Anyone having a hard time as I am in researching an Ancestor with sketchy information?

Located a Death Registration with Dates of both birth and death, address last lived at,parents birthplaces with just———-, Austria.
Scribbled penmanship of the Town or City of Birth?
Cant locate the Birth record until I know more information on the parents names when they married?
Have two researchers on Facebook ( Austria and Ukrainian Groups) since the timeline suggests that the area was ruled until 1914 by Austria as it invaded the area now known as Ukraine.
At least I know that he lived in Canada from 1901 – 1938 ( he passed away in 1938 at age 60 years old.
My late in laws had very little to share on anything more?
One photograph of the Grandfather was so badly deteriorated that no one could repair it to actually view a facial image?
Surely in that time many relations sent photographs of events such as marriages, births, celebrations?
I have little to go on and will wait a few days for results from the Ukrainian researcher who might locate the Birth record based only on his name and birth date in 1878. This researcher also informed me today that the deciphered scribbled place name was in the Chortkiv District of Ukraine and that yes it was under Austria rule to 1914. I will try Canada Information Act to see if I can obtain a file on him as 81 years had passed to qualify.