Gedcom Files
How does one add/check a .GED file to the FamilySearch Family Tree?
My apologies if the question exists already.
Answers
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@GeoffreyBeresford Hartwell
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Geoffrey
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You can; but ...
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Please DO NOT upload a GEDCOM File in "Family Tree" of 'FamilySearch'.
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Upload GEDCOM File in the "Genealogies" Part of 'FamilySearch', that is fine; but, please NOT into "Family Tree" of 'FamilySearch'.
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Some of the reasons that Users/Patrons (like myself) DO NOT want the ability to upload a GEDCOM File into "Family Tree" of 'FamilySearch' are:
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(1) It is most likely that individuals/persons in a GEDCOM File are ALREADY in "Family Tree" of 'FamilySearch'; and, most Users/Patrons DO NOT even take the time to look to see if any one in their GEDCOM File is already in "Family Tree", in some instances, negating the need to even upload the GEDCOM File.
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(2) There has been (many) cases where Users/Patrons, using the "Compare" process (of the upload) have "Dismissed" a "Possible" Match with an individual/person already in "Family Tree"; so that, their "Record", from their GEDCOM File, is loaded into "Family Tree", regardless; just so that, their "Record" appears in "Family Tree" (and, in some instances, for Members of the Church, so they can do the "Temple" Work, despite the fact that the "Temple" Work is ALREADY done with the "Possible" Match with the individual/person already in "Family Tree").
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(3) Even with the "Compare" process (of the upload), there has been (many) cases where Users/Patrons have uploaded THEIR version of an individual/person in their GEDCOM File, on top of (ie. Over) an individual/person ALREADY in "Family Tree" of 'FamilySearch' that has been there for MANY years and is well documented and "Sources" - in many instances obliterating all of the documentation and "Sources".
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(4) If an individual/person is ALREADY in "Family Tree" of 'FamilySearch', there is NO need to up uploaded one's version of an individual/person from one's own GEDCOM File - just take note of the the 'FamilySearch Person Identifier' (PID) of the individual/person that is ALREADY in "Family Tree"; and, one can go back later to ensure what information/detail is recorded and attached for that individual/person. Just DO NOT uploaded one's version of an individual/person in their GEDCOM File, on top of (ie. Over) an individual/person ALREADY in "Family Tree" - obliterating all of the documentation and "Sources" ALREADY in place/on record.
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(5) The "Hours" (sometimes "Days") of work, by other Users/Patrons, that can be needed to CORRECT the DAMAGE done by the upload of a GEDCOM File can be disheartening.
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I am sorry ... 'off my soap box' ...
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Enter (ie. 'Create) the individuals/persons in "Family Tree" of 'FamilySearch' one at a time - on a one by one basis.
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Many of the individuals/persons most probably ALREADY exist in "Family Tree" of 'FamilySearch'.
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Only one or two of one's generations of "Living" Family members (and, perhaps one or two of one's generations of "Deceased" Family members) may be required to be entered/input in "Family Tree" of 'FamilySearch'; before, some of the "Deceased" individuals/persons from Ancestral lines ALREADY existing in "Family Tree" of 'FamilySearch', are discovered.
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Use the "Find" facility/function/feature to Search "Family Tree" of 'FamilySearch', you may be surprised to find some (if not, many) of them already there.
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Many well established and documented (eg. "Sourced") individuals/person in "Family Tree" of 'FamilySearch' have been RUINED by the upload a GEDCOM File into "Family Tree" of 'FamilySearch'.
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Of course, IF, one HAS looked in "Family Tree" of 'FamilySearch' and NONE of one's Ancestral lines are in "Family Tree" of 'FamilySearch'; THEN, the upload of a GEDCOM File would be the way to go - BUT, ONLY if one HAS looked in "Family Tree" of 'FamilySearch' and NONE of one's Ancestral lines are in "Family Tree" of 'FamilySearch'
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I hope this puts things into perspective.
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Brett
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Thank you Brett.
I did ask, "How does one add/check a .GED file . . ." with what you say in mind. My .GED file has been uploaded to the 'Genealogies' part of 'FamilySearch'. That simple suggestion could have saved you all the kind detail to which you have been troubled,
Yours aye,
Geoffrey Hartwell
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Geoffrey,
After you have uploaded a .ged file to the Genealogies area of FS, it shows up in a list of files that you've uploaded (you can upload multiple files). On the right hand side of that file description is a "Compare" button. Click on that and the GEDCOM Compare tool walks through your GEDCOM file and the FS FamilyTree database looking for potential matches which it records with your GEDCOM file.
When that is complete, the Compare button is replaced with a "View" button. selecting the View button will bring up your list of all items in your GEDCOM file. They are displayed one at a time beside any record in FSFT that the Compare tools thinks are a match. At this point you can go through EACH of the vitals in both your GEDCOM file and the ones in the FSFT, and you can bring your GEDCOM file vital conclusions over into the FSFT if appropriate. If the compare tool didn't find a potential match, you are given the option of adding the record from your GEDCOM file into the FSFT as a new record.
This is where the issues that Brett (and many others including myself) are concerned about.
