Knowledge Transfer

Data Transfer and Downloads

 

To make my knowledge about the Patscheider family accessible to future generations, the unstructured data available on this website is, of course, not sufficient. It is neither possible nor practical to reproduce all the knowledge I have collected in my Kith&Kin database in HTML format. Therefore, this section provides the complete database contents for download in a variety of formats.

This is not intended to promote Kith&Kin, as the product is unfortunately >“end of life”. In the absence of a better alternative, I will nevertheless continue to maintain this database, even though it already has certain limitations in a modern environment (e.g. the lack of UTF-8 support). Kith&Kin is a genealogical shareware program whose greatest strength is its graphical, freely scalable, and freely arrangeable view of the entire family tree in every direction. Only the complete overview in Kith&Kin makes it practical to understand the relationships between families and individuals. To the best of my knowledge, this feature is unique, and that is precisely why I use this program and no other.

For these reasons, the downloads are heavily focused on Kith&Kin. The question for me is which data will remain readable and usable for future generations of genealogy and family history researchers. On the one hand, there is the GEDCOM format for the standardized exchange of structured genealogical data. However, GEDCOM files do not contain all information; images and source documents are missing. The notes—which I have used very extensively—are also limited in length in GEDCOM. Nevertheless, these files have the advantage that they can be imported into virtually any other genealogy program. Therefore, three different GEDCOM files are provided here, separated into the sections “My Ancestors,”, “Descendants of Clauß P.” and “&Unclassified Branches”.

In order to preserve and pass on the knowledge that is not included in the GEDCOM files, I must also provide the Kith&Kin databases in various other ways. Kith&Kin still runs without problems under Windows 10 and Windows 11. I hope this will also be the case with the next version of Windows, but sooner or later it will no longer be supported. I hope that in the future it will still be possible to run the program using a Windows 11 emulation or a virtual PC, allowing the data to remain readable and editable. How these data will eventually be transferred to a more modern format I leave to the ingenuity and inventiveness of future generations.

As I continually receive new information and incorporate it into the database, the database "is alive." Consequently, the rate of change is very high. I cannot generate new downloads after every single change; my goal is to provide one update per year.

Special Features:

  • Format: Unfortunately, Kith&Kin stores data only in Windows ANSI format. While German umlauts are preserved, special characters, such as those found in Czech names, cannot be represented.
  • Sources: Since Kith&Kin stores only the title of a source and its location, but not its actual content, I have recorded all sources and their contents in the notes. This also improves research within the database, as Kith&Kin provides much better search capabilities for notes.
  • Privacy: Most of the data in a genealogical database naturally concerns deceased individuals, but it also contains information about living persons. Since the personal data of living individuals is protected under the GDPR, all ZIP download files containing such data are encrypted and protected by a password. If you can demonstrate a legitimate interest, you may request the password from me.
  • Contents of the ZIP files: The ZIP files always contain the required files and a “readme.txt” file, which includes all important information about using the downloaded files. It is strongly recommended that you read it.

Contents

 

Data in GEDCOM Format

GEDCOM is a data format that enables the exchange of data between different genealogy programs. Almost all genealogy programs known to me support this interface. However, the amount of information that can be exchanged is quite limited.

The ZIP files are password-protected and each contains a .ged file, which can be imported into any genealogy program, as well as a “readme.txt" file with additional instructions.

Special feature: Branch “E” within the “Unclassified Branches” is included in these GEDCOM files both under “Unclassified Branches” and under “Descendants of Clauß P.”, because the line of descent continues through the female line.

Downloads:

Important: GEDCOM files are not suitable for re-importing into Kith&Kin. The correct positions of the families within the family tree are lost and must be restored manually. For re-importing into Kith&Kin, please use the formats listed below, such as the Backup or the Database Files.

Data as a Kith&Kin Backup

The file “KK-Datenbank-Backup.zip” contains a ZIP archive created in Kith&Kin using the menu option “File -> Database -> Backup” with the filename format “Patscheider_xxxxx_xxxxx.zip” (the numbers depend on the creation date). This file, “Patscheider_xxxxx_xxxxx.zip”, must be copied into the “/KKPro/" folder (located in the “Documents” folder). You can then restore the database correctly in Kith&Kin using the menu option “File -> Database -> Restore”. This file contains a complete backup, including the entire database with “My Ancestors”, “Descendants of Clauß P.” and the “Unclassified Branches” as a single Kith&Kin database named “Patscheider”.

