Copy entities across genealogies

This tool helps you copy genealogy individuals and complete family branches from one genealogy to another.

From a main entity, this tool can to copy it, attach it, or merge it to a different genealogy and bring along some or all the family tree linked to that main entity.

This main entity can be any entity type, an individual, a family, a note, a media, etc.

If media files are linked to the main entity and are to be copied as well to the receiving genealogy, Ancestris will offer to copy the media files as well and attach them properly to the newly copied media entities.

This tool also lets you do this within the same genealogy although it makes less sense to do that.

This tool is also accessible when using Drag-n-Drop on an entity, and from the Context menu of an entity.

PICTURE

Pre-requisites

Both genealogies must be of the same Gedcom version and version 7 is necessary when using Associations.

Description

Usage

Across different genealogies

Here we consider the situation where both genealogies are different, which is the most common need.

Let's call "Source genealogy" the genealogy from which you want to extract information.
Let's call "Target genealogy" the genealogy into which the extracted information will be stored.

etc...

Copying Media files

Reminder: media files are regular image, videos, sound, etc. files that are linked to the Gedcom genealogy data using file addresses called file paths.
Each piece of genealogy data that needs to reference a Media uses a FILE property in Ancestris to store the file path to the media file. This helps Ancestris find the file and display it.

If some of the entities you copy across are Media entities, you will want the corresponding files to be stored among your other media files.

For remote files, those using a web address, you may decide to leave the files remotely, or to download them. Either way, we suggest you to use the Ancestris Media manager after the entities are copied across. The media manager includes a tool to download remote files. In the tool described in this page, Ancestris will not alter their path and will copy them leaving the file path unchanged.
For local files, those using a local file path, Ancestris will make a copy of the media files and store them in a directory of your choice - the target root directory - and modify the file path accordingly.

A number of questions may arise.

Should the target root directory be underneath the Gedcom file directory (relative target directory) or not (absolute target directory) ?
Can more than one target root directory be defined?
Can the file path be simplified in case the source file path is a long complex structure?
Can different files be put in the same directory or vice-versa, can files within the same directory be put in different ones?
What if a file path is relative and an absolute directory is provided? and vice-versa?
What if a file is not found?

Choice of Medias target root directory

Only one target directory can be defined. It does not mean that all files will be in this directory, but that this directory will be a root directory and the file path structure will define correponding sub-directories to store the media files. Hence there is much less need for defining more than one root directory.

We highly recommend that you indicate a relative directory, i.e. a directory in or underneath the directory of your Gedcom file.

You can choose otherwise and indicate an absolute directory. This will force all files paths to be absolute for these newly added media files, including file paths that were relative in the source genealogy.

Relative vs Absolute file paths: the benefit of relative paths is that you will maintain the links between your Gedcom file and the media files even if you move the whole Gedcom directory somewhere else or rename it (as long as you do not rename nor change the sub-directories)

Use a temporary directory if your habit is to store media files in distinct directories depending on their nature (images, videos) or what they represent (people photographs, source documents), or the type of events (births, marriages). Ancestris will store the files there and you will take the time later to properly dispatch them manually one by one in their final directories. <MEDIA FILES DISPATCHER ?>
Of course, use the definitive directory of your media files if your habit is to store all media files in one single directory.

File path transformation

Ancestris will replicate the Source sub-directory structure underneath the Target Root directory

By default, if the target root directory is relative, all file paths of copied media files will be relative.

If a file path is absolute and the root directory is relative, Ancestris will replicate the sub-directory structure as relative to the Gedcom file directory.

If a file path is relative and the target root directory is absolute, Ancestris will keep the sub-directory structure underneath the target root directory.

If files are located within different directory structures in the source genealogy, Ancestris will create these structures within the root directory.

<FILE PATH SIMPLIFYER ?>

Media files not found

If a media file is not found, it will simply just not be copied.

Within the same genealogy

Within the same ennealogy, etc.

Copying Media files

This possibility is not applicable within the same genealogy. It would not make sense.

Customization

There are no customization settings for this tool.