PhpGedView

User Manual

Step by step installation of phpGedView in index mode

Here are the steps of setting up the index module:

1. Start phpGedView

2. Fill in the fields in on the first page and save congfiguration

3. Create the admin user

4. Click on the "Click here to continue link"

5. Upload Gedcom

6. You can either browse for the file or enter its location. Input the gedcom file you like to import.

7. Upload gedcom

8. Change any of the fields you like to customize it for yourself and then click save configuration.

9. Important !!! Click on the Import this gedcom file button.

10. Do you want to empty the dataset? Click yes.

11. Scroll down the page. It will say "Click here to go the the pedigree tree." Click there.

12. You will be brought back to the start page of phpGedView.

13. Voila. You are done.

Step by step installation of phpGedView in MySQL mode

Here are the steps of setting up the MySQL module:

1. Start phpGedView

2. Fill in the fields as follows and save congfiguration

   1. PhpGedView Datastore: MySQL

   2. MySQL Database host: <usually localhost>

   3. MySQL Database username: <your username>

   4. MySQL Database password: <your password>

   5. Database name: phpgedview

   6. Database table prefix: pgv_

   7. Allow visitors to change gedcoms: <yes/no>

   8. Index file directory: ./index/

   9. Authentication Module File: authentication_mysql.php

   10. Allow users to request account registration: <yes/no>

   11. Allow users to select their own theme: <yes/no>

   12. Archive Log Files: <Disable Logging/Daily/Weekly/Monthly/Yearly>

   13. Session save path: <usually empty>

   14. Session timeout: 7200

3. Create the admin user

4. Click on the link: "Click here to continue link"

5. Click on the link: Upload Gedcom

6. You can either browse for the file or enter its location. Input the gedcom file you like to import.

7. Click the button: Upload Gedcom

8. Change any of the fields you like to customize it for yourself and then click save configuration.

9. Important !!! Click on the button: Import this gedcom file.

10. The following screen will show the status of the import. Scroll down to check for any errors. At the bottom click on the link: Click here to go to the pedigree tree

11. You will be brought back to the start page of phpGedView.

12. Voila. You are done.

General settings phpGedView

1. PhpGedView DataStore
   This tells phpGedView what type of datastore you want to use for the GEDCOM files you import into the system. Select 'Index Files' to use index files stored in the index directory, or select 'MySQL' to use a MySQL database. This sets the \$PGV_DATABASE variable in the config.php file.

2. MySQL Database Host
   The DNS or IP address of the computer hosting your MySQL database server. This sets the $DBHOST variable in the config.php file.

3. MySQL Database Username
   The MySQL database username required to login to your database. This sets the $DBUSER variable in the config.php file.

4. MySQL Database Password
   The MySQL database password for the user you entered in the Username field. This sets the $DBPASS variable in the config.php file

5. Database Name
   The Database in the MySQL server you want phpGedView to use. The Username you enter in the user field must have create, insert, update, delete, and select privileges on this database. This sets the $DBNAME variable in the config.php file

6. Database Table Prefix
   A prefix to append to the MySQL tables created by phpGedView. By changing this value you can setup multiple phpGedView sites to use the same database but different tables. This sets the $TBLPREFIX variable in the config.php file.

7. Allow visitor to change gedcoms
   Setting this value to yes allows visitors to your site to have the option of changing gedcoms if you have a multiple gedcom environment setup. This sets the $ALLOW_CHANGE_GEDCOM variable in the config.php file.

8. Index file directory
   The path to a readable and writeable Directory where PhpGedView should store index files (include the trailing /). This sets the $INDEX_DIRECTORY variable in the config.php file.

9. Authentication Module File
   File from which to load authentication functions. By implementing the functions in this file, users can customize phpGedView to use a different method to authenticate users and store users in a different user database. Hopefully users will be willing to share their custom authentication modules with other phpGedView users. This sets the $AUTHENTICATION_MODULE variable in the config.php file.

10. Allow users to request account registration
    Gives users the option of registering themselves for an account on the site. Administrators will have to approve the registration before it becomes active. This sets the $USE_REGISTRATION_MODULE variable in the config.php file.

11. Allow users to select their own theme
    Gives users the option of selecting their own theme. This sets the $ALLOW_USER_THEMES variable in the config.php file.

