Does this update also include married names for females in the index, or do I still have to continue using FTM 2006 until this basic search ability is included in some later version?

Will it also include the capability of assuming a person is deceased over a certain age, where no death date is known? At present they are still assumed to be living and therefore not shown in any export/report where privatize living individuals is selected.

Will the next patch also include the ability to UPDATE a tree uploaded to the web without having to delete it and replace with a new one forcing users to redo all customization?

This was another feature FTM 16 had and removed by you with the 2008 version.

I requested/submitted this 3 times over already, I am sure it is in your logs.

Is anyone talking about the seemingly lengthy down time for the family tree section?
The phrase “check back shortly” does not mean “days” to me.

Benjamin,

I think at this stage the paying users of FTM 2008 deserve a response with some substance to it. What you have posted here doesn’t tell me much about the “status” of the next update. I think we are familar with the process you go through, but PLEASE give us a targeted timeline! And PLEASE tell us what is included in the next update, not just “some” of what is included.

Remember you have a generally unhappy lot out here and although some of us seem willing to not give up yet, you are at risk of losing more of us to your competition.

With your statement “Although each entry cannot be responded to individually, please know that they are looked at on a weekly basis and are helping make Family Tree Maker a better product.” I can assure you that you have a long road ahead to make FTM 2008 a better product.

I’ve submitted several enhancement requests and I can only assume some of them are included in the next release based upon your description here.

Benjamin,

Does the Source Copy/Paste functionality utilize the relationship database within version 2008 (i.e., when you copy/paste a source to five facts on the same person, when you create a report on that individual a single source is referenced versus appear as five separate sources (the challenge in version 16 that relationship database within version 2008 fixed).

When will there be a patch to import FBC formats? My sister-in-law gave me her file but it is not use to me. Help!

when will the 2008 version be capable of all the functions available on the 2005 version eg printing the entire tree to include all siblings. current print options very poor

Hi Benjamin,

Would it be possible for you to start a thread in this Blog that lists out the identified bugs? That might help some of us see that our issue has been documented? Then you could mark the bug when you think it has been addressed and we could check for ourselves. You might even be able to list a column showing us when it might be fixed.

I am mainly talking about the bugs we have identified, not necessarily the enhancment requests. Although you might list those too, to allow us to help you develop the ideas.

Thank you.

Will this next update allow you to print pedigree charts for greater than 16 generations, as FTM16 did??

Will the next update allow you to copy a source to different facts as FTM16 did? This was a big time saver that isn’t there in FTM2008

Thanks for the update Benjamin. It looks like the FTM development staff have been busy after all. We appreciate the updates and work being done in the background.

Now to work out how to get on the beta test team for this update so I can finally get serious with FTM 2008, as the global search/replace and married names for females are the 2 items I really need to seriously test before I really transfer over to 2008

“The current focus for publishing is the work being done to deliver the book building capability. Additional printing options likely will not be available until the next FTM release.”

By release, do you mean the following SP or FTM 2009?

On the older version (FTM 16) I copied a LOT of pieces of newspaper images to the scrapbook section. When I transferred to FTM2008 they didn’t show up. Am I just not seeing them? Can you help me? I don’t want to go back and do all that research over.

Netzband,

Make sure you have the lastest patch .559. The patch until then played games with images and rarily worked 100%. I have all kinds of problems, but since .599 (at least as far as images) it seems to work without problems.

Mike

I am very concerned the the “check back shortly” issue also. I have been trying since Saturday the 9th of February to access my reords and I get the same old message -
Check back soon.
We’re sorry but this feature is temporarily unavailable. We apologize for the inconvenience and ask for your patience at this time. Check back with us shortly.
Shortly is days - when will it be repaired?

Are you related to the late Bernard
Nettesheim from the Wisconsin area? He was married to my mom.

Will this update correct the fault concerning Stepchildren, as at the moment if a mother merries/re-marries the children seem to be automaticly added as children of her new husband?

Benjamin,

I have a specific question about the upcoming patch, one which has been expressed on this blog as a concern: what will be addressed in this upcoming patch relating to the place authority? I know a number of people have mentioned the place authority seems lacking in the number of places it should contain. I know I have submitted enhancement requests relating to mis-entered places (like DeKalb, Missouri, which is entered as De Kalb, Missouri) and missing places, namely historical places in the US which do not exist today, but did 100+ years ago. Will the place authority be expanded? Will there be a way to customize the place authority with your own custom locations (thus getting rid of the annoying question mark)? Will there be a site specifically to request edits/additions for the place authority?

Has the custom report been addressed yet. As it is now it is useless. It needs to be a single line report capable of being exported and used in excel, just as 2006 was.

When your cursor is in a fact field and you hit cntrl-S you get the add source dialog box, but you don’t see the existing sources like you used to in FTM16. This makes checking/adding/editing sources awkward and time consuming. Please add this to the list of items to be fixed.

As a follow-up to my earlier comment about sources, I’d like to add that when you click on the source-citation button next to a fact and then click on a source you are limited to only being able to edit that source. You sould be able to edit the source, add a source or scroll between multiple sources if you want.

When you are in family view it would be most helpful if there was a way to view the facts about the individual highlighted, add facts, add modify sources for those facts, etc. This new program is extremely cumbersome.

Why are Belgium, Spain, and Portugal no longer listed as birth countries?

Hello:

I just email customer support with this, but maybe you could help. I just purchased this FTM2008 a couple of weeks ago. I’ve been using FTM for about 15 years now, probably from about the beginning, and this release is so bad that it ought to be pulled and fixed. I’ve asked Customer Service about getting a refund until you fix everything…then maybe I’ll buy the upgrade. Please advise how I can get a refund. I don’t have the time to keep messing around with this defective product.
Regards,
Bob

I’ve really got a problem not knowing how many generations and number of people in my tree. On Version 16 we had 46 generations that would be 290 pages. We have greatly increased generations. Using your ancestry press, it just won’t work!!! I would like the option of where I can print my project!!

Bob Hall

Hopefully customer service has responded to you about the return procedures. If not, go to Ancestry.com, choose Help in upper right portion of screen. Put 471 in the keyword search for help and that will return Ancestry’s return policy. If you purchased it through Amazon.com, I’ve seen customers who have contacted Amazon and successfully received refunds even after the 30 day refund policy has expired.

