The Family View: Customizing

The Family View: a Refresher
Switching Between Different Family Views
Family View Settings
Creating and Modifying Family Views

Customizing Children in the Family View

Customizing the Main Couple in the Family View

Customizing Parents in the Family View

Miscellaneous Settings in the Family View
Adding & Removing Fields in the Family View

Fonts in the Family View

Colors in the Family View
Pictures in the Family View
Resizing Pictures in the Family View

Resizing Fields Under the Main Couple

Copying Family Views to Other Family Files

The Family View: a Refresher

The "family view" appears in the center of Reunion's application window and represents a nuclear family — a couple is in the middle, their children below them, and their parents above them. This simple 3-generation layout is the foundation of Reunion. It's the basic navigational interface of the app.

The couple, the children and the parents all have their own buttons and fields, showing the names and some details for each individual. The "look" of these buttons and fields and the selection of fields appearing with each person represent a "family view" and can be customized to suit your desire. And you can have several different family views and quickly switch between them.

You can return to the family view from any other view (tree view, charts, reports, etc.) by pressing the Escape key.

If you need a refresher on using the various buttons in the family view, click here.

Switching Between Different Family Views

To choose a different family view, click the Family View button in the navbar and a pop-up menu will appear, from which you can select a different family view. The selected family view applies to everybody in a family file. The name of the current family view is shown in small text inside the Family View button in the navbar.

To quickly change views, press Command-1, Command-2, etc.

Note: If the navbar is in its space-saving narrow mode (showing icons, without text), the name of the current family view won't appear in the Family View button (there isn't enough room).

Family View Settings

Reunion offers considerable flexibility to customize family views. A few default family views are included; however, you can create, customize, and name your own family views. Then you can easily switch between them by clicking the Family View button in the navbar.

To customize family views...

  1. From the Reunion menu at the top, choose Reunion > Settings.
  2. Click the Family View button.

This opens the Family View Settings window, which is laid out as follows...

Tips for modifying family views...

Creating and Modifying Family Views

To create and customize views...

  1. Choose Reunion > Settings.
  2. Click Family View — the Family View Settings window will open...

Customizing Children in the Family View

To change the look of children and the collection of fields appearing with each child in the family view...

  1. Choose Reunion > Settings.
  2. Click Family View.
  3. Click the Children button.
  4. Select the view you want to customize in the list on the left (the current view is selected by default).

For the children in the family view, the following attributes can be changed...

Customizing the Main Couple in the Family View

To change the look of the main couple of a family view (typically a husband and wife) and the collection of fields appearing with each couple...

  1. Choose Reunion > Settings.
  2. Click Family View.
  3. Click the Couple button.
  4. Select the view you want to customize in the list on the left (the current view is selected by default).
  5. Select whether you want to change fields inside the couple buttons or under the couple buttons.

For the main couple in the family view, the following attributes can be changed...

Customizing Parents in the Family View

To change the look of the parents in a family view (the parents of the main couple) and the collection of fields appearing with each parent...

  1. Choose Reunion > Settings.
  2. Click Family View.
  3. Click the Parents button.
  4. Select the view you want to customize in the list on the left (the current view is selected by default).

For the parents in the family view, the following attributes can be changed...

Miscellaneous Settings in the Family View

"Miscellaneous" settings for the family view include those not specifically for the children, main couple, or parents. To change miscellaneous settings for the family view...

  1. Choose Reunion > Settings.
  2. Click Family View.
  3. Click the Miscellaneous button.

Miscellaneous settings fall under the subcategories of Text, Colors, and Silhouettes...

Text

Colors

Silhouettes

Adding & Removing Fields in the Family View

To change the fields in a family view...

  1. Choose Reunion > Settings.
  2. Click the Family View button.
  3. Select Children, Couple, or Parents to edit the appropriate fields.
  4. If you select Couple, then select whether you want to change fields inside the couple buttons or under the couple buttons.

  5. Select the view you want to customize in the list on the left (the current view is selected by default).

Editing fields in the family view...

A complete list of available fields in the family view appears here.

Fonts in the Family View

Tip: To quickly increase or decrease the size of text for all fields in the family view, sidebars, and lists, use these two keyboard shortcuts...


You can choose fonts, font styles, font size, and color for most of the text appearing in the family view. Font choices apply to all records in the family file.

Some fonts allow more characters in the same amount of horizontal space. Thus, if you have longer entries that are being cropped in the family view, you could try using another font. In other cases, changing the font size or style will help. For example, if your family data has lots of lengthy last names, you can choose a condensed font or a smaller font size. For practical purposes, your choice of font size is limited due to the limited height of fields in the family view.

To change font attributes in the family view...

  1. Choose Reunion > Settings.
  2. Click the Family View button.
  3. Select Children, Couple, Parents, or Miscellaneous to modify the appropriate text (see a breakdown below).
  4. If you select Couple, then select whether you want to modify fields inside the couple buttons or under the couple buttons.
  5. Select the view you want to affect in the list on the left (the current view is selected by default).