1) The tool completely blinds you to all supporting documentation that is already in FSFT. You are only shown the conclusion values in the FSFT record adjacent to the conclusion values in the GEDCOM file record. A conclusion value in the FSFT (e.g., birth date) may have 40 or 50 sources supporting it along with pages of notes and discussions showing the derivation logic behind why the existing value in the FSFT is thought to be correct. A lot of these have been in place for many years and have been evaluated by many different people. But NONE of this information is visible in the GEDCOM compare tool. As a result, many people come in and just replace the entire conclusion with the undocumented conclusion in their GEDCOM file. It only takes 1 click to do so. As a result a lot of well documented conclusions can be blown away in seconds which will result in patrons having to now spend HOURS correcting the mistake! (BTW, none of the notes that may exist in your GEDCOM file for a particular record are visible either. So if you are comparing apples to oranges, it will not at all be obvious.)
2) The Comparing facility in the tool is (to put it politely) very imperfect. It frequently thinks that it has found a match that really is not. A person would then merge their data in from the GEDCOM file not realizing that it is being stored into the wrong person. Again, just seconds to accomplish, but hours and days to correct.
3) The other thing where the Comparing facility fails is that it misses possible matches that might exist. As a result, the person looking at the results is presented with a screen so that they can just add the GEDCOM record for a person into the FSFT as a brand new record. This results in a LOT of duplicates in the FSFT that now need to be merged together. More cleanup work hours for others who typically didn't load the GEDCOM information in the first place.
So the GEDCOM compare tool can be useful to some, but ONLY if they fully understand what they are up against and the tools significant limitations.
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Hi,
I've got more of a question than an answer. I've been exchanging emails with a 3rd cousin by marriage. She asked me.
"May I ask your relation to the Marcus/Pollacks, if any? I'm married to xxx Marcus, a great-grandson of Sam Marcus and Sally Pollack."
I wanted to add her to my tree. So I asked her for
"I've just now added in all the relatives on this side of the family. Might I get your information and your husband's information in order to add you to my ancestry account, please. For starters, what's your name, date of birth, place of birth, his name, date of birth, place of birth, when did you married, where did you get married, where do you live, what do you do for a living, what does he do for a living. I'm more than happy to share all that with you as well."
and she said
"Sure, I don't mind sharing info. " ...
"All that being said, do you know if I am able to share my family tree with you? I'm still getting used to this website's interface."
See a gedcom file isn't going to help me. There has to be a way to exchange living information here on family search.
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@BrianGoldberg2 BrianGoldberg2
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Brian
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You DO NOT have to have ALL the 'Details of the "Living" individuals/persons who 'link'/'connect' the two of you together.
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Personally, if it was me, I would definitely NOT supply ANY User/Patron (unless they were personally known to me - ie. close) with ALL the personal details of the "Living" Family/Relatives from my side of the "Ancestral" line, all I would supply to another User/Patron would be the Name (ie. First Given and Surname) of the "Living" individuals/persons.
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It is NOT really the purview of Other Users/Patrons to provide the personal "Details" of any "Living" Family member or Relative to another User/Patron (especially, if they are not personally known to them - ie. close) - that is a matter of "Privacy", which is very important.
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All that you need to do is to simply add the Name (ie. First Given and Surname), without any other details, of the "Living" individuals/persons who 'link'/'connect' together, until you get to the FIRST "Deceased" individual/person.
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I hope this helps.
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Brett
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Thank you, Jeff.
I think it is clear when a match is certain. In most cases it also seems clear when a person is genuinely new to the record. An issue seems to exist, especially with older large families where a name was given to a child who died young and again to a later sibling. One can be tempted to think they are the same person with a date error. My rule is not to assume a match without identifiable corroboration. Selecting a correct marriage partner may need care. Better not to assume a match. In a large .GED file many entries will stay there and not be included inn the FS record
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Yea, it sounds like you are aware of the GEDCOM issues. I wanted to just make sure that you understood the blindness that the Compare tool imposes on the user.
In my Ancestral Quest database on my Mac I have nearly 800 deceased individuals that I have linked to and vetted in the FSFT (all of which are on my "Following" list and all of which are connected together. There are no "partial" trees in my or the FS databases for any of these records). In other words, my personal database matches all those branches in the FSFT. It is a mirror of what you see in FSFT. On more than one occasion I have generated a GEDCOM file from my AQ database and uploaded it to the FS Genealogies collection. When I did the compare, you would think that everything would have matched exactly. But they did not. There were many GEDCOM records that did NOT show up as matching anything in the FSFT in the tool. This IN SPITE of the fact that 2 or 3 generation both up and down for those records in my GEDCOM exactly matching the same named record in the FSFT with the same ancestors and descendants!
With sparse data I have to open a whole new window to now go and examine the pedigree in both the GEDCOM file to compare with the pedigree in the FSFT. Furthermore, the notes that are included for those persons in the GEDCOM file cannot be seen in the Compare tool. Furthermore, those same exact matching notes in the FSFT also cannot be seen in the Compare tool. This makes it virtually impossible to make an intelligent choice for many of these records from the Compare tool. In fact, from the Compare tool, it is very EASY to make incorrect choices in these cases.
To top it off, the ability to actually view the comparison results is now impossible when using Safari 12.1.2. I'm forced to switch browsers in order to see anything.
And the ability to view the data in your GEDCOM file as it exists in the Genealogies database is very weak. If you do a search in Genealogies on a name in your GEDCOM file, you get hundreds of hits on the same name, but there does not appear to be a way to determine which of those hits is from your specific GEDCOM contribution. There's no way to directly go the the tree information in the genealogies area that was taken from your GEDCOM file. That capability would certainly help this a bunch.
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can you clarify a bit what you are asking
one past post on a related topic is this:
https://community.familysearch.org/s/feed/0D53A00004skwTTSAY
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For myself the Genealogical Area is a complete answer, thank you.
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