Default Format

The "Default Format" is a full-featured format provided with GEDitCOM II. It is designed to have a robust set of editing tools that allow you to edit all features supported in the GEDCOM genealogy file standard. Since the "Default Format" is provided with GEDitCOM II and the first format that loads, many of its features are already documented in the main GEDitCOM II help.

Each type of record (e.g., Individual, Families, etc.) opens in a display customized for that type of record. Since Individual and Family records often have much information, the various sections of those records are divided into "panes." Select the section you want to view and edit by using the button bar at the top of the window. All other records display in a single pane. To see individual and family records all in a single pane too, you can select the "All" pane or you can switch to the "Default One Pane Format."

The sections below list the preferences that can be set for the "Default Format" and explain the functions of the icons;. The following is an index to those topics:

Embedded Scripts

The following embedded scripts provided extra functions when control clicking on some fields or clicking on some buttons:

Name Editing Fields
Control click to change the case of the name (e.g., to all uppercase, title case, or surname only in uppercase).
Lat,Lon Editing Fields
Control click to open that latitude and longitude in a website called GeoHack. That web sites will have numerous links to map or view that location.
.ged Button
Click this button to share the ancestors or descendants of the current individual with friends and relatives through a GEDCOM file (if they do not have GEDitCOM II). Send them the file created by following the steps in this script.

Format Fonts

To change format-specific fonts, open the GEDitCOM II preferences window and click on the "Fonts" tab. The "Default Format's" fonts are:

Label Text
Prominent text labels.
Static Text
Lower-level text labels.
Editing Text
The text used in editing fields.
Button Text
The text for buttons.
Check Box Text
The text next to check boxes.
Popup Menu Text
The text used in pop-up menus.
Hyperlink Text
The text used for clickable links between records
GEDCOM Extension Text
The "Default Format" allows some extensions to GEDCOM 5.5. As long as you are using GEDitCOM II, those extension will always work fine. If the export to another program, the extensions will exported, but the other program will probably not recognize the data is may even delete it. To help you recognize GEDCOM extensions, these labels are indicated in this font. The custom tags are mostly in Source and Multimedia Object records.

Format Colors

To change format-specific colors, open the GEDitCOM II preferences window and click on the "Colors" tab. The "Default Format's" colors are:

Window Background
The main color for the background of a browser window.
Record Header Box Background
The top section of the window background in a browser window uses this color rather than the main window background color.
Editing Background
The background for cells used for text editing.
Table Cell Background
The background for header cells used in tables of data.

Format-Specific Variables

To change format-specific variables, open the GEDitCOM II preferences window and click on the "Editing" tab. The margin settings and default settings are common to all formats. The variables specific to the "Default Format" are:

Multimedia Full Size
Images in multimedia records will display at the full size of the image in the file (which can be scaled using the scale menu). The larger dimension of the image, however, will never exceed the window width or this "Multimedia Full Size" setting, whichever is smaller. You can use the "Zoom" pane view the image at a scale larger than the window (as set with the scale menu).
Thumbnails Per Row
Links for records to multimedia objects are displayed with a thumbnail image to the object. This preference sets the number of thumbnails per row in the display. The thumbnails will also adjust in size if the window size is changed.
    To spped up display of thumbnails, GEDitCOM II generates small thumbnails for each multimedia object containing an image. These thumbnails look fine when the links are small. If the links get large (e.g., when using one thumbnail per row), this format will use the full scale image rather than the internal thumbnails. The image quality will be good, but it might slow down access to records with lots of linked images. To maximize speed when opening such records, it is best to increase this setting to at least 2 and you may need 3 or more if using a large monitor with large record windows.
Notes Position
A numeric code for location of the editing pane in Notes records. The options are: 1 = left, 2 = top, 3 = right, and 4 = bottom.

Icons

The "Default Format" has several icons that can be clicked for various functions. Most of them are short cuts to menu commands.

Available Languages

To choose the language for this user interface, open the "Editing" tab of theGEDitCOM II preferences and select language from the pop-up menu. The options are:

These settings change the langauge in the record browsing windows, but do not change other elements of GEDitCOM II such as menus, sheets, and documentation.

Acknowledgements: Finish was provided by Risto Virtanen.