12. Archive Log Files
    How often should the program archive log files. This sets the $LOGFILE_CREATE variable in the config.php file.

13. Session Save Path
    The path to store phpGedView session files. Some hosts do not have PHP configured properly and sessions are not maintained between page requests. This allows site administrators to override this by saving files in one of their local directories. The ./index/ directory is a good choice if you need to change this. The default is to leave the field empty, which will use the save path as configured in the php.ini file. This sets the $PGV_SESSION_SAVE_PATH variable in the config.php file.

14. Session Timout
    The time in seconds that a PhpGedView session remains active before requiring a login. The default is 30 minutes. This sets the $PGV_SESSION_TIME variable in the config.php file.

    Settings GEDCOM files

1. Gedcom path

   First upload your gedcom file to a location accessible by php on your server. Then enter the path to that file here. This sets the $GEDCOM variable in the config.php file. See the Readme.txt file for more help

2. Enter a title that describes your the contents of this GEDCOM file
   Enter a title that describes your the contents of this GEDCOM file

3. Character Set Encoding
   This is the character set of your gedcom file. UTF-8 is the default and should work for almost all sites. If you export your gedcom using ibm windows encoding, then you should put WINDOWS here. This sets the $CHARACTER_SET variable in the config.php file. NOTE: PHP does NOT support UNICODE (UTF-16).

4. Language
   Assign the default language for the site. Users have the ability to override this setting using their browser preferences or the form at the bottom of the page if ENABLE_MULTI_LANGUAGE = true. This sets the $LANGUAGE variable in the config.php file.

5. Create Gendex Files
   Show PhpGedView generate Gendex files whenever a Gedcom is imported. Gendex files are stored in the index directory. This sets the $CREATE_GENDEX variable in the config.php file.

6. Allow user to change language
   Set to 'yes' to give users the option of selecting a different language from a dropdown list in the footer and default to the language they have set in their browser settings. This sets the $ENABLE_MULTI_LANGUAGE variable in the config.php file.

7. Calendar Format
   Allows you to specify the type of Calendar you would like to use with this gedcom file. Hebrew is the same as the Jewish Calendar using Hebrew characters. Note: The values used for Jewish / Hebrew dates are calculated from the Gregorian / Julian dates. Since the Jewish calendar day starts at dusk, any even taking place from dusk till midnight will display as one day prior to the correct Jewish date. The display of Hebrew can be problematic in old browsers. Some old browsers will display the Hebrew backwards or not at all. This sets the $CALENDAR_FORMAT variable in the config.php file.

8. Pedigree Generations
   Set the default number of generations to display on the pedigree charts. This sets the $DEFAULT_PEDIGREE_GENERATIONS variable in the config.php file.

9. Maximum Pedigree Generations
   Set the maximum number of generations to display on the pedigree charts. This sets the $MAX_PEDIGREE_GENERATIONS variable in the config.php file.

10. Maximum Descendancy Generations
    Set the maximum number of generations to display on the descendancy charts. This sets the $MAX_DESCENDANCY_GENERATIONS variable in the config.php file.

11. Use RIN# instead of GEDCOM ID
    Set to YES to use the RIN number instead of the GEDCOM ID when asked for Individual IDs in configuration files, user settings, and charts. This is useful for genealogy programs that do not export GEDCOMS with concurrent individual IDs but always use the same RIN. This sets the $USE_RIN variable in the config.php file.

12. Default person for pedigree and descendency charts
    Set the ID of the default person to display on the pedigree and descendency charts. This sets the $PEDIGREE_ROOT_ID variable in the config.php file.

13. GEDCOM ID Prefix
    On pedigree, descendancy, relationship, and other charts when users are prompted to enter an ID, if they do not add a prefix to the ID, this prefix will be added. This sets the $GEDCOM_ID_PREFIX variable in the config.php file.

14. Show Birth and Death Details on Pedigree and descendency charts
    Tells whether or not to show the birth and death details of an individual by default. This sets the $PEDIGREE_FULL_DETAILS variable in the config.php file.

