When starting your journey into the whole realm of family history, somehow paperwork seems to miraculously multiply around you. I have never quite worked out how it happens, but it does. And if you’re not to this stage of your research yet … expect it!! It will come.

This paperwork is your research, and as such contains, names, dates, notes, mini pedigrees, contact details of distant cousins who might have family photos etc. So all extremely important stuff. But to really make sense of it all, and to keep a track of the info that you already have, you really need to put in into a genealogy program.

There’s several things to note when looking for a genealogy program. Choose a program that is right for YOU. They are all a little different, and one may well be better suited to you than another. Recommendations from others are great, but nothing beats being able to try a program out for yourself.

So below is a listing of the genealogy software we sell, together with a little about each, the price, and the publisher’s websites .

ANCESTRAL QUEST

Ancestral Quest 12.1 – $49.50
Win 2000, XP, Vista, Win 7
http://www.ancquest.com
download the demo

Ancestral Quest (AQ) family tree software is an easy-to-use and versatile genealogy program for Windows. Its format is perfect for the beginner and yet powerful enough for the most advanced genealogist. Easy data entry, keyboard shortcuts, scrapbooking, professional printouts, and excellent sourcing capabilities are just some of this genealogy software program’s wonderful, award-winning features. The publishers offer a fully-functional version for 60 days, which gives you plenty of time to work out if this is the program for you.

FAMILY HISTORIAN

Family Historian 4 UK Edition – $99.95
Win 98, Me, 2000, XP, Vista, Win 7
Family Historian 4 Aus/NZ Edition – $99.95Win XP, Vista, Win 7
http://www.family-historian.co.uk
download the demo

This is a very different looking program, as it is a person based program, in preference to most which are family based. Apart from that it does have a number of unique features that others don’t, mostly in the way you view information, but also in its ability to view charts on screen. There is a demo available, so have a look at it if you wish. This came out at top choice in the ‘Choice’ Magazine’s genealogy software overviews in 2010.

FAMILY TREE MAKER

Family Tree Maker 2010 Aus/NZ Platinum Edition – $99.95
Family Tree Maker 2010 Aus/NZ Deluxe Edition – $59.95
Win XP, Vista, Win 7
http://www.familytreemaker.com

The best known of all programs, this has been around the longest, and is owned by Ancestry.com, the world’s largest genealogy company. For many people it is their program of choice, while others won’t go near it – so it is really a personal opinion. This new 2010 edition has been added to from 2008’s total rewrite. There is no demo of FTM, but the publishers have put a slideshow as well as a video tutorial on their website which you can look at.

LEGACY FAMILY TREE

Legacy Family Tree 7.0 Deluxe – $59.50
Legacy Family Tree 7.0 Platinum Aus/NZ Edition- $79.95
Win 98, Me, 2000, NT, XP, Vista, Win 7
http://www.legacyfamilytree.com
download the demo

You can download the “Standard” edition of Legacy for free. This is not a trial or demo version, and can be used for as long as you like. The difference between the standard and the Deluxe editions is that you don’t get the program CD, the printed manual, the licence code and some features have been disabled. The difference between the Deluxe edition, and the Platinum Aus/NZ Edition is that the Aus/NZ one comes with extra data CDs, a 3 month subscription to WorldVitalRecords.com and some gift vouchers. The program in both versions is identical.

ROOTSMAGIC

RootsMagic 4 - $49.50
Win 2000, XP, Vista, Win 7
http://www.rootsmagic.com
download the demo

This is a good quality program that is continually gaining support through new users. Easy to use, and well supported, with good reports and charting capability, this is a good program for those wishing to start adding their family tree data to a genealogy program. There is a free version called “RootsMagic Essentials”, which is a functional program, with some features that are in the full program disabled but if nothing else it is an excellent way to assess the program.

THE MASTER GENEALOGIST

The Master Genealogist Version 7 Gold – $82.00 (program on CD)
$69.50 (program as a download) or $112.00 (program & manual)
Win 2000, XP, Vista, Win 7
http://www.whollygenes.com
download the demo

This is at the top of end of programs, but it is way too much for many in relation to what it can offer. If you’re wanting ‘a nice easy program to use just to add names, dates etc’ this program probably isn’t for you. It is so different from the other programs in so many ways, such as visually, its terminology, and its charting capability. The publishers offer a fully functional (allows import, export, printing, saving etc) 30 day trial of the program. After that, the demo is viewable, but not useable.

iFAMILY FOR LEOPARD

iFamily for Leopard – $44.00 (download only)
Apple Mac OSX 10.4 or later (Tiger, Leopard, Snow Leopard)
http://ifamilyforleopard.com
download the demo

iFamily for Leopard is a relatively new genealogy program specifically for the latest Macintosh with Leopard. It is a genealogy application for people who think differently. There is a demo available, so feel free to have a look.

