AUTHORED BY TANA L. PEDERSEN (FROM ANCESTRY.COM)

By now you’ve probably heard about TreeSync. It’s the latest innovative tool available in Family Tree Maker 2012, which gives you the ability to sync one Family Tree Maker tree and one online Ancestry tree.

Now you can make changes to your tree anytime, anywhere. Maybe you’re at the library and you find your grandma’s birth record. Record this information in your online linked tree using your laptop or mobile app; then when you get home, open Family Tree Maker, click the Sync Now button, and your desktop tree will be updated with the new information. Or, add a bunch of family photos to your desktop tree, sync it, and friends and family all over the world can see them in your online tree.

Why Would I Want an Online and a Desktop Tree?

If you only have an online Ancestry tree or you’ve always used Family Tree Maker, you may be wondering why you would want both. Many people enjoy online trees because they can update and edit their tree anywhere they have Internet access. And they can invite friends and family to view the tree, which makes sharing family history quick and easy. Others prefer desktop software because they can quickly build a tree without worrying about Internet connections, refreshes, and upload times. And they can create a variety of beautiful charts and reports to help with their research. With TreeSync, you can enjoy the best of both worlds. You’ll have the mobility of an online tree with the advanced features of a desktop software program.

How Does TreeSync Work?

If your main tree is in Family Tree Maker, you can upload your tree to Ancestry by clicking the Upload and Link to Ancestry button on the Plan workspace. This will create a new linked online tree. (If you’ve already uploaded this tree to Ancestry, you will now have two duplicate online trees; you can simply delete the old one.)

If your main tree is on Ancestry.co.uk, you can download it into Family Tree Maker by clicking Download from Ancestry on the Plan workspace. This will create a new linked desktop tree.

Once the trees are linked together, you can access and edit it online or on your desktop. You can even use our Ancestry iPhone and iPad apps to update your tree.

Can I download and sync my Ancestry tree to more than one computer?
You may download your Ancestry tree to any computer that has Family Tree Maker. However, you can only download and sync your tree to one computer—even if you have installed Family Tree Maker 2012 on two computers. Be aware that you cannot synchronise a tree between two computers either.

Can I exclude people when I upload my tree using TreeSync?
No. You must upload your entire tree if you want it to sync between Family Tree Maker and Ancestry. However, you can upload only part of your tree to Ancestry if you simply want to put your tree online and not sync it.

How long does it take to upload and sync a tree?
The first time you upload a tree to Ancestry.co.uk it may take a while, especially if you have a lot of media items. However, after the initial upload, the syncing process takes much less time because only your changes are synced and not your entire tree. Due to the different Internet connection speeds that are available and various tree sizes we cannot estimate the length of your syncing time precisely.

What if I already have an online tree and a Family Tree Maker tree? How do I link them together?
You cannot simply link the two trees together. You would need to download your online tree and merge it with your Family Tree Maker tree. (Remember; make a backup of your tree before making any large changes like this.) Then, you’d re-upload the new “complete” tree back to Ancestry.co.uk using the “upload and link” option.

Are there parts of my tree that won’t sync?
Although most tree content transfers easily, there are a few exceptions. For more information on potential differences between linked trees on Ancestry sites and Family Tree Maker, please read this article.

What About Privacy?

Whenever I mention online trees, I am generally met with one concern. Privacy. Some people feel like their tree is a work in progress and isn’t ready to be shared yet. Others have accumulated a lot of confidential information that they don’t want to share publicly. Fortunately, TreeSync provides with you several privacy options so you don’t have to sacrifice security for mobility.

When you upload your tree to Ancestry, you can make your tree public, which means that other Ancestry subscribers can view your tree (except information about living individuals and private notes), and your tree will be shown in search results on Ancestry.co.uk. Or, you can make your tree private, which means that limited information about individuals in your tree (name, birth year, birthplace) will appear in Ancestry search results, but no one can view the contents of your tree unless you invite them to. Additionally, you can choose to exclude your tree from appearing even in search indexes on Ancestry. And, you can change your preference at any time, and as often as you like.

What If I Need Help?

I get an error message when I try to sync my desktop and online trees. What do I do?
Occasionally you may get an error message when you try to sync your linked trees. This can occur when your Internet connection is interrupted during the synchronisation process. First, make sure your Internet access is enabled in Family Tree Maker. (Go to the File menu and select Go Online. If the menu option “Go Offline” appears, Internet access is already enabled.) Second, check your Internet connection. If you have a dial-up Internet connection, or you have disabled your broadband connection, establish your Internet connection before you open Family Tree Maker. Make sure you are able to get to other websites.

