Family Historian User Group

Am I the only person who likes to add information in the notes field against a person's census entry? Things like 'widow', 'name spelt Smithe' and the like.

I'd love to see a field in AS to input these directly. Is this possible by editing the template - I haven't tried this yet.

ID:4562

What's wrong with the Notes field under the autotext field?



Gerry

Hi Gerry, doesn't that add the note to the census entry, for everyone on it, rather than for the individual? I have not tried using the auto text features.

Yes, but is that a problem? It is only recorded once in the Gedcom file in any case. I would imagine that for AS to add notes against individuals would involve a major re-programming exercise!

I do suggest you use the autotext facility which is an integral part of AS and potentially saves a huge amount of time when you need a quick transcript of the Census record.

Good luck,

Gerry

Kevin,
Yes, it is possible in AS to edit a census template to add a new column called, e.g. 'Census Note'.  The Column Type should be 'Generic' and Recording should be 'Append to census event local note'.  You can do the same for an Occupation Note.
You may want to check the Options for Census Settings under Generic Columns.  I prefer to untick the box for Include note titles, and to opt for Comma between notes.
But I also agree with Gerry, above, that Auto Text is very useful, especially if using the highly recommended Recording Method 1.

I was going to reply earlier with exactly the same answer as Peter.

I would say though that both examples you gave (how name spelt and also widow) would be examples of where using Auto text with Method 1 would help. The auto text would produce a very close transcription of your census entry and you could then just edit this for the subtle changes like name being spelt differently. In this way all the details you mention are in one place linked to each event. The downside with your particular way of doing things is that you are effectively transcribing bits of the census but all those bits are scattered across your file in local notes so you don't get a complete view of the census household. Not a major issue and of course you should record things as you wish.

Best wishes

Nick

Thanks all for your help. I shall certainly have a go with the census templates. Sounds as though this is a way of tailoring AS to do things just the way I always have...

You are certainly making me wonder if I should rethink the way I store censuses, I can see a lot of merit in your autotext route. My real problem with this, and why I never used this method in GC, is the huge quantity of census data I already had in. For consistency I would need to revisit every one. If I were starting to trace my history today, with such an excellent tool as AS, I would have no hesitation in choosing your recommended method 1.

A dilemma!