Genealogy Chat

Hi. I am fairly new to P.C.s, and began to build my family tree in March 2006. I would like to record onto C.D.'s my family tree in case my P.C. decides to crash- I have heard they can do so without warning! I aked the experts on Genes R and they suggest to use a software package, but which one? Has anyone out there moved their records onto disc, and how did you manage it? The experts told me to use the feed for import/export and then a gedcom file but need a family tree software package to complete transition! Could anyone help me with advice please as to which package to use? Thank you, Colin Farthing.

Colin: There are many good tree programs out there, both free - the LDS site has a good GEDCOM program which you can find here: http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Home/FAQ/frameset_faq.asp?FAQ=faq_gedcom.asp And if you wish for a program that has some fancy features you can't go wrong with FAMIL TREE MAKER - which you can purchase online (Google the name of the program) or purchase in a stationary store. ('m sure there are others who will advise on other programs, too.) If you have WINDOWS XP on your PC and your PC has a CD burner then you are all set to save your information to CD.....may I suggest you use CD-R disks opposed to the ones that you can rewrite on (CD-Rewritables.) If you have those things on your PC let me know and I can walk you through the process of saving your info. While you are debating which software to use for your exhisting info, please don't hesitate to back up the information you have, even if you can't open it to view it at the moment....you will be able to once you choose a tree program....no sense in taking a chance of losing what you have. Judy

Most of us have gone for familytreemaker 2006 - you can get it on line from S and N Genealogy for £12 including postage. You can back up to cd or you can pay about a fiver a year to have the back up to internet facility (there is also a facility for your own website at no extra cost - this is not the same as the internet back up Making your own website with photos etc. is just a case of clicking next a few times on the family tree program - it does it all for you). Once you load the program to your computer it is very easy to move your GR stuff over to it, just a case of clicking a button to make a gedcom on here and then they send it to you by email. Save it on your computer - right click on the attachment and save with a name you remember. You then open your FTM and browse for the gedcom, click on it and all the info transfers. You may find you want to update everything because it has so much more info folders for each person than this basic GR tree. You can add photos, music, videos, produce charts, reports, books - it is well worth having. To back up to cd you simply save your information by clicking on file on the program, then back up and then cd. It does it all for you. Ditto back up to internet storage. CD back up is good but if you tend to be lazy about finding the cd to put in and back up every time you add more info (like I am and I lost 40 pages of work when my hard drive crashed as I hadnt backed up for a month) then add on the internet storage facility. You then just click on the internet back up tab each time you add stuff. I am using both systems as belt and braces having spent weeks trying to retype my 40 pages lost on the program. Luckily I had transferred it all to my website (again, just a matter of clicking a tab) so I had to print it all out from there and then retype it into my program.

nuging for reference - I too need do this when I have the courage to try it. Thanks, Liz

Liz, honestly its easy - on the other site Family Tree Forum we even have a sub forum for any queries about using the family tree maker. If you havent got a program independent to here then you are really taking a big chance that you could lose all your work to date.