REUNION FOR MACINTOSH

Reunion for Macintosh 9 – $149.50
Apple Mac OSX 10.3 or later (Panther, Tiger, Leopard, Snow Leopard)

http://www.leisterpro.com

download the demo

Reunion has been the best Macintosh program available for a long time now, and it continues to holds its place. It is a well-written, well-supported program, and is very easy to use, and does have powerful charting capability. There is a demo available if you wish to try before buying.

This is in no way intended to be a comprehensive list of all genealogy software that is currently available, but rather a good range of them. As each of them a little bit different, it is good for you to take the time to work out which program is going to suit you the best.

If you would like to read up some more before making your decision, here’s some great places to do so:
Genealogy Software Reviews
Choice Magazine

It seems to be the week for genealogy software program updates, and RootsMagic have joined in.

They have just released an update to RootsMagic version 4 (4.0.9.2), which is a minor update but does fix some bugs.

If you have the RootsMagic News screen come up when you start RootsMagic, it may have already notified you of this update.  If not, you can do “Help > Check for Updates” from the RootsMagic menu to download and install this update.

You can also download the update from the RootsMagic website

The RootsMagic blog has a full list of what was added and fixed.

Family Historian is England’s most popular genealogy software program, and does have a growing number of users in Australia, and even more after the recent Choice magazine survey of genealogy software, in which this program scored highly (note: you do need to be a member to read the full article).

The latest advice from Calico Pie Software (the publishers of Family Historian) is that …

“Version 4.1 was released yesterday. Version 4.x users can now download a free upgrade to 4.1. The new version has numerous new features and enhancements, including support for copying, deleting and renaming projects. There have been improvements in support for PDFs, pictures & thumbnails, charts & diagrams, the property box, reports, website generation, and much more. All 4.x users are recommended to upgrade. See What’s New in 4.1 for more details.”

For Aussie users of the program, I’m not yet aware of any Family Historian User Groups in Australia (although if anyone happens to know of any, please don’t hesitate to advise, so I can let others know about it), but there is a very active Family Historian User Group website, so if you do have queries or issues, I’m sure someone there would be able to help out.

If you’re reading this, but are not a Family Historian user, why not give it a try with the 30-day demo program.

Related Products:
Family Historian 4
Family Historian 4 Australia/New Zealand Edition
Family Historian 4 Upgrade from V3
Getting the Most out of Family Historian 4

Family Tree Maker is one of the world’s most popular genealogy software programs, and as such has a large following of users in Australia.

While for most Family Tree Maker is an easy program to get into, interacting with a User Group will enable you to share your knowledge with others and learn from them too. There are always lots of tips and tricks to pick up and you will learn creative ways of using Family Tree Maker. If you are new to the Family Tree Maker (or new to a newer version), attending a User Group meeting will help you get started, both in finding out what you can do in Family Tree Maker, and how to how to use it efficiently.

New South Wales – Sydney
Meetings: once a quarter
Where: 120 Kent Street, Sydney
When: need to check the SAG website for details
Cost: $8.00 for members, $12.00 for non-members
Contact: the Society of Australian Genealogists
web: http://www.sag.org.au/
they also have an online forum for FTM Users

Queensland – Brisbane
Meetings: 1st Friday of every month, and last Sat of each even numbered month
Where: 58 Bellevue Avenue, Gaythorne
When: starts 10.00am
Cost: free (and non-members are welcome)
Contact: Kerri Kleidon familytree@qfhs.org.au
Organised by the Queensland Family History Society
web: http://www.qfhs.org.au/

South Australia – Adelaide
Meetings: 3rd Saturday of each month
Where: Salisbury TAFE Heritage Centre, 3 Ann Street, Salisbury
When: from 2.00pm
Contact: info@andfhg.org
Organised by Adelaide Family Tree Maker User Group, in association with the Adelaide Northern Districts Family History Group
web: http://www.andfhg.org/

South Australia – South East
Meetings: no meetings
Contact: http://www.sefhg.org/index_files/membership.htm
The South East Family History Group don’t hold regular Family Tree Maker User Group meetings, but they do have an online forum where you can post queries. Their Membership Page has information about how to do so.

