* Exporting Source Citation Media to FTM/Ancestry

[MFriend]

Hi Mike:

This continues the discussion from Splitting lumped Generic or Templated sources by plugin (19438).

Instead of pasting a whole bunch of photos I made a very short video to show the changes before and after the conversion from lumped to separate sources, what it looks like in FTM , and the final result on Ancestry. It looks like the majority of info is uploaded in some form to Ancestry, the main issue it seems is the Citation media. FTM doesn't / won't upload media attached to the source, but does upload citation media. If there was a way to keep the media link as a citation media link that would fix issue I think pretty much on Ancestry. Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BFMYLDbTGA I cut out all the waiting parts so it goes pretty quick....

Matthew

[tatewise]

Unfortunately, your video does not appear to explore where the Media appears in FTM and that is the crucial step.
If the Export Gedcom File plugin can resolve that process then synchronising with Ancestry should follow OK.

In my previous tests, the plugin did copy the Media items linked to the Source Record down into each of its Citations.
I cannot afford to purchase FTM so rely on feedback from FTM users like yourself to check such features.
However, I have now reviewed this feature in the plugin since updating for FH V7 and there seems to be a mistake.

Please try the attached Export Gedcom File Plugin Version 4.5.3 Date 19 Jul 2021 in a ZIP file.

You may need to use the Reset these FTM+ Options buttons on the three Options tabs.

[MFriend]

Hi Mike:
The export plugin does appear to be linking the media to the source (which is fine in FTM but won't upload to Ancestry) and links to the Citation. So both of the media tabs below show the media. The upload to Ancestry uploads the citation media now (so the media upload issue is fixed). Also I have included in the pic below so you can see the fields that are filled in, in the source, and how those are filled in on Ancestry:


On Ancestry:


The only 'issue' is that since the links are no longer part of the citation weblink (which is clickable on ancestry) they "Weblink: " and the last " at the end of the link are not removed. Folks could still copy the link and paste it, it just adds an extra step.

What I'm saying is that the links end up in the Source like this:
Weblink: "https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-co ... 60451:6742"
instead of a normal link: https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-co ... 60451:6742

Your export plugin has a ton of features so maybe there is a way to clean it up already.

[tatewise]

I think this is related to the Settings Question for Citation Notes when Exporting to FTM 2019 (19562).
That worked perfectly when the Citation local rich text Note held the Weblink: "URL" which was exported in the _LINK tag.

But now after splitting the lumped Source Citations, the Weblink is not in the Citation local Note, but in the Source Record.
What you are seeing in the FTM Note and Ancestry Comments is the plain text conversion of that Source Record local Note.

In the video you posted yesterday, there are three Weblink: "URL" entries in the Ancestry Comments.
Can you explain how that happens, because I thought FTM Citations only had one _LINK URL?

So we need to discuss how best to adjust the Source Record fields and the Citation fields when exporting to FTM 2019.
The solution must not only accommodate your scenario where you have just split the lumped Source Citations, but also any other scenario where split Source Citations are created by any other method.

Maybe, as well as Media, any Weblink Note entries in the Source Record should be copied to each associated Citation.
There they should get converted to _LINK URL, although currently it only copes with one Weblink: "URL" per Note.
So it seems it may need extending to cope with multiple Weblinks?

[MFriend]

Hi Mike:

Yes, when moving the citation note to FTM into the "Web Address" only one address can fit/work. Whatever is in that Citation web address field becomes is uploaded to the clickable web address field on Ancestry:


There were a few cases (not many I think) where I had for some reason copied the URL from the citation note (which becomes the Web Address in FTM and Ancestry) to the Citation Details: Text From source field in FH (I changed the name of the field label to "Citation Text" but I don't think that makes a difference).

After exporting from FH7 using your plugin it is easy to go in and do a search and replace to remove all the Weblink: " to remove the weblink part and the first quotation mark. The hard part is knowing how to remove the final " at the end of the url. Any URL's that are not in the citation Web Address are not clickable, but removing the extra "" and Weblink would make it easier for people viewing the sources to copy and paste the url (and make it look a little better).

I don't know how hard it would be to do, but if there was an easy way to just convert any url that has the Weblink code to just the url regardless of field in the source or citation on export that would be good.

[tatewise]

By way of explanation, the Weblink: "Web-Address" Display-Text format was designed to cope with rich text web links that have both a URL web address and separate display text and clearly differentiate one from the other.

