Author: Bruce Buzbee

Personal Historian 2 Sneak Preview

Bruce Buzbee 18 Comments

It’s no big secret that we are finally about to release Personal Historian 2.  We know it has been a long time coming.  Those of you who have been with us for a long time (back to the old Family Origins days) know that in the past we were able to get major upgrades of our programs out a lot quicker than we have recently.  I know we could make a lot of excuses as to why this is, but I hate excuses from companies I buy software from, and I know you feel the same.  So I’ll just say we have made some changes in priorities around here that will help us get all the really cool new stuff out to you faster.

We are currently beta testing Personal Historian 2, so for the next couple of weeks on the blog we will be offering a sneak peek at the new features which are coming.

But first, I know a lot of you may not be familiar with Personal Historian, so let me tell you a little bit about it.  Personal Historian helps you write… you guessed it… personal histories.  It could be your own life story, or the life story of one or both of your parents, or the life story of one of your ancestors.  Everyone has a story that needs to be told… in fact… a lot of stories.  And that is where Personal Historian comes in.  Instead of trying to type all those stories into a big word processor file, Personal Historian lets you add stories, and builds a timeline of those stories, like this:

You can choose which columns you want Personal Historian to display for each story, including the title, date, status, category, or age at which the story occurred.  Personal Historian will automatically sort your stories as you add them, so it is easy to find any story you have already written.  You can then just double-click any story in the list to edit it in a full featured word processor window.

But Personal Historian is more than just a list of stories.  It lets you filter stories any way you can imagine, add historical and other timeline items, provides memory joggers and story organizing tools, and lets you publish all those stories (or any group of those stories) into a complete personal history.

So stay tuned the next couple of weeks as we show you all the cool new features in Personal Historian 2, the easiest way to write a personal history.

Free RootsMagic Webinars for August

Bruce Buzbee 5 Comments

We took the month of July off with our Webinars, and we know you missed them (you told us).  But we’re back and ready to go.  Here are 3 new classes scheduled for August.  Each class will be limited to the first 1000 people to sign up, but if you miss out or can’t make it, don’t worry because we will record the class for you to download and watch later.

To sign up for the free classes, or to view past recorded classes, visit us at:

http://www.rootsmagic.com/webinars

Here are upcoming classes for August:

  • Research Tools in RootsMagic
    The genealogy bug has bit you and you want to do more than just record what you already know.  RootsMagic is there to help with a large assortment of research tools which help you set goals, make to-do lists, track your progress, and even suggest places to look.  Join us for a look on how to extend your family tree further than ever before.
    Tuesday, August 16, 2011
    6pm MST See In Your Time Zone
    60 minutes
  • Getting Help Using RootsMagic
    Everybody needs a little help from time to time.  Nobody understands this better than RootsMagic so we’re pleased to offer many different methods of getting help for our software products- all free.  Join us for a look at the many ways we provide answers to your questions.
    Wednesday, Auguse 24, 2011
    6pm MST See In Your Time Zone
    60 minutes
  • Running RootsMagic on Your Mac
    You’re a Mac. RootsMagic is a PC. Or is it? Join us for a look at how thousands of Mac users are still using RootsMagic software on their computers- some WITHOUT even using Microsoft Windows at all.
    Monday, August 29, 2011
    4pm MST See In Your Time Zone
    60 minutes

And don’t forget that all the previous webinars were recorded, so you can download or watch them online for free.

Or if you don’t want to access them online, the webinars are now available for purchase on CD.  We have packed 10 webinars on each CD, and priced each CD at $9.95.  Click here for more information or to order the webinar CDs.

RootsMagic 4 Update Released (4.1.2.0)

Bruce Buzbee 12 Comments

Note: This post has been updated to include updates in version 4.1.2.1.

This minor update mainly fixes issues with RootsMagic freezing when trying to access New FamilySearch.  We would like to thank everyone for their patience the last couple of months as we worked to figure out what has changed with New FamilySearch to cause the frequent freezing and error messages some users were experiencing when accessing NFS through RootsMagic.  We discovered a number of behavior changes in the NFS API (such as API calls not being responded to in certain situations) which could cause RootsMagic to have to wait for NFS to return before it could continue (sometimes for 5-10 minutes or more).

