RootsIreland

montgo · 24-09-2014 9:31am #1

Oh, no! the website has been updated, now can only search with +/- 5 yrs instead of 20 yrs, the wild card does not appear to work and you have to enter at least one first name or any combination of the child's/parents' first names to search.

Searching now is going to much more difficult.

shanew · 24-09-2014 10:02am

also they added a subscription option ranging from €25 p.m. for 1 month, to €18.75 p.m. for 1 year

removing the wildcard option is going to make searches more difficult..

pinkypinky · 24-09-2014 10:05am

And a subscription service!

https://rootsireland.ie/ifhf/subscribe.php

€25 for a month

T&Cs include a fair usage policy:

We have a fair usage limit for subscribers, but we deliberately set it very high (1,000 views in 1 month; 7,000 views in 6 months; 15,000 views in 12 months. If you do manage to reach the limit, you will need to wait for the next calendar month of your subscription to start searching again (when your monthly limit is automatically reset).

Credits conversion:

If you have existing credits in your account purchased in the last 12 months under our previous service of Pay Per View credits (and our previous terms and conditions) you can continue to use them to search and view records on the site until they are used up. However, the Pay Per View service is being closed down and no further purchases of credits can be made commencing 24th September, 2014.

If you wish to use the Subscription Service we will facilitate you in converting the remaining Purchased Credits in your account against the value of any of the three subscriptions offered. However, on conversion of your paid credits into a Subscription your Pay Per View free search credits will also expire.

When you choose to use your Existing Purchased Credits towards purchasing a Subscription you are accepting that your previous contract with us under the Pay Per View system is null and void. Any remaining free search credits will not be carried over to the new Subscription service. You will not be able to return to the Pay Per View service once you have used your remaining credits towards purchasing a Subscription. However, any records that you have paid to view in the previous 24 months will still be available to you to view. These records will be deleted from your account 24 months from the date that you purchased them using the Pay Per View service as per the terms and conditions that were in effect when you purchased the credits.

Once you have used your credits towards paying for a subscription of your choice you will be accepting the terms and conditions of use of the site as they relate to the Subscription Service only.

All prices quoted are in Euro (€) GBP (£) and USD.

VAT at the current Irish rate is included in the price. We only offer VAT receipts to non-EU customers on personal purchases over €150, subject to a €25 administration fee.

Ponster · 24-09-2014 10:08am

That's a shame. Their search engine was one of the best things out there for Irish records. Having to enter a first name makes it difficult to the point of useless for how I used to use it.

pinkypinky · 24-09-2014 10:09am

Yes, I was just checking. You should be able to search with just a surname. Since they've moved to a subscription model, what difference does it make?

Ponster · 24-09-2014 10:10am

pinkypinky wrote: »

Yes, I was just checking. You should be able to search with just a surname. Since they've moved to a subscription model, what difference does it make?

I don't know but I think I might ask. It's almost like they punish people with their new model.

montgo · 24-09-2014 10:13am

So does this mean that you can download as many records as you need within 1 month for 25Euros?

shanew · 24-09-2014 10:17am

much easier to find possible siblings with wildcards, or even blank firstnames - not sure why they've restricted that for the subscription model as it will just make people do more searches to find the details..

pinkypinky · 24-09-2014 10:21am

Ponster wrote: »

I don't know but I think I might ask. It's almost like they punish people with their new model.

I just tweeted them about it.

chrysagon · 24-09-2014 10:23am

plenty of other options out there, and i have dont mine, without the use of that site.

shanew · 24-09-2014 10:25am

still getting used the search validation, but it looks like any one first name will do for a search - child, father or mother

shanew · 24-09-2014 10:29am

and at least you can still do a marriage check, although the 5 year window is a bit restricting sometimes

Ponster · 24-09-2014 10:44am

We were perhaps spoilt with the old window without realising it.

L1011 · 24-09-2014 11:34am

Ponster wrote: »

We were perhaps spoilt with the old window without realising it.

Nothing on the old, or new, systems could be considered "spoilt" - it was chronically dear and still is!

montgo · 24-09-2014 11:36am

The +/-5 yr window is very restrictive when you didn't even have to input any year before. Searching is going to take much longer.
I have read the Ts & Cs but still can't see how many records that you can download during the month's sub. 1000 searches seems reasonable.