Victoria – Melbourne
Meetings: 3rd Monday of each month (not December or January)
Where: Wadham House, 52 Wadham Parade, Mount Waverley
When: doors open 7.00pm for a 7.30pm start
Cost: $2.00
Contact: ftmusers@vicgum.asn.au
held in association with VicGUM
web: http://vicgum.asn.au or on Facebook

If you know of any other FTM groups around (even informal meetings), or are interested in starting one up, please send an email to alona@gould.com.au, so I can keep this list up-to-date.

Having worked in the genealogy industry for many years now, I come across many people who have often heard of ‘GEDCOM’, but really don’t know what it is, how it works or understand the importance of it.

Firstly what is GEDCOM?
GEDCOM is an abbreviation that stands for GEnealogy Data COMmunications. In short,it is the language (file format) by which different genealogy software talk to one another. All recent genealogy software supports GEDCOM imports and exports.

Why do I need to know about it?
Can you imagine spending years and years typing in thousands of names, dates, places, and citations, only to find out that when you upgrade your trusty five-year-old desktop computer to a new swish little laptop you have to update your genealogy software too? Then you find out, your genealogy program won’t work on Windows 7 (or has since been discontinued) … what do you do? Would you consider starting all over again? If you have your files saved into GEDCOM you won’t have to!!

If this happens to you, the first step to do, is to save your current files into GEDCOM, because if your files are in this format you can then bring them into ANY current genealogy software. Then secondly look for another program (I won’t go into that here as that’s post for another day – but we do sell a range of genealogy software).

Another reason to know about GEDCOM, is that if you wish to send copies of your genealogy data to your reli’s who are also researching the family, there is a good chance that they may not be using the same program as you, so to be sure they can read it – the saftest way is to save your file as a .GED, and send that.

Another thing you will need to you know about GEDCOM is that it is good, but not perfect. Not all the data fields in a genealogy program are specified precisely in GEDCOM. Or your present genealogy program might be perfectly happy with a birth date listed as, “after 1847 but before 1852″. However once that information is exported to a GEDCOM file and then imported into a family tree program, the birth date may say something else, or typically is left blank. Despite all the shortcomings, GEDCOM is still a simple and somewhat effective method of transferring genealogy data from one program to another. Most of the data will transfer properly, and then there are easy ways of reviewing the data to look for errors.

Generally names, dates, places and relationships do transfer without a problem, text, events, notes and source citations may not always work perfectly. The exact problems encountered will depend upon the two genealogy programs involved. But for a family tree of 1000’s using GEDCOM to transfer your data still saves a lot of work, although retyping from scratch also does have its merits too.

How do I save my file into GEDCOM?
Without going into the specifics of each program, if you are wanting to save your file into a .GED format to send to a relative (or just for your own backup of course), this is usually done by going to the top bar of your program, click on File, then scroll down to something like ‘Export to’ or ‘Save As’ (programs do vary their wording, but they’re generally all pretty similar), then follow the prompts. If it isn’t obvious, press the F1 (Help) key, and search for GEDCOM.

When saving your GEDCOM file, the really important thing to know is “where” you are saving your file, as you will need to access that file sometime, so you will need to find it.

When should I save my file?
This is entirely up to you, as it also depends on how much work you do on your tree. Personally I backup my file into GEDCOM format everytime I do any work on it, some would suggest once a week, others once a month. I’ve also heard a number of bad news/good news stories of people who’s computer crashed and lost all data, only to then be able to recover most of it from recent backups or GEDCOM files. So it really does pay to take to extra time to have good backups.

Hopefully this gives you a brief introduction, and underlines the importance of having your file backed up in both your genealogy program’s normal format, and also GEDCOM.

Happy researching!!

So it is finally going to happen …

Ancestry.com have made the announcement at the NGS Conference today that they are planning a Macintosh version of Family Tree Maker due for release later this year.

While I’m not a Mac user myself, I do know that the Mac market is definately a growing one, and will no doubt make many previously-PC Family Tree Maker users happy, as they can continue to use their fav program on a Mac.

It is said that … “it will be built on the functionality of Family Tree Maker 2010 and constructed from the bottom up to take full advantage of the Mac platform in terms of technology and user experience”.

So what do you think? Are you excited for a Mac version?

Stay tuned for more … we’ll let you know as we hear more details.

This post was recently put on the Legacy Family Tree Blog and as it answers a question that we do get from time to time, felt that it was useful to pass this on to our customer and blog readers.

——

The question from Tim was: “Can I use Legacy to trace more than one set of parents without creating two different family files?”