15. Zoom Boxes on Charts
    Allows a user to zoom the boxes on the charts and get more information. Set to "Disabled" to disable this feature. Set to "MouseOver" to zoom boxes when the user mouses over the icon in the box. Set to "Click" to zoom boxes when the user clicks on the icon in the box. This sets the $ZOOM_BOXES variable in the config.php file.

16. PopUp Links on Charts
    Allows the user select links to other charts and close relatives of the person. Set to "Disabled" to disable this feature. Set to "MouseOver" to popup the links when the user mouses over the icon in the box. Set to "Click" to popup the links when the user clicks on the icon in the box. This sets the $LINK_ICONS variable in the config.php file.

17. Show empty boxes on pedigree charts
    Tells whether or not to show empty boxes on pedigree charts. This sets the $SHOW_EMPTY_BOXES variable in the config.php file.

18. Privacy File
    File from which to load privacy functions. See http://gendorbendor.sourceforge.net for more information and to download alternative privacy add-ons. This sets the $PRIVACY_MODULE variable in the config.php file.

19. Enable Privacy
    This option will enable all privacy settings and hide the details of living people. Living people are defined to be those who do not have an event more than in variable $MAX_ALIVE_AGE defined years ago, and who do not have any children born more than $MAX_ALIVE_AGE years ago. This sets the $HIDE_LIVE_PEOPLE variable in the config.php file.

20. Require Visitor Authentication
    Enabling this option will force all visitors to login before the can view any data on the site. This sets the $REQUIRE_AUTHENTICATION variable in the config.php file.

21. Check child dates
    Checks the dates of the children when determining whether to a person is dead. On older systems and large gedcoms this can slow down the response time of your site. This sets the $CHECK_CHILD_DATES variable in the config.php file.

22. Age at which to assume a person is dead
    The maximum age that a person can have an event or the maximum age of their children to determine if they are dead or not. This sets the $MAX_ALIVE_AGE variable in the config.php file.

23. Allow users to see raw GEDCOM records
    Setting this to yes will place links on individuals, sources, and families allowing users to bring up another window with the raw GEDCOM taken right out of the gedcom file. This sets the $SHOW_GEDCOM_RECORD variable in the config.php file.

24. Enable online Editing
    Enables the online editing features for this gedcom so that users with the edit privileges may update this gedcom online. This sets the $ALLOW_EDIT_GEDCOM variable in the config.php file.

25. Index file directory
    The path to a readable and writeable Directory where PhpGedView should store index files (include the trailing /). This sets the $INDEX_DIRECTORY variable in the config.php file.

26. Break up long lists by the first letter
    For very long individual and family lists, set this to true to split the list into pages by the first letter of their last name. This sets the $ALPHA_INDEX_LISTS variable in the config.php file.

27. Get Display name from GEDCOM
    By default phpGedView uses the name stored in the indexes to get a person's name. With some gedcom formats and languages the sortable name stored in the indexes does not get displayed properly and the best way to get the correct display name is from the gedcom. Spanish names are a good example of this. A Spanish name can take the form Given Names Father's Surname Mother's Surname. Using the Indexes for sorting and display, the name would display like this Given Names Mother's Surname Father's Surname which is incorrect. Going back the gedcom for the name will return the correct name. However, retrieving the name from the gedcom will slow the program down. This sets the $NAME_FROM_GEDCOM variable in the config.php file.

28. Show ID numbers next to names
    Show ID numbers in parenthesis after person names on charts. This sets the $SHOW_ID_NUMBERS variable in the config.php file.

29. Place levels to show in person boxes
    This sets how much of the place information is shown in the person boxes on charts. Setting the value to 9 will guarentee to show all places levels. Setting the value to 0 will hide places completely. Setting the value to 1 will show the first level, setting it to 2 will show the first 2 levels, etc. This sets the $SHOW_PEDIGREE_PLACES variable in the config.php file.

30. Enable multimedia features
    GEDCOM 5.5 allows you to link pictures, videos, and other multimedia objects into your GEDCOM. If you do not include multimedia objects in your gedcom then you can disable the multimedia features by setting this value to 'no'. See the multimedia section in the readme.txt file for more information about including media in your site. This sets the $MULTI_MEDIA variable in the config.php file.

