INSTALL.TXT: Installation instructions for Geni =============================================== This file gives instructions on how to install Geni onto your Psion 3a, 3c, Siena or Acorn Pocketbook II. If you have not done so yet please look at the README.TXT file. If you are a registered user of an earlier version of Geni please read UPGRADE.TXT for details on how to stop Geni from losing your registration details. For many users Geni is the first piece of third-party software which they have installed on their machine. I have tried to make the instructions as simple as possible but you should make sure you have looked at the PsiWin manual (or the equivalent for non-PC users) before continuing any further. In particular look at the sections which describe how to transfer files to your Psion. Notes ===== For clarity I will refer to your desktop computer as a PC and your transfer program as PsiWin. The procedures are exactly the same for Apple Macintosh users with PsionLink/MacConnect/PsiMac; users of other computers should be okay as well. I also refer to the term "directory" into which files are placed on your Psion. Windows and Macintosh users may be more familiar with the friendlier term "folder" which means the same thing! Preparation =========== 1. Make sure your Psion and desktop computer are switched on and that they are connected together. Also make sure that the remote link on your Psion is switched on. Refer to the PsiWin manual for more details if necessary. 2. If your Psion does not have a \APP directory then create one. Again you should refer to the PsiWin manual or your Psion manual for instructions on how to do this. 3. Make sure you have a GEDCOM file - either use GENIDEMO.GED which comes with Geni or better still, use your desktop genealogy program to create one with your own family tree in it. Installing Ged2Geni =================== Ged2Geni is the program which converts GEDCOM files into Geni databases. Before you can use Geni you must install and run Ged2Geni - after that you can remove Ged2Geni and the GEDCOM file from your Psion. The instructions for installing Geni itself are given after this section. 1. Create the following directories on your Psion: \APP\GED2GENI \GED 2. Copy these files onto your Psion: GED2GENI.OPA into \APP\ GED2GENI.PIC into \APP\GED2GENI\ 3. If you have accented characters in your database you should copy one (or both) of the following files into \APP\GED2GENI\ MAC.TBL for GEDCOM produced by an Apple Macintosh WIN95.TBL for GEDCOM produced by a Windows PC If your GEDCOM comes from a DOS, Windows NT or a Psion computer you don't need to do anything - Ged2Geni understands their accented characters automatically. 4. On the system screen of your Psion, choose the "Install" option from the "Apps" menu. Use the left or right arrow keys until "Ged2Geni" is visible and then press ENTER. A strange icon divided into two parts along the diagonal will appear. 5. Copy your GEDCOM file from your PC into \GED on your Psion. The name of the file should now appear under the Ged2Geni icon - if it doesn't you should press the System button on your Psion. Ged2Geni is now installed - refer to TUTORIAL.TXT and MANUAL.TXT to see out how to use it. To uninstall Ged2Geni you should delete the file \APP\GED2GENI.OPA and the directory \APP\GED2GENI\ along with its contents. You should also delete \GED and its contents. Installing Geni =============== Geni is the main program. Before you can use it you must create a database using Ged2Geni. The installation instructions for that program are given in the previous section. To install Geni you should: 1. Create the following directories on your Psion: \APP\GENI \GENI If \GENI already exists then you don't need to create it. 2. Copy the following files onto your Psion: GENI.OPA into \APP\ GENI.HLP into \APP\GENI\ GENI.PIC into \APP\GENI\ 3. On the system screen of your Psion, choose the "Install" option from the "Apps" menu. Use the left or right arrow keys until "Geni" is visible and then press ENTER. The Geni icon consists of a stylised family tree with the word "Geni" in big letters underneath. 5. If you haven't done so already, use Ged2Geni to create a Geni database. The name of the database should be displayed under the Ged2Geni icon - if it doesn't then press the System button. Geni is now installed - refer to TUTORIAL.TXT and MANUAL.TXT to find out how to use it. If you decide that you don't like Geni and want to remove it from your Psion you should delete the file \APP\GENI.OPA and the directory \APP\GENI\ along with its contents. You should also delete the Geni database by removing \GENI and all its contents. Have You Installed Everything Correctly? ======================================== If you have installed Ged2Geni and Geni at the same time you should find the directory structure on your Psion looks something like the following (with my comments in <>): \ APP\ GED2GENI\ GED2GENI.PIC MAC.TBL WIN95.TBL GENI\ GENI.HLP GENI.PIC GED2GENI.OPA GENI.OPA GENI\ GED\ Note that you don't need MAC.TBL or WIN95.TBL for Ged2Geni to work so don't worry if you haven't installed them. Saving Memory ============= Not everyone will have enough memory to install Geni as described above so this section gives some hints and tips on how to solve this problem. Firstly just install Ged2Geni, use it to convert your GEDCOM into a Geni database and then delete Ged2Geni and the GEDCOM file. Now install Geni on its own. If you have Flash or RAM SSDs then you can install Ged2Geni and Geni on these instead of the internal drive. Repeat the steps described in the installation sections but use whichever drive you want. You can even split the distribution over two disks provided the path names are the same. For example you might have \APP\GED2GENI\WIN95.TBL on drive A, \APP\GED2GENI\MAC.TBL on drive B and \APP\GED2GENI\GED2GENI.PIC on the internal drive if it makes you happy! If you are really desparate to save disk space you can delete the title screens GENI.PIC and GED2GENI.PIC. You can also delete the on-line help file GENI.HLP: if you do this then context-sensitive help will still work but choosing "Help" from the "Help" do nothing. Large GEDCOM Files ================== If your GEDCOM file is too large to fit onto your Psion then leave it on your desktop machine. Read the PsiWin or PsiMac manuals for instructions on how to get your Psion to access the hard disk of your desktop machine. Users of Apple Macs may have a program called McLink. To achieve this properly you will need to read your Psion manual to see how to load files on other drives. Basically you press the TAB key when on the system screen or at a file selection dialog and then press the left or right arrow keys to change drives. Locate the desired file and then press ENTER to select it. Ged2Geni can also read GEDCOM files across the link in this way and will write the Geni database back across the link if told to do so. Geni can also read the database across the link. It is possible to take this to the extreme and install and run both Geni and Ged2Geni over the remote link - only the hidden preferences files were stored on the Psion! ================================================================ (c) Martin N Dunstan (mnd@dcs.st-and.ac.uk) February 17th 1998 ================================================================