BuiltWithNOF
PAF Standards

Data Entry Standards for PAF Files
by Bob Nielson
Programmer/Analyst

All the people who have contributed to this document know what it takes to have a computer friendly PAF 5.2.18 file to interface with the IGI or trade with a family member. We are writing this to help you enter your data or modify your data if already in PAF using the rules and examples shown here you WILL have a computer friendly file and data. This is so important if you share your data and to make it TempleReady compatible.  If you use any of the online utilities like Insight from Ohanasoftware.com you WILL find the IGI data you need if it exists. The Name, Event Date and Place have standards of how they are put together and constructed.  These Standards are discussed below. FOLLOW THE STANDARDS!!!

What is a Name?

    To the computer a name is // (2 slashes).  A Name NEVER contains special characters, such as (){}[]?.,+. Only alphabetic characters are allowed.  The name NEVER contains documentation that should go in the Notes.  The given name(s) are to the left of the //.  The surname(s) is always between the //.  Any Titles such as Jr, Sr, Dr, Rev goes to the right of the // and is not part of the searchable name.

Good examples:

  • John/Doe/Jr
  • John/Doe/ II  (if there is no Jr or Sr and there are several identical names you may put I,II,III,IV to the right of the last / to distinguish between the names.)
  • Olivia/Newton-John/ (hyphens between surnames of some cultures are allowed)
  • Jim or James/Doe/ (If they were known by 2 names, write “or” between the names
  • Jim/Smith or Smyth/
  • Mrs John/Doe/ (the Mrs is only allowed if you repeat the husband’s name exactly and put a Mrs at the front of the Given name.  This was very common in older records when just the father’s name was recorded on the birth of a child or a marriage.)
  • Mary// (if you know the given name and not the last name. Mrs Mary/Doe/ is not allowed – use Mary//).
  • /Jones/ (use only for a Child who was not given a name and was stillborn or did not live long enough to give it a name and very sparingly in other instances)

Bad examples:

  • John Jr/Doe/ (any thing put to the left of the last / becomes part of the name and Jr is used to distinguished between father and son and is NOT part of the name.)
  • Jim (James)/Smyth/  (there are NO special character allowed in the name.  The () are special characters and are NOT allowed.)
  • Jim/Doe (Smyth)/ (Never use parenthesis)
  • Mary Second Wife/Jones/ (NEVER put documentation or descriptions in the name.  Documentation goes in the Notes.)
  • Mrs Mary/Jones/ (If you know the given name only, it is NEVER allowed to put the Husbands name as her last name.  Just use Mary//.)
  • Son/Jones/  (NO)
  • Daughter/Jones/ (NEVER)
  • Baby/Jones/ (NO)

What is an Event Date?

    To the computer the date must be at least 4 numeric characters.  In PAF go to Tools-Preferences-Formats for the different formats you can enter a date.  I will use the default format in these examples.  The default has a 1 or 2 numeric character day of the month, a 3 character alphabetic month, and a 4 numeric character year in all formats.

Good examples:

  • 4 Jul 1776
  • Jul 1776
  • 1776
  • Abt 1776
  • Aft 1776  (Use sparingly.)
  • Bef 1775
  • Cal 1776

Bad examples:

  • 4 Jul 1776/1777 (YOU are a better guesser than the computer – which one will the computer use????)
  • 4/5 Jul 1776  (YOU tell the computer the date to use otherwise it will have to guess.)
  • 4 1776  (a day of the month can’t be used unless the 3 alpha month is also used.)
  • 4 Jul 1776 or 1777  (Why make the computer guess at your data??)
  • The year the barn burned down.  (Put in Notes)
  • (Remember, NO special characters in the date.)

What is an Event Place?

    The Event Place is 3 commas (,,,) to the computer. Anything more or less than 3 commas in the Event Place makes the computer GUESS at what you meant and you NEVER want that to happen. In the IGI the fastest growing Region is “World Misc” because of incorrect and misleading Event Places. Your data can go into “Cyber Space” and never be found if you DON’T use the Standards in formatting the Event Place.  The only exception to the Standard is Countries or States in the British Isles (England, Ireland, Etc) and then 2 commas are used.  When inputting States in the British Isles the British Isles is assumed or put British Isles to the right of the 3rd comma.  The 3 commas separate the City, County, State, Country. This is good no matter what country or region of the world you use. Abbreviations are NEVER allowed. We can’t say strongly enough that abbreviations have no part in an Event Place. Not even the computer can make a guess at an abbreviation. Your data will end up !  in the

    “World Misc” region never to be seen again or used.  If you have to use the “Of” in an Event Place use it only when needed.  It is only used to explain that the persons Event was in the nearness but not in the boundaries of a CITY. It is used ONLY with the City portion of a Place.  The State and Country must be included by name. A comma can’t take the place of a State and Country. “USA” is the Country for all the States in America and is not an abbreviation.

Good Examples:

  • Salt Lake,Salt Lake,Utah,USA
  • ,Salt Lake,Utah,USA
  • ,,Utah,USA  (if you use this format then please do the research to flesh it out.)
  • Salt Lake,,Utah,USA (use only until you can find the county or no County exists, ie. Alaska or D.C.)
  • London,London,England (Legal for the British Isles)
  • ,London,England
  • Of London,London,England  (Close to but not in City London)

Bad examples:

  • Salt Lake,Utah,USA  (Needs 3 commas)
  • Salt Lake,Utah  (Still does not have 3 commas)
  • Slk,Slk,Ut,USA  (NEVER abbreviate)
  • Slk,Ut,USA
  • Salt Lake,Salt Lake,Utah,U.S.A  (No – it’s just USA)
  • Salt Lake,Salt Lake County,Utah,USA (The word “County” or “Co” is NEVER used in the Event Place Name.  By default any place named after the first comma is the County.)
  • Near the east end of the Brooklyn Bridge,,New York,USA
  • Salt Lake or Provo,,Utah,USA  (Never have the computer guess at your data)
  • Salt Lake,Salt Lake,Utah  (No country)
  • Of,Salt Lake,Utah,USA (used only to indicate the nearness to a City.  Very few Towns or Cities are named Of.)
  • Of,,,USA  (Only sissy’s take this route)
  • ,,England (not a good idea
  • ,,,USA  (really not a good idea)

There is no way we can put down all the ways an Event Place can be entered that will make it unfriendly to the computer but if you follow the Standards for the Event Place there is no need to look for bad examples.

All the above Standards can be found in the “Member’s Guide to Family History” booklet pages 7-12 at any Family History Center.  I have included examples to illustrate the Standards. I would like you to give this the widest possible circulation. For those of you who are Ward, Stake and FHC specialists this is a great handout to any who are active in working on their PAF files. PLEASE apply these Standards to your PAF data and you will be doing a great favor to all who use it for all eternity. Standards apply to everyone in every situation, so you are not the exception.

Any questions or comments you can email me (*Bob Nielson) at nielsonrwd@aol.com.  I can email this to anyone interested in WORD format.  It takes me between 15-30 minutes to standardize most files if you would like to email me your file and I will send it right back.  If there are any abbreviations, you must clean them up first. Standards in our PAF data helps us all work from the same sheet of music and allows our computers to process the data efficiently with no surprises to those we share data with.

*Bob Nielson worked for the Church in the Family History Department as a Programmer/Analyst and worked on the IGI for 18 years and understands what it takes to have a computer friendly PAF 5.2.18 file to interface with the IGI or trade/share with a family member.

 

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