RootsMagic 8:Adding People

To add people to your RootsMagic database, use one of four options. The first option adds an unlinked person to the database. This is how you add the first person to your database. The other three options let you add a person and link them to an existing person at the same time.

To add siblings, you would add one or both parents, then add the sibling as a child to those parents. If you are at the end of the ancestral line and you find a sibling, add a father with the surname only and add the sibling as a child to this person.

Adding an unlinked individual

Choose this command to add a new unlinked person to the database.

To add a new person to your database:

1.Select Add, Individual from the main menu, or press I, or click the Add button on the toolbar and select Individual, or select Add, Individual from the pop-up menu that appears when you right click the mouse.

a.Given names – Enter the first and middle names of the person you are adding. b.Surname – Enter the last name of the person you are adding. For females, enter their maiden (unmarried) name. For multi-part surnames, like Van Every or Mac Nabb, add a slash "/" before and after the surname, as in James William /Van Every/. c.Sex – Select the person’s sex from the drop list, or type M for male, F for female, or U for unknown if you are not sure of the person's sex at the time. d.Prefix – Enter any text that should come before the person’s name (like Dr.). e.Suffix – Enter any text that should follow the person’s name (like Jr. or III). f.Nickname – Enter any nickname that the person was known by. g.Dates – Enter the birth, death, and burial dates (if known). You can enter the dates in almost any format, and RootsMagic will convert them to a standard format for you. You can also select the Date Calculator if necessary. h.Places – Enter the birth, death, and burial places (if known). As you begin typing, RootsMagic will begin filling the place in for you, and display a drop list of potential matches. When your place name appears, select it from this list. If you have entered the place somewhere else in the program, you can click the place list button to open the Place list with all the places already entered in the program. Click the desired place in the list to enter it quickly into the field. See Place list for more details on the Place List. i.Cause of Death – Enter the cause of death if known. 2.Click OK to create the new person, or click Cancel to close the dialog without adding the individual. 3.RootsMagic will compare the person you add with people already in the database. If it finds any matches, it will bring up the Possible Duplicates dialog box warning that you may have already entered this person. You may continue adding the new person if the person doesn't match any of the existing people, or you may cancel (so you don't end up with two copies of the person in your database). 4.RootsMagic will bring up the person's edit screen where you can enter any other information for the person. Click OK on this edit screen to return to the main screen.