Geni

=================================================================== README file for Geni Version 1.20 (c) Martin Dunstan (mnd@dcs.st-andrews.ac.uk) February 16th, 1997 =================================================================== Credits: Idea and design: Vivienne S. Dunstan Programming: Martin N. Dunstan Purpose: Browse genealogical (family tree) databases with ease. Copyright: (c) Martin N. Dunstan (mnd@dcs.st-andrews.ac.uk) February, 1997. This application is shareware. You may use it to browse to 50 individuals while unregistered. After this point the program will become unusable (except to read the help information) until it is registered. Machines: Geni will run on the Psion 3a, Psion 3c and Acorn Pocketbook II. Note that the current version will NOT run on the Psion Siena. Features: * Databases stored in compact format e.g. 4000 individuals in 300K. * Browse to parents, siblings, children or spouses via a few easy-to-remember keypresses. * Ancestral tree display (three or four generations visible). * Zooming on tree display and an optional status window. * View details of current individual and their marriages. * Context-sensitive help as well as detailed help. * Searching with wildcards. * Remembers details of recently used databases. Registration: This program is shareware - if you like it and wish to register your copy please send 15 pounds (or whatever you feel the program is worth) in UK currency (Sterling cheque or international bankers draft) to the address below along with the name under which you want it registered (maximum of 60 characters). If you have an e-mail address please print it clearly and I will e-mail your registration code to you, otherwise I will reply as soon as possible via snail mail. If you wish I will notify you of any major changes or bug fixes. Martin Dunstan 1 Cupar Mills Cupar Fife KY15 5EH Scotland Description: Geni is a fully-fledged genealogical database browser for the Psion 3a and 3c. It is intended to be used by genealogists who maintain their data on a computer such as a PC or Macintosh using a package designed for the purpose. Users must be able to save their data in GEDCOM format for Geni to work. The databases used by Geni are very compact (usually half the size of the GEDCOM from which they were created) allowing the user to carry large databases on a small Psion without the need for extra disks. These databases are created from GEDCOM files by RdGed, a program which accompanies the Geni distribution. Users are not expected to keep the Geni file completely up-to-date with their central database but will recreate it when needed. The ability to save information in GEDCOM format is required for the creation of the Geni database file. Quick Installation: See the MANUAL.TXT file for a more detailed description on how to install Geni. If you have never installed a third-party application on your Psion or have a limited amount of memory please read the instructions in that file. The distribution files (GENI.OPA, GENI.HLP, GENI.PIC and RDGED.OPO) can be installed on any drive. You can even split the distribution over multiple drives (eg. GENI.OPA on A:, GENI.PIC on B: and GENI.HLP on the internal drive) if you are short of memory. (1) Create the following directories: \APP\GENI \GENI \GENI\GED (2) Make sure that your transfer program regards .HLP files as binary files and .GED files as plain text files. (3) Copy: GENI.OPA into \APP GENI.HLP into \APP\GENI GENI.PIC into \APP\GENI RDGED.OPO into \OPO Your GEDCOM file(s) into \GENI\GED (4) Choose INSTALL from the system screen APP menu and install Geni. (5) Run RdGed on each GEDCOM file to convert them into Geni files. Once RdGed has finished converting the newly created files can be used by Geni immediately. At the first dialog of RdGed you should select the GEDCOM file to be converted and then press ENTER. Type in a suitable name for your database at the second prompt, press ENTER and wait for the conversion to finish. After conversion you can remove the GEDCOM files and RDGED.OPO as well as \GENI\GED if you created it. RdGed can read GEDCOM and write Geni databases over the serial link - at either of the dialogs press the down arrow and then use the left and right arrows to select the appropriate drive. Unfortunately Geni doesn't like to access the databases over the serial link so you must have them stored on the Psion somewhere, ideally in \GENI. The detailed help information is stored in the GENI.HLP file. If you need a little extra space this file can be deleted and Geni will still work although detailed help will be unavailable (context-sensitive help is always available though). You can also delete the GENI.PIC file if you want but then you will get a fairly boring title screen! RdGed 1.11 Footprint: System memory (running) ... 22K User memory (running) ..... 13K Application size .......... 15K Total ..................... 48K If large GEDCOM files are converted then some extra memory might be needed for a lookup table. A database of 6000 records could require an extra 64K of system memory. Geni 1.20 Footprint (from DEMO.GED): System memory (running) ... 25.0K User memory (running) ..... 22.0K Application size .......... 27.2K Help database ............. 4.9K Title screen .............. 7.1K Resource file ............. 1.0K Extra (detailed screen) ... 27.0K Total ..................... 114.2K The operating system requires some extra memory when opening new Geni databases. This memory is released once the database has been successfully opened. For a database of about 380K the extra memory is about 20K. Changes from version 1.00 to 1.10: * Geni 1.10 runs far quicker than version 1.00. * Much quicker when closing down. * Databases incompatible with version 1.00 * Doesn't rely on the sex field for locating spouses. * Requires less memory to use. Changes from version 1.10 to 1.11 * RdGed uses non-recursive quick sort to save system memory. * Search string only has a * wildcard at the end not at the beginning as well. Changes from version 1.11 to 1.20 * Geni searches drives M, A, B and C for its files but creates its preferences file (1K in size) in M:\APP\GENI. * Added zooming to allow tree display to show great-grandparents. * Optional status window. * Requires less memory to install and use. Bugs: No bugs have been found in this version although there must be some lurking somewhere. If you do find any bugs or the program crashes with a fatal error please let me know! Ideally I need to know the exact circumstances under which the bug appears so try and restart the program and replicate the bug using the least number of moves. RdGed also seems to be free from bugs - if you find any please send me a fragment of GEDCOM that is causing the problem. The program will attempt to tell you which line it stopped at but it is probably best to look at the lines immediately before and after it. =================================================================== README file for Geni Version 1.20 (c) Martin Dunstan (mnd@dcs.st-andrews.ac.uk) February 16th, 1997 ===================================================================