In a Hurry?

Review of Genealogy Software Programs

Disclaimer: What follows is a review of some of the existing genealogy software. It is neither complete, nor is it intended to particularly "rate" the various genealogy software packages which you, as a (future) genealogist, are highly encouraged to use. It is merely provided to assist you in making a choice. Enjoy!

Click here for details on the "Acadian-Cajun Family Genealogy" CD-ROMs, now available

Some say Alex Haley's book "ROOTS", which was made into a popular mini series, helped ignite the current genealogy craze. Others suggest that, in a society where many families are gathered across a continent or two, it is only natural that we begin to look back to feel "connected".

Whatever the source, it could not have happened at a better time, as computer innovators are now creating tools to help families dig into their past.

Resources Abound

Genealogy software is my favourite home application. It is ideal for storing and sorting information on your roots. Massive amounts of searchable census and record data are now stored on CD-ROM's, which are inexpensive and easy to use.

Genealogy has been waiting for the computer age, and genealogists have recognized the possibilities and responded with hundreds of programs and utilities.

In picking a program, think about what you are willing to spend and how deeply you anticipate getting into genealogy.

But beware: there is something addictive about finding great-great grandmother's names in a book published in 1860 that lists the accomplishments (good and bad) of her grandparents and adds ancestors backwards for two hundred or three hundred years with tales of their "deeds".

The Programs

In this overview of genealogy software, I have tried to include programs available in Canada. I have also included some programs that must be ordered from the United States, but which are considered to be among the best by roots enthusiasts, or are the most popular. Programs for DOS, Windows and MacIntosh are described.

ANCESTOR RESEARCH TOOL

I reviewed the demo version of this program by Everton Publishers, one of the biggest names in genealogy publishing, and found it to be an adequate basic program with better-than-average space for notes. However, it does not have many of the bells and whistles common to other Windows programs, such as graphics import, kinship calculator and a label maker. It does contain numerous extra fields for biographical data. It requires Windows 3.1, 4 MB RAM, 1.7MB free hard-disk space and a 386 or better. It sells for US$59.50.

BROTHERS KEEPER Version 5.2

This DOS program, which is available in English, French, Danish, German, Norwegian, Polish and Dutch, is an old favourite. It can be downloaded in a simple form from many genealogy bulletin boards as Shareware.

The full version of the program, including a manual, can be purchased from its developer, John Steed, for US$45.00. While the output from this program is not very sophisticated, Brothers Keeper will generate a large variety of reports. The program will attach .pcx picture files to individuals, but will not print them. Another advantage is that it will run on a 286 with 510K RAM. The program is revised annually. A beta copy of the Windows version under development is available in the Roots Forum under the file name "bksetup.exe". Contact; John Steed (616)866-9422 (8-10 PM EST only).

FAMILY ORIGIN, Version 4.0

A more than adequate and easy-to-use Windows program, Family Origin will print scanned photos or documents. It contains one of the better report generators for missing, inconsistent or duplicate records. It also accepts unlimited individuals and sources.

This program requires an IBM-compatible computer with 4MB RAM and 2 MB hard drive space. A DOS version is also available. It is sold by Parsons and is distributed in Canada. It sells for $34.99 CDN.

An interesting companion program from Parsons is Family Atlas. The Atlas can import GEDCOM files to generate maps of family migration, which may be printed in colour. Unfortunately, it primarily plots migration in the U.S., but the idea is a good one. Contact; Parsons' 1-800-223-6925.

The following is a reprint (with thanks) of Lawrence Cummer's review of FAMILY ORIGINS Version 5.0, which appeared in the December 20, 1996 issue of Computerworld Canada.

FAMILY ORIGINS, Version 5.0

New improvements to Parsons Technology's Family Origins genealogy software, allow users to create Web Pages full of family history, and to incorporate multi-media video and sound clips of precious family moments.

Information from the Family Origins database can now be displayed in a number of report styles, including pedigree charts, family group sheets, descendant and ancestor trees. Two new report styles...the Kinship Report and the Scrapbook Report...have been added to the product. The Kinship Report calculates a specific individual's relationship to any given family member, as well as creates a chart that displays the relatives who link those individuals. Scrapbook Report creates a window that shows all the photographs linked to specific individuals and allows the graphics to be rearranged or printed, turning Family Origins into an on-line photo album.

