* Internet - Find my Past

[ergo]

There is a link to FMP, but could there not also be one for Find my past UK, please. Just as there s for Ancestry.

[mjashby]

AFAIK FindMyPast doesn't doesn't complicate matters by having separate international sites so only one link is necessary.

[NickWalker]

AFAIK FindMyPast doesn't doesn't complicate matters by having separate international sites so only one link is necessary.

It does. If I go to findmypast.com it suggests I might want to use the uk version instead.

[mjashby]

Oops! Apologies. That's new to me, as I've never seen a non-UK link for FMP unlike Ancestry which regularly send out e-mails that default to showing the US site address regardless of their customer's stated location.

In that case, Click on 'More' in the Site Links Pop-up page, then 'New' and add any additional frequently used addresses. A request could also be sent to Calico Pie to make additions to the default list, but even the Ancestry entries are limited, as I believe there are other options, e.g. Australia, so all that is provided is really a starter list to build on.

[tatewise]

Welcome to the FHUG, ergo.

There are several Find My Past sites as listed if you scroll to the very bottom of almost any FMP page.
However, I believe the same collections are available on each site.

FMPsites.png (8.74 KiB) Viewed 1602 times

I presume you are referring to the Web Search Window, which already has the ability to Bookmark any URL you prefer.

AddBookmark.png (67.84 KiB) Viewed 1602 times

Alternatively, you can visit the https://www.findmypast.co.uk/ website by using the Web Search Window address bar and then the ... menu option Bookmark this Page... will add a Bookmark.

What more are you requesting?

[NickWalker]

What more are you requesting?

I assumed they might be wanting to use the search facility in the dialogue to search the site. The option you've given just adds a shortcut which doesn't seem particularly useful as a browser bookmark/favourite could be used for that?

[ergo]

I'm new to Family Historian, but I thought that my request was quite straightforward. There are 2 links for Ancestry, so why not2 for FMP? As things are the FMP link takes you to a site which shows (image).
You then have to click to change it to U.K.

[ColeValleyGirl]

Can you clarify whether you just want to navigate to the UK FMP site, or to use the Search facility at the bottom of the Search the Internet dialog?

The first you can configure yourself, as described in existing responses, and doesn't need a Wish List Request. I haven't found a way to configure the second myself, but somebody more clever than I may be able to.

[tatewise]

There does appear to be a bug in FH, because the Add Bookmark dialogue posted yesterday does not add a Bookmark!
However, the ... menu option Bookmark this Page... will add a Bookmark, which appears on the Search the Internet list along with all the other websites and satisfies the request of ergo.

What more are you requesting?

I assumed they might be wanting to use the search facility in the dialogue to search the site. The option you've given just adds a shortcut which doesn't seem particularly useful as a browser bookmark/favourite could be used for that?

To add the search facility simply needs the Bookmark to be edited to have a Template.
Many of the predefined Search the Internet websites have no search facility, so they are just shortcuts.
The search Template for FMP UK is:

Code: Select all

https://www.findmypast.co.uk/search/results?firstname=<<<givn>>>&firstname_variants=true&lastname=<<<last>>>&yearofbirth=<<<y1>>>&yearofbirth_offset=5&yearofdeath=<<<y2>>>&yearofdeath_offset=5

However, I'm not sure where the Template format is defined.
I stole the above code from the C:\ProgramData\Calico Pie\Family Historian\Web Search\Standard.fhi file for the entry Name=Find My Past and changed the URL to use .co.uk instead of .com

[ColeValleyGirl]

I can't make that template work, Mike. Can you post a screenshot of how to do it?

P.S. Using the New option in the Search The Internet dialog creates a bookmark, but without a website title. You have to edit it again and reenter the website title to make it stick. And even if you specify the template, it doesn't make the Search feature work.

edited to say: Editing the .fhi file directly does work, but will get overwritten by every upgrade so is not a viable solution.

[tatewise]

I can't make that template work, Mike. Can you post a screenshot of how to do it?

Here is the screenshot. I've also changed my post to make the full Template code visible.

BookmarkTemplate.png (62.95 KiB) Viewed 1493 times

P.S. Using the New option in the Search The Internet dialog creates a bookmark, but without a website title. You have to edit it again and reenter the website title to make it stick. And even if you specify the template, it doesn't make the Search feature work.

Aah! I did not spot the blank Bookmark entry, so that is a bug!
The templated search works for me.

edited to say: Editing the .fhi file directly does work, but will get overwritten by every upgrade so is not a viable solution.

Yes, but I'm not editing the .fhi file and only using the FH dialogues.
The custom settings are in C:\Users\Mike\AppData\Roaming\Calico Pie\Family Historian\Preferences\WebSearchSites.dat

[NickWalker]

Anyway to answer the original post, I think it would make sense to suggest that FindMyPast uk is added to the list in the software by Calico Pie, particularly as ancestry.co.uk gets it's own entry and FH is a UK product and it isn't easy to add this manually.

[tatewise]

If we are going to ask CP to rationalise the Search the Internet list then what exactly should be listed?