The ZIP file is password-protected and contains a “readme.txt” (please read it carefully!) as well as another .zip file named “Patscheider_xxxxx_xxxxx.zip”, which can be restored in Kith&Kin using Restore.

Download:

Kith&Kin Installation Files

Since it is unknown how long Kith&Kin will remain available for download, I am providing the .msi installation file here as a precaution. Kith&Kin is shareware; the full version is subject to a license fee and can be registered with Spansoft, so there should be no issue with providing the installer.

After installation, you can either restore the backup or open the database files using “File -> Open”.

The ZIP file is not password-protected (it contains no data) and includes a “readme.txt” and an .msi file, which can simply be started with a double-click.

Download:

Kith&Kin Copy of the Program Files

Since it is unknown how long Kith&Kin will continue to function or remain available, I have also provided a complete copy of all Kith&Kin program files (which are normally copied to the computer during installation). In my experience, these files can also be run under Windows 10 and Windows 11 without installation.

The ZIP file is not password-protected (it contains no data) and includes all files required to run the program without installation. The ZIP file below contains three additional ZIP files (one for each folder): “Kith and Kin Pro V3.zip”, “KKPro”, and “KKPro3Data”, as well as a desktop shortcut and a “readme.txt” (please read it carefully!) with further instructions.

  • The folder “Kith and Kin Pro V3” contained in “Kith and Kin Pro V3.zip” must be extracted or copied as a complete folder into “C:\Program Files (x86)\”.
  • The folder “KKPro” contained in “KKPro.zip” must be extracted or copied as a complete folder into the “Documents” folder.
  • The folder “KKPro3Data” contained in “KKPro3Data.zip” must be extracted or copied as a complete folder into the root directory "C:/".

With this installation, you can either restore the backup or open the database files using “File -> Open” after copying them into the “KKPro3Data” folder.

Download:

Kith&Kin Copy of the Database Files

As an additional safeguard, I am also providing the database itself in the form of individual files. These files contain exactly the same data as the backup, but can be opened directly without performing a restore.

The ZIP file is password-protected and contains two items: a “readme.txt” file and the “Patscheider” directory contained in “patscheider.zip”. This directory must be extracted or copied as a complete folder into the “KKPro3Data” directory. This is the database that can be opened in Kith&Kin using “File -> Open”. It contains a complete backup of the entire database, including “My Ancestors”, “Descendants of Clauß P.” and the “Unclassified Branches” as a single Kith&Kin database named “Patscheider”.

Download:

Using Kith&Kin

Kith&Kin is somewhat unusual to use because it allows the entire family tree—no matter how large or complex—to be displayed at any scale. This view requires a special method of navigation that is both simple and ingenious. Navigation is controlled by a tool called “Tree Area Control”. Unfortunately, this tool is hidden by default when Kith&Kin is started for the first time and must be enabled manually. It can be found in the menu under “View -> Tree Area Control”.

I have provided several screenshots on the right to illustrate how this works. Using this tool, you can navigate through the family tree quite comfortably. The tool displays a sphere with a center point. By dragging the mouse from this center point in any direction, the visible section of the family tree moves across the screen. For very large family trees, the zoom factor can also be adjusted directly within this tool. Below the sphere there is an input field and two buttons (Plus and Minus) that control the zoom level in percent. To display my entire family tree on the screen, depending on your monitor size and resolution, a zoom level of 6% or 7% should be selected. Simply click the Minus button or enter the desired zoom value directly into the field, press Enter, and then drag the mouse from the center of the sphere to the left until the complete tree structure becomes visible.

Each small box represents a family. Right-clicking on a family displays a small yellow information window with basic details about that family. Double-clicking opens the family with all available information and allows it to be edited. Double-clicking on an individual person within the family opens that person's record for editing. See the second screenshot on the right.

Most of the functions are self-explanatory and can simply be explored by trying them out.

Kith&Kin
Tool

Kith&Kin view and the "Tree Area Control" tool

This small tool allows the family tree view in Kith&Kin to be freely scaled and lets you navigate across the entire tree structure.

View

Kith&Kin view and the "Tree Area Control" tool

Right-clicking on a family displays an information box, while double-clicking opens the family with all available data for editing.