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RM provides a broader pedigree than Ancestry does

RM provides a broader pedigree than Ancestry does

Posted: 18 Mar 2014 9:17PM GMT
Classification: Query
I work back-and-forth between RM and Ancestry.com toward the goal of publishing my findings. Using the same GEDCOM, RM provides a much broader (more extensive) pedigree than Ancestry does. It looks like RM produces ancestors for both husband and wife. I'm not sure. Does anyone understand the differences between varying pedigrees using the same GEDCOM?

Re: RM provides a broader pedigree than Ancestry does

Posted: 19 Mar 2014 3:06AM GMT
Classification: Query
I believe Ancestry simply doesn't display both. When you are in pedigree view on Ancestry you may notice the active person is in brown. When the file contains ancestors for the spouse you will see little 'rabbit ears' for lack of a better term, on their tan icon. When you click on the spouse, the spouses box turns brown and the original person turns tan and gets the rabbit ears indicating they have a tree but it is not displayed. Both locations should have the identical number of people in the file.

Question for you. In going back and forth - has any data been lost? I know for example if you put anything in to the "Comment" field on ancestry it will not come down in a GEDCOM in to their own software Family Tree Maker. I am specifically interested in RootsMagic though - I only gave that as an example.

Re: RM provides a broader pedigree than Ancestry does

Posted: 19 Mar 2014 4:34AM GMT
Classification: Query
Thanks so much for your response. I like how RootsMagic converts the GEDCOM to a broader pedigree that shows expanded family lineage of multiple people on a single page. Admittedly, the amount of information per page is overwhelming, especially for non-genealogists who lose track easily. MyCanvas (thru Ancestry.com) will produce a pedigree for a single individual or couple. An expanded family would need multiple separate pedigree runs.

To answer your question about GEDCOM exchange between programs, some fields in Ancestry do not transfer to Roots Magic, such as comments, images, etc. I think marriage dates don't transfer, as well. Lastly, the publications feature in RootsMagic isn't as sophisticated as MyCanvas. For anyone wanting to produce a professional looking genealogy text, RootsMagic isn't the way to go.
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