I think it would be just as valid to use the format Weblink: Web-Address "Display-Text" instead, especially as the URL web address does not usually contain any space characters.
That change would be very easy and could apply to every target product and not just FTM.

It would also be feasible to copy the 1st Weblink from the Source Record to each associated Citation as a _LINK URL.
That would be a special case for FTM alongside the copying of Media.

Let me mull it over for a while...

[tatewise]

P.S.
I have just realised why the plugin uses Weblink: "Web-Address" Display-Text format.
The URL is unconditional, so there is always a Web-Address to surround with string quotes.
The Display-Text is optional so if omitted from the above format there is no side-effect.

But with the format Weblink: Web-Address "Display-Text" if there is no Display-Text it becomes Weblink: Web-Address "" and needs a subsequent process to remove the redundant pair of string quotes.
It is not too difficult to do, but explains my original choice of format.

[tatewise]

Try the attached Export Gedcom File Plugin Version 4.5.4 Date 21 Jul 2021 in a ZIP file.

This implements the earlier ideas of removing the string quotes from Weblink: "URL" and copying Source Record first URL to its Citation _LINK URL in order to work better in FTM and Ancestry.

[MFriend]

Thank you Mike for your hard work on this

I think it is all good now:
1. The source link is copied perfectly to the citation weblink field.
2. The source media is linked to the citation which allows the media to be uploaded to Ancestry.
3. The citation link is clickable and works on Ancestry.

The plugin does remove the quotation marks from most of the Weblink: " links (I saw a couple that it didn't but that was because there were multiple links jammed together without proper spacing). The Weblink: that is left is easily removed by doing a simple search and replace in the gedcom after the export so I think we are all good now



Thank you so much,
Matthew

[tatewise]

OK, I'll let things settle for a while, but all the recent updates will appear in the next published version in the Plugin Store.

Back in the Splitting lumped Generic or Templated sources by plugin (19438) thread, please let Mark know that your request to keep Citation details when splitting using his Plugin is no longer relevant and explain why.

[David Potter]

Hi Matthew and Mike
I'm having a similar problem in that when running the Export Gedcom File Plug-In, the media is exported to FTM2019 and the media title is displayed against the Source Citation, but the media image is missing (not linked correctly). I'm no expert in FTM2019 and do not no if there is a tool to fix the missing links?

I used the Plug-In and reset all to default settings. Perhaps I need specific settings in some areas?

Matthew would you mind sending me screen shots of your Plug-In settings, so I can mirror these and try the export again.

Thank you

David

[tatewise]

David, are you running plugin V4.6 ?
Please post screenshots of exactly what is missing from FTM and where it appears in FH.

[David Potter]

Hi Mike
Yes I am running version 4.6

This is what I see in FTM. The Links appear to be okay, It would appear it just can't find the actual image file(s)

FH to come next

[David Potter]

Hi Mike

Here is what i think you may want to see from FH.

[tatewise]

Something rather odd is shown in your screenshots.

Your FH image is correctly located in the Project ...\Media\Census\ folder.

When the plugin is used it should create copies of all the media in your chosen Export Folder with the exported GEDCOM.
So the FTM images should NOT be located in the Project ...\Media\Census\ folder but in the Export Folder.
Yet your screenshots show FTM is looking in the Project ...\Media\Census\ folder.

Also, the plugin Frame Naming option adds a Prefix or Suffix to the filename in the Export Folder.
Yet your screenshots show FTM is looking for the original filename without any Prefix or Suffix.

What Frame Naming option and Export Folder are you using? A screenshot of the plugin Basic Options tab would be good.

Are you sure you are importing the exported GEDCOM into FTM?

[David Potter]

Hi Mike

I think you have found the issue. Everything is going into the FH Public/Export folder. And I guess this should point to where FTM expects to find it's media. Also I'm thinking the Keep Media Folders option should have been checked.

But I'm not sure what to select from the Frame Naming options?

Thanks

[David Potter]

Yes Mike I'm sure I'm importing the Gedcom into FTM.

Thanks

[tatewise]

For advice on what the settings do check the Help & Advice.

