Citation formatter enhanced - line item in preferences

[Brinycoolie]

6.0.3 on Fedora42
Is there a way to know how this ‘Enhanced Formatter’ option under preferences can behave (other than trial and error) and be configured and maybe even be enhanced? I remember there was some talk last year of being able to somehow create styles for source/citation format. I just noticed it and am now curious.
brian

[emyoulation]

Since 5.2, there’s already been a Citation plugin selection in the Data tab of Preferences and an Enhanced citation formatter plugin. (Which restructures some of the Citation, Sources, and Repository field data when generating End Notes and Foot notes.)

But, just as gramplets were originally limited to the Dashboard and evolved to splitbars in the other views, it probably needs some evolution to become accessible enough for “Aunt Martha”.

And like entering Vital Statistics while adding a new family member, it would benefit from a Data Entry style addon gramplet or View mode. The reduction from more than a dozen dialogs to create a new Person with sourced Birth and Death events is transformative.

[Brinycoolie]

@emyoulation

(Which restructures some of the Citation, Sources, and Repository field data when generating End Notes and Foot notes.)

But I cannot find a way to see how it has restructured any given citation. Perhaps a viewer option, or even a quick view, would be a way for Aunt Martha to check whether the citation is right now.

It probably won’t affect me much since I have my own citation template ‘calibrated’ on what Narrative Website shows. But in my quest to explore all that Gramps has to offer I came across it and wondered how to see what it does, if anything. Then I noticed all the traffic from last year where there was talk of a customizable template approach. I particularly liked the suggestion of publishing a standardized Gramps citation style. Of course given the international nature of Gramps the customized route may be more appropriate.
cheers, Brian

[emyoulation]

@Brinycoolie

But I cannot find a way to see how it has restructured any given citation. Perhaps a viewer option, or even a quick view, would be a way for Aunt Martha to check whether the citation is right now.

I’ve only seen a difference in some reports. But, since I have not done the background research to write the wiki docs, it might also affect the Citation gramplets and quickviews.

It could be that it is related to a specific Bibliography call. Hopefully so. That would make it easier to search which reports plugins support CITE plugins and which need upgrading. (There are a lot of Reports. So searching by running samples would long, involved, and error-prone.)

[DaveSch]

The Legacy option displays…

Author, "Source Title", Publication, (Abbreviation)
   Volume/Page - Date [Confidence]

Enhanced displays…

Repository [Call Number], Author, "Source Title", Publication, (Abbreviation)
   Volume/Page - Date [Confidence]

If any field is blank, the field is omitted as well as its accompanying comma or brackets.

The Confidence level is omitted when the citation is Normal.

[Brinycoolie]

Following on from what @emyoulation says…

@emyoulation

It could be that it is related to a specific Bibliography call. Hopefully so. That would make it easier to search which reports plugins support CITE plugins and which need upgrading. (There are a lot of Reports. So searching by running samples would long, involved, and error-prone.)

I don’t thing ‘Narrative website’ supports it yet. I seems to show the Legacy option even if the preferences tab is set to ‘enhanced’ and add-on is installed. Maybe it need to be configured somehow and then selected in the report or website dialog?
brian

[emyoulation]

@emyoulation

It could be that it [enhanced citations] is related to a specific Bibliography call. Hopefully so. That would make it easier to search which reports plugins support CITE plugins and which need upgrading. (There are a lot of Reports. So searching by running samples would long, involved, and error-prone.)

It looks like calling _bibliography.py or endnotes.py should use the CITE plugins

Builtins:

• Web Report:
  • Addressbook
  • Event
  • Family
  • Person
  • Basepage
  • Place
  • Media
  • Statistics
• Text Report
  • Detailed Ancestral
  • Detailed Descendant
  • Individual Complete

Addons:

• Dynamic Web
• Descendant Books
• Detailed Descendant Report
• Person Everything

[emyoulation]

Preliminary draft of documentation from Perplexity prompt:

as an expert in Python, GTK toolkit and the Gramps genealogy software, please compare and contrast the capabilities of the appended 2 CITE plugins: legacy.py and citeenhanced.py. Target audience is non-programmer end-users.

legacy.py

A citation formatter that implements the current functionality.

citeenhanced.py

A citation formatter that that adds a repository and call number to the standard functionality.

---

Comparison of CITE Plugins for Gramps

Both legacy.py and citeenhanced.py are plugins for the Gramps genealogy software that format how citations are displayed to users. While they share a common foundation, there are important differences in their capabilities that affect what information is shown in citation lists.

Key Similarities

• Basic Citation Formatting:
  Both plugins gather and display the core details of a citation’s source, including:
  • Author
  • Title (in quotes)
  • Publication information
  • Abbreviation (in parentheses, if present)
• Reference Details:
  For each citation, both plugins also show:
  • Page number and/or date (if present)
  • Confidence level (only if it is not “Normal”)
• Localization:
  Both use Gramps’ translation system to support multiple languages and proper formatting for different locales.

Key Differences

Feature	legacy.py	citeenhanced.py
Repository Name	Not shown	Displayed (if present in source)
Call Number	Not shown	Displayed (if present in source)
Order of Information	Author, Title, Publication, Abbreviation	Repository/Call Number, Author, Title, Publication, Abbreviation
Use Case	Standard citation formatting	Enhanced formatting for users needing repository details

What This Means for Non-Programmer Users

• legacy.py
  This formatter provides the standard citation information most users are familiar with from Gramps 5.1 and earlier. If you use this plugin, your citation lists will show the author, title, publication info, and abbreviation, but will not display where the source is physically kept (repository) nor its call number.

• citeenhanced.py
  This enhanced formatter includes all the standard information, but also adds:

  • The name of the repository (such as a library or archive) where the source is stored, if available.
  • The call number (a unique identifier used by repositories), if available.

  This is particularly useful for genealogists who want to track exactly where a source can be found, making it easier to locate physical documents or books referenced in your research.

Example Output Comparison

Suppose your source has the following details:

• Repository: “National Archives”
• Call Number: “NA-12345”
• Author: “Jane Smith”
• Title: “Family Records”
• Publication Info: “London, 1980”
• Abbreviation: “FamRec”

legacy.py would display:

Jane Smith, “Family Records”, London, 1980 (FamRec)

citeenhanced.py would display:

National Archives [NA-12345], Jane Smith, “Family Records”, London, 1980 (FamRec)

Summary:
If you want your citations to include repository and call number information for easier source tracking, use citeenhanced.py. If you prefer the standard, simpler format, use legacy.py. Both plugins otherwise function identically for most users.