Difference between revisions of "RootsMagic 8:WebSearch"

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The '''WebSearch''' view makes it easy to search online for information about your family. Switch to the WebSearch tab and RootsMagic will do an online search for the currently selected person (if Auto-search is checked.) If you want to find someone else just click their name in the sidebar and RootsMagic will automatically search for them on the selected site.
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The '''WebSearch''' view makes it easy to search online for information about your family. Switch to the Search page and select the WebSearch view. Either click the name of a person in the list on the WebSearch view, or type in a name and birth/death year and click the Find button, and RootsMagic will automatically search for them on the selected site.
  
Search-WebSearch-2-Image
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[[File:RM8_Search-WebSearch-2b.jpg|WebSearch 2]]
  
Of course nobody wants to search just one site, so RootsMagic lets you select which site you want it to use. Click the little drop arrow  to the right of the search button and choose the site you want to search. If you want to add additional sites that we don’t include (or if you want to hide some of the built-in sites), choose “Manage Search Providers…”.
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The main part of the WebSearch screen is a Web Browser window that displays the results of the search. The  Back and Forward buttons operate in the same fashion as other browsers.
  
If the Auto-search checkbox is marked, RootsMagic will automatically search for a person the instant you click their name in the sidebar list. If Auto-search is not checked, then you will need to click the Search button any time you want RootsMagic to search for the currently selected person.
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Sometimes you may want to open your results in a standalone browser rather than the one built into WebSearch.  If you click the "External browser" checkbox, RootsMagic will open the selected website in whatever browser is set as the default for your computer.
  
The main part of the WebSearch screen is a Web Browser window that displays the results of the search. The web address is shown at the top of this window, and the Back, Forward and Refresh buttons shown to the left of the Web Address field operate in the same fashion as other browsers. The down button at the right end of the Web Address field provides a list of recently viewed sites. To return to one of the previously viewed pages, select the desired page from the drop list.
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If the AutoSearch checkbox is marked, RootsMagic will automatically search for a person the instant you click their name in the sidebar list. If AutoSearch is not checked, then you will need to click the Find button any time you want RootsMagic to search for the currently selected person.
  
To increase the size of the browser window for more screen space for the web application, you can
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==Managing Search Providers==
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Of course nobody wants to search just one site, so RootsMagic lets you select which site you want it to use. The Provider field lets you choose the site you want to search. If you want to add additional sites that we don’t include (or if you want to hide some of the built-in sites), click “Edit Providers".
  
#Maximize the window – click the Maximize button beside the red X in the top right corner of the window.
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[[File:RM8_Search-WebSearch-4a.jpg|WebSearch 4]]
#Hide the toolbar – right click in the toolbar/main menu area and click on toolbar to hide the toolbar. (Repeat to show the toolbar.)
 
#Hide the sidebar – click on the narrow bar to the right of the sidebar to hide/show it or click View, Sidebar (Alt+V,S) to toggle show/hide sidebar.
 
  
When you find a website you are interested in, you can click the "Add WebTag" button to add a link to that website to the currently selected person.
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The Manage Search Providers dialog lets you hide any of the built-in sites that you don’t want appearing in the list.  Just unmark the checkbox and the site will no longer appear in the Search Engine drop down menu on the WebSearch screen.  Or you can select the “Custom Search Providers” tab to add new search engines.
  
Sometimes you may want to open your results in a standalone browser rather than the one built into WebSearch. If you click the "Use external browser" checkbox, RootsMagic will open the selected website in whatever browser is set as the default for your computer. One note, using the external browser method disables the "Add WebTag" button since RootsMagic has no way of getting the URL information from the external browser.
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[[File:RM8_Search-WebSearch-5a.jpg|WebSearch 5]]
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Click the Add button to add a new search engine to the list. RootsMagic will display the following form, with instructions on how to add the new search engine.
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[[File:RM8_Search-WebSearch-9c.jpg|WebSearch 9]]
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Open your web browser and go to the website you want to add to RootsMagic's WebSearch. Do a search the way you would normally do it. When asked to enter the name and information to search for, enter this information:
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;Given name: John
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;Surname: Doe
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;Birth date: 1700
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;Death date: 1800
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then do the search. When the results come up in your web browser, select the URL (the http:// stuff) and copy and paste it into the Search Results URL field above. Also enter the name of the search engine in the first field on that dialog and click OK.
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There are some limitations to this, such as if the search engine does not display the result URL in the browser.
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[[File:RM8_Search-WebSearch-10b.jpg|WebSearch 10]]
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'''Note:''' To add Ancestry as a custom search provide enter:
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Search Results URL:
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<u>https://www.ancestry.com/search/?name=John_Doe&birth=1700&death=1800&count=50</u>

Latest revision as of 15:51, 19 April 2023

Navigation: RootsMagic 8 > The RootsMagic Interface > Search Page >


The WebSearch view makes it easy to search online for information about your family. Switch to the Search page and select the WebSearch view. Either click the name of a person in the list on the WebSearch view, or type in a name and birth/death year and click the Find button, and RootsMagic will automatically search for them on the selected site.

WebSearch 2

The main part of the WebSearch screen is a Web Browser window that displays the results of the search. The Back and Forward buttons operate in the same fashion as other browsers.

Sometimes you may want to open your results in a standalone browser rather than the one built into WebSearch. If you click the "External browser" checkbox, RootsMagic will open the selected website in whatever browser is set as the default for your computer.

If the AutoSearch checkbox is marked, RootsMagic will automatically search for a person the instant you click their name in the sidebar list. If AutoSearch is not checked, then you will need to click the Find button any time you want RootsMagic to search for the currently selected person.

Managing Search Providers

Of course nobody wants to search just one site, so RootsMagic lets you select which site you want it to use. The Provider field lets you choose the site you want to search. If you want to add additional sites that we don’t include (or if you want to hide some of the built-in sites), click “Edit Providers".

WebSearch 4

The Manage Search Providers dialog lets you hide any of the built-in sites that you don’t want appearing in the list. Just unmark the checkbox and the site will no longer appear in the Search Engine drop down menu on the WebSearch screen. Or you can select the “Custom Search Providers” tab to add new search engines.

WebSearch 5

Click the Add button to add a new search engine to the list. RootsMagic will display the following form, with instructions on how to add the new search engine.

WebSearch 9

Open your web browser and go to the website you want to add to RootsMagic's WebSearch. Do a search the way you would normally do it. When asked to enter the name and information to search for, enter this information:

Given name
John
Surname
Doe
Birth date
1700
Death date
1800

then do the search. When the results come up in your web browser, select the URL (the http:// stuff) and copy and paste it into the Search Results URL field above. Also enter the name of the search engine in the first field on that dialog and click OK.

There are some limitations to this, such as if the search engine does not display the result URL in the browser.


WebSearch 10


Note: To add Ancestry as a custom search provide enter:

Search Results URL: https://www.ancestry.com/search/?name=John_Doe&birth=1700&death=1800&count=50