Don’t feel alone. Many people on the Family Tree Maker message board http://boards.ancestry.com/topics.software.famtreemaker/mb.ashx have returned FTM 2008. In my opinion, FTM 2008 will require many more updates before it is as usable as FTM 16.

Good luck.

Linda:

Thank you for the advice. Actually, FTM customer service responded to my email and advised where to send my CD’s to receive a credit.

It’s too bad that this version didn’t work out. It looked like it had potential, until you started actively using it…and then it fell apart and was difficult and more time consuming than FTM16. I sure hope they get their act together on this sometime in the future, as I’d like to purchase it again when it’s solid!!

Bob

Bob, the new version has potential but is still unpolished. One reason to keep it would be getting to know the new features when one eventually uses it 100% Once you “kick the tires” with the program you will appreciate many of its changes.

I’ve “inherited” a 1.8GHz XP computer and added RAM to 1GB. The program runs much faster with this level of RAM (versus 256MB in the machine originally.) For example, a file (GEDCOM) with 30,000+ individuals, 10,000+ families with ~100,000 source records imports in ~25 minutes versus 8 to 10 hours with 256MB.

Regards,

I would like a true database search capability. I have more than 7500 individuals in FTM, and (for example) 36 Benjamin Bunnell/Bonnells. I’d like to be able to search for individuals based on marriage date, death date, spouse’s last or first name, place of birth, etc.

Any chance of that being made available?

James said: >>One reason to keep it would be getting to know the new features when one eventually uses it 100% Once you “kick the tires” with the program you will appreciate many of its changes.

Whoops…maybe I got a character in there that it didn’t like.

James said: One reason to keep it would be getting to know the new features when one eventually uses it 100% Once you “kick the tires” with the program you will appreciate many of its changes.

My question is why would you want to keep tires that you can’t drive on 100% of the time and need to upgrade beyond the stated configuration requirements to get the same performance (sort of - it is still too flat to drive 100%).

FTM 2008 is indeed a change of tires but doesn’t have the air of FTM 16. When a tire has a leak that can’t be fixed for several months, most people will use the old tire or move on to a different brand.

I understand TGN is trying to resolve the issues and restore at least some of the features from FTM16. We still haven’t seen a full list of what they intend to restore more than one upgrade ahead.

Charlie, I certainly would have liked to see FTM 2008 take advantage of the relational database structure to provide more data management capabilities such as searching on multiple fields. Maybe that will come when TGN sells new tires in a year or two. First, I’d like to see them get back to the full level of functionality of FTM 16 (i.e. index on married names; custom reports that can be copied to Excel; complete report options; ability to copy a report into Word without the built in table cells; error reports; search and replace; complete set of reports and charts that were available in FTM 16; tools such as date calculator and calendar; etc., etc., etc.). Once they get the basics down, they may be able to provide us a true upgrade.

Count me among those who would like some true database query capability. Hardly a week goes by that I don’t wish I could generate an extract based on a combination of criteria. In the past month I’ve wanted the following reports from my database:List of addresses for living descendants of a particular individualList of individuals based on their residence during a particular time period to use for generating maps that will show family migrations over time.List of individuals who attended a particular educational institutionList of individuals who served in WWI and WWIIThe last two of those lists could be obtained from FTM16 by exporting a custom report to a CSV file then operating on the output with another application. Between the absence of a custom report option and the dysfunctional CSV output though, I was unable to get anything useful out of FTM2008.
As I recall, the Smart Viewer for the Postcard collection installed some sort of SQL engine. It would be nice to see that used for reporting too. Since FTM2008 is a .NET application, we do have the hope/promise/possibility of add-ins that could address the needs of more advanced users. Maybe someone will cook up a database query shareware add-in sometime soon.

Your new patch is fantastic! NOT!!! How can I take advantage of it if the program refuses to let me in? I’ve begged for help from you guys but am totally ignored.

Linda,

Maybe the tires should be ignored

I’m still using v16 as my main program but with the file size at over 1.5GB there will be problems soon. I am doing smaller projects in the new version and finding out its new features and faults. Each person must make their own decision.

Regards,

Many people seem to be very unrealistic about how much can be done in these patches. Given the amount of resource it usually takes to fix the crashes and address performance, I wouldn’t expect to see a lot of new/restored features.

I don’t understand the constant recommendations to keep the defective version. Why are people being encouraged to spend their money and time on something that is known to be deficient?

I just don’t get it. I havent’ read a single comment anywhere from anyone who had FTM16 who is using FTM2008 as his primary geneaological program. The best that can be said is that some (by no means all) like the new interface and think it shows promise. That’s it. It seems to me that if the new interface really is better, it would be a snap for an experienced user to pick up…provided the program functioned as expected.

Are all the mentions of patches to FTM 2008 an indication that you will be playing “patch and mend” to the somewhat inadequate FTM 2008 or are you going to issue a NEW AND IMPROVED version of a Family Tree Maker application sometime in the future?

I realize this may seem like a nit in the grand scheme of things but I don’t see why the little yellow prompt in the index column is so uniformative. Who needs to see all the blank space there and what exactly is the point of displaying to relationship (to an arbitrary “home person)?

Right now it’s just a piece of useless clutter. I would much rather see the AKA and age at time of marriage or death there. Also, why don’t my column width changes stick? I can’t change the width of the index pane and it forces me to resize the columns every time.

i have never understood why programmers remove something from their software that is both good and valuable. was ftw 2008 not beta tested before being released. i just bought it and before even opening my ftw file from ftw 2005, i realized that there is no way to view the statistics for my file and also no way to to configure automatic backups, both features which i consider to be elementary and necessary. oh well, once again, we poor consumers have been duped into buying something which has less than what we were using. at least i got a 6 month subscription to ancestry.com, which i will make use of while i continue to use ftw 2005. since i bought my copy at fry’s electronics and they will not accept opened software for return, i guess i will keep it and hopefully sometime in the future, the programmers will restore the missing features.