Legacy answer: Yes Tim. Here’s how…

First, notice in the image below (click to enlarge), that John Brown’s parents are Charles and Sally Carter Brown. Let’s assume that these are his biological parents.

To add a second set of parents (such as adding his adoptive parents) follow these steps:

1) Click on John’s “Parents” icon.

The “Parents of John Brown” screen appears. In the “Relationship to Father” and “Relationship to Mother” fields, you should enter how John is related to each parent.

2) Click on the “Add New Parents” button.

This adds the second set of parents (displayed as “Unknown & Unknown):

3) Click on “Unknown & Unknown”, and then click on the “Add Father” button.

Add the information for the father and click Save. Do the same with the “Add Mother” button. Add her information and click Save.

4) Enter how John is related to the second set of parents in the “Relationship to Father/Mother” fields.

Done!

When you click on the Select button to return to the Family View, you’ll notice that John’s second set of parents appear above him, and John’s Parents icon now has the number 2 next to it, indicating that he has two sets of parents. When you want to navigate between the parents, just click on this icon and select the other set of parents.

I think this should answer your question Tim. Do others have experience in researching/recording two sets of parents? Do you have other suggestions?

——

You can find more information on Legacy Deluxe or Platinum here
To visit the publisher’s website click here

As of March 26th RootsMagic 4 and RootsMagic Essentials genealogy software now includes a new ”AutoMatch” feature for FamilySearch. They become the first – and currently the only - genealogy software to offer this feature.

As FamilySearch certified software, RootsMagic and RootsMagic Essentials both allow you to share information to and from the new FamilySearch. In order to do any of this for a person, you must first match the person in your own file with the same person in the new FamilySearch system. In the past, a user was required to find a match for each person one-at-a-time, person-by-person.

The latest news from the makers of RootsMagic is …

We have just released a minor update to RootsMagic 4 (version 4.0.8.0).

We’ve been busy adapting a lot of internal code preparing RootsMagic 4 for translation into other languages, but we decided to go ahead and release this update with some bug fixes in the meantime.  We realize it has been longer than usual between updates, but we had major parts of the program torn out during the language reconstruction.   But with that out of the way we will be getting back to a more normal update release schedule.

If you have been using RootsMagic’s New FamilySearch features, then this is a required update, because changes to New FamilySearch effective Monday morning, March 29th (at midnight) will cause older versions of RootsMagic to be unable to connect to New FamilySearch.  This update is required to continue using RM’s New FamilySearch features after that date.  (NOTE: New FamilySearch is still in a phased rollout, and will become available to the general public later this year).

If you have the RootsMagic News screen come up when you start RootsMagic, it may have already notified you of this update.  If not, you can do “Help > Check for Updates” from the RootsMagic menu to download and install this update.

You can also download the update from here.

To see what was added and fixed you can see them here.

How do I activate my free Ancestry subscription that came with my Family Tree Maker program?
We do get asked this question reasonably regularly, so feel that it is useful to put it as a blog post. The answer can be found on the Family Tree Maker website, but you do have to know where to look for it, as it’s not that that easy to find. The answer below applies to activating the Ancestry subscription in Family Tree Maker 2009 and Family Tree Maker 2010 versions.

The steps to follow are:
1. Open your Family Tree Maker program.
2. Click Help > Activate Ancestry Subscription. The Welcome window opens.
3. Click Activate Subscription.
4. Enter the name and email address you use for your Ancestry membership and click Continue.
5. If you have more than one Ancestry account, you will need to choose the account you want to use.
6. Enter the password associated with your Ancestry account and click Continue.
7. Click Finish to complete the activation.

Australia

Log of Logs Volume 2 – I. Nicholson – $69.95
A catalogue of logs, journals, shipboard diaries, letters and all other forms of voyage narratives from 1788 to 1993, relating to Australia and New Zealand and the surrounding seas and oceans. With a separate index to authors of private journals & diaries. Of great interest to ship-lovers, family genealogists and maritime historians, and an essential reference book for librarians, museum staff, and researchers in many fields. Covers over 5000 ships’ names, with references to 20,000 narratives. 220 illustrations, many not reproduced before.

The Floating Brothel: The Extraordinary Story of Female Convicts Bound for Botany Bay – S. Rees – $24.95 NEW EDITION
“The Floating Brothel” is the antidote for bodice-ripping history, exposing the story of 237 female convicts – mainly taken from London’s fever-ridden, overcrowded Newgate Gaol – to the fledgling colony of New South Wales. Though it was percieved that the ship was rife with prostitution and debauchery, the reality was more complex and more interesting, differing dramatically from the well-known stories of hellish journeys to Australia.

