* Exporting Gedcom to Reunion 14 on a iMac

[Senelstune]

Is it best to use (1) the Export Gedcom File option or (2) the Plugin for Exporting 5.1.1 ... from FH 7 on PC Win 10 - to create a Gedcom file for importing into Reunion 14 on a iMac.

Any advice or experience much appreciated.

John Snelson

[tatewise]

Consider the two options:

1. Built-in FH Command
   File > Import/Export > Export > GEDCOM file > Destination: GEDCOM 5.5.1 (standard/strict)
   Although this implies FH 'converts' to the GEDCOM 5.5.1 standard it is still essentially an FH variant GEDCOM with all the FH custom features such as Sort Dates, Fact Witnesses, Named Lists, Record Flags, Source Templates, Place Records, etc... There are only a few customisation options.
   So unless Reunion 14 supports those FH features they will cause import problems or just get discarded.
   Some products do not even fully support GEDCOM 5.5.1. Do you know what Reunion 14 supports?
2. Export Gedcom File Plugin
   Although the plugin does not specifically support Reunion 14 it offers many options for converting those FH custom features to more standard GEDCOM features using one of the Destination options below.
   (Str) Standard GEDCOM Release 5.5.1 converts all features to standard GEDCOM.
   (CEB) Custom Export Bravo GEDCOM 5.5.1 is initially as above but remembers any custom plugin options.
   Any other Destination that Reunion 14 claims to accept imported GEDCOM from.
   For details of all the customisation options see the plugin Help & Advice pages.
   What works best will depend on what features Reunion 14 supports, but the plugin has accumulated many options based on what other products support. Do you know what GEDCOM features Reunion 14 supports?

BTW: Is this a permanent move or for friends/family? Does every last detail in your project need to migrate?

[Senelstune]

Thank you Mike.

I am trying these different options - with considerable success I might add. There is a good result on my very old iMac using the Built-in FH Command and the GDZ option. Reunion claims to be able to "support" this option, however it will not read a .gdz file, so I had to open it myself into a .ged file plus a separate folder called "Media" ... not a big deal, and by some fancy footwork I could manouevre all the images and documents into a collective and default Media folder on the iMac. Reunion then seems to be able to search and find the links all by itself.

I am finding Reunion a little "odd" to work with, which is not surprising I guess. e.g. it doesn't treat a marriege as an event. At least not so far. Yikes.

I am also going to try out Family Tree Maker on my PC first, before the new Mac - I have been using the PC version of FTM with Strathclyde Uni so I find it pretty good, so we shall see.

As for your final question, I am dumping the PC and will be getting a new iMac as soon as I have decided and tested how best to transfer my work since the days of the Sinclair ZX81, Visicalc, Wordstar and ROOTS III which were so long ago . So it will be a permanent move.

Thanks again for your great support Mike. I am aware that helping someone to leave FH is not a priority, so appreciate your advice and assistance. If only FH worked on the Mac .... now that would be something else. I have considered and tried (10 years ago) running FH under Parallels and would rather avoid that and am happy to learn something else - as long as I can get it to work okay for me.

Regards,

john

[Valkrider]

John

With a new silicon iMac take a look at UTM it is a VM for silicon Macs and you can get a free version of ARM Windows 11 and use that. I am currently experimenting with that rather than Crossover as I cannot get the current version of AS to run under Crossover.

[Senelstune]

Dear Valkrider,

Thanks for the headsup on UTM - a VM for silicon Macs - and the free version of ARM Windows 11.

I am very "old skoooool" and sort of a bit of a Star Wars "damaged unit" after experience with the Parallels VM on this old iMac I have now. It's 2012 Catalina 10.15 Might be worth a few bob as an antique.

As soon as I have settled on Reunion or FTM, I am intending to use that ... rather than try and spend time setting up partitions or whatever on a new ARMS iMac.

Thanks for your suggestion though. Sounds like you are having fun. Will let you know when I have made a decision.

Regards,

john

[Valkrider]

John

Why not stick with FH?

I agree with your comments about Reunion I tried it and after FH soon gave up. I also tried FTM and went back for the same reasons neither anywhere near as comprehensive as FH IMHO.

UTM is a lot easier in my experience than Parallels.

[mjashby]

For Windows 11 (ARM64) Virtualisation options VMware Fusion Pro is also now available as a "Free for Personal Use" and seems (to me) easier to use than UTM, but both take time to learn how to handle. VirtualBox, the other "free to use" alternative is not yet capable of virtualising Windows 11 for ARM.

As far as native Mac Family Tree software goes I also tried Reunion when I first moved to Mac and found it to be lacking in making aspects and somewhat basic in what it did offer (and expensive). FamilyTreeMaker is really only of use for those who maintain or are going to maintain a synchronised Ancestry Family Tree; and therefore don't mind being tied in to an annual subscription to Ancestry and be willing to accept Ancestry's 'enforced controls' over the user's method of recording data, e.g. Census facts being recorded entirely as Residence Facts, and storing all linked media in a single folder, plus an encrypted database over which the user has no control. There are, of course several other 'native' both commercial and 'freeware' macOS options including MacFamilyTree (possibly a good option for those who wish to maintain the graphical 'Mac Look'), RootsMagic (still relatively new on macOS), GEDitCOM II (uses a GEDCOM data file), Ancestris (free Java-based using a GEDCOM data file), and Gramps (free option - a love it, or hate it choice!).

Having tried all of those options i've mentioned (some more than others), I still firmly believe that FH offers the greatest degree of flexibility in use and also provides the broadest range of user options when it comes to recording and extracting (reporting on) data. The only downside for macOS (and Linux) users, of course, is the need to use either Windows virtualisation to have 100% of the features available users on Windows hardware benefit from; or use CrossOver/WINE or a similar option to achieve maybe 95% 'compatibility' with some of the newer non-GEDCOM facilities such as Rich Text. Both of these options can result in additional cost beyond the 'basic' software purchase.