For the purposes of this investigation, it does not matter what Frame Naming you choose.
Currently, (PREFIX) will add something like 2O43 to the front of every filename.
e.g. 2O43 1841 England census, 9, Clif Terrace, Margate, ....... - Ann Doughty.jpg

The Keep Media folders option retains the folder structure from the Project Media folder in the Export folder.
e.g. C:\Users\ ... \Public\Export\Media\Census\...
But when unticked all the media files will be in C:\Users\ ... \Public\Export\

So FTM should be looking for the following file path:
C:\Users\ ... \Public\Export\2O43 1841 England census, 9, Clif Terrace, Margate, ....... - Ann Doughty.jpg
but your screenshots suggest it is looking for:
... \Media\Census\1841 England census, 9, Clif Terrace, Margate, ....... - Ann Doughty.jpg
i.e. FTM is not looking in the \Public\Export\ folder, and the filename has no prefix ~ very odd.

Can you check what media files you have in that C:\Users\ ... \Public\Export\ export folder.
Are you sure you chose C:\Users\ ... \Public\Export\1_AS FTM UTF8.ged to import into FTM?

BTW: Why does your plugin screenshot show a GEDCOM Export Mode: that is not (FTM) Family Tree Manager 2019?

[David Potter]

Hi Mike - Many thanks for your input. I'll play around with those key settings and see if I can get it to work correctly in FTM.
I did look in the help and advice but became confused.

Strange - I'm not sure why the Export Type changed. I haven't made any new exports since I started this post. I'll switch it back when trying again.

Appreciate your help.

[tatewise]

Please review what media files you have in that C:\Users\ ... \FH7\1_AS\Public\Export\ export folder.
Can you find the image file 2O43 1841 England census, 9, Clif Terrace, Margate, ....... - Ann Doughty.jpg?
where its prefix 2O43 will have different numbers.

Can you find the GEDCOM file C:\Users\ ... \FH7\1_AS\Public\Export\1_AS FTM UTF8.ged?
Is that the file you imported to FTM? Does it have a recent Date modified later than when you used the plugin v4.6?
I may ask you to investigate the contents of that GEDCOM file via a text editor such as Notepad. Is that OK?

Adjusting the plugin settings won't significantly change the way FTM imports the data and magically make it work correctly.
The problem is not with the settings. Please focus on the things I have asked you to investigate.

[David Potter]

Hi Mike
I have found the two 1841 Census Images for Ann Doughty. See attached.

Yes - I am importing the latest and greatest Gedcom file from the same export folder and yes it has the date and timestamp of when I last ran the Plug-in

I now see the linked media but for some reason the image count per the single Source for this Fact which should be 2, shows 26. So I'm seeing 13 x each image.

Yes I agree to looking into the Gedcom file.

[tatewise]

The screenshot for the same Ann Doughty with Person ID 285 has changed somewhat since this morning at 10:53.
The facts and the dates are the same except that Baptism now does not say St John's Church, the Census now does not say 9, Cliff Terrace, the number of Source/Media has significantly increased, but the image files are now found OK with prefixes.

Something has caused those changes.
What has happened to cause those changes?

I assume you have not imported the GEDCOM into FTM again or changed anything else since this morning.

BTW: I am not seeing 13 x 2 images but lots of very different images for different Census pages.
e.g. Gotherington, Harry Hill, Horesdowns, 9 Cliff Terrace, St Lawrence, etc, etc...

[David Potter]

Hi Mike
I think we need to hit the reset button on this. At 13:42 I said I would try again the export. You are clearly under the impression I have not changed anything since this mornings run, when in fact I have.

I have not changed any data, but I have made additional extracts since we started this. If you are willing can we please resume tomorrow if you have time of course.

In the mean time I will read again the help notes to see if I have missed something.

Thanks for your help so far...

[tatewise]

I recognise that you said something about playing around with key settings, but I responded saying that won't change the way FTM imports the data and to focus on the things I have asked you to investigate. I did not realise you had ignored my request.

Anyway, you have not explained what you changed so that leaves me chasing shadows.

By all means continue tomorrow, but please follow my requests carefully, and tell me every change you make.
You know what you are doing, but I don't if you keep it secret, which makes analysing the results next to impossible.

[David Potter]

Morning Mike
Apologies for the confusion and wasted time. Let's reset and try again please.

The main difference in the last export from yesterday, the one which removed the Address details was due to me opening the exported Gedcom in FH and choosing yes to validate the file.

I will read the export notes now and make sure I have the process correct and then make a new export, report on this and leave it intact until I hear otherwise from you.

NOTE: I have now upgraded to version 7.0.8.2

Thanks