Creating a Book

  • Skill Level: Advanced and Intermediate
  • FH versions: V5, V6, V7, and V8
  • In Topics: Reports and Books 

Introduction

A book containing as much or as little information as you require on an individual, their family, their ancestors or descendants. The book creation is accessed from the main menu Publish > Books

How to Create a book

Once you have selected the menu option above you will be asked if you want to open an existing book or create a new one. If a new one then you will be required to give it a name. This dialog box is then displayed allowing you to choose the various elements that make up the book.

You select which of the sections that you want in the book by highlighting an item in the left pane and clicking to move it to the right pane. Depending on which of the options are chosen in the left pane an additional dialog box may be displayed to choose additional options before the item is added to the right pane.

Once you have selected all the items that you require for the book click on Book Settings to see the various configuration items for your book.

Finally select the View Book option to see what your book looks like.

Should you wish to make changes to the book you can select the edit option in the initial Publish > Books dialog box and change or add to the books contents. Once you are happy with the book then it can be printed, saved as a pdf or saved as a word document for further external editing.

Books in Version 8

ƒh 8 makes books a good deal more flexible:

  • A Pedigree Chart can be added to any book, and there is a new Pedigree Chart (as booklet) report that produces one on its own. Its options can be changed at any time, not only when it is added.
  • Diagrams can be edited after they have been placed in a book, and book layout compatibility keeps a chart’s page layout matched to the book, so a five-page diagram occupies exactly five book pages. You can set a diagram’s layout to suit a book before adding it.
  • A small diagram, figure or map can occupy part of a page rather than a whole one.
  • Scrapbook and photo-book pages, built from your own images and text, can form a whole book or a section of one. The snipping tool on the Tools menu clips part of a chart, diagram or map straight into a scrapbook page or a Media record. See How to Create a Scrapbook or Photo Book.
  • Address List and Place List reports can be included to describe the addresses and places mentioned in the book.
  • The index covers people appearing in charts (tree, fan and pedigree) as well as in reports.
  • A plugin-generated report added to a book now gives one chapter per record, headed as set in the book.
Editing a scrapbook page in a book
Editing a scrapbook page in a book

Book Free Page Content

Sometimes a Publish > Books page may need images and text that cannot be created using a standard Report. In ƒh 8 a scrapbook page (above) is the simplest answer. In earlier versions, the workaround is to compose the page as a diagram. In ƒh V7 try using View > Charts > Blank Diagram or Charts > Blank Diagram that offers some features like a word-processor to compose a page. Prior to ƒh V7 use the View > Standard Diagram Types > Blank Diagram command. Use the following steps to create the page, but remember to take into account the paper size and space needed for Margins and Header/Footer in the Book Settings, Page Layout tab.

Now in Edit Book select Saved Chart, then click > and choose the Chart name saved above.

In Select Chart Pages click Position on Page, then use cursor to drag to middle of one page.

Family picture

Last update: 2026-09-24 10:22:17