Replying to Michael I sent him an early draft off line of one of the 11 generation books as I don't know how to otherwaise explain the Gen-book Set up but will not post it here. In the information with the Gen-book software - it describes itself as Modified Register. With the soft ware you choose either a Descendant format or an Ancestor format. I don't understand what difference it makes if you number down for Descendants or reverse the process to make a book with the numbers going from person A to their parents, grandparents etc. It seems an arbitray decision not an impossible feat to accomplish so I was also asking "why" it has been decided that way - what is the reasoning that it is not approved.. It seems so very clear, easy way to follow and 'pretty ' way to do a book. Why is it only approved for the Descendants?. 2. Not being versed in publishing - Nor do I know how I would take my data from my genealogy software and put it into a word processing document but it seems if you convert to using Microsoft Word (or the Word Perfect I use) that you are then stuck coding everything to be able to create your table of contents and indexes etc. Gen- Book was an easy way to get a nice format with all of my data which I would have used again if it was compatible with the currents softwares. Jeannette

Jeannette, Perhaps what you seek is in the book _Numbering Your Genealogy: Basic Systems, Complex Families, and International Kin_ by Curran, Crane and Wray and revised in 2008 by Elizabeth Mills, Editor (first published in 1999). Available from the National Genealogical Society (and other outlets), it is a small $15 book that explains both descending and ascending genealogy systems. There is no need to reinvent the wheel or go outside of standard usage or terminology. You have said that the program you are using is a bit on the old side. Terminology does get refined and updated. What used to be Modified Register system is now referred to as the NGSQ system, a system refined from the Register system which refers to the _NEHGS Register_ and was devised in 1870. (_Numbering Your Genealogy_, p. 5) These are for numbering a genealogy from the ancestor down through his descendants. For ascending numbering there is the Sosa-Stradonitz System (or Ahnentafel system) which starts at an individual and goes up their pedigree numbering the parents, grandparents, and all the greats in the way that each person's number doubled is the father and doubled plus one is the person's mother. This system was first developed in the 17th century by Sosa and applied in the late 19th century by Stradonitz. (_Numbering Your Genealogy_, p. 13) So you can see that some thought, tradition, and the establishment of a standard way of numbering genealogies has occurred over centuries of time. Perhaps your software follows these systems but does not use the same names. I know I appreciate standard systems. There is a level of frustration when opening up a family history book at a library in which the author invented their own system and having to search for the meaning in the author's numbering (if indeed they explained it at all). Standards are for everyone. They help us drive on the established side of the road and they help us in our genealogy so that we can concentrate on the content and not the format. -- Elissa Elissa Scalise Powell, CG, CGL www.PowellGenealogy.com www.GRIPitt.org CG, Certified Genealogist, CGL, and Certified Genealogical Lecturer are Service Marks of the Board for Certification of Genealogists, used under license by board certificants after periodic evaluations by the Board and the board name is a trademark registered in the US Patent and Trademark Office. > -----Original Message----- > From: On Behalf Of Jeannette Maxey > Sent: Monday, October 22, 2012 10:49 AM > Subject: Re: [TGF] TRANSITIONAL-GENEALOGISTS-FORUM Digest, Vol 6, Issue > 573 > > Replying to Michael I sent him an early draft off line of one of the 11 generation books > as I don't know how to otherwaise explain the Gen-book Set > up but will not post it here. In the information with the Gen-book > software - it describes itself as Modified Register. With the soft ware you choose either a > Descendant format or an Ancestor format. > > I don't understand what difference it makes if you number down for Descendants or > reverse the process to make a book with the numbers going from person A to their > parents, grandparents etc. It seems an arbitray decision not an impossible feat to > accomplish so I was also asking "why" it has been decided that way - what is the > reasoning that it is not approved.. > It seems so very clear, easy way to follow and 'pretty ' way to do a book. > Why is it only approved for the Descendants?. > > Gen- Book was an easy way to get a nice format with all of my data which I would have > used again if it was compatible with the currents softwares.