Need to edit a done merge.
When I upload a source, and I type the reason for adding it, "This is a civil record of her birth." and after I submit, I realize the person is male, I can go in and edit the reason for adding the source, to reflect the gender corresponding to the person's sex. However, today I did a merge and gave the reason, "These are the same father for Carminella Verlotta" when in fact they are both the same husband, not the same father; and there is no way to go in and edit it.
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@TomAlciere thank you for your feedback. Can you share the Person Identification Number for Carminella, so that we can be sure we are looking at the correct one?
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@TomAlciere Update: after looking at this issue, adding an edit to the merge reason statement is just not possible at this time. Great idea though :)
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The inability to be able to edit items that have found their way to the Change Log is by design, I believe. The issue was first raised long before the revised merged process, and the response back then was that it would not be right to "rewrite history" - in that, even if an error (say even a typo) was made at the time, the item should remain logged in its original for, to represent an accurate recording of what was typed at that time.
I assume you are requesting only the original contributor ("inputter") should be able to make the edit, as another user being able to edit "your" items in the change log could cause serious confusion.
I have found the "workaround" is to add a note against the profile - highlighting your incorrect wording at the cross-referenced item (merge) - which itself will then appear in the change log. Once this explanation appears in the change log (i.e., how you should have worded the reason statement) you can then delete the note (you made in the Collaborate section), if you wish.
In summary, implementation of your suggestion would not be as straightforward as it might seem. The lack of ability to edit such items is really a safeguard against being able to make changes to a log, which is meant to reflect what has been written / added at any moment in time. Any explanations for errors (in wording) are easily added to the change log, as my example illustrates.
You might argue that the open-edit nature of Family Tree makes it possible to edit practically every other item against an individual's profile (except Discussions), but that is what makes it so important the change log has to remain as designed. Through it, we can view a full log of every change made to that profile - by whom and at what date - which makes it so important that the log itself must never be editable.
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Sorry if I have appeared so long-winded in responding to this issue. However, I just thought of an alternative method of getting the wording right. More commonly when adding a source (but occasionally relating to the merge process), I have gone back and reversed my actions - i.e., I've detached the source (or undone the merge), then reattached the source (or re-merged the individual), adding the reason statement I'd intended to use in the first place!
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