GenealogyTools

Genealogy Software Tutorials for Mac & PC

Mac Software

The Secret to Correcting and Preventing Broken Photo and Multimedia Links in Reunion 9

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Moving genealogy photos and other multimedia files around can wreak havoc on Reunion 9. This is because Reunion stores links to the files in the family file rather than duplicating the files. This is a good thing because it preserves disk space on your Mac, but it can result in broken links if you move your files after adding them to Reunion.

You’re gonna love this! A simple preference setting can eliminate this problem for you. If you use the GenealogyTools recommended folder structure it can correct existing broken links and prevent them in the future. If you use a different folder structure this tip is still effective. It just means you’ve got to figure out for yourself what folders to configure in the preference setting. Let me show you how it’s done. Just watch this video from the MacGenealogist Archives:

In it I demonstrate the problem and how to make the preference change that will correct and prevent it in the future.

How to Link Images to Multiple People in iFamily for Leopard

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Sometimes it’s appropriate to have an image applied to more than one person in your family history database. iFamily for Leopard includes a simple, space-saving way to add an image to one person then link it to other people. This allows you to avoid having multiple copies of the image in the iFamilyData/Pictures folder on your Mac. The software will also list people who reference that photo.

In this video, Linking Images to Multiple People in Mac Genealogy Software iFamily for Leopard, I show you how I linked a four-generation photo to the my pictured siblings, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and me. You will find that after viewing this you will be able to do the same for your images.

MacFamilyTree Updated to 5.3.3

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Synium recently released an update to their Mac genealogy database software, MacFamilyTree. The 5.3.3 update will be offered when you next start the software if you are connected to the Internet. According to their website and my exploration, the update includes:

  • Improved timeline chart including a new timebar
  • The number of generations supported in the ancestor chart was increased from 20 to 30
  • Improved GEDCOM importer
  • Bug fixes in date parser
  • Search function improved
  • Localization fixes
  • Many smaller improvements

I re-checked all the problems I noted in my recent review of MacFamilyTree 5.3 Beta. None of them appear to have been fixed. I have since discovered the reason my dear, and still living, grandmother was reported as dead in the genogram was a loose nut behind the keyboard: me. In case you haven’t discovered it, there is a preference which will make MacFamilyTree assume a person is dead if a death event is not present and they would be over a certain age. It was set to 90. My grandmother, bless her heart, turned 92 in August.

In this video, Walkthrough of Mac Genealogy Software MacFamilyTree Version 5.3.3 Update, I show you the visible changes to the timeline and ancestor charts.

Capturing Quality of Genealogy Data in Reunion for Mac

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Analyzing the quality of a cited source is important to reaching sound genealogical conclusions. This is true not only when you initially record the source information and reach a conclusion, but in the future. You may find information that contradicts what you have and need to reconsider the soundness of your conclusion. The source quality is also relevant to other genealogists and historians as they consider your conclusions. For these reasons it is best to record the quality with the information in your genealogy software.
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Routine Photo Management Tasks in iFamily for Leopard

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The context diagram in iFamily for Leopard can display a photo above each person. This is a great way to harness the face recognition part of your brain to make finding people quicker as well as add flavor. Storing photos of relatives in iFamily for Leopard is also a great way to organize them. You can even annotate them by using the transcribe feature as demonstrated in a previous screencast.

In this screencast I show you how to use iFamily for Leopard to:

  • crop photos
  • correct a discolored black and white photo
  • select which photo appears in the context diagram for a given person

Please open iFamily for Leopard, play this video, Routine Photo Management in Mac Genealogy Software iFamily for Leopard, and follow along. After doing so you will have the knowledge and experience to move beyond just having photos. You’ll be ready to improve the quality of your family photos.