Benjamin,

I looked at the place authority file, and you’re right, it’s huge. However, it is also a database file (VistaDB, protected by an encryption key, as I found out) which FTM queries to receive results. Though I don’t know what types of updates the place authority needs (like redesign issues and such), but in the terms of correcting and expanding the dataset available in the place authority, this should be as simple as sending a patch out which runs an SQL Update/Insert query over the data. I know there have been broad complaints about the amount of places covered in the place authority, both from a perspective of places which exist in the present and from a perspective of historical places. I request a patch which simply updates and expands the place authority with the new information which has been gathered since the release of FTM 2008 be sent out. At the very least, update any incorrect data present within the place authority (I know I personally have complained about one or two discrepancies between the data entered in the place authority and the official naming of locations). Such a patch would not need to send out an entire new file to replace the current place authority (being it is currently nearly 300MB in size), but runs an SQL script against the database with the new data.

If the amount of new data which needs to be inserted into the place authority is large, an option would be to release a certain portion of new data with each successive patch rather than sending it out all at once. I know this could raise issues based on datasize and query speed, but I would hope those could be addressed within the program updates themselves anyway.

Re Comments this article–every one worthwhile. At this point wish I had never installed the 2008 version–even with use of your Guide it is time consuming and not worth the effort.I’m seriously thinking of changing back to FTM 16. It has everthing I need and is easy to use.

In FTM 2005 I can produce a very large All-in-One tree of all my family as a single PDF (One Page). The PDF allows me to zoom in excess of 800% to see details of individuals as each person is encapsulated text. This is good for copying out details & sending to contacts without sending GEDCOMs. 2008 produces a PDF with graphics only image which loses quality so as to be unreadable on large descendant trees. This is a definite backward step. Will there be any attempt to rectify this with FTM2008.
Like others, I purchased 2008. Will not use it nor register it until I see at least the same level of functionality & QUALITY as FTM 2005.

Count me with those disappointed in this 2008 downgrade. I did give it a try and my only question now is how do I export my work back the the previous version. This version is not ready…..

David,

I do not believe there is a export back to FTM 2006. At least I have not been able to find one. You can export to gedcom and import into FTM 2006 but you would lose alot if you had any photos or other sources that have graphics of attachments. The main reason I have stuck with this version is this reason. I like the sourcing (once I spent 4-5 hours figuring it out) and I have tons of pictures and other things so gedcom is not an option. I would love to be able to export back but I think it would mess up the sourcing since the models are so different. My grandfather and I exchange files and he is still on FTM 2006 so an export would be helpful. Also the new web search is awful and I would like to use the old model since it’s fuzzy search is so much better. If there is a way to export I would love to know how and think FTM needs to allow for the export to FTM 2006 and also have a direct import to the myfamily and other ancestry sites because import a gedcom and reassignning all of the default images and all other images for that matter is a pain in the ***.

Mike

Will this problem be corrected in Update 3:

FTM v16
Title of source: National Obituary Archive (NOA)
Author/Originator: The National Obituary Archive™
Publication facts: March 30, 2004

FTM 2008 (from FTM v16 GEDCOM)
Reference note: The National Obituary Archive™
National Obituary Archive (NOA)
(Name: Name: March 30, 2004;;).

FTM 2008 GEDCOM SOUR
1 AUTH The National Obituary Archive™
1 TITL National Obituary Archive (NOA)
1 PUBL Name: Name: Name: March 30, 2004;;;

WHERE DO THE “Name” and “;” CHARACTERS COME FROM?!

Many more of these kind of problems at FTM 2008 Problems

I would like to know more about the book building feature that is being worked on. I have had a look at ancestry press and would like to see the inbuilt book feature have a choice of background images and colors for pages. A similar time-line chart would also be an improvement in the program. Coupled with my own suggestion of an option to choose “a country” whose historic facts make up most of the entries below the line, with a few world wide facts mixed in

I would also like to a “bow tie” chart added to the FTM program which is like the ancestry press combination chart.
The bow tie chart could feature the grandparents in the middle, with children below and then grandchildren below that. Then to each side of the grandparents, their own parents and grandparents.

ALL NOTES, with correctly spelled words, from an FTM v16 created GEDCOM used to produce an FTM 2008 file results in many misspelled words as the following example shows (misspelled words in brackets).

Will this problem be corrected in the next update?

Alonzo at age twenty moved to Lockport, New York and began working for the lumber manufacturing [firmof ] Cameron and Moody. Initially the owners rejected his application, but Alonzo offered to work without pay to prove his abilities. After one day [onthe] job, the company hired him at the highest pay the position allowed.

Alonzo started out as a chopper, moved up through the ranks, and after twenty years, managed the interests [ofthe] company. At that time, he decided to strike out on his own. After exploring possible business, he settled on Toledo where he established his home on the east side of town and a large and profitable business. His business supplied timber to the government during the Civil War. Construction of the [famousironclad] ship “Monitor” included his lumber. As his business expanded, [hepurchased] large tracts in timber regions of Michigan and Ohio. These holdings included 59,000 acres of land on Michigan’s northern peninsula

For over twenty-five years Alonzo maintained his business headquarters with the firm of Bell, Emerson and Company [atthe] corner of [Madisonand] Summit Streets. In addition to [thelumber] business, he served as the vice-president of the Second National Bank of Bay City, Michigan [aswell] as the Exchange Bank of Lockport.

Alonzo’s four sons inherited the business but Abram assumed the leading role in running the business.

After Alonzo’s death in 1887, the company became known as Chesbrough Brothers. It operated until 1918 when Abram Chesbrough left to concentrate [onhis] personal interests. He did, however, remain involved [inthe] lumber business until around 1926 when he sold all his remaining interest in lumber mills and other holdings [inorder] to retire. Abram Chesbrough died in May 1928 after a brief illness.(Ibid).

Many other FTM 2008 have been recorded, with actual examples, at FTM 2008 PROBLEMS

Note that the previous post’s URL was incorrected converted (additional text added). The following link has been adjusted for the intended link - hopefully:

FTM 2008 PROBLEMS

looking for bio father name was adolfo mendez, I go by jimenez becouse of my step dad , but adolfo was in calif, around 1949 I was born may 19 1950…my mother is Victria Garcia.and I was born in LosAngeles ca in 1950

Larry, thanks for all your help by alerting us on so many different forums about the ripoff that The Generations Network calls Family Tree Maker 2008, version 17. I preordered that version last fall and installed it with only a few hitches. All I use the program for now is to faithfully check for updates each day with hopes that I will finally get the quality that I paid +/- $40 for.