31. MultiMedia directory
    The path to a readable Directory where PhpGedView should look for local multi media files (include the trailing /) This sets the $MEDIA_DIRECTORY variable in the config.php file.

32. Multi-Media Directory Levels to Keep
    A value of 0 will ignore all directories in the file path for the media object. A value of 1 will use also use the first directory containing this image. Increasing the numbers increases number of parent directories to include in the path. For example: If you link an image in your gedcom with a path like this C:\\Documents and Settings\\User\\My Documents\\My Pictures\\Genealogy\\Surname Line\\grandpa.jpg then a value of 0 will translate this path to ./media/grandpa.jpg. A value of 1 will translate this to ./media/Surname Line/grandpa.jpg, etc. Most people will only need to use a 0. But it is possible that some media objects will have the same name and would overwrite each other. This allows you to keep some organization in your media and prevents name clashing. This sets the $MEDIA_DIRECTORY_LEVELS variable in the config.php file.

33. Show highlight images in people boxes
    If you have enabled multimedia in your site, then you can have PhpGedView display a thumbnail image next to the person's name in charts and boxes. Currently PhpGedView uses the first multimedia object listed in the gedcom record as the highlight image. For people with multiple images, you should arrange the multimedia objects such that the one you wish to be highlighted appears first, before any others. See the multimedia section in the readme.txt file for more information about including media in your site. This sets the $SHOW_HIGHLIGHT_IMAGES variable in the config.php file.

34. Enable Clippings Cart
    The clippings cart allows visitors to your site to be able to add people to a gedcom clippings file that they can download as a gedcom file and import into their genealogy software. This sets the $ENABLE_CLIPPINGS_CART variable in the config.php file.

35. Hide GEDCOM errors
    Setting this to 'yes' will hide error messages produced by PhpGedView when it doesn't understand a gedcom tag in your gedcom file. PhpGedView makes every effort to conform to the GEDCOM 5.5 standard, but many genealogy software programs include their own custom tags. See the readme.txt file for more information. This sets the $HIDE_GEDCOM_ERRORS variable in the config.php file.

36. Add spaces where notes were wrapped
    Some genealogy programs wrap notes at word boundaries while others wrap notes anywhere. This can cause PhpGedView to run words together. Setting this to 'yes' will add a space between words where they are wrapped in the gedcom. This sets the $WORD_WRAPPED_NOTES variable in the config.php file.

37. Main WebSite URL
    A URL included in the supplied theme headers used to generate a link to your main home page. This sets the $HOME_SITE_URL variable in the config.php file.

38. Main WebSite Text
    The text used to generate the link to your main home page. This sets the $HOME_SITE_TEXT variable in the config.php file.

39. Genealogy Contact User
    The User visitors should contact about the genealogical data on this site. This sets the $CONTACT_EMAIL variable in the config.php file.

40. Contact Method
    The method visitors will use to contact the "Contact User" about genealogy questions. The 'mailto' option will add use a mailto link that the visitor may click on to send you an email using their mail client. The 'messaging' option will use the builtin PhpGedView messaging system and no emails will be sent. The 'messaging with emails' option is the default and will use the PhpGedView messaging system, but will also send copies of the messages via email. Choosing the option for no messaging will provide no option for visitors to contact you. This sets the $CONTACT_METHOD variable in the config.php file.

41. Support Contact User
    The User visitors should contact about technical questions or errors they might encounter while on your site. This sets the $WEBMASTER_EMAIL variable in the config.php file.

42. Support Method
    The method visitors will use to contact the "Support User" about genealogy questions. The 'mailto' option will add use a mailto link that the visitor may click on to send you an email using their mail client. The 'messaging' option will use the builtin PhpGedView messaging system and no emails will be sent. The 'messaging with emails' option is the default and will use the PhpGedView messaging system, but will also send copies of the messages via email. Choosing the option for no messaging will provide no option for visitors to contact you. This sets the $SUPPORT_METHOD variable in the config.php file.

43. Favorites Icon
    Change this to point to the icon you want to display in peoples favorites menu when they bookmark your site. This sets the $FAVICON variable in the config.php file.

44. Show Execution Statistics
    Show runtime statistics and database queries at the bottom of every page. This sets the $SHOW_STATS variable in the config.php file.

