FAQ

From Gramps
Revision as of 00:53, 17 March 2007 by Bmcage (talk | contribs)
Jump to: navigation, search

This article contains the list of questions that frequently come up in mailing list discussions and forums. This list is by no means complete. If you would like to add questions/answers to this list, please email your suggestions to [email protected]

Contents

General

What is GRAMPS?

GRAMPS is the Genealogical Research and Analysis Management Program System. In other words, it is a personal genealogy program letting you store, edit, and research genealogical data using the powers of your computer, see About.

Where do I get it and how much does it cost?

GRAMPS can be installed at no charge. GRAMPS is an Open Source project covered by the GNU General Public License. You have full access to the source code and are allowed to distribute the program and source code freely.

Does GRAMPS exist in other languages?

Yes, at the moment GRAMPS is translated in 15 languages, see GRAMPS translations.

How do I keep backups?

It is extremely important to keep backups of your data, and keep them in a save place. GRAMPS has a specific portable file format which is small, and human readable, denoted by .gramps. If you have allowed this in the preferences, GRAMPS will keep a backup of your database on exit. You can copy this backup file from time to time to a save location (eg a usb stick).

Do not keep backups in GEDCOM. Not all information GRAMPS stores can be written in the GEDCOM. Hence, an export/import operation GRAMPS --> GEDCOM --> GRAMPS, will mean you loose data. Use the .gramps file format for backups!

Do not keep backups in GRDB format. GRDB is a database, which might be computer dependent (read, not working on a different PC). Small damage to a GRDB file can also not be repaired. Use the .gramps file format for backups!

Installation

Does it work with Windows (tm)?

An experimental Windows installer is available, however we do not have the manpower to offer support for Windows. A windows mailing list is available however and we do do our best to solve windows related problems.

Does it work with the Mac?

The Fink project has ported some older versions of GRAMPS to OS X (tm). The Mac OS X port is not directly supported by the GRAMPS project, primarily because none of the GRAMPS developers have access to Mac OS X and because OS X is not Free Software.

This present version of GRAMPS (2.2.x) does not appear to have been ported by the Fink project. Please contact the Fink project for more information. However, some users have had success in installing 2.2.x on Mac OSX via the DarwinPorts instead of the Fink project.

Does it work with KDE?

Yes, as long as the required GNOME libraries are installed. There might be some small issues, see KDE page.

Do I really have to have GNOME installed?

Yes and no. Some key GNOME libraries are needed, but since version 2.2.x most of GRAMPS works without GNOME. So, you do not have to be running the GNOME desktop, and installing GRAMPS will not install the entire GNOME desktop.

What version of GNOME do I need?

This version of gramps requires GNOME 2.8.0 or higher. Previous versions in 1.0.x series required GNOME 2.0. COMMENT: IS THIS STILL VALID ?? I only see python-gnome2 in dependencies...

What are the Minimum Specs to run GRAMPS?

We would recommend at least an 800x600 video display. For GRAMPS 2.0, the memory requirements have been reduced, and GRAMPS can run quite efficiently on a 256MB system, holding considerably more people. A system with 512MB should be able to hold around 200,000 people. Disk space requirements for databases are however considerably larger, with a typical database being several megabytes in size. For 120.000 people you must consider already 530Mb for the database. Pictures are stored on disk separately, so a large harddisk is necessary.

Collaboration-Portability

Is GRAMPS compatible with other genealogical software?

GRAMPS makes every effort to maintain compatibility with GEDCOM, the general standard of recording genealogical information. We have import and export filters that enable GRAMPS to read and write GEDCOM files.

It is important to understand that the GEDCOM standard is poorly implemented -- virtually every genealogical software has its own "flavor" of GEDCOM. As we learn about new flavor, the import/export filters can be created very quickly. However, finding out about the unknown flavors requires user feedback. Please feel free to inform us about any GEDCOM flavor not supported by GRAMPS, and we will do our best to support it!

Can GRAMPS read files created by other genealogy programs?

