What Have We Been Doing the Past Month?

Bruce Buzbee RootsMagic

Well, it has been exactly a month (an extremely busy month) since we officially released RootsMagic 4, so I thought it might be a good idea to let you know what we are up to.

Fixin’ Bugs

Of course our number one priority right now is fixing bugs which have been reported.  Please keep in mind that RootsMagic 4 is a complete rewrite and we are working full time squashing bugs as they are reported.  We are fixing the most major bugs first and will continue until we get them all.  Don’t worry if your pet bug isn’t fixed in the next update, it doesn’t mean we aren’t going to fix it.  Those of you who have been with us for a long time know how hard we work to make things right, and RootsMagic 4 is no exception.  We plan to release the next update in the next week or two, so please keep an eye out for that.  And now that things are starting to settle down just a little bit, we will try harder to keep you up to date with what we are up to here on the blog.

Answering Questions

As you might imagine, we are getting a lot of emails (questions, bug reports, etc.).  We are trying to answer them as quickly as possible.  If you have submitted a bug report through our support system (http://support.rootsmagic.com) or on our message boards, please be assured that we have seen it and will be working on it even if you don’t hear back from the programmers right away on it.  Bug reports are always forwarded to us programmers, but we are spending so many hours working to improve RootsMagic 4 that we often get behind (sometimes way behind) on our emails.

The Most Common Questions Support is Receiving

  1. Why can’t RootsMagic 4 find my version 3 database? – If you are running Vista and had your RM3 files in the RootsMagic program folder, then Vista is hiding those files from RootsMagic 4.  Here is a knowledge base article on this problem and how to get around it.
  2. Why can’t I log into New FamilySearch? – New FamilySearch is a brand new system that is being rolled out in phases, and isn’t available to everyone yet (including many LDS church members).  As it becomes more stable it will be opened up to everyone (whether LDS or not).
  3. When will the RootsMagic 4 book be available? – If I had to guess I would say in about 3 months (I should know better than to guess at a release date, but I just can’t help myself 😉 ).
  4. Why haven’t I gotten my CD yet? – CDs began shipping this week.  We had that on the main order page, but forgot to update the generic confirmation email to say that.
  5. Numerous feature requests – We have received a ton of feature requests, many new, and a few for features which were in version 3 but are missing from version 4.  While our main focus right now is fixing bugs, we will also be working on some of these feature requests as time permits, and they will be included in the free updates as well.

 Of course there are many, many other questions that we are receiving, and many of them are answered in our knowledge base at http://support.rootsmagic.com.

A Word of Thanks

And finally I would like to thank all our great users for their support.  This has been the busiest month in our company’s history, in sales, support requests, hours spent programming, everything.  We knew coming in that with a complete rewrite there would be some growing pains, but based on the reviews and comments RootsMagic 4 has been receiving we know that we are on the right track.

“Probably the best all-around genealogy program, RootsMagic offers a winning combination of features for both casual and serious genealogists.” – Family Tree Magazine, July 2009

31 thoughts to “What Have We Been Doing the Past Month?”

  1. I just KNEW you were working yourself silly trying to kill bugs and such, Bruce. I keep sending you virtual hugs to help keep you (and your team) strong.

    RM4 will end up being the best ever.

  2. The complete rewrite was a tremendous challenge but should provide the ability to give us the best software features for a long time. Don’t rush the updates! Far better to make it right! Let us know if we can help.

  3. yipeee,
    CD arrived in Germany last week on thursday

    Great programm, lokking forward

    Peer

  4. I was able to discuss RM with our consultants and it was well recieved. Thanks for all you guys do.

  5. I had the honor of hearing you talk in Fremont and amazed you and your wife continue to have the energy to keep going. It was fun to hear first-hand all of the new features available in RM4. I brought the program home that day and have found RM 4 to be an awesome program and I am confident you will squash the bugs in it. I am glad you and your team continue to have the strength to move forward and look optimistically to the future of the program. Thanks for taking this challenging endeavor!

  6. I love the new RootsMajic 4.
    I have used the Origins and Rootsmajic programs for many years and tried other but I think this is the easiest and best program availabe.
    thank you!
    Peggy Starkey

  7. Bruce, when you refer to updates coming in the next few weeks, does that mean that they’ll be included in RM4? (I’m not a real “techie”, so pardon the question if it’s dumb). I held off a bit getting my upgrade because I wanted to check the blog for any “bug” problems people might be having. Sounds like there are a few but I’m not clear if the fixes will actually hit RM4 if I were to wait a couple months and order it then. Just wondering! Love RM3 and have enjoyed hearing of the enhancements in RM4.

  8. I’ve been very happy with the new version and the way you guys have handled its release, especially keeping your customers up on all the changes coming our way.
    I’ve somehow ended up with two product keys and can’t imagine that will be a problem. If it has problem potential, please let me know.
    Thanks for everything.

