3 replies to this topic

[Rick Landrum]

Media & Source Naming Process

I am revisiting these two topics in order to pass along my many thanks to everyone who posted hints and advice regarding how to handle sources and media obtained from Ancestry.com through TreeShare.

I have concluded that I will no longer use TreeShare to post sources or media to my Roots Magic tree. (At least until TreeShare does a better job of handling the following issues).

There are several reasons for this:

1. Sources and Fact Types posted by TreeShare usually will not match my templates in use in RM. Sources that are essentially the same will be duplicated if Tree Share posts them.
2. TreeShare does not post master source citation details and leaves these tabs blank.
3. TreeShare will post media to my Media Directory with an Ancestry file ID name consisting of number and letter strings, which is unidentifiable to the reader. This makes finding and identifying the file in my media directory, by person or event, very difficult.

My alternative is to use the following process (It works for both RM WebHints and TreeShare, as well as with other Genealogy software). I use TreeShare as an “extended” webhint tool. This process avoids the problems previously mentioned.

1. Review the Webhint or TreeShare record on Ancestry and determine if it should be loaded to my tree in RM.
2. If yes, add a new fact, and master source, to the tree member’s profile in RM. (This allows use of my “standard” fact types and master sources. If necessary, a new fact type, or master source, can be created in RM). If no, close the hint.
3. Copy master source citation details, from Ancestry.com hint record, and paste into the master source detail tab for the tree member’s fact source.
4. I copy and rename every image and PDF during the download process, and save the new file into my media directory appropriate subfolder. I name the media using my set of media naming templates. (This avoids both duplication and the use of the Ancestry.com media ID.)  I then add the media to the appropriate fact or source in my TM tree member’s profile.

In addition, I use my own master source naming templates. This avoids having essentially duplicate sources in my RM source list. I also add a prefix to the master source name (examples – [CEN] =census, [BR] =birth record, etc.), followed by my standard master source naming templates. This forces the RM master source list to sort by the prefix and makes identifying duplicates for merging or editing much easier. (So far as I can tell, the master source prefix does not affect reports, GEDCOM’s, or TreeShare updates to Ancestry.com, and changes in master sources are passed through to all citations using that source.)

 

This process may seem slow and “clunky” (and it is) but I prefer to call it “one and done”. I do not have to go back and edit or correct records brought in by TreeShare. I am using this process going forward for all newly added records. Over time I plan to edit all of my existing records to bring them into compliance.

Thanks again to all for your help and ideas

Rick

 

[Jerry Bryan]

Your process is essentially the same as mine. I think it's a case of form follows function - this is what is required to get the job done.

 

The development of my processes took place over many years, and I did my processes over again far too many times until they reached a level of maturity and usefulness that I could live with. The development of my processes also predated the release of TreeShare, and I quickly concluded that TreeShare was completely incompatible with my processes. TreeShare's "sync" process - which is not a true sync - is also far too labor intensive. I only "sync" from RM to ancestry, and I have a tree on ancestry only for the purposes of seeing RM's Web hints for ancestry.

 

Jerry

[Rick Landrum]

Jerry,

I agree completely. Sounds like you had a big head start on me. I've learned fairly quickly however, that TreeShare was causing me more trouble than it was worth. It and WebHints are very helpful in discovering new information, but not in syncing. Wish I'd known then, what I know now, and I would have not wasted so much time. But that is always the way I guess.

 

By the way, all this copying and pasting back and forth between RM and Ancestry led me to another discovery. I found two free software programs that are very helpful in managing my clipboard, and makes the task of copying and pasting data much easier. They were new to me, and I'm sure there are others, but here goes -

QuickTextPaste  <http://www.softwareo.../QuickTextPaste>  and ClipClip  <https://clipclip.com/>

 

Rick

[KFN]

Rick,

You are find out now why I never thought in FTM that sync was at all important, and marveled at why not having it was the reason people never considered other programs to record their genealogy research. In my world as a librarian it is very important to maintain control over the data captured and sourcing conventions used in my database.