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I can easily add photos to memories, but the site won't let me add a document. Why is that?

danielkellyogden
danielkellyogden ✭
June 23, 2021 edited June 30, 2021 in Memories

I can easily add photos to memories, but the site won't let me add a document. Why is that?

Tagged:
  • memories-(photos-and-stories)
  • Add Document
0

Best Answer

  • Miss Jessie
    Miss Jessie ✭✭✭
    June 23, 2021 edited June 23, 2021 Answer ✓
    https://www.familysearch.org/help/helpcenter/article/how-do-i-upload-photos-or-documents-to-memories


    The formats and the file size limits are below:

    • For documents, .pdf file formats up to 15MB. Other document formats such as .doc and .docx files will need to be converted to .pdf before they can be uploaded.

    You may also upload some image files as a document

    https://www.familysearch.org/help/helpcenter/article/how-do-i-change-a-photo-to-a-document-or-a-document-to-a-photo-in-memories


    0

Answers

  • Dennis J Yancey
    Dennis J Yancey ✭✭✭✭✭
    June 24, 2021

    depends what you mean by "documents'

    as stated documents shoudl be saved in pdf format.

    Word allows for saving in pdf format.

    and most any document of any other format (such as powerpoint, excel and most all others - can easily be converted to pdf format - via a pdf print option)

    1
  • MNuttall
    MNuttall ✭✭✭
    June 30, 2021

    If the document you are trying to add to Memories is in pdf format you will only be able to add it in the Documents section of Memories. If the document is in a photo format, you can add both in Photos and in Documents.

    1
  • PhilipFrasier
    PhilipFrasier ✭
    November 12, 2021

    I have the same document in hand-writing, odt, doc, docx, and pdf. Is there any preferred format. This doc is originally a hand-written 489 page book that works down to a 154 page pdf. I would like to just load it once and then point to it by reference. There are a lot a family names in this doc, mentioning a lot of surnames, going all the way back to 980 AD. Surprisingly, it also has a lot of individual stories, that I have broken off into several pieces in both pdf and html. One family name goes continuously down the line with 21 generations.

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  • Dennis J Yancey
    Dennis J Yancey ✭✭✭✭✭
    November 12, 2021 edited November 12, 2021

    most 489 page pdf's wont come in under the 15MB Memories size limit though it depends upon the type of content.

    ILOVEPDF is a great FREE tool to allow for file compression, file splitting, and many other services that help in the documents you upload to Memories,

    see:

    https://www.ilovepdf.com/

    1
  • Jensenej
    Jensenej ✭
    March 10, 2022

    I work in a stake family history center and we love how many people from around the country (snowbirds/winter visitors) visit with us for help in preserving their family histories.

    We have done the 'split pdf' route to get their family histories uploaded, but that usually results in multiple files, out of order, some rejected uploads, and mismatched sizes (that still are over 15mb) due to included photos (I have yet to find a split program that will allow a split of resulting file size . . . ).

    Would there ever be either an increase to the 15mb size limit or a way to have trusted users upload whole files? Are there any other options (is there 'no other way'? ;) ) so that we can spend our time sharing and listening and reading instead of dividing up large pdfs that are going to end up taking up the same amount (or more) of data storage only to end up in a format that is harder to manage?


    Thanks!

    0
  • Dennis J Yancey
    Dennis J Yancey ✭✭✭✭✭
    March 10, 2022 edited March 10, 2022

    @Jensenej

    have you used compression to get the file size down?

    see the I love pdf link above which has an option for compression.

    I doubt there will be any exceptions to the 15MB size limit. (its not a matter of "trust")

    Compression should be used first - and then splitting once compression is as high as possible.

    usually the issue is that people have included images with DPI settings way higher than they really need to be.

    are you scanning their family histories? or simply taking a pdf that they have already created?

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  • Dennis J Yancey
    Dennis J Yancey ✭✭✭✭✭
    March 10, 2022 edited March 10, 2022

    @Jensenej


    can you point us to some of the pdf's you have uploaded so far so I can do some analysis??

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  • Jensenej
    Jensenej ✭
    March 11, 2022

    Sure - the memories are in this record: https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/K839-M56


    Thanks for your help! I appreciate it!

    0
  • Dennis J Yancey
    Dennis J Yancey ✭✭✭✭✭
    March 12, 2022 edited March 12, 2022

    so here was one of your uploads:

    https://www.familysearch.org/photos/artifacts/142751497?cid=mem_copy

    note this is a 7MB document (about half way to the max of 15.

    I uploaded it to ILOVEPDF and compressed it - using only moderate compression and I was able to get the size down to 1.5 MB

    ILOVEPDF site: https://www.ilovepdf.com/compress_pdf

    see here is the same document at only 1.5 MB:

    https://www.familysearch.org/photos/artifacts/142940712?cid=mem_copy

    I doubt you can even see the difference in quality.


    now the other thing is that it appears with most all of these you took a paper copy of their report and scanned on your scanner it to pdf. do you know what DPI setting you scanned at? that is another factor to be aware of. most reports like this - there is no need to scan above more than 200 dpi.

    keep in mind when you scan a paper - you are converting a paper which had printed text on it - into a digital image (like a photo) - - digital images will take up about 100 times more size than the same document if it had been kept in text format and not image format.

    One should really do all that they can to keep a text based pdf in TEXT format - instead of scanning it and converting it into image format.

    I will follow up this post with another post giving some tips on exactly how to do that.

    0
  • Dennis J Yancey
    Dennis J Yancey ✭✭✭✭✭
    March 12, 2022 edited March 12, 2022

    the other thing I notice is you were scanning in COLOR mode instead of grey scale. color mode is nice for color photos. but no need to scan in color a black and white report.

    color will also increase your file output size.

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