it doesn't already exist) and add the details - ...so as soon as I looked at that persons lack of dates etc. I would see they had been an "informant" I suppose. Bit I think your idea of being able to choose the informant from the existing list is inspired.

Can't you just get the source code for Legacy or a similiar prog and add bits??* You could re-release it as, er, Legacy "Rab's TS edition"

If I were to add "events" for all the folk in my tree I doubt I'd be on TS for many months....

Best wishes
Lesley
*I feel I need to make it quite clear here that this is a joke - no infringement of copyright of source codes of any software is being suggested or encouraged in any way whatsoever!

Rab · Post by **Rab** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 12:18 am

I hate that feeling of opening a new certificate and seeing a name on the page, anywhere, that you recognise. Was that an informant or was that someone who married X, Y or Z? So you trawl through all the certificates again because the person is not indexed. Happened to me load of times. So much so that I've actually had to create an Excel spreadsheet running beside FTM to that includes informants and witnesses. Would be good if you could have a table somewhere where those names could be looked up even if they are not a member of your tree.

A small frustrating anoyance of mine.

StewL · Post by **StewL** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 12:20 am

Lesley

I just updraded Legacy to the Deluxe version myself a few days ago. But having had a stomach virus for a while, I still havent got my head around all the new bells and whistles in the upgrade

I have noticed a few new features, and good point about adding a new category. But like you it would take a while to amend all the entries I already have in the programme. But I will get round to it slowly. I will probably start with the causes of death, and place the informants in the notes section. But of course when I start doing this is another story

CatrionaL · Post by **CatrionaL** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 12:26 am

Lesley

I use the "events" windows all the time and find them really helpful. They make a good checklist for what I have and what I still need to find for each individual. I've added quite a few of my own categories.

Rab
I started a spreadsheet ages ago for all the "strays" who appeared on certificates, people who might well be related but not quite sure. I have one column headed "Found" and it's been amazing the number on the list who now have an annotation"Cousin of so and so", "uncle of machin truc", "brother-in-law of A.N.Other". Without this spreadsheet I'm sure I would have a few more brick walls.

Catriona