how best to gather data in Reunion

[Brendan Lyons]

Hi

I am new to Reunion (9b Mac) and this is my first post. I am currently gathering information on my fathers maternal family. I am initially trying to do as much ground work as possible online. My two main sources are the 1901 Irish census (now online) and the records collated by the Church of the Latter Day saints. The latter currently is providing me with much data from the mid to late 1800s and obviously some of these people will still be alive in 1901.

Until I can make links and connections I am fearful that I may enter many people from both datasets who later turn out to be one and the same. I also foresee that I will be entering lots of siblings as individual entities rather than as children of a particular marriage.

Anyone who has any experience of this problem and solutions you have found would be welcomed. Is it easy to link connections if and when I discover them at a later date?

[Michael Talibard]

Hi, Brendan - and welcome to Reunion! There is always more than one good way to do things, but here goes: I would work backwards from yourself, one generation at a time, entering into your Reunion family file the people you know to be related. I suggest that you keep separately, on paper or in some other database, or folder in your Mac, the information you collect that only might belong to your family file, until you can satisfy yourself whether and how they relate.

[kmgenealogy]

Hi Brendan,

Welcome to Reunion. You will get a lot of help here. However, sometimes you have to be patient. Start exploring the Manual (button in the top menu bar on every page). Especially read through the first four main topics-Introduction, Learning Reunion, Getting Around and Adding, Linking & Removing People. You may even want to print out some or all of those topics.

As you are a newbie in Reunion, I highly recommend that you check out the macgenealogist.com website. Look for the online videos on organizing your Mac. Using his system has saved me a ton of time and it makes it super easy to find things. I believe Ben even addresses having folders for those that you're not sure belong in your family. I bought the 3 CDs (not expensive) because they have all his videos and they are in higher resolution. A few of the videos are for other programs but most of them are for Reunion. He is no longer making videos so the 3 CDs have them all.

Meanwhile, I second Michael's suggestion of starting with yourself and working back from there with your parents, grandparents and so on.

Good luck and good hunting,
Kaye

[Brendan Lyons]

Thank you for the advice. I have indeed been reading the manual and learning as I go. Thankfully, I have been using a Mac for 20 years and am also reasonably database literate, so it is just the specifics of Reunion which I need to get a handle on.

I think, based on your suggestions, I will create an immediate family file and another 'holding' file for the particular family I am interested in researching where I can add people and information and when I learn more I can link them up.

[genealogist.lily]

Thank you for the advice. I have indeed been reading the manual and learning as I go. Thankfully, I have been using a Mac for 20 years and am also reasonably database literate, so it is just the specifics of Reunion which I need to get a handle on.

I think, based on your suggestions, I will create an immediate family file and another 'holding' file for the particular family I am interested in researching where I can add people and information and when I learn more I can link them up.

This may not be what you want. But having two files can get confusing. There are lots of discussions in the archives on whether to open separate files (for spouses, say) and the answer is generally, "Don't." You can add names to your file without linking them. Choose Edit > Add unrelated person. I call them "floaters." You can create mini (or not so mini) trees around your floaters, linking names and families. They are easy to find in the index, and then, when you are ready you can connect them to your tree in the usual Reunion manner. Lily