Family Origins 5.0 is available now at a price of $39. CDN. A demonstration version, limited to 50 entries, is available from Parsons' Web Site at: http://www.parsonstech.com

The Hiawatha Iowa based company, can be contacted directly at 1-888-883-0791.

FAMILY TIES Version 4.0

Family Ties is very simple to use, a good program for novice genealogists who are a bit frightened of computers. It looks like, feels like...and is priced like...an economy version of Family Tree Maker (the manual even suggests using FTM for printing fancier trees). Family Ties is available from Individual Software, and is distributed in Canada. It sells for $24.99 CDN. The program requires Windows 3.1 or better, 4 MB RAM (8 recommended) and 5 MB hard drive space. Contact Individual Software 1-800-331-3313.

FAMILY TREE MAKER

This program is a full-featured genealogy recording and reporting program and research tool. FTM version 3.0 on Cd comes with an index to all the genealogy research CD's originally produced by Automated Archives, which was acquired by Banner Blue Software in 1994, and was recently acquired by Broderbund. The latter two companies have developed new CD's and reorganized most of the old DOS CD's in Windows format.

The information available includes: indexes to most US Census report with the year and page number an individual appears on; a couple of Irish census years from the early 1800's; and CD's which family trees or GEDCOM files for a wide range of people, mostly American but with steadily rising number of Canadians and Europeans. If you have American ancestors, this is a must-buy. The first two volumes of the World Family Tree CD series contains thousands of GEDCOM's, including the names of 46,000 Canadians and 250,000 Europeans. At this writing, there is no way to contact submitters directly via Broderbund, but supposedly they plan to include that data in future versions. (Special Note: The "In Search of Our Acadian Roots" CD, _includes_ the names and addresses of every participant). In the meantime, a database of submitters is available on the World Wide Web at http://www.wp.com/ehuffman (the GEDCOM's are keyed by number).

If you do not have American ancestors, you may be paying for features you can't use.

The one exception is that FTM has the prettiest and most powerful choice of features for generating ancestor and descendant trees. It is also easy to use. Every event, such as places, dates, or names on the screen, may have a source note attached to it (accessed by pulling down "source" on the menu, which can be tedious). There is no pre-formatted style for these, however.

Family Tree Maker requires Windows 3.1 or Windows95, a 386 or better, 4 MB RAM (8 recommended), VGA display, CD-ROM drive and 9 MB free hard drive space. It sells for $69.00 CDN. It is also available in diskette version without the Family Finder Index to census, material etc. and without the genealogy "How-to-guide".

A companion program to FTM called Biography Maker will produce a "script" with writing ideas to get you started. It sells for $29.99 CDN. Both are distributed in Canada or can be ordered directly from Broderbund. Contact; Broderbund at (416)382-4400.

LIFESTYLES FAMILY GENEALOGY

This is a minimal program that is not particularly easy to use. However, if cost is a consideration, the price is very low. The manual is on disk in the form of "Help" files. It requires an IBM-compatible computer with Windows 3.1 and a hard drive. It is distributed in Canada or can be ordered from Lifestyles. It sells for about $15.00 CDN. Contact; Lifestyles (904)825-0220

THE MASTER GENEALOGIST Version 1.2 (DOS)

This program is a favourite among experienced and dedicated genealogists because of its exceptional note and source/reference features. It is not the easiest to use, though there are pull-down menus. The lack of ease of use is due to the large number of features. It is a bit like dBASE (but easier) in that if you use it frequently, you will appreciate its power and elegance; however, if you use it infrequently, you may spend some time reading the manual to refresh your memory.

An integrated correspondence log may prove useful in tracking your requests for official documents and letters to other genealogists. The quality of family tree print-outs is above average and the text outline descendancy report may be formatted to several large genealogical group styles.

One really useful feature is a built-in spellcheck that includes surnames, geographic place names (mostly U.S.) and common expressions. Wholly Genes, the maker of TMG, provide excellent backup and are active on forums such as Compuserve's "Gensup" and with user groups.

