CensusTools

I have received several e-mails over the past 2-3 months regarding how to incorporate CensusTools spreadsheets into a family history project or other genealogy software. So I decided to produce this newsletter article to offer some specific how-to information and ideas.

There is a wide variety of genealogy software in the market today and each handles multimedia linking differently. The instructions below detail how to import a CensusTools spreadsheet to the multimedia or scrapbook function of the particular genealogy software. I list the version of each software I evaluated with the caveat that earlier versions may require modifications.

Family Tree Maker 2005

• Click the "scrapbook" icon or select "View" --> "Individual Scrapbook" from the top menu
• Select "Picture/Object" --> "Insert Object" from the top menu
• Ensure the "Create from File" checkbox is checked
• Click "Browse" and navigate to the location of the desired spreadsheet
• Click "OK"
• The spreadsheet will be a scrapbook item

FTM 2005 actually imports a copy of the spreadsheet into your family file, as opposed to linking to it on your hard drive. You can move or delete the original file without affecting your scrapbook copy. When viewing the scrapbook spreadsheet, Excel will be opened and the file can be modified and saved.

GenBox 3.3

• With the appropriate individual open, select "View" --> "Media" from the top menu
• Select "Data" --> "New Media" from the top menu
• Select "All Files" in the "Files of type" drop down window
• Navigate to the desired spreadsheet file from within the "Look in" window
• Click "Open"

A link to the file will be generated and saved to the individual's scrapbook. The spreadsheet file can be modified at it's linked location, but if it is moved or deleted, the scrapbook link will be broken and useless. To view the spreadsheet file from withing GenBox, click the icon to the right of the "Format" field in the media window.

The Master Genealogist 6.0

• With desired person opened, click the "Exhibits" icon
• Right click in the large greyed out area in the "Exhibit Log" window and select "Insert New OLE"
• With the blank "Ole.ole_object" window open, click "Edit" in the top TMG menu and select "Insert Object"
• Check the "Create from File" box in the "Insert Object" window
• Click "Browse" and locate the desired spreadsheet file
• To import a copy of the spreadsheet into the TMG database, leave the "link" box unchecked. By checking the "link" box, the spreadsheet will not be imported, but a link to the hard drive location will be generated.
• Click "OK"
• Close the "Ole.ole_object" window
• Right click in the resulting "OLE" window in the "Exhibit Log"
• Select "Properties"
• Select the "General" tab and enter any desired topic description and click "OK"

To view the spreadsheet, double left click the OLE icon in the "Exhibit Log" window. The resulting image of the spreadsheet will be very low quality. Double clicking the poor image will open the spreadsheet in a simple but effective spreadsheet viewer. Once open, the spreadsheet can be viewed and/or modified as desired.

Roots Magic 2.0

• Click the "photos" icon or select "Edit" --> "Multimedia Scrapbook" --> "person" (or "family") in the top menu
• Select the "multimedia" tab in the "Edit Person" window
• Click "Add"
• Select "File" from the "Type of Scrapbook Item" drop down window
• Click "Browse" and navigate to the desired spreadsheet file
• Add a caption and/or description as desired
• Click "OK" to close the "Edit Scrapbook Item" window

To view the spreadsheet, double-click the appropriate document in the "Edit Person" screen.

Roots Magic creates a link to the spreadsheet. The spreadsheet file can be modified as desired but if it is moved, Roots Magic will not be able to find it.

Ancestral Quest 11.0.10

• Click the "Scrapbook" icon or select "Edit" --> "Scrapbook Collection" in the top menu
• Click "Add" in the "Scrapbook Collection" window
• Select "Other" in the "Item Type" drop down window
• Click "Browse" and navigate to the desired spreadsheet file
• Add a caption and/or description as desired
• Click "OK" to close the "Add Scrapbook Item" window
• Click "Save" to close the "Scrapbook Collection" window

Ancestral Quest creates a link to the spreadsheet. The spreadsheet file can be modified as desired but if it is moved, Ancestral Quest will not be able to find it.

PAF 5.2.18.0

PAF 5.2 is based on an early version of Ancestral Quest, but cannot import MS Excel files. PAF has not been updated for several years. Perhaps a future version will expand the types of files supported.

Ancestry Family Tree 9.0.5

Legacy 5.0

Neither AFT nor Legacy will import Excel files.

So should you import?

The decision whether to import CensusTools worksheets into a genealogy database will probably depend upon what one intends to do with the database. Importing a worksheet makes it very quick and easy to review the information while an ancestor's record is open without fumbling around in Excel or Windows Explorer trying to locate the right file.

If you intend to publish your family history using the report or book features of your software, an imported spreadsheet probably won't be the best idea.

If you publish in book form, you have to get the applicable spreadsheet worksheets onto a written page. The quickest way to accomplish that is to simply print the worksheet using your printer's highest quality setting. With just a few exceptions, all of my worksheets were designed to allow printing on an 8.5" x 11" page.

If you need an electronic copy your book publisher can handle, the easiest option is to export a worksheet in .pdf format. Excel won't do that, but Adobe Acrobat will of course, and there are free utilities which do a fine job of creating .pdf files from an Excel original.

If you plan to distribute your family history on CD or DVD, then you don't have to do anything. Just include a folder with all of your spreadsheet files.

Unfortunately, one thing you can't do with good results is export a CensusTools spreadsheet as HTML for a web page. Even though Excel can do that, the worksheet design makes it problematic. As I mentioned above, I designed the worksheets to allow printing on letter or legal size paper. As crowded as many of the worksheets are, I had no choice but to format many of the column headers with vertical text. It saves a lot of space, but when Excel exports to HTML, those column headers are formatted as horizontal text. The result is a worksheet with many of the column headers unreadable. If you want to incorporate CensusTools worksheets into a web page, the best ways are via screenshot images or .pdf links.

1. All CensusTools Worksheets Now Available in PDF Format!
2. Don't Own MS Excel? A Quick Look at the Free Open Office
3. Family History Library Research Retreat!
4. Everton Library Online
5. Integrating CensusTools Spreadsheets into Your Genealogy Database
6. A Request for Your Support