My first purchase of FTM arrived on a 3-1/2″ floppy disk at least twelve years ago, I upgraded to each new version as the years passed and was rewarded when they finally got it right with FTM 2006, version 16. The only feature lacking in that version was the ability to format Notes (bold. italics, etc).

I am still using FTM2006, version 16: however, I have two other programs installed on my computer and am seriously considering a switch to Legacy 6. It appears to provide all the features and more that FTM 2006 does.

Hello Ben

Today I received a e-mail notice from Ancestry.com with the subject “FamilyTree Maker Little Book of Answers.” Did everyone know you can “Buy the new Family Tree Maker 2008 bundle and get The Family Tree Maker 2008 Little Book of Answers free!”

Then they say “Already have Family Tree Maker 2008? Pick up The Family Tree Maker 2008 Little Book of Answers for just $9.95.”

Two questions Ben!!

1) Why is FamilyTree Maker Still trying to sell this product? If there was ever a software product that deserves a “recall” this is the one.

2) Seems to me us folks who purchased 2008 and are now suffering as a result should at least get the “Book of Answers” FREE!:

Benjamin,
In your notes you’ve mentioned March. Is that early March or late March?
I have a reunion scheduled soon and need to make a decision whether to scrap 2008 and rekey into 2005 as I cannot produce the reports that I need out of 2008.

The Family Tree Maker 2008 Little Book of Answers

I noticed that among the topics included in this books about “Children born out of wedlock” and “Unmarried parents”.

Did I miss something new in FTM2008? All I could see were the same problems as before… including 1) no way to sequence “spouses” except by entering false “marriage” information and 2) False statements of marriage on charts.

Does this “book of answers” tell users how to avoid misleadng reports and charts in this area?

Robert Lackey - Legacy 6 does not allow “free text” when building a family history book as you can do in FTM v16. All you can do is utilize reports to build a “canned” history. Legacy v7 is coming out soon but I still do not know if they are going to heed my numerous requests to incorporate a full-fledged ability to write a family history.

Ernest, thanks for your comments about the family history features of Legacy 6 and 7. It seems that Legacy 6 was first issued only a few months ago.

I would like to believe that The Generations Network will finally admit to their faithful customers that FTM 2008 is a dud and immediately start all over with FTM 2009, which should be available to customers of FTM 2008 without charge; however, I certainly won’t hold my breath until this happens.

Problem running FTM 2008 V 17.0.0.559 on Vista 64bit.

Every hour or two, FTM closes. This is not a shutdown, but it just instantaneously disappears from the screen. I have not found any corruption to the database from this but it is something that needs to be addressed.

This 2008 version of FTM is the only one I have used to any extent so I don’t have the basis of comparison that others have.

Reading this forum, I am surprised and the number of features that were in earlier versions that seam to be left out of this current version. This brings up the question, of why was it apparently rewritten from scratch.

I am disappointed in the rather limited amount of information that I can print or display at one time. Also the upload to the web site is either lost or it takes many hours to process and put up on my page.

I would love to see the ability to display the tree with many generations which can be accommodated by many of the high resolution monitors that are becoming commonplace. The to be able to click on an individual and drill down to all the details in multiple steps.

Karen,

It is true that 2008 is missing a number of features and still needing more polish. But 2008 also made significant changes to the use model that require users to “retrain” themselves to get the benefits.

But the bottom line your ability to adopt 2008 is a function of:

a) Your hardware, if you don’t have modern hardware then don’t get modern S/W. I upgraded my box and the differences were significant. Of course it would have been nice to have a chart of min and recommended H/W requirements for say 20K names.

b) Your ability to learn the S/W which is not always easy, especially with all of the other issues we have all faced. But I’ve actually found 2008 more productive that v16 but only after I learned the 2008 way. The good news is there is even more room for improvements here.

c) Your needs, this is the key one For power users that used features in v16 that many of us were not aware of or needed to use it sounds like it is not there yet. But I can speak for myself that I did not even reload v16 on my new box and only use 2008 for entry.

I’ve got a tree of 12,000 names so not the biggest but big enough. I seldom use 2008 reporting features as they are too restrictive (so were v16 for my taste) but leverage other tools like Legacy or Charting Companion.

At this point my top issue is the married names for females so I’m glad this one is coming in SP3. There are several usability improvements that I have also filed including what Liz mentioned in entry 43 that are also impacting my effectiveness.

There are certainly other things that I see that should be done starting with more performance improvements as even still I can get the tool to hang after doing a task for minutes. And lots of missing features and new stuff including more usability improvements but for many it is at least usable and SP3 should continue to help us as well as hopefully a few more of the power users.

Jon,

You have named three user requirements for adopting 2008. Here are my thoughts.

a) HARDWARE UPGRADES- Those with configurations sufficient for more powerful software than FTM 2008 have found FTM 2008 to be unacceptably slow. This $30 piece of ____ software does not justify a new computer.

b) ABILITY TO LEARN SW - Many of us who complain the loudest are software professionals who welcome change. From the input to the navigation, I found FTM 2008 to be very inefficient. Although I’m sure some of the new features are attractive to some, I didn’t find them useful enough to offset the reduction of functionality in input, navigation, data management tools and reporting functionality and other issues.

c) NEEDS OF USER - Whether a power user or not, a user of a previous version and any new user of FTM is entitled to the same level of functionality from previous versions as well as new features. Although you have not reverted back to FTM 16 and didn’t utilize many of its features, you seem to have missed a couple features which should have been included prior to the release.

NEW PLATFORM DECISION - While I believe it was a correct decision for TGN to rewrite for a new platform, I am extremely disappointed with their decision to release FTM 2008 before it was ready. They obviously have and continue to follow poor development processes. Now that it is released, fixing problems and making additions is a much slower process because they not only have to make changes in development but make sure that it will integrate with the already released version. Patches for this type of software are normally used only for bug fixes that are lower user impact; highly unusual bugs found after release; and for environmental changes (i.e. new operating system such as Vista); and new security issues. Patches are not met for fixing major bug and peformance problems or reintroducing features. Larry (Post #53) did an excellent job in summarizing some of the issues.

