* Supress optional GEDCOM tags

[GladToBeGrey]

The ability to specify, in Settings, that optional/unused GEDCOM tags are not generated when adding SOURCES (thank you Jane!).

As a specific example, I (and it seems from correspondence plenty of others) don't use the SHORT TITLE field. It's irritating to have to delete every time. It would save unnecessary keystrokes if SHORT TITLE simply wasn't added in the first place.

It should be possible to identify a list of these optional tags and have a simple tick box for each to control whether it's added or not (defaulted to 'Yes' for compatibility with today.http://www.fhug.org.uk/wishlist/wldispl ... lwlref=394

ID:3159

[Jane]

'Short Title' is only on Sources as far as I know and nothing to do with events and attributes.

Was that what you were meaning.

As a work around for now why not just do a query for sources showing it and you can delete them wholesale using a query on sources and the delete column trick.

[GladToBeGrey]

Yes, SOURCES was what I meant. I was thinking of something else at the time I was typing. Typical male; can't think and type at the same time [smile] Have editted the OP to suit.

[AlanWhite]

I'd like to extend that request to include all tags, not just sources. In fact, I mentioned the problems with the current system to Simon a couple of years ago. Here's an extract from the mail I sent:

Secondly, when adding a source I always need to add other tags, often all of them. But there's an inconsistency in the way this works. Adding SOUR.EVEN often requires SOUR.EVEN.ROLE, but adding both requires two separate operations. Conversely, adding SOUR.DATA automatically adds SOUR.DATA.DATE but, curiously, not SOUR.DATA.TEXT. I find that I almost always have to delete SOUR.DATA.DATE (because I rarely know when the data was entered into the original source) and manually add SOUR.DATA.TEXT. This makes what could be a one-stage operation into a three-stage one. It seems inconsistent for FH to sometimes add subordinate tags and sometimes not. And when it does add them it adds only some of them. I can see that it might be difficult to please everyone here, so I think the ideal solution would be for the user to be able to define which subordinate tags are added automatically when a tag is added. This could apply at all levels. For example, I could have FH configured so that when I add a Birth event it automatically adds Date, Place, Source, Where Within Source, Event, Role, Text etc. Then all I have to do is fill them in. As an interim solution I'd like to see consistency so that either all subordinate tags are added or, probably better, none are.

[GladToBeGrey]

Completely agree with AlanWhite; his is a more comprehensive exposition of what I was getting at. I realise that I mis-edited my OP; it wasn't just SOURCE tags that I want to control, despite my specific example relating to them.

[gerrynuk]

I find that if you don't put anything in the Short Title field then the next time the file is opened the Short Title has disappeared. Is this a deliberate action on the part of Family Historian? Anyway, it seems to be a simple solution to what is required - just ignore it!

Gerry

[GladToBeGrey]

Hmmm, I'd rather have consistency of behaviour, rather than the current inconsistent and idiosyncratic behaviour, and I'd prefer to have explict configuration, rather than having fields appearing and then disappearing again.

[AlanWhite]

gladtobegrey said:
I'd rather have consistency of behaviour

I agree. Whilst it is true that some empty tags are removed on file close/open not all of them are (nor would I want them to be).

In any case, the 'ignore it' approach doesn't resolve the other aspects mentioned in my post, whereby the subordinate tags added is very peculiar. Why, for example, automatically add SOUR.DATA.DATE but not SOUR.DATA.TEXT?

Who knows, maybe this is all fixed in v4? [wink]