See FAQ#Is GRAMPS compatible with other genealogical software?.

Can GRAMPS write files readable by other genealogy programs?

See FAQ#Is GRAMPS compatible with other genealogical software?.

What standards does GRAMPS support?

The nice thing about standards is that there never is a shortage of them. GRAMPS is tested to support the following flavors of GEDCOM: GEDCOM5.5, Brother's Keeper, Family Origins, Family Tree Maker, Ftree, GeneWeb, Legacy, Personal Ancestral File, Pro-Gen, Reunion, and Visual Genealogie.

How do I import data from another genealogy program into GRAMPS?

The best way is to create a new gramps database file (.grdb), and select the import option in the file menu. Here you select the GEDCOM you generated with the other program, and import it.

Can I install GRAMPS on a Linux Web Server and use it via a web browser? This would enable my relations worldwide to access and update it.

While GRAMPS can generate web sites, it does not provide a web interface that allows for editing. If this is a requirement, then GeneWeb or PhpGedView are programs more likely to meet your needs. However, you may wish to ask yourself the question: Do I really want relatives or other people to directly edit my genealogy database? Do you implicitly trust, without verification, any data that people may enter? Do these people have the same understanding of good genealogy practice that you have? A better approach may be to provide a web form interface that allows others to enter data that is then held for your examination. You can then decide if the information should be entered into your database.
Also consider the possible downtime of your site if you cannot afford yourself a premium webhosting service.


Reports

Can GRAMPS print a genealogical tree for my family?

Yes. Different people have different ideas of what a genealogical tree is. Some think of it as a chart going from the distant ancestor and listing all his/her descendants and their families. Others think it should be a chart going from the person back in time, listing the ancestors and their families. Yet other people think of a table, text report, etc.

GRAMPS can produce any of the above, and many more different charts and reports. Moreover, the plugin architecture enables users (you) to create their own plugins which could be new reports, charts, or research tools.

In what formats can GRAMPS output its reports?

Text reports are available in HTML, PDF, ODT, LaTeX, and RTF formats. Graphical reports (charts and diagrams) are available in PostScript, PDF, SVG, ODS, and GraphViz formats.

Is GRAMPS compatible with the Internet?

GRAMPS can store web addresses and direct your browser to them. It can import data that you download from the Internet. It can export data that you could send over the Internet. GRAMPS is familiar with the standard file formats widely used on the Internet (e.g. JPEG, PNG, and GIF images, MP3, OGG, and WAV sound files, QuickTime, MPEG, and AVI movie files, etc). Other than that, there is little that a genealogical program can do with the Internet.

Can I create custom reports/filters/whatever?

Yes. There are many levels of customization. One is creating or modifying the templates used for the reports. This gives you some control over the fonts, colors, and some layout of the reports. You can also use GRAMPS controls in the report dialogs to tell what contents should be used for a particular report. In addition to this, you have an ability to create your own filters -- this is useful in selecting people based on criteria set by you. You can combine these filters to create new, more complex filters. Finally, you have an option to create your own plugins. These may be new reports, research tools, import/export filters, etc. This assumes some knowledge of programming in Python.

Why are non-Latin characters displayed as garbage in PDF/PS reports?

This is a limitation of the built-in fonts of PS and PDF formats. To print non-Latin text, use the Print... in the format selection menu of the report dialog. This will use the gnome-print backend, which supports PS and PDF creation, as well as direct printing. (Note: you might need to install gnome-print separately as it is not required for GRAMPS).

If you only have Latin text, the PDF option will produce a smaller PDF compared to that created by gnome-print, simply because no font information will be embedded.

I would like to contribute to GRAMPS by writing my favorite report. How do I do that?

The easiest way to contribute to reports, filters, tools, etc. is to copy an existing GRAMPS report, filter, or tool. If you can create what you want by modifying existing code -- great! If your idea does not fit into the logic of any existing GRAMPS tool, you will need to write your own plugin from scratch. Help is available on the Developers Portal, or on the Developers mailing list: [email protected].