SOLUTIONS - Although I know there are probably some FTM 2008 users who would be disappointed, I really think TGN should recall FTM 2008 and just concentrate on developing a good quality, complete product. At the very least, the users are owed an apology and a complete list of what TGN intends to “reintroduce” and corrections to be made and whether it will be through a patch or in the next full release. I don’t care if it is prioritized or has a timeline. I just want to have that added assurance that TGN really does plan to restore all the capabilities of FTMv16 as well as give us new features that truly can be defined as an upgrade.

I have come across another issue in FTM2008. When exporting a FTM file as a GED file, the ability to select options has been removed. As a resutlt, I can no longer use the GED file from FTM2008 to generate files in the GedHTree program. The specific options missing are the ability to select “Abbreviated Tags” and “Indent Records”. As a result, I have to export from FTM2008, then import into FTM16 , then re-export as a GED file so it will work. Please add to your list of fixes needed.

By the time Family Tree Maker 2008 offers equivalent functionality to 2005/6 versions and is stable, all the other Family Tree Software Houses will have moved on to later versions of their software. By releasing a downgrade sold as an upgrade I think you have badly, if not irretriveably damaged your Market Brand/Share.
A recall is probably your only Marketable way out of this mess.

IMHO, any issues pertaining to the places database constitute a nit when compared to the all the missing or degraded FTM16 features and constant crashes.

I personally don’t think a single minute of development time should be spent there until the conversion program properly converts every single item in the previous version database, all FTM16 features are fully restored, the various crashes have been eliminated, and overall performance improved.

If TGN ever manages to get back to what we had in FTM16, then (and only then) the number one priority in the places area should be to allow users to customize the places file to add historical places and include cross references. No one should be expected to falsfy actual place names just to conform with Visual Earth.

Speaking of nits…what nitwit designed the CSV output? Will the next patch fix it?

I don’t understand all the apologists who are posting here. No self-respecting IT professional would try to blame all these problems on rewriting and yet paying customers are doing just that. A rewrite s supposed to result in a demonstrably better product. That doesn’t mean the promise of a better product at some vague point in the future. It means a better product as soon as the rewrite is released.

A rewrite is a good idea if the old code is that restrictive it will not allow future updates, BUT to go from a program that takes up 55MB and has great features for most people, and rewrite it and end up with a 360MB bloated bit of rubbish with 1/4 the features - I just can not understand it.

I have been involved in Alpha and Beta testing Microsoft, Borland and Beta testing Adobe software, and in all cases I have not seen a new bit of software get this much “Bloat”, but have less features and run slower than its previous program (and that includes Vista).

I am glad the programmers are trying to update the software, but that should have been done with the Beta testers, NOT when the program has been released to the public for months.

Based on Benjamin’s comments on the next update, I think that version is probably getting close to the point where I would have considered the software completed enough to release. Thats about 5 months since its release (really 6 months as the update wont be ready until next month), and that is appaulingly bad management. I cant blame the programmers as I doubt it was their decision to release the software, but those in charge of the project should be removed and replaced with people that know the old product well, and want to expand on its ability. Alas managers rarely know what happens down the line and often dont use the product themselves.

OK Rant over, Um, need any more beta testers Benjamin, as a few of my requests have made this version?

I am a long-time and until recently satisfied user of FTM, progressing dutifully through the various upgrade versions. On faith I upgraded to FTM2008 and have had nothing but frustration, first at the overly complicated and sometimes counterintuitive desktop, then at the lack of capabilities, annoying inflexibility, and the general slowness of whole program. I’m not computer literate enough to engage in a detailed discussion. But if a measure of the failure of this program is my interest in using it, I would rate this program a 2 out of 10…and falling with each newly discovered glitch. It burns me when I remember how much enjoyment I derived from this hobby before I became distracted and aggravated by this bone-headed redesign. Sorry guys, I’m abandoning the ship for your competition…and I’ll be expecting for a refund.

Will the numbering systemn for Ahnentafal charts be corrected back to the standard format of all father’s being numbered as 2 times that of the individual, and the mother numered as the father plus 1. The curent system is sequential numbering, and this loses much of the advantages of the Ahnentafal report format. Also, the number of formatting options is horribly limited if you want to generate a concise report.

I uploaded a file from 2008 today. I see that all the media that I so painstaking put into the sources, does not appear there. That is a shame.

Is there and intent to change that?

With respect to your comment “and are helping make Family Tree Maker a better product.”.

The irony is that it already was a “better product” in V16.

In most cases, these patches are really about getting it back to where it already was with V16.

As my family tree grows, I can now almost prepare a cup of coffee for myself while I wait for FTM to start.

Like many others, I appreciate the updates from you Benjamin but I have to wonder how much longer we’re all going to persevere before we give it all up and look for an alternative.

Is it possible that The Generations Network isn’t reading our comments on this forum? They are still pushing FTM 2008 at http://www.familytreemaker.com/ as follows: “Build your family tree. Preserve your family legacy.
Millions of people have used Family Tree Maker, the #1 selling genealogy software, to discover and share their family stories. Now, with an intuitive new interface and dozens of new features, the latest version makes it easier than ever to explore your roots.

Find out what makes Family Tree Maker 2008 the best software program of its kind.

We are continually improving Family Tree Maker. Learn how to get the latest update.”

Rather than organizing a recall of FTM 2008, they continue to push it as the best genealogy software of its kind!!! How many of you really believe that TGN plans to send you a refund. They will probably be bankrupt soon.

Ben,

I know you are doing your best but on Feb 8, 2008. You said you were days away from releasing the patch to the test group. As a member of the test group I have not recieved any word. Do you have a status on the release and a current timeline?

Thanks

Mike

What happened to the Calendar that was on the Family Tree Maker? I found that a really useful tool.

I suppose folks have seen my earlier tirades. My anger mirrors much of what other folks have said. But most of all, I’m angry because with the release of 2008, FamilyTree abandoned it’s core users of their genealogical databases. Once a company disappoints it’s loyal customers, it is extremely difficult to regain their loyalty or their confidence in new products.

