Addon:TimeLinesMap

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This is a Third-party Addon. Please use carefully on data that is backed up, and help make it better by reporting any comments or problems to the author, or issues to the bug tracker Unless otherwise stated on this page, you can download this addon by following these instructions. Please note that some Addons have prerequisites that need to be installed before they can be used. This Addon/Plugin system is controlled by the Plugin Manager. An Addons Offline Manual is available for review.

View does not display places without coordinates Note that, like all Geography View modes, ONLY the Places with a defined Longitude & Latitude will be plotted.

TimeLines Map is an interactive Geography Category Gramplet that maps selected persons' events and animates them over a controllable timeline.

Events are plotted for each selected person in a colour determined by that person's Gramps ID. Events can be selected to see which event it is, which person it is for, and where it is. Certain events have their own icon.

Example animation with 3 month long steps every 100 milliseconds.

Usage

Clicking an object on the map will display the selected events, who they are for, and where they are located.

Person Selection

TimeLines Map "Choose View Format" popup

There different settings for choosing what selection of persons will be mapped. By default a popup appears when first navigating to TimeLines Map (this behaviour can be changed in configuration options) prompting the user for what selection of persons to use. This popup can be shown again by right-clicking anywhere on the map. The options are:

1. Only the Active Person
   • This only selects events involving the active person.
2. Active Person and their Ancestors
   • This selects the active person as well as all of their ancestors
3. Active Person and their Descendants
   • This selects the active person as well as all of their descendants
4. Active Person and both their Ancestors and Descendants
   • This selects the active person as well as all of their ancestors and descendants
5. All Connections to Active Person
   • This recursively selects every person who is a child or parent of the children or parents of the active person.
   • Warning: Depending on the size of your database and your computer specs, this may take a long time
6. Entire Database
   • This selects every person in the database
   • Warning: Depending on the size of your database and your computer specs, this may take a long time
7. Selection from 'Filter
   • After making a filter and pressing "filter", this selects only persons matching that filter.

Control Panel

A control panel has been added to the bottom of the map view. There are three parts:

• Left: The time control panel. Play/Pause the animation, and set how many days/months/years will pass every x milliseconds.
  • Note: How quickly every step will animate will depend on how many persons have been selected and your computer specs. After letting TimeLines animate about 100 steps, you can check the configuration options which will display the minimal effective millisecond step you are able to process with current your current specs and selection. Setting your millisecond step below this minimal number will not result in any faster step.
• Centre: The time slider. This displays the current date and is bounded by the earliest and latest events in the selection. You can manually drag the slider to change which date is shown.
• Right: Toggleable options. Buttons to show/hide lines between events for each person, show/hide the markers on the time slider, and a button to show all events in the current selection.

The Control Panel

At the top left of the map view, the current date is shown and the number of individuals on the map at that date.

Configuration Options

A faint "?" is displayed when the "show unknown ancestors" option is enabled. This "?" will be replaced by a person after their earliest/birth event occurs.

Options are sorted into a number of categories:

• Default Options

  These control default on start-up settings

• Preferences
  • Stagger Map Markers

    This draws events displaced from the actual location coordinates. enabling this can be helpful to better visualize areas where many events are happening at the same location at the same time. The radius of how far these can be staggered is also controlled here.

  • Display Markers for Unknown Ancestors:

    This displays faint black "?" symbols on the map if a person with no known origin will appear there at a later date. Can be set to disabled, show if one unknown parent, show if two unknown parents.

  • Days to keep map travel lines:

    How long lines should stay on the map showing the location change between events after a new event occurs.

• Map Icon Options
  • Use Custom Map Icons

    If enabled, use the coloured icons designed for TimeLines. Otherwise use pin markers.

  • If a person has events with dates, but there is no birth event, assume they are this old at first event (used for the next option)
  • If a person has no death event, remove their marker from the map after they become this old.
• Default Animation Options

  These are the default options on the time control panel.

• Default Startup Options

  When the mapview is opened for the first time since starting Gramps, what action should be taken.

• Other
  • Displays the minimum effective millisecond step. Note: Let the animation run for at least 100 steps before checking this value.

TimeLines Map Configuration Options

Map Icons

Example with "Show All" enabled.

Example showing movement of persons across the Atlantic.

Different events, and certain place types, are represented by different icons drawn on the map.

By default a circle is drawn.

Icons in special cases:

• "?" is drawn when a person is living, but their first event with a location is yet to occur.
• "x" is drawn when a person is living but they have no further events. By default this icon will be removed from the map when they are 100 years old.

Icons by events:

• A house is drawn on "Residence" events
• "+" is drawn on "Birth" and "Baptism" events
• "-" is drawn on "Death" and events
• A simple gravestone is drawn on "Burial" events

These place types represent large areas. Instead of drawing them with a "dot" of some kind at a specific coordinate, empty, segmented rings are drawn for visual clarity instead. Icons by place type:

• a large segmented ring is drawn if an event occurs at a "Country" place type
• a medium segmented ring is drawn if an event occurs at a "State" or "Province" place type
• a small segmented ring is drawn if an event occurs at a list of other places:
  • "Region"
  • "Department"

Troubleshooting

To make use of the filter selection, you need to first set the filter, filter, and then activate the filter selection (right click the map, select "Choose View Format", then choose the "Selection from Filter" option).

Future Plans

• Add more map event icons
• Make map event icons for each event selectable in configuration options.
• Draw map event icons at the proper coordinates (currently they are offset).

Credits

Made by Thomas B. User:Thomasb1447. The GeoPerson map view was used as a reference while making this plugin.

See Also

• Discourse thread - Timelines map addon