Become a Better Researcher

Our research problems are unique and our genealogy software, to be useful, must be flexible enough to match our respective problems and our respective methods. The Master Genealogist is that software, but power and flexibility has a down side. The more options a program has, the more decisions the user must make. This year, the Tri-Valley TMG User Group will explore those options and make some of those personal decisions. Would you like to play along with us? Do each month's assignment, and if you like, e-mail it to us at: tvtmg.chair@L-AGS.org. We'll post some of the completed assignments on this blog each month. Let's hear it for choices!

Tuesday, October 20, 2015

The Periodic Table of (Source) Elements

Sorry, I could not resist this post title. The following is of academic interest only, but given how often the question arises, that interest is widespread. "I've just added another source element to my custom source type, but the element seems to be added randomly on the Source Definition screen's General tab. Shouldn't it be added to the first available blank field? Or shouldn't the elements be arranged in alphabetical order? Or shouldn't the elements be arranged as entered in the Source Type template? What's up with that??"

Let's take a look at the General tab in TMG's Source Definition screen.
General tab in the Source Definition screen
There are fifteen possible element fields on this screen. The first field is reserved for elements from the Title source element group. The remaining fourteen element fields can be filled by any one element from 23 source element groups. Those source element groups are added to this table in a specific order:

Title
Short TitleSecond Location
SubtitlePublisher
Short SubtitlePublisher Location
Record TypeSeries
AuthorEdition
SubjectVersion
CompilerVolumes
EditorPages
Second PersonFile Reference
DateRecord Number
Second DateFilm Number
Location

Take a look at the TMG screenshot. If we were to add the [SHORT TITLE] element to this screen, it would not appear in the first available blank spot (the second label in the second column). It would pop into the first label spot in the first column, and all the rest would move down. If we were to add an element from the Publisher source element group, it would be inserted between our Location element and our Description element, which is defined as part of the Series source element group.

Try it! Let me know if you think I've made an error in this Periodic Table of (Source) Elements. Again, this is of academic interest only. Knowing this won't make any difference in how you use TMG.
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3 comments:

  1. Texas FillyOctober 20, 2020 at 12:14 PM

    Hi Susan. You responded to me about the Element Groups on the TMG-L list. Now that I see this, understand what you mean by 'Periodic Table........." I don't know if you've ever seen Theresa Gee's Cheat Sheets on Source Elements and Variables, but they've been invaluable to me for a long time. They are based on TMG v7 but I think she said at the time that nothing changed when v9 came out. I just today realized that the source elements listed and only her most used and not a complete list. However, she lists 32 Element Groups including Title. You show 24 including Title and there are a couple of groups switched in order. I see you are in Texas. So am I. Where are you? We are now in the San Antonio area but from Austin originally and Houston for many years. Kaye

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    1. Susan JohnstonOctober 20, 2020 at 6:47 PM

      Hi Kaye.
      I haven't seen Teresa's cheat sheets, but she has contributed a lot of valuable tools to the TMG world. There are 32 element groups, but eight of them: CD, CM, CRef, Comments/Memo, and the four Repository elements aren't used in the 14 spaces (plus Title) in the General tab on the Source Definition screen. I could have made a mistake in this order. What are the ones that are switched in your version? I'm not in TX. Is there a Tri-Valley in Texas? Sue

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  2. Susan JohnstonOctober 20, 2020 at 1:26 PM

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