Ben has a thankless job, trying to salvage a poorly conceived product that has already spent many dollars in research and development that somehow did not use some of those dollars learning about the product’s end users. Genealogists come from many varied backgrounds and have a wide range of computer expertise. That is a fact, and, like it or not, that is the market in which FamilyTree is competing. FTM 2008 doesn’t remotely come close to achieving that goal and is, without a doubt, a step backwards from it‘s previous software releases. The completion will most certainly take advantage and appears to be destroying FamilyTree Makers share of the genealogical database market. Meanwhile, Generations Network fiddles while Rome Burns.

I consider myself computer literate for I have been designing and working with computer systems , both hardware and software, since before they were called computers:

Second Try. First try did show all of comment.

I suppose folks have seen my earlier tirades. My anger mirrors much of what other folks have said. But most of all, I’m angry because with the release of 2008, FamilyTree abandoned it’s core users of their genealogical databases. Once a company disappoints it’s loyal customers, it is extremely difficult to regain their loyalty or their confidence in new products.

Ben has a thankless job, trying to salvage a poorly conceived product that has already spent many dollars in research and development that somehow did not use some of those dollars learning about the product’s end users. Genealogists come from many varied backgrounds and have a wide range of computer expertise. That is a fact, and, like it or not, that is the market in which FamilyTree is competing. FTM 2008 doesn’t remotely come close to achieving that goal and is, without a doubt, a step backwards from it‘s previous software releases. The competion will most certainly take advantage and appears to be destroying FamilyTree Makers share of the genealogical database market. Meanwhile, Generations Network fiddles while Rome Burns.

I consider myself computer literate for I have been designing and working with computer systems , both hardware and software, since before they were called computers. I have an Intel Pentium D CPU running at 2.8 GHZ; having 958 MB of Memory (RAM); a 32 bit operating system; and running on the Windows Vista Home Premium Edition Microsoft Operating Sytem. I am presently running both FTM 2008 and FTM-V16 side by side.

I learned quickly that there would be compatibility problems between the programs, especially finding that FTM2008 could not convert a database back to V16. The database I loaded into FTM2008 from V16 consisted of about 15,000 individuals along with extensive notes for many, numerous photographs, scanned documents, and other items of interest. I have a total of 12 books on V16, all converted to PDF files, some uploaded to my rootsweb free pages web site for others to download, copy to their CDs, and take to their local printers.

I was careful not to commit to data entry of new individuals, except as experiments, until I was comfortable with FTM2008. I did like some of the features, as I navigated through the new presentations, noting the changes, but not to disturbed by the new interface, although I didn‘t like it much compared to the ease of moving about in V16. I noted that moving about was slow in comparison to V16, but, again, not to much of a problem.

I liked the Notes sections for individuals, noting the additional text formatting capabilities not present in V16 and additional space for longer notes. Although a bit complicated, the source features were not all that bad, and there were a few new abilities I liked. Some of my data came through “Changed” in presentation, but, again, nothing of great concern. I was beginning to believe my $30 investment was going to pay off.

I then tried “Media” and was pleased to see all of the Scrapbook Items from V16 available at a touch. I then tried “Publish.” This is when my faith in FTM died. I could not believe all of the features I had in V16 that were missing in FTM2008 before the patch. And after the infamous patch, so much that couldn’t be done with the reports, and, of course, no book feature at all. After a bit of time of playing with these features, I was angry and regretted my purchase.

Ben, I’ve not requested a refund (I purchased in September) although I should. I will wait for the patches and hope. But really, the brand name “FTM2008” should not continue to be sold and should be withdrawn from the market place. The reason is simple — for every one you sell, you’ve lost a customer — most likely forever — and most will, I‘m sure, demand a refund anyway. You will not only damage the reputation of FTM further, but the reputation of the Generation Network companies that are pushing FTM2008. I have become dependant on these companies over the years for my online research and their ability to allow me to share my research with others. It would be a great loss to the genealogical community if they fail because of FTM2008. So, for goodness sake, please, please, recall FTM2008 and refund your customers. Start over and do it right. It will go a long way in restoring customer confidence in FTM and your sister Generation Network companies.

Ditto with the well thought-out and constructively critical commit from Clovis. She hit the mark perfectly, and I have nothing to add or take away from her comment; I can only to affirm what she has already articulated.

Regarding Post #61 (Unmarried Parents):

The instructions deal with data entry. It is not sufficent though, to provide a way to input these relationships; the rest of the program has to actually honor the data.

Currently, it is not possible to generate charts or reports from FTM that accurately reflect the data that has been entered. Even when the relationship has been entered as something other than “married” charts and most reports still list the individuals as “married”. What is the point of providing and input field for alternate relationships if the software ignores the contents for that field?

Another problem is that, instead of allowing the user to manually sequence relationships, FTM uses the date field in a marriage record to sequence those relationships. Users are systemmatically encouraged by FTM technical support and others to enter a false “marriage” date to force proper sequencing of the relationships. Preparers are essentially told generate and distribute charts with information that is known to be false in the interests of “correct” formatting.

Neither of these problems is new to FTM2008. It is distressing though, to see a new “Little Book of Answers” that glosses over them and perpetuates the generation of misleading documents.

Ben,

When do you expect FTM2008 to match usability and output of FTM16?

Seems like that should have been the release date.

RON C

Hello All,

First, let me say I’m a “him.” For anyone who might feel badly, let me say this is a common gender identification problem for men with the given name “Clovis.” Many folks believe this French name is a women‘s given name (I even know a women named Clovis). Actually, it’s the name of several feudal French Kings who lived in the fourth century. I learned early in school on my first day in a new class to answer quickly when my name was called, for it I was slow, the teacher would always ask: “Where is she?”

To the subject of books. As I indicated in my previous comments, I have a number of books I have created on the earlier versions of FTM. As each new FTM version came out, the book feature improved. However, the V16 book feature only has minimal formatting, editing, and spell check capabilities when compared to a reasonably good word processor , say, for example, like Microsoft Works Word.

The most likely presumption by the V16 product development team was that the users would mostly create Ancestor or Descendant reports saying who begot who, perhaps even introducing the individual notes. This presumption was probably generally correct . However, they did not take into account someone like myself and others like me who wanted to tell stories, who wanted to include historical content about the region and time where an ancestor lived. You know, stories like: “The Life and Times of John Doe.” This is a lot more complicated than just having FTM generate ancestor and descendant reports.