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 http://www.rootsmagic.com/updates/rootsmagic

Changes in 4.1.2.1

  • When doing Add > Parents, RootsMagic now adds the newly added parents to the side list
  • The place list is now updated when deleting an unused place from the unused place list
  • FamilySearch.org search works in WebSearch again
  • NFS passwords can have + and & characters now
  • NFS import would sometimes not import descendants correctly
  • Seal to spouse would sometimes print wrong when “Print basic events even if blank” is selected
  • Removed “Use secondary access method” option

More Free RootsMagic Classes

Bruce Buzbee 2 Comments

It seems like the more free RootsMagic classes we do, the more requests we get for additional topics.  Here are 4 new classes scheduled for the next couple of months.  Each class will be limited to the first 1000 people to sign up, but if you miss out or can’t make it, don’t worry because we will record the class for you to download and watch later.

To sign up for the free classes, or to view past recorded classes, visit us at:

http://www.rootsmagic.com/webinars

Here are upcoming classes for May and June:

  • Creating a Website in RootsMagic
    Putting your data on your own website is a great way to share your research with family members and to make connections with unknown cousins and distant relatives.  Join us for a look at how to build your family website with RootsMagic and different options for sharing it online.
    Thursday, May 19, 2011
    5pm MST See In Your Time Zone
    90 minutes
  • Google Search Tips and Tricks with Lisa Louise Cooke
    Google Earth is a 360 degree, 3-dimensional way to view your ancestors world! In this webinar you will learn from Lisa Louise Cooke how to unlock mysteries in your research – from unidentified photographs, to how a location looked a hundred years ago or more. You’ll also see the potential this free program has for helping you tell your family history stories in a compelling visual way that will fascinate your family.
    Tuesday, May 24, 2011
    6pm MST See In Your Time Zone
    90 minutes
  • Search Techniques in RootsMagic
    You can find a person by name in RootsMagic, but do you know how to find all females born in England between 1780 and 1820 who never married?  Join us for a look at RootsMagic’s powerful searching capabilities that help you find what you’re looking for both in your own file and online.
    Wednesday, June 1, 2011
    2pm MST See In Your Time Zone
    90 minutes
  • Pictures and Media in RootsMagic
    They say a picture’s worth a thousand words but pictures of your family history are priceless!  Join us for a look at how to scan and add pictures into RootsMagic of people, places, and sources to really bring your family tree to life!
    Tuesday, June 21, 2011
    5pm MST See In Your Time Zone
    90 minutes

Here are the free archived webinars already available for you to view or download:

  • Getting Started with RootsMagic
  • Publishing a Family History with RootsMagic
  • FamilySearch Made Easy with RootsMagic
  • RootsMagic To-Go: Running RootsMagic on a Flash Drive
  • Sources, Citations, and Documentation with RootsMagic
  • Working with Files and Folders in RootsMagic
  • Cleaning Your Family Tree in RootsMagic
  • Personal Historian: Bringing Life to Your Life Stories
  • Creating Custom Reports with RootsMagic
  • Map and Explore Your Family Tree with Family Atlas
  • Adding and Editing Information in RootsMagic
  • Lists and Reports in RootsMagic
  • Writing Your Personal History (and Living to Tell About it)
  • Places and Mapping in RootsMagic
  • Ask the RootsMagician
  • Google Search Tips and Tricks with Lisa Louise Cooke
  • Creating and Printing Wallcharts with RootsMagic

Free RootsMagic Classes for April

Bruce Buzbee 7 Comments

And the free RootsMagic classes don’t stop.  Here are 4 new classes scheduled for the next month.  Each class will be limited to the first 1000 people to sign up, but if you miss out or can’t make it, don’t worry because we will record the class for you to download and watch later.