45. Theme directory
    The directory where your PhpGedView theme files are kept. You may customize any of the standard themes that come with PhpGedView to give your site a unique look and feel. See the theme customization section of the readme.txt file for more information. This sets the $THEME_DIR variable in the config.php file.

46. PHP Time Limit
    The maximum time in seconds that PhpGedView should be allowed to run. The default is 1 minute. Depending on the size of your gedcom file, you may need to increase this time limit when you need to build the indexes. Set this value to 0, to allow PHP to run forever.<br />CAUTION: Setting this to 0, or setting it too high could cause your site to hang on certain operating systems until the script finishes. Setting it to 0 means it may never finish until a server administrator kills the process or restarts the server. A large pedigree chart can take a very long time to run, leaving this value as low as possible ensures that someone cannot crash your webserve by requestion a 1000 generation chart.

Settings privacy file

1. Show living names
   Should the names of living people be shown to the public. This sets the $SHOW_LIVING_NAMES variable in the chosen privacy file.

2. Show research log
   What type of user can view the research log if it is installed. This sets the $SHOW_RESEARCH_LOG variable in the chosen privacy file.

3. Use relationship privacy
   A 'No' value means authenticated users can see the details of all living people. A 'Yes' value means users can only see the private information of living people they are related to. This sets the $USE_RELATIONSHIP_PRIVACY variable in the chosen privacy file.

4. Max. relation path length
   Second cousins. This sets the $MAX_RELATION_PATH_LENGTH variable in the chosen privacy file.

5. Check marriage relations
   Check related by marriage relationships. This sets the $CHECK_MARRIAGE_RELATIONS variable in the chosen privacy file.

6. [$person_privacy]
   The "person_privacy" setting provides administrators the ability to override default privacy settings for a particular person in the gedcom. Suppose for example you have a child who died in infancy. Normally because the child is dead, its details would be shown to public users. But you and everyone else in your family is still private. You don't want to remove the death record for the child but you want to hide the details and make them private. If this child had the ID of I100 you should enter the following privacy settings:
   ID: I100
   Show to: "Show only to authenticated users"
   This works the other way as well. If I wanted to make public the details of someone (ID 101) who I know is dead but don't have a death date for I could add the following:
   ID: I101
   Show to: "Show to public"
   This sets the $person_privacy variables in the chosen privacy file.

7. [$user_privacy]
   The "user_privacy" setting provides administrators the ability to override default privacy settings for individuals in the gedcom based on the users username. So if I don't want the Username "John" to be able to see my details, and I have the ID 100 in the GEDCOM I could configure it like this:
   
   

   Username: John
   ID: I100
   Show?: "Hide"
   
   and my details would be hidden for the Username "John" only. To show the details of I101 (which usually would be hidden because I101 is still alive) to the username "John" set:
   
   Username: John
   ID: I101
   Show?: "Show"
   
   This sets the $user_privacy variables in the chosen privacy file.

8. [$global_facts]
   The "global_facts" setting define facts on a global level that should be hidden for all individuals in the gedcom. The ["Name of fact"] element determines which fact should be hidden. The ["Choice"] element choses the fact itself or related details. The ["Show to"] element determines at what access level the fact is shown. The $global_facts array is meant to hide certain facts for all individuals alive or dead by GEDCOM tag. By default the SSN tag is hidden to public users. This is to prevent people from stealing social security numbers and commiting identify theft of your dead relatives which probably is mostly relevant for the USA. If I wanted to hide all marriages from public users in my gedcom I could set:
   
   Name of fact: (MARR) – Marriage
   Choice: "Show fact"
   Show to?: "Show only to authenticated users"
   
   These settings would hide marriages (and related details) to everyone who wasn't an admin. This sets the $global_facts variables in the chosen privacy file.

9. [$person_facts]
   The "person_facts" settings define facts that are hidden for a specific individual in the gedcom and the level at which they are hidden. The first element is the ID of the person, the second element is the fact. The ["Choice"] element choses the fact itselt or related details. The ["Show to"] element determines at what access level the fact is shown. The $person_facts array works the same as the $global_facts array except that you also specify the GEDCOM ID of the person you want to hide facts for. So I could hide the marriage record for a specific person. This sets the $person_facts variables in the chosen privacy file.