AI Prompt Builder combines instructions you write with information from your RootsMagic file. The result is a prompt you can copy into an AI service. RootsMagic prepares the material; it does not generate the AI's answer in this window.
A saved prompt is a reusable set of instructions and data choices. The subject is the particular person, family, place, source, citation, or media item used to fill it. Changing the subject lets you reuse the instructions without rewriting them.
Opening AI Prompts
The AI Prompt Builder is available from the individual Tools menu on the People, Places, Sources, and Media pages. For example, open the Person page, then select Tools > AI Prompt Builder from the menu.
Use the Change button to choose the appropriate subject. By default it will use the last subject highlighted on a main page. Always confirm the correct subject appears next to the Change button.
Saved AI Prompts are listed on the left. Select one to see its completed prompt on the right.
The toolbar provides:
•Add pre-built prompts - select from 24 built-in prompts to add
•Create new prompt - opens the AI Prompt Editor to write a freeform prompt
•Edit prompt - changes the reusable instructions and data choices
•Delete - removes a saved prompt
•Duplicate - copies selected saved prompt
•Change - selects the subject
Starting with a pre-built prompt
1. Click Add pre-built prompts. A checklist of about 24 built-in pre-defined AI prompts are available. Select individual prompts or use "Select all" to add the whole collection.
2. Choose OK to add the selected pre-defined AI prompts, or Cancel to leave the list unchanged.
3. Select a suitable prompt in the saved list. Examples include Source Summary, Conflict Analysis, Place Overview (General), Caption Generator, and Transcription & Interpretation. Check the type as well as the name: similarly named prompts can serve different kinds of information.
4. Click Change and select the item to use. Review the completed text before copying it. Use Edit prompt if the instructions or included information need adjustment.
Creating your own prompt
1. Click "Create new prompt" to open AI Prompt Editor.
2. Choose Prompt type: Person prompt, Family prompt, Place prompt, Source prompt, Citation prompt, or Media prompt. This determines which data controls appear.
3. Enter a descriptive Prompt Name, such as Family outline or Citation research questions. This is the name you will find in the saved list.
4. In Prompt, type what you want the AI to do. For example, ask it to write a short biography for your family, using only the information you provide. Include who will read it and how long it should be if that matters. Type these instructions in Prompt; there are no separate Role, Task, or Audience boxes.
For example: Write a concise family outline using only the supplied information. Identify missing dates and conflicting details. Do not invent facts.
5. Set "Data to Include". Start with the information needed for the task rather than enabling every option. Recheck this panel if you change Prompt type.
6. Click Save. The new prompt appears in the saved list and the right panel shows the instructions combined with the selected subject's information. Cancel closes an unsaved editor without adding the prompt.
Choosing the prompt type, subject, and data
Reviewing and copying the completed prompt
Check the subject beside Change, then read the generated text. RootsMagic includes information from your tree and asks the AI not to invent facts. It also asks the AI to point out missing, uncertain, or conflicting information. Read the answer carefully; the AI can still make mistakes.
If the subject says <None selected>, click Change and choose an item. If a section is empty or information is missing, check both the selected item and the saved prompt's "Data to Include" settings. Enabling a category cannot supply information that has not been recorded.
Click "Copy prompt to clipboard" to paste into AI. Switch to the AI service you have chosen and paste the text into its input area. Review it there before submitting. Copying a prompt in RootsMagic does not itself send it to the service.
A media prompt also has a separate image-copy button. Paste the text before copying the image, so the second copy does not replace text you still need to paste.
Using media prompts and requesting a transcription
Editing and reusing prompts
Select a saved prompt and click Edit prompt to change its name, instructions, type, or data choices. Save the changes when ready. Use Change, rather than rewriting a person's name into the instructions, to use the same prompt with another subject.
Duplicate is available for making a separate version of a saved prompt. Give variations distinct names so you can tell them apart.
Delete removes a saved prompt; check the selected name carefully before removing one.
Protecting information and checking the answer
Before pasting into an external service, check for private notes, living people's information, research comments, and identifying details in images. Include only material you intend to share. Do not assume that omitting a name removes identifying information from notes or a document image.
Treat the AI's response as a draft or research suggestion. Verify names, dates, quotations, citations, and conclusions against the underlying records. A fluent answer or a generated proof argument is not a substitute for examining the evidence.