To sign up for the free classes, or to view past recorded classes, visit us at:

http://www.rootsmagic.com/webinars

Here are the upcoming classes for April:

  • Places and Mapping in RootsMagic
    Wherever you go, there you are!  Places and geography are an integral part of our lives and the lives of our ancestors.  Join us for a look at the many tools in RootsMagic which help you accurately record the places in your family history, clean and standardize names, and even view them on a map!
    Wednesday, April 13, 2011
    2pm MST See In Your Time Zone
    90 minutes
  • Ask the RootsMagician!
    This is your chance to ask your questions and get the answers straight from the source!  Bruce Buzbee, the author of RootsMagic will be answering your questions about the software in this special, open-topic webinar.
    Tuesday, April 19, 2011
    5pm MST See In Your Time Zone
    90 minutes
  • Google Search Tips and Tricks
    Frustrated by thousands of irrelevant search results in your recent Google searches for your family history? Do you want to achieve better results in a shorter amount of time?  Learn the art of online search with Google expert and genealogy podcaster Lisa Louise Cooke, author of the new book The Genealogist’s Google Toolbox. In this webinar you will expand your Google search repertoire and learn techniques, tricks and tips to achieve better genealogical search results.
    Thursday, April 28, 2011
    6pm MST See In Your Time Zone
    90 minutes
  • Creating and Printing Wallcharts with RootsMagic
    Ever wish your family tree wasn’t confined to a computer screen or a small sheet of paper?  Wallcharts let you see the “big picture” of your family history!  Join us for a look at RootsMagic’s wallcharts and how to customize them.  Also joining us will be Janet Hovorka of Generation Maps to show us how to easily and affordably print our charts and some special services which they provide.
    Tuesday, May 3, 2011
    5pm MST See In Your Time Zone
    90 minutes

Here are the recorded webinars already available for you to view or download:

  • Getting Started with RootsMagic
  • Publishing a Family History with RootsMagic
  • FamilySearch Made Easy with RootsMagic
  • RootsMagic To-Go: Running RootsMagic on a Flash Drive
  • Sources, Citations, and Documentation with RootsMagic
  • Working with Files and Folders in RootsMagic
  • Cleaning Your Family Tree in RootsMagic
  • Personal Historian: Bringing Life to Your Life Stories
  • Creating Custom Reports with RootsMagic
  • Map and Explore Your Family Tree with Family Atlas
  • Adding and Editing Information in RootsMagic
  • Lists and Reports in RootsMagic
  • Writing Your Personal History (and Living to Tell About it)

Free Online Classes for March

Bruce Buzbee 15 Comments

Thanks again for all the kind words about our free online classes.  And we’re just getting started.  Here are 5 new classes scheduled for March.  Each class will be limited to the first 1000 people to sign up, but if you miss out or can’t make it, don’t worry because we will record the class for you to download and watch later.

To sign up for the free classes, or to view past recorded classes, visit us at:

http://www.rootsmagic.com/webinars

Here are the upcoming classes for March:

  • Creating Custom Reports with RootsMagic
    RootsMagic has over 100 built-in charts and reports to help you visualize and share your family history.  But sometimes you may be looking for a very specific report or list customized to your taste and needs.  That’s where RootsMagic’s Custom Reports feature comes is.  Join us for a demonstration of how to use this feature to make new reports that are all your own.
    Wednesday, March 2, 2011
    5pm MST See In Your Time Zone
    90 minutes
  • Map and Explore Your Family Tree with Family Atlas
    Family Atlas is the fun and easy way to map your family history. Trace your ancestors migration around the world and pinpoint the sites of important family events. Import your family data directly from your genealogy software, then create and print personalized family maps.  Join us for a demonstration of this impressive software.
    Tuesday, March 8, 2011
    1pm MST See In Your Time Zone
    90 minutes
  • Adding and Editing Information in RootsMagic
    RootsMagic makes it easy to add and edit people, relationships, facts, and events to your file.  Join us for an in-depth look at how to build and shape your family tree using RootsMagic.
    Wednesday, March 16, 2011
    11am MST See In Your Time Zone
    90 minutes
  • Lists and Reports in RootsMagic
    There’s so much more than just pedigree charts!  RootsMagic offers a wide-variety of lists and reports to help you visualize and share your family history.  Join us for a look at each of them how they can show you surprising details about your family tree.
    Thursday, March 24, 2011
    5pm MST See In Your Time Zone
    90 minutes
  • Writing Your Personal History (and Living to Tell About it)
    So you’ve wanted to write a personal history but get overwhelmed with the size and complexity of the task.  Where do I start?  What do I write?  How do I make it interesting for others to read?  Join us for an entertaining look at methods to recall, organize, write, and publish personal histories about yourself and other individuals.
    Wednesday, March 30, 2011
    2pm MST See In Your Time Zone
    90 minutes

RootsMagic 4 Update Released (4.1.1.5)

Bruce Buzbee 33 Comments

This minor update adds a couple of small requested features and fixes a number of issues.  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.  Note: I have updated the list below with the changes for version 4.1.0.0, 4.1.1.0, 4.1.1.1, 4.1.1.2, 4.1.1.3, 4.1.1.4 and 4.1.1.5.

