* All relatives charts

[DerekNB]

I am attempting to create new versions of some All relative charts that I last updated on the 24 nov 22.
I know they can be quite large so I do one per Grandparent.
But now I am encountering two issues:
1. Some people are duplicated which is OK if it makes viewing the chart easier. But the duplicated people are being connected by circular lines that go off the diagram.
2. When saving the diagram I have tried JPG, Tiff, Wmf, BMp and all report and error has occured. Saving as an EMF file gives no error but when viewed all the boxes are tall and slim with unreadable text. I initially created these charts without error on the 24 nov before the latest update.
As a check have created an Ancestor chart for the same grand parent and saved it as EMF and it views correctly in Irfanview which handles large files very well.
Has anyone encountered this? Should this be reported as an error?
Regards
Derek

[tatewise]

Do the coloured ribbons (that connect the same people shown in different parts of the diagram) really go off the diagram or just go off the screen? If you Zoom out or scroll left/right can you bring the entire ribbon into view?

Presumably, when saved to a graphics image format multiple pages are produced.

It would help to know exactly what error was reported.

IMO The best way to save a diagram is as a Single Page PDF File.

[DerekNB]

Hi MIke,
If I keep the chart large enough to read the coloured lines/ribbons go off the diagram, even if I scroll to the bottom of the diagram they continue below.
If I zoom out far enough the full line is visible but the chart is too small to read. 2 attachments
I save my charts as Whole diagram, Actual size 100%.
JPG is ok for small files, EMF files are recommended for large files, they were working on the 24th Nov, now they do not work.
The error message is 'A problem Occurred. Task may not have completed correctly'. No file gets written.
Writing as a pdf it generates 420 pages, using the one page option it generates the chart over 10 pages.
Thanks
Derek

[BobWard]

As Mike suggested , I too have always used the Single Page PDF option for my All Relatives diagrams. I have nearly 2,500 people in my database, so the diagrams get quite large.

Once the diagram has been created, I use the Enable Moving/Resizing tool to decrease the Scale size to a level that will allow me to get all the diagram on 1 page. With the size of my diagram, I have to adjust the scale down to around 15% to get everythiing on one page. Then I use the Diagram>Save Diagram As>PDF File to print the file. Once that menu is open, I adjust the page size to accommodate the physical diagram size (inches).

Since I have scaled down the diagram size, I always adjust the print resolution up to 1200 dpi so that the photos included in the diagram will be sharp.

This procedure gives me a 1-page pdf file which covers all 2,500 relatives. Yes, when you open the PDF file, it will be too small to read, but all you have to do is zoom in to an area you want to see and use your mouse to navigate around the diagram.

I only use this option when I want to send an All Relatives diagram to family members. I don't work from diagrams.

[davidf]

It is also worth realising that within the Diagram Properties box you can adjust those "duplicate curves". I do not have FH to hand at the moment, but I think it is under an Advanced button on the lines tab. You will need to use help to understand how to adjust things like how deeply those lines dip.

[LornaCraig]

It is also worth realising that within the Diagram Properties box you can adjust those "duplicate curves". I do not have FH to hand at the moment, but I think it is under an Advanced button on the lines tab. You will need to use help to understand how to adjust things like how deeply those lines dip.

The adjustments for the curved lines are in Diagram Options > General tab > Check for Duplicates > Options. The depth of the curve is controlled by the Individual Link Curve (%) option. You can of course hide the links completely by unticking Check for Duplicates on the General tab.

If your previous versions of this chart did not display any connecting curves that is probably why they were small enough to be saved successfully. For details on the maximun size which can be saved as a single page PDF, see Single PDF Page of a Diagram. If your diagram exceeds that size, scroll down the article to the section which explains two methods of adjusting the size.