Although V16 had many weaknesses in this regard, I was able to come up with ways to work around these deficiencies. For the many “Text Items” I created in V16, I did my composition in Microsoft Word. All of the text formatting, special symbols, etc, were accomplished in this medium (excluding photo and document placement). When completed, I then “select all” and “copy.”

I next opened a “Text Item” for a book in V16 and used “Paste.” To my delight, I found my composition created in Microsoft Word was faithfully reproduced with all of the text formatting I could not accomplish in the V16 word processor, with perhaps a few problems, but workable prolbems. However, I learned one had to be careful when editing in V16 for the transferred text formatting could be easily lost. However, it was a simple matter to correct. By going back to Microsoft Word and reformatting, and again copy and paste., the problem was corrected.

The next step was to introduce photos, documents, maps, and other items into the text. This was quite simple. All of these items would come from the individual “scrapbooks.” I would simply place these items where I wanted them to be in the V16 text. I had to be careful to place these items against the left or right margin if I was going to present text to the left or right of “Insert.” Otherwise, one had to assure there would be no text around the “Insert.” This could only be accomplished by enter commands until the text curser was past the inserted item. This was OK, but a real nightmare if later you wanted to make changes that effected the placement of the Inserts. Not impossible, but took time to correct the complete document. The worst of these problems would be caused by page breaks.

Finally, I had my document complete and was ready to assemble the book into a PDF file. Seemed simple enough!! My first experience was a disaster. It seems that when your V16 composition rolled over to the next page at the bottom margin, for some reason, the PDF created file would skip to the next page about three lines above the bottom margin and leave a giant “Space” at the top of the next page, throwing all of your “Carefully” placed Inserts completely out of sync with the rest of the document. After about three hours of trying to find a solution, it seemed the only way to work around the problem was to stop you text about three lines above the bottom margin, that is, insert a page break about three lines above the bottom margin. That solved the problem.

After I had created my text items, I would then create ancestor or descendant reports, which was no problem at all.

Ben, several other have stated items and features they would like to see in the Book feature you are developing for FTM2008, all of which I agree need to added. I only tell you the above to allow you to examine you code to be sure you to not reproduce the same problems that exist in V16. If you would like to see some of the books I created, say as an example of how one user uses the book feature, visit my table of content web page at URL

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~clovis/volume_4.htm

Scroll down to and click on any of the items in the PDF file list. All of these files were created in FTM16 and converted by FTM16 to PDF files. One document was created entirely in V16 (note the lack of Text and paragraph formatting) while most of the others were first formatted in Microsoft Word and then transferred to FTM16. Hope you find this helpful in your development.

Clovis

My apologies, Clovis. Assumption really did make an ass out of me, and I’m sorry for offending you.

I just discovered another feature that seems to be missing from 2008. In v16 you could scan an image directly into the scrap book for an individual I don’t see any way to do the same in the individual’s media folder in 2008.

I just inherited a large number of old tintype and early photo’s of ancestors and relatives and now it looks like I’ll have to scan it using my scanner software and then import it into the appropriate individual media folder. Twice the work!!

I bought FTM2008 sometime in January. Can I get a discount on V16?
I last had 2006 and find that what was once simple, is now complicated, if possible at all. All of my complaints are already noted here. All updates have been downloaded.

Pamela,

I know there is confusion about FTM 2006 vs. Version 16. If you have FTM 2006, it may have already been updated to Version 16 automatically. Go to Help / About Family Tree Maker. You should see the program version as 16.0.035 which is the latest version prior to the release of FTM 2008. It is the same as the version in the boxes that are sold as Version 16. If it doesn’t have that version mentioned, select the “Check for Update” option in the menu.

Consider requesting a refund for FTM 2008. People have been successful getting refunds when purchased through Ancestry.com or Amazon.com. Just tell them it is simply unusable because of all the issues. FTM 2006 (aka Version 16) is a superior product to FTM 2008.

I have also been a loyal FTM user since the very first version….and was also shocked at unintuitive 2008 was. I am not real computer literate, but never had any issues with the prior versions. It has taken me many hours of trial and error to find my way around decently, but it is disheartening to hear more of you talk of all the shortcomings that very advanced users have come across.
I’m no expert, but it appears to me there is more here than can be fixed anytime soon, and future patches will be “bandaids”. My guess it will take them another year or more to come out with a proper successor that truly is the right product…….question is, who will wait that long?

2008 was purchased about 2 weeks ago to replace FTM 2005 and to my surpise, some of the features I had in that old program are gone. I read with interest #86 from Clovis regarding the extra work he had to do on his books, and I had the same problems with the 2005 version, but worked them out and ended up with 750+ page book. Now what do I do? I had planned to do a revised book to include new family updates found over the last two years. The old book version included an index of page numbers to locate everyone in the tree. Now all I can find with 2008 is “Publisher” with a max of 100 pages. Other features also seem gone: 2005 had a “merge duplicate individual report” and an error report… did I miss something, can’t find them in 2008? From everyone’s comments, it seems that v16 had it over the new 2008 but 2005 had the edge too.

A lot of good sugestions and comments. My only complaint as a new user is not being able to update directly to Ancestry.com with having to reinvite family and add all photos again, otherwise i think it is a very good program, i have had no problems or crashes yet and i have had it since release.

Let me say first, that as a long time lead developer with experience doing .NET conversions, FTM 2008 is the poster child for how NOT to do a .NET conversion. By now I am sure management understands this. I hope.

Let’s not talk about “new” old features just yet. How about the fact that many of us continue to be unable to add sources at all? And that sending logs and data on the problem to tech support doesn’t even receive a token automated response?

I would like to go back to 2006, but unfortunately I only purchased 2008 because my software CDs, old computer, and paper records, were destroyed in a fire. (Let this be a lesson to all genealogists to keep backup files and digital copies of documentation offsite!)