MargeS · 24-09-2014 12:03pm

If you can pay 25e per month and get unrestricted access to transcripts/records then it is better than 5e per transcript/record. Personally, I would get more value with this model over the winter months.
But as montgo says, it's not clear if this is the case.

tonycascarino · 24-09-2014 1:43pm

montgo wrote: »

So does this mean that you can download as many records as you need within 1 month for 25Euros?

Good question. I would like to know the same. Anyone know please?

pinkypinky · 24-09-2014 2:05pm

Hmm, well, if you can do 1000 searches, you definitely can't get more than 1000 records, I presume. Would be nice to get official clarification.

MargeS · 24-09-2014 2:36pm

T&C's

"On completion of the registration and payment process you will have the ability to search our index and view records within the time period of your subscription only. You may use www.rootsireland.ie and its contents for your own personal, non-commercial use, i.e. to research your own family history. You cannot provide third parties with details of any of the records that you have paid to view, even if you provide them for free. Reasonable monthly limits have been set for users to allow them to access the index search and to view the details of records that relate to their family history"

My understanding from above is that, for example, you buy 1 month subscription, you have access to everything with a fair use limit of 1,000 views in 1 month.
This I presume is to limit users that might 'share' a subscription account.

shanew · 24-09-2014 2:45pm

"...You cannot provide third parties with details of any of the records that you have paid to view, even if you provide them for free. ...."

Since a subscription is now required and therefore all records and searches require a payment, once I use existing credits & free searches, it looks like trying to assist people will not be permitted..

Waitsian · 24-09-2014 2:59pm

It's a brutal company offering a pathetic service - avoid it like the plague. :mad:

pinkypinky · 24-09-2014 3:31pm

I think they've always had a policy of not allowing sharing material with third parties, but in practice, there's no actual way for them to stop it.

shanew · 24-09-2014 3:43pm

I was probably using a loophole, as my reading was since I was basing the details I gave from free searches, I was not paying for anything, so not breaking the rules, just bending them a little more than they probably foresaw.. and giving them business in the process. I should have saved a copy of the T&Cs I based this theory on

Ponster · 24-09-2014 5:41pm

pinkypinky wrote: »

I think they've always had a policy of not allowing sharing material with third parties, but in practice, there's no actual way for them to stop it.

To be fair there isn't a service out there that doesn't have this in their T&C's. It wouldn't be much of a business model if they didn't.

Menas · 25-09-2014 9:09am

For me this move is probably good news. RI have parish records that I cant easily get elsewhere. But the frustration in the past was having to pay for many views and having a low 'hit' ratio. So viewing 5 records to find only one of them is relevant was an expensive exercise.

€25 for a month is steep for the hobbiest, but I reckon once the weather turns I will buy a months subscription and tell the wife and kids I will see them in 4 weeks.

Ponster · 25-09-2014 10:35am

Trigger Happy wrote: »

€25 for a month is steep for the hobbiest

Compared to Ancestry it's WAY too expensive. Possible twice as expensive as it should be. But for a guy who's got as far as they can without paying for records and has a couple of weekends free it's worth it.

Spending €25 on the non-subscription only gets you 7 records so unlimited for a month for someone who has a lot of certs to find is a much better choice.

pinkypinky · 25-09-2014 11:46am

I expect they'll see a lot of one month subscriptions and very little repeat business or annual ones.

Their terms and conditions actually would seem to preclude professional genealogists using the service, since they would be passing on findings to third parties.

Alicat · 25-09-2014 12:26pm

Yes, I'd be in the same boat. I haven't used it properly in years because of the cost but I would consider a month of solid work for the €25. I'd have to be in the zone though!

L1011 · 25-09-2014 12:31pm

Alicat wrote: »

Yes, I'd be in the same boat. I haven't used it properly in years because of the cost but I would consider a month of solid work for the €25. I'd have to be in the zone though!

Get a month when you've an FMP, BNA or INA trial and pick that; multiple time limited sources certainly sharpens the mind!

Hermy · 25-09-2014 7:47pm

pinkypinky wrote: »

...passing on findings to third parties.

Have they any way of verifying a case where this may happen.

Ponster · 25-09-2014 10:03pm

Hermy wrote: »

Have they any way of verifying a case where this may happen.

Not in the least bit I'd imagine but they still have to say it.

I'd hope that a professional would be ordering the real certs rather than using transcripts.

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