You can also download the update from http://www.rootsmagic.com/updates/rootsmagic.

Here are the new, fixed, and updated items in this update:

  • Notes for alternate names now print for group sheet and individual summary
  • Record # button didn’t work on Select People screen until you highlighted someone in the list
  • Sentence templates for user defined roles are supported in GEDCOM now
  • Alternate names are handled in the various Fact Lists (Private facts, Facts w/o sources, etc)
  • Privacy works properly for alternate name facts in individual summary now
  • WebSearch works properly for names with accented characters now
  • [xUpline] was showing up in websites for privatized people with no events
  • Fixed SQLite error 21 when printing todo list for single repository sorted by repository
  • Added option to support New FamilySearch on Macs running CrossOver (Tools > File options > FamilySearch)
  • Adding a new fact on the edit screen and pressing Alt+V would sometimes show incorrect data in the list
  • Can search / select on FamilySearch ID in selection screen now
  • Custom reports support printing and sorting by FamilySearch ID
  • Unicode characters in names and places transfer properly from RM to NFS
  • Fixed a few list issues
  • Shared events are now retained during merge
  • Kinship list would sometimes display incorrect relationships (4.1.1.0)
  • Henry, D’Aboville, and Outline numbering in narrative reports handles children from multiple spouses correctly (4.1.1.0)
  • Fixed a problem with the place list sometimes crashing from the edit screen on a few systems (4.1.1.0)
  • Fixed a problem with the family list (Search > Family List) crashing on a few systems (4.1.1.0)
  • Fixed link to FAQs (Knowledge base) under the Internet menu (4.1.1.0)
  • Legacy import converts formatting codes in source detail text and comments now (4.1.1.0)
  • PAF import preserves source detail date now (4.1.1.0)
  • Added Internet > Learning center to take you online for tutorials / webinars (4.1.1.0)
  • Sort by birthday and anniversary in custom reports works correctly now (4.1.1.1)
  • Fixed some sentence template issues (4.1.1.1)
  • People View now supports FamilySearch ID as a column (4.1.1.1)
  • Removed debug window from NFS User Profile settings (4.1.1.1)
  • NFS Share Data screen sometimes showed incorrect matches between children (4.1.1.1)
  • Fixed some issues with the New FamilySearch import (4.1.1.1)
  • Fixed some issues with New FamilySearch Share Data screen (4.1.1.1)
  • Fixed freezing during NFS operations on some computers (4.1.1.2)
  • Information would sometimes not print in the Individual Summary (4.1.1.2)
  • GEDCOM would sometimes mix up address fields when only partial addresses existed (4.1.1.2)
  • Explorer now displays place details for events (4.1.1.2)
  • Source template values in GEDCOM can now span multiple lines (CONT/CONC) (4.1.1.2)
  • NFS filter sometimes showed incorrect group name (4.1.1.2)
  • Minor NFS tweak (4.1.1.3)
  • Minor NFS tweak (4.1.1.4)
  • Source report (and some others) would sometimes print a repository twice (4.1.1.5)
  • GEDCOM export could crash when encountering a corrupt date field in the database (4.1.1.5)
  • Handle the incorrect FTM 2008-2011 GEDCOM CONC tag handling (4.1.1.5)
  • Some ordinances for people w/o death facts wouldn’t print in LDS report (4.1.1.5)
  • Fixed address issues during GEDCOM import (4.1.1.5)
  • ToDo list would sometimes print an incorrect repository for items with no repository (4.1.1.5)

More Free Online Classes

Bruce Buzbee 21 Comments

First, we’d like to thank everyone for the overwhelming response to our online classes (webinars).  Every class has been full, and from what you have told us by email and at conferences, they are a big hit.