TMG requires a 386SX or better, 3 MB extended or expanded RAM, hard drive with 3 MB free and MS DOS 4.0 or higher. A Windows version of TMG is being beta tested. It is available directly from Wholly Genes and sells for US$99.00. Contact; Wholly Genes 1-800-982-2103 or (818)998-2575.

MY FAMILY TREE Version 1.5

This is another skimpy but inexpensive program. A major disadvantage of My Family Tree is that only 1000 individuals or 500 families can be included per database. A companion program called Picture Album may be purchased from the maker, DSR Inc. A GEDCOM interface Utility must be purchased to import files from other researchers (US$9.95). You may also buy a Family Viewer Utility (US$5.00), which can be copied repeatedly and sent to others with your database file. The Utility allows them to read the data and print all the charts. My Family Tree requires a 386SX or better, with 2 MB RAM, 2 MB free hard drive space, and VGA monitor. It is distributed in Canada and can be ordered from DSR. Contact; DSR 1-800-455-4377.

PERSONAL ANCESTRAL FILE (PAF) Version 2.31 (DOS)

This program, developed by the Family History Department of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is one the classics. Members of this Church, commonly known as Mormons, are particularly interested in developing extensive family genealogy for religious reasons. As a result, many LDS Churches include a family history library and make available to the general public large amounts of census and cemetery data and submitted family genealogy. The Family History Department organized the first genealogy software conference, with more than twenty other program developers, to come up with the GEDCOM standard.

PAF presents users with lists of choices such as edit, add, print a report, etc., rather than pull-down menus in the DOS version. It is simpler than it sounds and the program prompts are very good. Extra features can be found on many genealogy BBS. The PAF manual is excellent and local support is often available from LDS libraries.

The best news for those with older computers is that PAF will run on a 286 with 640K RAM, a hard drive and DOS 3.3 or above. It is also available as a MacIntosh version, which requires at least a MAC 512, 512e, Plus, SE or ll; two single-sided disk drives or one double-sided drive and 512 K memory. PAF can be ordered directly from LDS Church in Salt Lake City. Versions for DOS or MAC sell for US$35.00. Contact; Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City, Utah. 1-800-537-5950.

PERSONAL ROOTS

Definitely a no-brainer to use, this program is widely available and inexpensive. It lacks some of the features of more expensive programs, but its companion program, Family Album, allows users to create a family history album with scanned photos or documents that may be edited in the program. Personal Roots requires Windows 3.1 or Windows95, 386DX or better, VGA monitor, 4 MB RAM (8 recommended) and 6 MB free hard drive. It is distributed in Canada and can be ordered from Expert Software. It sells for about $17.99 CDN. Contact; Expert Software (305)567-9990.

REUNION

This is one of the better known high-end programs, and is available in Mac and Windows version. It is easy to use, has a super manual and good support. Only the Mac version accepts Kodak Photo CD's. A word processor is needed for some reports as the program searches your hard drive for a suitable application to which it will export large text reports. I was able to flawlessly transfer a GEDCOM from Family Tree Maker (Windows) to the Mac version of Reunion via Compuserve.

Mac or Windows users should be satisfied with this program. The new version (5.0) will offer hypertext markup language (HTML) output for Web Site use.

The Windows version requires a 386 or better, with VGA (or better), Windows 3.1 or Windows95, 2 MB RAM, hard drive and mouse. The Mac version needs System 7.0 or better and 4 MB RAM.

It is available from only a few dealers in Canada (see contacts) and can be ordered directly from Leister Production. Its estimated street price is $145.00 CDN. Contact; Softsource, Calgary, Alberta (403)297-1628; CompuSmart, Edmonton, Alberta (403)429-4388; WestWorld, Edmonton, Alberta (403)453-9386; Elm Street Computer, Toronto, Ontario (416)591-8684.

ROOTS lV

I reviewed a demo version of this DOS program and found it relatively easy to use with many professional-quality features for notes and source material. It offers an unlimited number of references for each entry and prelists a number of medical conditions to chose from for each individual. Because I only had access to a demo of this product (but a full version of Visual Roots), I was unable to rate it for duplicate, missing or inconsistent reports, or the quality of the manual.

