Genealogy Chat

Hi
I've been a member for a while now, but not seriously up until now.

I'd really like some advice on which is a good family tree programme to use. I'd like something that I can download and is fairly easy to get around. I'm finding the GR one a bit cumbersome to be honest.
I can't afford to pay out for one, but I've seen several free ones and wondered if anybody could tell me if they are any good.

Many Thanks

Jo

Hello,
I only used the GR tree for several years and was very happy to use it but with the changes in recent months I have become disillusioned and have been looking for a stand alone program myself. I have tried free versions of several and also tried the free tree facility on other genealogy sites and I have to say I have not so found one I really like. At the moment I am trying RootsMagic Essentials which is free. There some facilities not available but if I eventually decide to stay with it I can pay to upgrade. I must admit I am becoming somewhat lacking in enthusiasm mainly due to the lack of a tree program I feel at home with.
Not an answer for you but you are not alone and if you find something good I am still looking.

Well you gets what you pays for - and if you pay nowt........
One of my rellies swore by 'Brother's keeper' (LDS?) free program years ago but it didn't deal with the gedcom I sent him all that well.

I see people on here quoting the price of FTM at about a tenth of the price that I paid12 years ago, and that includes an Ancestry sub that I never got! I appreciate that not everyone has a few bob to spare, but it's worth it.
B

I was recommended "TRIBAL PAGES" which is free. I uploaded my Gedcom to it and it also transferred all my notes which was unexpected and welcome. I've not spent much time with it but it's good to have a backup.

There's a 2010 version of FTM on eBay for £7.05 at the moment. No free sub with it, but at that price good value. There may be others, but I didn't look any further.

It is usually possibly to get FTM from Maplin's or Tesco for under £ 20 sometimes with 6 months Ay thrown in.

The best no limitations free program is GRAMPS. However it demands a little but of effort. Very good support community.

GEDCOM has all sorts of limitations so be careful using it. In particular the version used by GRU does not support photos and notes either for export or import. A lot of people are also very surprised when they export a tree to GEDCOM from a variety of sites, inc GRU, that details in linked census records etc are not in the exported file.

good luck

A few years back I did a series of experiments using gedcom files to move data back and forward between a number of tree programs and on-line tree builders. Virtually none of the transfers were totally error free.

Main issues were:-

Not all tree programs support all possible field tags, causing data to be dropped on transfer. Even if they do, field lengths are frequently different, causing data to be truncated.

One of the biggest issues was with dates as not all tree programs support all all possible date options. I found that 12 Jan 1960 worked best, others, less so. Also some programs did not like the use of approx dates such as Abt. Mar 1921 or Bet. 1891 - 1901

Again the result was data loss, or in one case corruption of the file within the receiving program as date info spilled over to the next fields.

And, as stated, no support for links to images or other files.

As far as tree programs are concerned, after trying several over the years I settled on FTM (Family Tree Maker) However, a word of warning if you are still running XP as the latest version FTM 2012 appears to depend on having .NET framework installed correctly, otherwise it won't run.

I found this thread interesting. I have been looking for a tree maker that is simple and basic in layout (I prefer to record my information in a narrative text form and use a graphic tree just to enable the understanding of the relationships between individuals). I have no interest in "fancy" layouts with decorative foliage and "frames", which invariably limit the number of individuals that will fit on an A4 sheet of paper!

I have been trying Family Echo, which is simple/straightforward enough (it's free as well). I will look at the GRAMPS to see how that compares.

It does no harm to upload your tree to various sites.
I recently did that after nearly nine years only on Genes.
So far in about three weeks.
102 images :-
11 certificates
A page from a family bible with 17 birth dates and 2 marriage dates
headstones
Newspaper reports
Family photos

To get an idea of what is available.
Register with Mundia .com
Search for EDWARD NASH COLLINS
Open the tree that displays an image and scroll down the tree.