[DerekNB]

Thanks for all of the replies.
I am evaluating options:
Regarding lines connecting duplicated people. I put on use family connectors where possible. Two families 1/2 of the chart apart get duplicated. Cousins far apart married in the 1840s, so far apart they probably did not know they were related. The lines cross over half of the chart, if I reduce the curvature to 10 they all stay on the chart but the individual lines become one rope through the chart masking some box text. see attachment for best I can get.
Is there any way that duplicated families can just be highlighted say with italic text of something?
Regarding PDF files I have to reduce the chart to 10%. I can then save as a 1 page PDF.
When it opens in the PDF Acrobat viewer it is as you say a thin strip. I select view / zoom / Actual Size and it returns to the size it was in FH before being reduced to 10%. Sounds the simplest so far.
Thanks
Derek

[DerekNB]

Hi Bob Ward,
Following your suggestions I have been experimenting with the PDF generators settings to try and get the PDF file to open with resolution 1200, centred vertically and horizontally (ie in the middle) and at 100% magnification.
I can get 3 of those at the same time but not all 4 at once.
In the PDF printers property box on the page tab in the Margin & Zoom box set the the Page position to Customize zoom and origin then tick Centre horizontally and centre vertically, then OK.
On returning to the page tab set the printer resolution 1200.
Doing it the other way round the resolution gets reset to 300 and has to be reset to 1200.
Then I go to the Document Tab and set magnification (lower right) to 100.
Click OK and the PDF chart opens eventually zoomed to 100% but the horizontal and vertical positioning is ignored.
Having all options working would make life easier for those who view the chart.
I can get the unzoomed file (long thin) display at the top or in the middle as a long strip but never have it zoomed in as well.
Have you encountered this?
Any tips
Regards
Derek

[tatewise]

1st tip: Checkout the advice in FHUG Knowledge Base Single PDF Page of a Diagram which gives scaling and other advice to fit the diagram on one page.

2nd tip: I believe the diagram gets centred in the PDF file automatically.

3rd tip: Use the Movement Control feature to reposition the sub-trees so they are grouped more centrally and then save as a Family Historian Saved Chart to preserve the layout.

[BobWard]

Derek,
I have never bothered to customize the Margin & Zoom box when creating my All Relatives pdf files, i.e., I have no preference on how the final pdf diagram displays when it is opened, other than to make sure it fits on 1 page. I simply rely on my mouse to zoom in and navigate around the diagram until I find any given person of interest. The first image below shows the default Margin & Zoom box that I make no changes to. The second image below shows how my All Relatives pdf diagram initially opens in response to that Margin & Zoom box.

After I have scaled down my diagram, to say 15%, I open the Diagram>Save Diagram As>PDF File and check to make sure the Diagram Width & Height will fit within the maximum limits (129"x129") allowed by the FH PDF Printer. The third image below shows that menu. I use those Diagram width and height dimensions to guide me in setting the page size in the FH pdf printer properties box.

Since the above procedure always accomplishes my goals, I have made no attempts to experiment with other settings. As Mike suggests, try some of the links in the FHUG KB to see if you can reach your stated goals. Sorry I am not able to provide any further help.

[DerekNB]

Hi Bob,
My circumstance is slightly different. Before they got too big I used to send trees in JPG format but got responses like 'its too small for me to read', I respond 'Zoom in to enlarge it'. They respond 'I don't know how to do that'. Grrr.
So I thought that if viewers of the chart could see a 100% diagram positioned in the middle, they would at least see that a full sized chart was in front of them and know what to do.
I have tried and failed to get the FH PDF generator to magnify and position, it seems that if magnify is chosen position is ignored you get top left, other generators may be different.
As I can't get Magnify and centre to both function at the same time, I have now put a Text box containing a Chart Title and instructions in a large font size explaining how to view it, in the top left segment of the diagram, positioned so that it is visible and readable when the PDF opens.
I then shrink the diagram so it will fit in 1 page.
Save it as a PDF and in the print properties box set dpi to 1200 and on the document tab set magnification relative to how much I had to shrink the original to get it back to near full size.
Then save the PDF. When it opens in Acrobat (which I think most people will have) the diagram is positioned near the middle of the top left segment with my Instructions message clearly visible.
Thanks for your input, much appreciated.
Regards
Derek