Hi, I may have missed something in the webinars. In RM7 I would open two or three windows of the same file, on the same monitor and work on several folks at a time. This was handy for me when I was checking different sources on two or three different individuals, I could edit each of them without having to close the screen on one person, open another, then check another source and reopen the first one, and so on. I see we can open different files in RM8, but can we open multiple instances of the same database?
Thanks, dave
The function of opening the same database multiple times is not supported in RM8.
As you say, you can open multiple databases at the same time. But each database opens in a separate window rather than opening in a different pane of the same window as it did in RM7. The reason for this change is to support multiple monitors.
Well, if I ever get a vote; I vote for supporting both! Thanks for the feedback, Jerry
RM8 allows you to open up to three Edit Person screens on the same database and up to four different databases at the same time. RM7 allowed you to open up to 9 databases but only one Edit Person screen for any one database. In some respects, you may find RM8 advantageous for that kind of work but it still has modal windows for views other than People that block out ops on the Edit Person windows.
With RM7, you could also open a mobile version on the same db file as the desktop version. I haven’t tried that with RM8 but you are supposed to be able to create a mobile version by copying the EXE to the removable device.
Tom, I don’t see how to open more than one edit person screen from the same database. Did I misunderstand what you wrote or am I doing something wrong?
Open one from a People View, return to a People View and open another… you may have to move or shrink Edit Person Windows to access. The status bar at the bottom of the main window has controls to select the topmost Edit Person window.
I don’t know Tom, every time I leave the People tab, the Edit window closes.
I’m guessing a little, but I think the Edit Person screen is still there and is just behind the main screen.
There is a narrow status bar at the bottom of the screen. It runs all the way from the left side of the screen to the right side of the screen. It’s not labeled and it can be hard to notice. It’s sort of like the tab bar in a browser except that it’s at the bottom of the screen instead of the top, and the “tabs” are not really articulated. If there are any Edit Person screens open, the names of the people will be listed in this status bar. You can click any of the names to bring their Edit Person screen back to the front.
If the status bar is completely blank, then there are no hidden Edit Person screens. Any Edit Person screens you have opened will have been closed.
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Ah yes, thanks so much to all the responders! Helped me greatly…I can almost like this as much as RM7 now…only half joking there. Maybe 8 will grow on me more as I get comfortable with it, thanks again.
dave
if on a mac simply swipe up or down to show all open windows and apps or one app RM8 and all it’s open windows.
Duplicate a database and open that to work alongside the original. Just make all changes in the master file.
I just unintentionally opened the same file twice in RM8.1. Impatience when opening a second file caused an extra click and it opened twice. Is this an unannounced change? Did it occur with this latest update or a previous one?
Nope. Just a fluke. You cannot open a file that is in the Recent Files list a second time. The trick is to click twice on a file that is in the Found Files list, before the first click causes it to be moved from Found to Recent. How do you move a file from Recent back to Found to repeat the process? Not sure - probably a program reset (sledgehammer) would send all Recents down to Found along with the loss of a whole bunch of other settings. You might edit the RootsMagic-User.xml or .ini file in the user\appdata folder to remove it from Recents. Or rename the file.
Is there any benefit from having the same database open twice in RM8? I doubt it. You already can have 3 Edit Person windows open in one instance of the db. Opening one of the other main windows such as Publish Report in the second instance would be an advantage if you could make changes to data, color coding, et al in the first instance and see the effects in the concurrently open report preview by tapping Generate Report. However, it’s a modal window that blocks all other windows from the user interface. Bummer.
Also, would there be any danger in having the same database open twice in RM8? I don’t know. I doubt it, but it’s an interesting question.
I always thought the advantage of having the same database open twice in RM7 was being able to be at a different place in the database in two sub-windows - not just the Edit Person screen, but the main Family View or Pedigree View kind of thing.
Watch the youtube videos as Bruce goes over windows opening behind another one. Think it is the one about Files
I just noticed this, and had a question. In RM7 I was able to open 2 databases in the same window, and had the ability to drag a person (and descendants if needed) over to the other database. It was incredibly simple. Is that no longer possible? I have not tried to open 2 separate windows of RM8, but if I do that, can I drag one person from one window over to the other? Even if the program no longer has the ability to include descendants, that would still be somewhat acceptable. Thanks!
It’s 2 databases in separate windows of RM7/RM8 and YES that is available
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The biggest challenge can be getting the two separate windows resized and positioned so you can see them both at the same time to do the drag and drop.
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