Tim Powys-Lybbe wrote:
> In message of 14 Feb, Wes Groleau <groleau+news@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
>
>
>>Peter J Seymour wrote:
>>
>>>I'm trying to use a gedcom file that has a lot of occurrences of an
>>>unrecognised tag "FREE" at the 1 level under INDI (one per INDI). It
>>>typically occurs in association with BIRT and DEAT. Problem is I can't
>>>figure out what it means and the rest of the data doesn't help either.
>>>The main data seems to be a date. Can anyone shed light on this tag.
>>
>>At the beginning of the GEDCOM there should be an identification
>>of the program that created it. That program's do***entation
>>is the place to look. If it was hand-edited, the person who
>>created it is the one to ask.
>>
>>If both of those are unavailable, post a few representative samples.
>
>
> I am getting more and more uncomfortable about this use of GEDCOM files.
>
> If you are taking in information, in a GEDCOM file for instance, from
> another person, you may consider that their research methods are well
> known and their word on something is almost as good as a lookup from
> some primary do***ents.
>
> But for the bulk of GEDCOMs you do not know this. Does the originator
> even say where he (or she) found the information? Are sources includes
> in the GEDCOM? Are they good sources? In any case you should endeavour
> to check their sources by some means to satisfy yourself that the
> information was valid.
>
> So either you have well researched information from someone you know to
> be a good researcher and you can ask them what they mean. Or you have
> checked it out yourself. In either case you must be able to find very
> easily what 'FREE' referred to. If you can't find any source for FREE
> or anything else like that, just leave it out.
>
> But adding someone's GEDCOM without some verification of the data is
> genealogical suicide. (Perhaps all this copying of GEDCOMs around the
> internet will be a means to the over-population problem? :-) )
>
Quite. The original question was a simple technical one relating to the
meaning of a gedcom tag. I wasn't meaning to imply anything about
genealogical practice.
Peter
|