The program has been in existence for a number of years and has been improved through the four versions. A 140,000 word spellcheck with 10,000 surnames has been added to the just-released ROOTS lV 1.2 update. This program also allows users to create a family history home page for view by anyone with access to the World Wide Web. This is likely to become a common feature of genealogy software. A sample can be viewed at: http://www.sonic.net/~commsoft/family.html

This program requires a 386 SX or better, MS-DOS, 4 MB RAM, 10 MB hard drive space for the program and 5 MB for each 1,000 individuals. (Commsoft says it will run on a 286). It is available directly from Commsoft for US$129.00 or as an upgrade from a competitor US$99.00. To get a free demo disk in Canada, try Researchguild Associates or Braun Genealogy and Publishing. Contact; Commsoft 1-800-327-6687; Researchguild Associates (416)694-3833; Braun Genealogy and Publishing (204)888-1458.

VISUAL ROOTS

This program is a full-featured Windows program from Commsoft, the makers of "Roots lV" for DOS. As with Roots, the setup for notes and medical information is second to none. Visual Roots provides powerful book publishing and reporting features such as table of contents, etc. A twain-compliant scanner can be used to scan directly into this program, a useful feature for photos or for copying original deeds, wills, marriage certificates, etc., directly into a family story.

Admittedly, the above-noted reviews are quite out-of-date since numerous program "updates" have been released since. Given that up-to-date reviews are available elsewhere Online, I thought it might be of interest for genealogists to leave the above posted so that all could see that ... 'we've come a long way, baby'!! <grin>

GENEALOGY SOFTWARE ESSENTIALS

Here are some features to look for, when buying genealogy software:

1. GEDCOM Compliance

One of the best features on the most popular programs is GEDCOM compliance. GEDCOM is a standard that allows the transfer of data between different platforms and programs and maintains basic formatting, such as names, dates, links, etc.

Genealogy enthusiasts are avid traders and sharers of information, so this feature is essential. Don't leave the store without it!

2. Output Features

Once you have played over census records or microfiche, you will want to print a family tree that is nice enough to bore your friends and impress your in-laws. So look for a program that offers a variety of charts, allows you to customize page elements such as fonts, paper size, etc. and will legibly print the largest number of generations on a single page. Some of the cheapies don't offer much more than a rough diagram of names.

3. Usability

Another consideration is how easy the program is to use. Sounds like a simple concept, but when you are trying to sort out why Mary is called Polly on the marriage record, or could Polly really be the husband's mother Polly, but the dates are all wrong, then using an intuitive program makes sense. It's genealogy you are interested in, not the programming logic in arranging items in a menu or Function button.

Some programs link generations together so that you can easily scroll up and down to add data. Others require you to remember a tag applied to each individual. Pick a program in which most of the functions are fairly intuitive so you don't have to constantly reach for the manual.

One function that experienced genealogists demand is space for referencing sources. Did Great Aunt Amelia's marriage date come from a book, actual records, or grandmother's memory? Meticulous adherence to sources will save time later on. Dates and names are a priority when you start your research, but it won't take long before you want to include information like profession, places lived in, medical history and family stories. So it is important to keep track of sources so you can return to them to look for this added information.

4. Other Hot Features

The best programs make it easy to add step-relatives, additional spouses, adoptees, etc., and tag them as such. Teenagers or adults from families that have split may find genealogy a comfortable way to re-connect what seems to be a shattered family.

One hot new feature is the ability to incorporate scanned photos, documents or maps so that a database can lead to or provide the skeleton of a family biography.

Other bells and whistles you might consider are "relationship calculators". If you know what a third cousin twice removed is, the program could provide you with a list of these. In the same vein, aging baby boomers may want to figure out their family's average life expectancy.

Another appealing feature is a function that automatically generates a list of inconsistencies and incomplete records. The former is a especially important when you merge outside GEDCOM files with your own. A spellcheck for places and names is also a good tool.

Once you get into your roots, you are likely to discover unknown cousins, huge family reunions and family or clans genealogists. So it is valuable to be able to generate a mailing list and labels to share the information with other descendants.

The above noted is reprinted (with thanks) from the article written by Jean Allen-Ikesen, in the April 1996 Edition of The Computer Paper (Volume 9, Number 4).

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