Here’s what 2008 did right:
-Home Person
-Nice startup page, with the exception of featuring “add a new file” too much
-Interfaces nicely with Ancestry’s online records

Here’s what is got wrong:
-No way to search through users
-Standard shortcuts like “Ctrl-C” don’t work everywhere, and in some cases it works but FTM has overwritten your clipboard with something for some reason.
-Can’t hide web dashboard
-Attempted to do tabbed browsing halfway by using buttons at the top instead; but you can’t Alt-Tab or Ctrl-Alt-Tab between tabs.
-Can’t really turn off web pings unless you disable FTM in your firewall; get constant debug script errors even when debugging is turned off in IE
-Exceeding poor and unintuitive interface which is very slow and difficult for data entry
-Too many backup nag messages you can’t turn off. When you are fixing a botched file, this is every other click
-Can only add one media file or link at a time (no multi-select)
-Media view doesn’t remember the last filter it was on; filters elsewhere also don’t remember what they were on, slowing down data entry and causing many extra clicks and scrolls
-As already mentioned, forward and back navigation is inconsistent
-The reports are, well, useless. And unattractive.
-Web interface considers OneWorldTree, the IGI and other secondary sources as “historical”
-Like most serious, longterm researchers I am not the least bit interested in surfing the web and attaching a random tree full of the same duplicated and duplicated mistakes, from researchers who may or may not know what they are doing, to my file because I think it’s cool.

2008 thumbed it’s nose at serious researchers to pander to the I-found-out-I-was-descended-from-royalty-in-10-minutes! crowd.

Converting a my files from 2006 deleted relationships, created duplicate relationships, attached totally unrelated people to each other, deleted sources and in other cases created duplicate sources and overall completely hosed my file so badly that I am needing to rebuild the file from scratch 1 of 30,000+ people at a time. Minus the sources, of course, since I can’t add any. Since I have to recreate everything now, this users of FTM since it was initially released is looking elsewhere for relief.

After I finished reconfiguring my new computer to dual-boot to Win XP, and if 2008 still doesn’t work, it’s going in the round file along what appear to be the copies of many other people.

Maybe I’ll reinstall 4.0 — I have THAT CD. It worked better than 2008.

Similar feedback as item no 47 from Alan Pereira
“In FTM 2005 I can produce a very large All-in-One tree of all my family as a single PDF (One Page). The PDF allows me to zoom in excess of 800% to see details of individuals as each person is encapsulated text. This is good for copying out details & sending to contacts without sending GEDCOMs. 2008 produces a PDF with graphics only image which loses quality so as to be unreadable on large descendant trees. This is a definite backward step. Will there be any attempt to rectify this with FTM2008.”

This version is defiantly a backward move.
I wish to be able to produce all-in-one trees and full ancestor tree in PDF format so I have full control of content when passing on information to strangers via email. For this purpose a GEDCOM will not do.

I am a retired software engineer and NO software should lose features unless there is a very good reason for it.
The whole programme should be reissued as an upgrade of FTM2005

Bob (disappointed and frustrated)

A word of caution

I found a family and their 13 children on the census and merged them with my tree. I the found the same family on two more census’s , but the family name was spelt two different ways. (Bisseker shown as Besseker and Bissaker)
This produced 39 new additions to my tree when merged and resulted in multiple marriages. I was unable to remove the spurious spouses. The only solution offered by the help line was to delete everybody and add all new information manually.
I now only add new information manually, it’s quicker.

It may be I did not fully understand the merge facility correctly but there was no easy route to correct my errors.

Are we all beta testers by using FTM 2009?

First of all, I really love the concept of this program. BUT I, like many other, have major problems with the program. I have been a long term user of FTM. I call tech support and get an answer. Doesn’t work, call back, get another answer. It doesn’t work either. Now I have been on hold for tech support for 35 minutes.
My program just seems to be TOTALLY unstable. Without rhyme or reason, it quits working and closes down. This can happen when I click on a source, a place, a persons name??? Sometimes it closes completely. Sometimes I have to actually reboot the computer before I can reopen the file because the program keeps telling me it is already open. I have even gone to task manager to be sure that it is NOT OPEN. No luck.
Right now my biggest problem is importing facts from ancestry. I locate a person by doing a web search.
When I try to merge, sometimes the program closes. Sometimes the date and fact merges, but not the source or media file.
I have installed and uninstalled until I am blue in the face.
HELP

Nicole (#93) - Return it for a refund and use FTM 5, buy FTM v16 (aka 2006) from Amazon, or start trying the competitor’s trials. I think Legacy 7 that is in the works will be promising.

I’m sorry about you losses in the fire. It is a lesson for all of us. I was lax until a couple months ago when I looked around and realized how much I would lose in both the data I put on FTM and the many original and copies of photographs and documents. I’ve been scanning, backing up regularly and have been distributing copies to my son several states away.

Bob (#95) - Your caution about merging is good. In the long run, manual entry can be less time consuming and you learn lots more. By entering manually, you are forced to really look at the census image and find things like the street they lived on, their occupation, Month/Day of birthday (1900), number of children the woman had and how many are living, etc.

I prefer to summarize the census in my notes and download the image to a Windows folder manually. I don’t care to automatically link images. Who knows whether that linkage capability will be able to be imported by future versions or by other genealogy software if you change.

Whether or not you like the merge feature, use it wisely!

I am also a long time user of FTM. I think my first one was version 3. I’m glad I found this blog because I have been considering updating to FTM 2008 from 2005. Now it seems like I will be much better off waiting until FTM 2009 or whatever the next version is, comes out. I don’t want to have a hassle importing 40,000 individuals, with thousands of pictures, documents, and sources attached. I back up to DVD regularly, so I wouldn’t lose anything in the short term. My question is this: Why would a software company take the brand name of a wonderful piece of software and drag it through the trash like as been done with FTM? After reading these posts, I will NEVER upgrade to a forthcoming version of FTM without doing a lot of research. That is the risk that the software company was willing to take when releasing a faulty version of FTM. Remember the Edsel? Ford Motor Company fought the repercussions for many years….

We have a mayor in our town who believes he gets his instructions from God, therefore he is entitled to ignore criticism. After reading, and experiencing, a lot of the faults of FTM 2008 and seeing no replies from the FTM programming staff, I am wondering if they are of the same mind as our “beloved” mayor. All we are getting from FTM is new patches and continuing promises of marvelous things to come.

Legacy 7 is supposed to come out in
April and I, for one, am anxiously awaiting the “coming out.” I have given up on FTM 200???.

As a member of the Update 3 Beta program, I downloaded .902 last night as I have to say many things are better.

The program is faster I would say about 50-60% Faster in screen refreshing and things.