Introduction

Family Historian Version 7 introduced Sources created from Source Templates, which are underpinned by ƒh-specific GEDCOM extensions which will not export readily to other products (such as website generators, GEDCOM tools, or other genealogy products and services). This article discusses the options available for exporting your GEDCOM including all the information you’ve entered about your Sources when you have created Sources from Templates.

Note: There are other considerations when exporting and you should review Exporting a Family Tree with/without Media for full details.

Family Historian Export Command

File > Import/Export > Export > Gedcom File… opens the ƒh Export Gedcom File window:

This dialog is documented at Export Gedcom File Dialog but there are some aspects to do with exporting Sources created from Templates that need particular consideration.

If you’re exporting to Family Tree Maker (which has its own support for templated sourcesFamily Historian Version 7 introduced the ability to define sources using 'Source Templates' to aid precision and consistency in entering source-identifying information.  ), choose Destination: Family Tree Maker, accept the defaults offered relating to sources and review the output within FTM to make sure it meets your expectations. If not, move on to the next steps.

If you’re exporting to ƒh6 or earlier, standard or strict Gedcom or using the Default settings, and/or you intend performing further steps to anonymize your data and export to other destinations, you have two options:

1. Include all the Source-identifying information that you want to include in the export in the Source Title (by customising the Source Template if necessary) and select Include option. This will export a source record with the Title only, which may be all you need for a website generator or other GEDCOM analysis tool.
2. Review your Source definitions to ensures the Titles make sense and are unique. Use the Family Historian Export Command and (for Source RecordsSource: "where information was found". This could be anything from an archive in a county records office, a book, or even a relative's recorded recollection. Citing your Sources helps to show how you reached a particular conclusion about an Individual.) select one of the Include and Copy Metafields options. If your destination can handle/display multiple notes per Source, select Include and Copy Metafields to New Note otherwise Include and Copy Metafields to First Note.

Unless you know that your chosen destination supports ƒh-style Source Template records, you should Exclude Source Templates.

Both options 1 and 2 above will include the original source fields in the export, which may be handled differently by different destinations, so you should review the output in your chosen Destination to ensure that you’re happy with it.

Export GEDCOM File Plugin

The Export Gedcom File plugin handles exporting to more destinations than the ƒh File > Import/Export > Export > GEDCOM File… command, but relies on some of its features.

The plugin cannot Select Individuals or Exclude Private/Tentative/Rejected FactsFacts are one of the key concepts at the heart of Family Historian; they are how you record the things that happened to, or described, each ancestor (Individual).. Users must use the File > Import/Export > Export > GEDCOM File…  command to choose those options, and then open the resultant GEDCOM file in ƒh to run the Export Gedcom File plugin. That process is described in the Exporting a Family Tree with/without Media article.

Using the plugin:

• Each Source Template becomes a linked Note record.
• Each Source & CitationA link between a source and a fact, documenting Where within the source you find information being "cited" to support the fact/conclusion. metafield becomes a labelled local NoteFamily Historian version 6 and below supports two types of Notes: Local notes (associated with a single person, record, or fact); and Note Records (sometimes called Shared Notes), that can be linked to multiple records and/or facts. Version 7 introduced entry similar to the File > Import/Export > Export > GEDCOM File…  command, except a RepositoryA repository is a place (physical or online) where collections of original source data are stored and maintained. metafield becomes a generic Repository link.
• Optionally, each Source generic Title is moved to the generic Short Title and the Footnote plain text becomes the generic Title.

Alternatively, each Source Template and each Source & Citation metafield may be deleted completely or retained unaltered.  In future, once the Source Template features of destination products are better understood, it may be possible to convert ƒh data to match those products.

If you have used Rich (Formatted) Text in your Source Notes or Text from SourceBoth Source records and Citations have a Text From Source field intended to hold transcripts of source documents., the plugin converts these (and other Rich TextRich text can be applied to most long text fields such as Notes and Text From Source, and offers a word-processing style of formatting. notes you may have created)  appropriately for the destination product. It also offers many alternative mediaWhen you add a picture, video, sound recording, document file etc into a Family Historian project, a Media record is created to represent that media item within the project; the Media record includes a link to the actual Media file. conversion options.