Font attributes are customizable for the following...

Children

Couple

Parents

Miscellaneous

If you have defined a fact or note field to use a custom font, the custom font will override the setting in the Family View Settings.

Colors in the Family View

To set settings for colors in the family view (and elsewhere)...

  1. Choose Reunion > Settings.
  2. Click Family View.
  3. Click the Miscellaneous button.

As explained above, the text color for most of the text appearing in the family view can be modified.

In addition, the following color options are available...

Button Color Mode

You have the option of coloring buttons for people in one of two ways...

  1. Using color to indicate the sex of people.
  2. Using a single color for all buttons.

To choose the button color mode...

  1. Choose Reunion > Settings.
  2. Click Family View.
  3. Click the Miscellaneous button.

Like most modern Mac apps, Reunion 12 utilizes a "flatter" appearance for buttons and lists. However, if you prefer the older, more "rounded" 3D look, then enable the More depth button. As shown above, it's located in Family View Settings > Miscellaneous > Button color mode.

button depth

Sex Colors

To set settings for sex colors...

  1. Choose Reunion > Settings.
  2. Click Family View.
  3. Click the Miscellaneous button.

Sex colors refers to colors assigned to males, females, people of unknown sex, and couples. These colors apply to people in the family view and also apply to sidebars and lists if the List color mode in General Settings is set to Color lists by sex. By default, males appear light blue, females appear light pink, people of unknown sex appear yellow, and couples or families appear light tan.

sexcolors

The family color applies to couples/families appearing in sidebars and lists. Examples include...

Pictures in the Family View

Here's an easy, step-by-step method to show pictures in the family view buttons for children, the main couple, and parents...

  1. First, pictures must be linked to people. There are several ways to do this. Here's one quick way to add a picture to Leroy...

    • Navigate to Leroy in the family view.
    • Drag the picture file from the Finder and drop it on Leroy's button in the family view.
  2. If adding more than one picture to somebody, be sure to pick one as the preferred picture for each person.
  3. Click the Family View button in the navbar and choose Show Preferred Pictures.

All of your preferred pictures will now appear in the current family view. The size of pictures in the buttons of the family view can be changed, as described in the next section.

To include/exclude preferred pictures in buttons independently for children, the main couple, and parents...

  1. Choose Reunion > Settings.
  2. Click the Family View button.
  3. Select Children, Couple, or Parents.
  4. In the Pictures section, check/uncheck the Show preferred pictures button.

Resizing Pictures in the Family View

To resize pictures in the family view...

  1. Move the mouse pointer over a picture.
  2. Notice a little "handle" appearing in the bottom-center of the picture.
  3. Drag that little handle up or down to make the image smaller or larger.

In the family view, pictures in child buttons, parent buttons, and the couple buttons (husband/wife) are sized independently. However, resizing a picture in one type of button will resize all pictures in the same type of buttons. For example, enlarging a picture in one child button will make pictures in all child buttons larger.

Resizing Fields Under The Main Couple in the Family View

All fields appearing under the main couple in the family view will become wider as the family view becomes wider. The family view becomes wider by resizing the Reunion application window or by making the sidebar narrower.

In addition, some fields appearing under the main couple can be made taller, including...

To adjust the height of these fields...

  1. Choose Reunion > Settings.
  2. Click the Family View button.
  3. Select Couple.
  4. Select Under the Couple Buttons.
  5. Select the view you want to affect in the list on the left (the current view is selected by default).
  6. Click once on any field to select it.
  7. Drag the little black square in the lower-right corner of the field up or down. (This will only appear if the field has first been clicked.)

Event fields that are single-line in height will display the date and place on the same line. In this case, the family view may not include the entire contents of the place field if the entry is too long, or if the family view is too narrow (or both). Taller, two-line event fields will show the date and place on separate lines.

If you customize family views based on the current size of the family view and later reduce the height of the family view — either by resizing the Reunion window or by using the same family file on a Mac with a smaller display — Reunion will attempt to accommodate by shrinking note fields, morphing two-line event fields into a single line, and, if necessary, hiding fields under the main couple. The good news: if you make the Reunion window larger again, your original view configuration will be restored. Learn more about resizing different elements of Reunion's window.

Copying Family Views to Other Family Files

If you use multiple family files and take the time to create one or more custom family views, you can share or copy the family views from one family file to another. To do this...

  1. From the Reunion menu at the top, choose Reunion > Settings.
  2. Click the Family View button.
  3. On the left side, click and drag the name of a family view and drop it on your desktop. The file will look like this...
  4. Close the Family View Settings window (and optionally, to simplify things, close the family file too).
  5. Open another family file.
  6. From the Reunion menu at the top, choose Reunion > Settings.
  7. Click the Family View button.
  8. Drag the file on the desktop (the file you just created in step 3) and drop it in the list of family views on the left.