  9. Debi, when we release the 4.x updates they are included instantly in the download version of the program, and are included on the CDs the next time we have CDs made up (we don’t throw away all the CDs every time a minor update is released). But the CD version will always detect if there is an update available and allow you to download the update automatically if you want.

  10. I’ve used RM3 for several years now, and have recently installed the trial 4.0, liked it, and have now purchased and installed the full version.

    There are plenty of new features, large and small, that I really like. The overall look and feel of RM4 is much improved over RM3. I guess my favorite feature is the ability to load a copy onto a flash card, so I can take it with me to show/share RM4 with others, on their computer.

    One question I have so far is this: the text in the note boxes is a pretty large font. How about a global selection of font sizes for notes?

  14. This said it was a free trial – yet there is nothing available but material to read

  15. A very nice & well written piece of Software. Some changes are required. I am thinking the MAGIC will continue. I do find that I spend too much time researching my tree, but it is well worth it for the future generations to come.

  16. A great program,everything was delivered as promised. All very professional.

  18. I have used PAF for many years and was always apprehensive about buying a new program, mainly because I did not know which to choose! After speaking to a number of people at the Aberdeen Genealogy Fair recently I “took the plunge” and bought RootsMagic4. To anyone teetering on the brink all I can say is . . “Come on in, the water’s lovely!” It was so easy to transfer all my data and it is so comprehensive and intuitive to use, even for a “silver surfer” 🙂

  19. I love RM4. The linking through to google earth is great. Still getting used to navigating and have fallen over a couple of bugs but all is good. Keep up the good work. I look forward to the fixes.

    g

  20. Have not had a chance to try all features in Linux.
    Much more compatibility in Linux than RM3. In RM3 merging caused the program to quit, in RM4, works well. Deleting a person takes a little time, it becomes grey, until the person is deleted. Using Ubuntu 9 in Linux, and using the Wine overlay, [not crossover office]
    Still need to do more testing, but looks good so far.

  21. Hi RM4 folk,
    I’m a new user. I like it! Big improvement on what I’ve previously bought (e.g. Legacy). BUT one suggestion for your feature tray in-box is:
    Media Files – if I create an Individual Summary or Narrative Report – when I eventually wish to publish or share my work (e.g. PDF docs), then I’d like to be able to see a media image against the individuals event. For example – If I have a .jpg of a gravestone in my burial event media folder, (for Uncle Fred Smith hypothetically); when I view this event in Uncle Fred Smith’s life, I wish to actually see that gravestone against that event. I bought the software believing it would be a given feature of RM but finding it isn’t, perhaps it could be! Have a scrapbook of someone’s life doesn’t really do the trick for me. Thanks chaps! Marc

  22. I have been a fan of your program for a long. You continue to improve on a great program (the best one in my opinion). I just got RM4 and installed it and can’t wait to explore all all the new and exciting features. Keep up the great work.

  23. Hi Bruce,
    It was a pleasure to met you at the NGS conference in Raleigh, NC, and a special thanks for taking time to explain a few details of how RM4 worked, that was causing me problems
    I think RM4 rewrite was a courageous step for you, and my hat goes off to you and your efforts to stabilize it and fix all the bugs. I’m sure everyone appreciates your responsiveness to the bug reports, and looks forward to the day when we can refocus on enhancements instead.
    I spent 35 years in the software business and can appreciate what is involved in putting out new releases to a broad and diversified customer base.
    With best regards, Gene Truelove, NC.

  24. Type your comment here.I love the program for the speed and convenience
    to submit names to NFS as I have hundreds of names.However,when “Reserving Ordinances”:Sealing to Spouse and sealing to Parents is not displayed.
    Also,some persons with identical Information as another,whose ordinances can be performed, come up with:Not enough information.

  25. HI BRUCE,
    THANKS FOR YOUR HELP YOU
    SAID YOU ARE FIXING ALL THE BUGS
    I HOPE I WAS NOT ONE .
    I LOVE DOING FAMILY HISTORY AND
    ROOTS MAGIC 4 IS JUST WHAT I WAS
    AFTER AWSOME PROGRAM .

  26. Let me know when you have a printed manual. Want to use your program for my next book.

  27. I just want to say thank you. I have only had this for a short time and all I can say is that’s why they called it Magic!

  28. I really like the new Roots Magic.
    I have a question. When will you hook up to LDS and how will we be able to use it?
    Thanks

  29. Charles, RM4 works with New FamilySearch right now. If you have access to New FamilySearch you can turn it on in RM using the Tools > File Options menu. Not everyone has access to New FamilySearch yet (including many LDS members in Utah). It is being rolled out slowly and will eventually be opened to everyone. When it becomes available to everyone, your copy of RM4 will already support it.

  31. It depends on how recently. We don’t throw away CDs each time we release a minor update. The current shipping CD is 4.0.5.0. You only need to download the latest update which has all previous updates included.

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