Wishlist - Name Changes Happen!

[Bruce Fairhall 0]

I wrote some time ago about this matter, and would like to raise it again, with emphasis!

 

I have a one-name project of 23,000 people.

I am glad that the option for TMG to add the Married Name is available after a Marriage entry, but even though that person has "registered" a change of name it is not reflected in later tags.

There is also the problem of those who change their name by legal methods such a Deed Poll (not as many of those!).

 

Could we PLEASE have a Preference setting "Use most recent name change" so that once a name change has been set up in Tags, that name is used in later (chronologically) tags in narratives etc.

 

If the person has a legal name change (by marriage or other means) then THAT NAME is the one they are using, and it should be reflected in narratives.

 

I can't (or rather, won't) go back through around 10,000 entries (that's just all the females) to manually change every tag for every person to reflect name changes in my data.

 

If TMG sets it as a Preference then the purists (birth name must always be used) can still operate "as now", but those who, like me, want to use the latest legal name for a person can have it operate automatically.

 

I'll look forward to your announcement!

[GenerationGoneBy 0]

Bill,

Here's a problem as I see it to the plan you set forth is this.

 

Sally Smith is born 1842.

 

In 1850, she is enumerated on the 1850 census and I create a name tag for her as Sally Smith (age 7).

 

Then she marries in 1859, and I create a name tag for her as Sally Smith Jones.

 

Now six months from now, I find her father's will dated 1853. I forget to create a name tag. So on the will tag sentence, she is known as Sally Smith (age 7).

 

I agree there has to be a better way, but we have to discuss the possible problems of each. What if I want to create a name tag, but not use it in reports. Say I want to create the census name, but I just want it in my PV? Or what if I'd rather it always use her married name, and not change when later censuses are added?