To test your work in progress, you may save your plugin under $HOME/.gramps/plugins directory and it should be found and imported on startup. The correctly written plugin will register itself with GRAMPS, create menu item, and so on.

If you are happy with your plugin and would like to contribute your code back to the GRAMPS project, you are very welcome to do so by contacting us at [email protected]


Database - GRAMPS fileformats

What is the maximum database size (bytes) GRAMPS can handle?

GRAMPS has no hard limits on the size of a database that it can handle. Starting with 2.0.0 release, GRAMPS no longer loads all data into memory, which allows it to work with a much larger database than before. In reality, however, there are practical limits. The main limiting factors are the available memory on the system and the cache size used for BSDDB database access. With common memory sizes these days, GRAMPS should have no problem using databases with tens of thousands of people.

How many people can GRAMPS database handle?

See above. Again, this is dependent on how much memory you have, see GRAMPS Performance.

My database is really big. Is there a way around loading all the data into memory?

Starting with 2.0.0 release, GRAMPS no longer loads all data into memory, which allows it to work with a much larger database than before. The fileformat used is .grdb which means gramps database.


Bugs and requests

I found a bug and I want it fixed right now! What do I do?

The best thing you can do is to fix the bug and send the patch to [email protected] :-)

If that is not possible, you should submit a bug report

A good bug report would include:

  • Version of gramps you were using when you encountered the bug (available through Help → About menu item).
  • Language under which gramps was run (available by executing echo $LANG in your terminal).
  • Symptoms indicating that this is indeed a bug.
  • Any Traceback messages, error messages, warnings, etc, that showed up in your terminal or a in separate traceback window.

Most problems can be fixed quickly provided there is enough information. To ensure this, please follow up on your bug reports. Then we will have a way of contacting you should we need more information.

GRAMPS should be a .... type of application

It is obvious that GRAMPS absolutely needs to become a (client-server/web-based/PHP/weblog/Javascript/C++/distributed/KDE/Motif/Tcl/Win32/C#/You-name-it) application. When is this going to happen?

The surest way to see it happen is to get it done by yourself. Since GRAMPS is free/open source, nobody prevents you from taking all of the code and continuing its development in whatever direction you see fit. In doing so, you may consider giving your new project another name to avoid confusion with the continuing GRAMPS development. If you would like the GRAMPS project to provide advice, expertise, filters, etc., we will gladly cooperate with your new project, to ensure compatibility or import/export options to your new format of a project.

If, however, you would like the GRAMPS project to adopt your strategy, you would need to convince GRAMPS developers that your strategy is good for GRAMPS and superior to the present development strategy.

GRAMPS Webhosting

How can I publish web sites generated by GRAMPS?

Since GRAMPS generates HTML pages, you can upload the pages to your personal web site. If you do not have a personal web site, and still wish to have your pages available on the internet, the GRAMPS project can provide space for you at the http://library.gramps-project.org, see the webhosting article.

How do I submit my pages to the GRAMPS library site (http://library.gramps-project.org)?

If you wish to submit pages to the GRAMPS library site, you will need to contact the GRAMPS project, typically by sending a message to the gramps-users mailing list. You will then be given a username and password that will allow you to upload your files to the site. After you upload the files (in a gzip'ed tar file), the GRAMPS project will install the pages for you on the site.

After I upload my Family Web Page to library.gramps-project.org, is the password used for write privileges only or read privileges?

In order to prevent abuse of the library.gramsp-project.org site, the password given allows uploads only. If you wish to have a username and password combination to restrict read access to your pages, you will need to contact the GRAMPS project, and we could set this up for you. However, the read and write accounts will be separate accounts.

Do I view the Family Web Page with a url into my browser? Or through a link on a list of Family Web Pages on the GRAMPS-Project.org site?

The main page on the library.gramps-project.org site will contain an index of the available family sites. However, there will be a unique URL for each site as well.