Family Tree Software

Trotter

Mods, please move this if its in the wrong area!

I'm very interested in recording as much info about my family tree from my grandparents and I was wondering if anyone could recommend a good family tree software package?

Also, are there any essential family ancestry websites for this kind of "project"? I'd like to do as much as possible online.

Thanks a lot!

iMax

Highly recommend http://www.myheritage.com/ You can download their software free, add photos & all details you can get (realistically very little, but it's very configurable). You can generate all sorts of reports.

If you upload to their website you can share the information with family members who have email addresses, everytime someone enters something on it, all registered parties are notified. If you have *some* detail from a distant family member & someone else enters similiar detail, you will both be notified of a "smart match", you can check out the detail & if it's the same person, you can both merge data. I discovered a second cousin I didn't know I had like this, also got some information on eight family members from him, distant on my side but close on his.

pinkypinky

Trotter,

There are a lot of essential websites and good software packages.

I suggest taking a look at the National Archives website (www.nationalarchives.ie) where they have some counties of the 1911 census online - you may be able to find ancestors there straight away. Both the Archives and the National Library have good beginners guides to what records they have. The General Register Office is located in Roscommon but their research room is in Dublin (Irish Life Mall, Abbey St). Their website is not terribly helpful but it does have some pointers: www.groireland.ie. Be warned they charge to look at everything when you visit there.

There are also a lot of paying sites online like ancestry, findmypast, origins.net. Very few records for Ireland are on these sites so it's probably not worth paying them at the moment. Rootschat.com is a message board site that has Irish sections. They are kind to beginners with questions!

Feel free to PM me if you want more specific information - I'm researching my own family for many years so I may be able to save you some time.

P.

Trotter

Thanks a lot for your help! I'll be sure to let you know how its going. Cheers

terryfulham

Hi, pinkypinky,

Is the offer of help open everyone? I'm researching my Irish connections.

Cheers,
Terry

croo

I've used the open source GRAMPS ( http://www.gramps-project.org/wiki/index.php?title=Main_Page ) to manage the information collected. I'm a linux user but I think (not 100% though) that it is available for windows too.

tba

iMax wrote: »

Highly recommend http://www.myheritage.com/ You can download their software free, add photos & all details you can get (realistically very little, but it's very configurable). You can generate all sorts of reports.

If you upload to their website you can share the information with family members who have email addresses, everytime someone enters something on it, all registered parties are notified. If you have *some* detail from a distant family member & someone else enters similiar detail, you will both be notified of a "smart match", you can check out the detail & if it's the same person, you can both merge data. I discovered a second cousin I didn't know I had like this, also got some information on eight family members from him, distant on my side but close on his.

agree with this, its handy as it is web based and can be accessed anywhere.

pinkypinky

terryfulham wrote: »

Hi, pinkypinky,

Is the offer of help open everyone? I'm researching my Irish connections.

Cheers,
Terry

Of course!
Send me a pm if you don't want to post specific details for everyone to read.

Trotter

Do you have to pay the myheritage site to do the smart match?

tba

Trotter wrote: »

Do you have to pay the myheritage site to do the smart match?

No, they will send you an email if their bots find a match.
Ive not had any luck with it.

iMax

Trotter, to the best of my knowledge it's 100% free. You really need to get others to start doing it before it'll start to smart match