Ancestry current entries are:
Ancestry (Canada)
Ancestry (UK)
Ancestry (US)
but the sites for Australia, Deutschland, Italy, France, Sverige & Mexico are omitted!

Find My Past current entries are:
Find My Past using https://www.findmypast.com should be renamed Find My Past (US)
1901 Census for England and Wales and Scotland (FMP) using https://search.findmypast.co.uk/...
1911 Census for England and Wales (FMP) using https://search.findmypast.co.uk/...
which is strangely inconsistent especially as the user must login to the specific domain to get the site to work.
As I said before, (apart from login) the .co.uk or .com or other variants do not affect the collections available.
Should the sites for Australia (.com.au) and Ireland (.ie) be requested as well as UK (.co.uk)?
What about other Census year shortcuts?

[ColeValleyGirl]

1901 Census for England and Wales and Scotland (FMP) using https://search.findmypast.co.uk/...
1911 Census for England and Wales (FMP) using https://search.findmypast.co.uk/...
...
What about other Census year shortcuts?

I wonder if these were a hangover from when FMP had pay-as-you-go access to those censuses?

[ColeValleyGirl]

FWIW, replicating the settings in Mike's screenshot for a new entry on the list, and then editing it to add the website Name again does produce an entry that works with the Search facilities at the bottom of the dialog, so there is at least a way for the OP to get that functionality now.

[tatewise]

Since the desired functionality is currently available with some customisation, can this thread be moved to FH General Usage and a New Wish List Request composed to define what Search the Internet entries are desirable?

BTW: The Template format is simply the website search URL but with the following codes:
<<<given>>> where Given name is needed
<<<last>>> where Surname is needed
<<<y1>>> where Year Start is needed
<<<y2>>> where Year End is needed
Perhaps a KB article is needed to document this or the CP Wish List should request Help page.

[ColeValleyGirl]

I'm happy if you want to move the topic and open a new one here.

However, documenting the template format might go a long way to meeting the need, especially as urls change frequently and new sites crop up repeatedly.

In fact, it might be a better solution for users to maintain their own list of searchable sites and customise the search parameters (+-n year, no phonetic searching, whatever) if they wish. Everybody's list of searchable sites will be more relevant to them without having to hide stuff they have no interest in whenever it's added, and the search experience will be improved.

Whereas coming up with a list of other sites will be like painting the Forth Bridge.

[NickWalker]

Does the 'Search for Search Tool Updates' imply that Calico can update this list separately from the normal version upgrades and so could potentially make changes like this relatively easily? There doesn't seem to be a help button on the form or any pages in the help that discuss the screen that I could see?

[ColeValleyGirl]

Nick, yes, it seems like a forgotten and totally undocumented feature...

The 'Search for Search Tool Updates' decouples updates from the FH release cycle, but still leaves users dependent on Calico Pie maintaining a single list for everyone. IMO we still need documentation on how to add/customise bookmarks and searches.

P.S. Cards on the table -- I've never used the feature and can't think why I would (searches on unrestricted and probably unknown record sets are anathema to me), but others' mileage will vary -- if it exists, it out to be documented.

[ergo]

What I really wanted was findmypast.co.uk and to open at the Britain page.
When Mike Tate told me where the file was, I was able to add the following - which works - if anyone else wants to add it.

Code: Select all

[Item53]
Type=B
Name=Find My Past (UK)
Desc=Family history records for the UK, Ireland and around the world
Addr=https://www.findmypast.co.uk/
Template=https://www.findmypast.co.uk/search/results?firstname=<<<givn>>>&firstname_variants=true&lastname=<<<last>>>&yearofbirth=<<<y1>>>&yearofbirth_offset=5&yearofdeath=<<<y2>>>&yearofdeath_offset=offset=2&sourcecountry=great%20britain&sid=999
Hidden=0

All I need now is info on how to close this Topic!
Derek

[davidf]

Unless locked by a mod, I think topics live forever!

(Some people are responsible for creating some real monsters - often unwittingly!)

[ergo]

My template as it shows is incomplete!
If you want a copy of the real thing - contact me.

[tatewise]

Derek, I guess you edited C:\Users\Mike\AppData\Roaming\Calico Pie\Family Historian\Preferences\WebSearchSites.dat
Although you could have used the Edit Bookmark dialogue shown earlier.

There is no mechanism for closing a topic. It survives for anyone to discover and make further points.

To prevent text such as URL from being formatted, enclose it all in code markers using the </> button.
I have done it for you in your posting.

Since the issue has been resolved using existing FH features, I've moved this posting to the FH General Usage forum and raised a Maintaining the Knowledge Base forum topic Search the Internet Bookmarks and Templates (21049).

[fhtess65]

I just used the Bookmark this Page and, as Mike says, it worked. I will add some other sites this way as well. I don't often search directly from FH, mostly because I don't think about doing it that way, but I like learning as much about the program and its features as I can.

Teresa

There does appear to be a bug in FH, because the Add Bookmark dialogue posted yesterday does not add a Bookmark!
However, the ... menu option Bookmark this Page... will add a Bookmark, which appears on the Search the Internet list along with all the other websites and satisfies the request of ergo.

[ColeValleyGirl]

I've reported the bug I discovered.