Sources and References

Sources are very important in genealogy, as they document where the information comes from. At first, it may seem like extra work to enter this data, but it can prove to be very important. Not only can the information be useful for other genealogists interested in knowing where the information came from, but it can also be very useful if data conflicts occur later, or if you need to look back at the original record for additional information about the individual or the event.

GenoPro supports sources in a unique way: whether it is a book, a newspaper, a citation or a birth record, all information is stored as a source.

	The same source can be used by multiple individuals, unions or places without having to duplicate the information. If a source is updated or completed later, all objects referencing to this source will be updated.

	In GenoPro, Sources and Citations are merged together. In fact, sources are generic, so not all information fields necessarily apply to your source; just leave them empty.

Source Title / Source Name

Name by which the source or citation is known. This field must be very complete and representative of the source because the value is used in the source pick list everywhere.

Source Subtitle

A subtitle is tacked onto a title to clarify the meaning of the title. Sometimes the title as written is purposefully obscure; the subtitle in this case indicates the source's real content.

Brief Source Description

A brief description of the source or citation. This field is rarely used, but it may be needed if the title and subtitle are not descriptive enough.

Source Type

The source type is used to classified the type of source information you have. The list offers a wide variety, but if your source type is not in the list, pick the closest type or leave it blank and specify its description in the comments section.
The possible values are:  Audio, Book, Card, CD, Deed, DVD, Electronic File, Email, Fiche, Film, Interview, Magazine, Manuscript, Map, Newspaper, Photo, Tombstone / Gravestone, Video or Website / URL.

Reference Number

Source unique identifier according to its type (e.g.: birth certificate reference number).

Text Quote From the Source

An exact copy of the relevant information in the source. This is particularly important if the source text is long or if the source is an image.

Citation Reference (where in the source)

The location of the citation in the source. This can be indicated with the page number or the reference point (heading, 2nd paragraph) of the citation in the document.

Parent Source

Sources can be hierarchical. For instance, a newspaper could be a source, and an article could be a source that has the newspaper itself as a parent source. This is a way to structure the information so that you can easily find related sources to that particular newspaper.

	Using parent sources saves time because when you pick a parent source, all fields of the parent source are "copied" to your source.

Author / Agency / Originator

The person, agency, or entity who created the record. For a published work, this could be the author, compiler, transcriber, abstractor, or editor. For an unpublished source, this may be an individual, a government agency, a church organization, a private organization, etc.

Editor

Person responsible for the editorial aspect of the publication.

Edition

Often used by magazines or newspapers, refers to a different version of the title.

ISBN

International Standard Book Number - a unique ten-digit identifier for each published title.

Series

Often used by magazines, it refers to the collective title applied to the group as a whole, given in addition to individual proper titles.

Issue

Often used by periodicals and newspapers, it refers to the number identifying the issue of the series publication to which it belongs.

Publication Date

Date when the source was published or otherwise made available for release.

Place of Publication

Place (city) where the source was published or released.

Publisher Name

The name of the publication house.

Source Repository

Repository where the source is located. A repository is where a source might be stored or archived, such as a church or a library.

Source File or URL

The link to the original information, the file name or the Web page.

Confidence Level

Defines how accurate the sources or citations are.

Comment

Insert additional information related to the source or the citation.