Motor Trade Directory of Australia Compendium 1 1928-1936 – DATA CD – $49.50
This compendium of motor trade directories contains a wealth of information relating to motor vehicles and the motor trade in bygone eras, in particular the 1920s and 1930s. Included in these directories is information on passenger cars, commercial vehicles and motor cycles, as well as manufacturers, distributors’ accessory houses, repair shops and garages.

Queensland Police Gazette Compendium 1921-1925 – DATA CD – $79.50
This CD contains 5 years worth of Queensland Police Gazette issues all on the one CD.

In the Far North-East: A Scientific Expedition 1916 – DATA CD – $19.50
This book was written by Captain S.A. White, the leader of a scientific expedition he undertook for the Museum. It is written in a form similar to that of a diary, and gives an account of the experiences he had during the Museum Expedition and describes the interior of the country and what is found there. Sections of the book also describe the flora and fauna. Mentions are made of Sturt, Burke and Wills and King.

Tasmania Post Office Directory 1938-1939 (Wise) – DATA CD – $27.50
This directory is divided into four main sections: Streets (covering Hobart and Launceston), Country Towns, Alphabetical, and Trades and Professions. These four classifications enable the reader to see at a glance, the names of residents or traders in any one town; the address and occupation of any resident in the state; and, the number of persons throughout Tasmania, engaged in any one trade or calling.

Victorian Government Gazette 1885 – DATA CD – $47.50
Government Gazettes are a unique, useful and extremely fascinating resource for local, family and social historians and researchers in other fields throughout Australia. They were published by the government as a means of communication to officials and the general public and therefore contain information that is of great use in establishing an image of Australia and its people in the past.

England

Dougal’s Index Register to Next of Kin, Heirs at Law, and cases of Unclaimed Money Advertisements c1910 – DATA CD – $29.50
The index and six appendixes mention circa 100,000 names. Many entries include a place of residence, some an occupation, and occasionally a year of death or other information. It is not too late to make a claim – however, proof of connection needs to be made.

Wellington College Register, Berkshire 1859-1923 – DATA CD – $25.00
This volume of the Welling College Register covers the years 1859-1923, and contains biographical details about the scholars, including list of those who won the Victoria Cross.

Survey the Chantries, Guilds, Hospitals, etc. in the County of York – DATA CD – $35.00
Useful for local and ecclesiastical historians, and excellent resource for family historians with Yorkshire ancestors. This is 640 pages of real Tudor history.

Illustrated Notes on English Church History – DATA CD – $25.00
The 621 pages in this book contains detailed, readable text describing the fascinating and eventful history of the English Church from 1384 up to the late Victorian period.

Ireland

Some Anglicised Surnames in Ireland – DATA CD – $34.50
This 64 page book, was originally published 1923. The primary purpose of this work is to provide an alphabetical guide to English names used in Ireland which have been altered or anglicised from their Gaelic original. For example, Adams is originally from Mac Adaim, who are described as being a branch from the MacGregors of southwestern Scotland. Each of these entries, therefore, attempts to track the original name back to either its Irish or its Scottish origins.

Pollock Genealogy: A Biographical Sketch of Oliver Esq., of Carlisle, Pennsylvania 1776-1784 – DATA CD – $34.50
Originally published 1883. 63 pages, this facsimile of the book is a thorough genealogical study of the various Pollock families settling in Pennsylvania in the colonial period. As well as the descendants of Oliver, there is extensive material on the descendants of John, James, and Charles Pollock, brother who emigrated from Coleraine, Ireland about 1750, and the descendants of Samuel Pollock of Chester and Dauphin Counties.

Scotland

History of the County of Ayr: With a Genealogical Account of the families of Ayrshire – DATA CD – $34.50
A two volume set, volume 1 was originally published 1847 and volume 2 in 1852. This enormous study of the local and genealogical history of this county grew out of and goes well beyond the earlier Ayrshire Families by Robertson. That book chiefly related to the district of Cunninghame, while this much larger work covers literally every parish within the county. It begins with a general history of the county and then turns to each parish before continuing with an account of the principal families within that parish.

The Brave Sons of Skye – DATA CD – $34.50
This is an account of the most celebrated sons of Skye who served in the British military in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

General

The Record Interpreter – DATA CD – $35.00
An essential book for all those who study English records and manuscripts. Giving not only abbreviations of Latin words used but abbreviations of French words used in those records. Also included are listings of Latin forms of English Christian names and surnames.