Here are the next 2 classes we will be offering:

  • Working With Files and Folders in RootsMagic
    Is working with files in RootsMagic a mystery? Learn how to organize your RootsMagic files and folders, create and restore backups, import and export information from other programs and GEDCOM files, share data between computers, and much more!
    Tuesday, February 8, 2011
    5pm MST See In Your Time Zone
    90 minutes
  • Cleaning Your Family Tree in RootsMagic
    Every family tree is subject to errors. Learn how to clean up your places and sources, discover possible errors and problems in your data, find and merge duplicate records, split and merge trees, and more!
    Friday, February 18, 2011
    3pm MST See In Your Time Zone
    90 minutes

To sign up for the free classes, or to view past recorded classes, visit us at:

http://www.rootsmagic.com/webinars

These classes were chosen based on the response to our survey.  If you still haven’t had a chance to let us know what you want us to teach click here to take the survey.

Each class will be limited to the first 1000 people to sign up, but if you miss out or can’t make it, don’t worry because we will record the class for you to download and watch later.

RootsMagic 4 Update Released (4.0.9.9)

Bruce Buzbee 10 Comments

This update adds several requested features and fixes a number of issues.  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.  Note: We updated the list below to include a few issues we fixed in the 4.0.9.9 update.

You can also download the update from http://www.rootsmagic.com/updates/rootsmagic.

Here are the new, fixed, and updated items in this update:

  • Fixed problem with crashing under Windows 2000
  • Place details display for birth/death in info view at top of main screens
  • The rearrange children list now displays/sorts by christen date if no birth date exists
  • Added Last edited date as optional column in customizing People View
  • Added the newly updated FamilySearch (as of 14 Dec 2010) website to WebSearch
  • Searching by age at marriage/family events works correctly now
  • Fixed several problems with Family Origins importing
  • Added some minor enhancements to duplicate search
  • Fixed problem with footnotes sometimes printing wrong on Research Notes report
  • Private notes in PAF import are now privatized up to the next blank line
  • Fixed FTM import of citations with no master source and no footnote text
  • Fixed FTM import when multiple birth facts exist
  • Source (and detail) text and comment editors honor the font size selected for note editing
  • Minor fixes in website creation
  • Can now filter the NFS list based on named groups or ancestors of a person
  • NFS can remember users login and password, and can automatically login to NFS
  • Added numerous minor enhancements to NFS functions
  • Fixed a bug which crept into 4.0.9.8 which kept RM from saving an event in the edit screen unless you clicked the “Save” button.  Version 4.0.9.9 once again saves event data as soon as you move on like it used to.  (4.0.9.9)
  • Fixed bugs in several of the lists (4.0.9.9)
  • Fixed an incremental search issue (4.0.9.9)
  • Fixed an occasional bug when printing Family Ordinance Requests (FOR) (4.0.9.9)

RootsMagic 4 Update Released (4.0.9.7)

Bruce Buzbee 14 Comments

We have just released an update to RootsMagic 4 (version 4.0.9.7).

This minor update fixes a number of issues.  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 http://www.rootsmagic.com/updates/rootsmagic.

Here are the new, fixed, and updated items in this update:

  • Edit screen now displays place details in fact list
  • Name and place indexes now print in Individual List report
  • FTM import now brings in citations which had no master source in FTM
  • Added option to paste into notes using plain text (option is at Tools > Program options)
  • Hover style fixed for some links in generated websites
  • Alternate names are now included in narrative websites
  • Parents of spouses in descendant narrative websites are now included (ex: Jane Doe, daughter of John Doe and Mary Smith, …)
  • Fixed a few source issues in websites
  • Children of cousin marriages in narrative descendant reports are numbered properly now
  • Fixed a wordwrap issue with “About” text for shareable CDs
  • Fixed a problem with some new temples getting duplicated multiple times in the temple list
  • Photo description doesn’t get lost in GEDCOM import / drag and drop when the image has a date entered
  • Nickname delimiter (quotes vs parens) are honored in report titles
  • Fixed crashing when running the “Fix broken media links” from the little camera icon in the info panel at the top of screen
  • Wallcharts honor the selected date format now
  • NFS AutoMatch could crash if a large number of people were already matched with NFS
  • Fixed problem with horizontal scroll bar sometimes not appearing on child list in family view
  • Separated “Reserved” from “Need more info” on NFS statuses
  • Removed disputing from New FamilySearch
  • Added Descendant List report option to just show birth and death year
  • Additional checking for duplicates when reserving ordinances in NFS
  • Fixed a number of issues when copying relatives back and forth between RM and NFS