I cannot edit my online Ancestry tree. What happened?
If you cannot edit your synced online tree, it may be because the online tree is temporarily unavailable while the desktop and online trees are being synced. Please wait a few minutes and try again.

Can I delete my tree if I decide I don’t want it online?
Yes, you can delete your online tree at any time. Be aware that once it’s deleted or unlinked, it can’t be re-linked to your Family Tree Maker tree.

If you have questions about TreeSync that haven’t been answered in this post or you are having issues syncing your tree, please contact our Customer Support at 0800 404 9723.

Ancestry.co.uk has launched an improved and expanded version of the world’s No. 1-selling family history software Family Tree Maker® 2012.

With its new TreeSync™ capabilities, Family Tree Maker 2012 enables family history enthusiasts to sync their desktop family trees and their online trees at Ancestry.co.uk. With TreeSync now you can access and update your tree wherever you are, whether it’s through Family Tree Maker, Ancestry.co.uk, or using the Ancestry iPhone or iPad apps. Sharing your tree is also easier than ever. Simply email invitations to family and friends and they can view your online tree and work on it with you.

Other improvements in Family Tree Maker 2012 include:

Easy-to-understand combined family view. The family group view has a new “blended families” option that lets you display all of a couple’s children in one location, including step-children and adoptees. An icon next to a child’s name lets you see at a glance whether he or she is the child of the father, the mother, or both parents.

Simplified interface for new users. When you install Family Tree Maker 2012, the software detects whether you are upgrading from a previous version of Family Tree Maker (version 16 or earlier). If you are, Family Tree Maker will display a simplified user interface that looks more like the older versions of Family Tree Maker.

Improved Smart Stories. More content-generation and editing options to help you create engaging stories about family members.

New and improved reports. The Notes Report has been enhanced so you can display a person, research, relationship, or fact notes you’ve entered for individuals. A new Index of Individuals Report lists every individual in your tree and their birth, marriage, and death dates in an easy-to-understand format. In addition, you can customize the descriptive sentences used in genealogy reports and Smart Stories.

More chart options. The Descendant Chart has a new option that lets you show the relationship between two people you select. You can also display generation labels (such as parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents) in charts to highlight the relationship between the primary person in the chart and other family members. And you can now personalize charts by adding your own free-form text boxes.

New and updated Help and tutorials. Learn how to do more — like creating trees and using Ancestry.co.uk features—with new and improved tutorials accessible in the software and on FamilyTreeMaker.com.

To learn more about the 2012 release, please visit the What’s New page on FamilyTreeMaker.com. To purchase Family Tree Maker 2012, visit our shop; the software is also available at Dixons, Amazon.co.uk, Play.com and other select retailers. For those of you interested in Family Tree Maker for Mac, a new version with TreeSync capability is to be released by the end of 2011.

To celebrate the launch of Family Tree Maker® 2012, we are giving away THREE Platinum versions of the UK’s best-selling family history software, each one includes six months Premium membership to Ancestry.co.uk.

To enter the prize draw, all you need to do is leave a comment below telling us what your favourite family history discovery is, and why? Terms and Conditions apply*.

*By leaving a comment, you agree to accept these terms and conditions. The Promoter of the prize draw is Ancestry.com Europe S.à r.l., 31 of rue Philippe II, L-2340 Luxembourg, Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg. The prize draw is open to UK residents aged 18 or over except employees or agents of the Promoter or its group companies. Only one entry per person. Closing date is midnight GMT on 20 October 2011. No responsibility can be accepted for comments that are not correctly posted or received for whatever reason. Three (3) winners will be drawn at random after the closing date. The prize for each winner is one copy of the Platinum edition Family Tree Maker 2012 software.  The winners will be notified by e-mail within 14 days of the closing date. If a winner cannot be contacted within 4 weeks of being notified, the Promoter reserves the right to award the prize to an alternate winner. The Promoter’s decision is final and binding. No cash alternatives to the prizes will be offered, and the prizes are not transferable. The Promoter reserves the right to modify the prize draw terms and conditions at any time without notice. Any personal information received by the Promoter in connection with this prize draw will be used solely in accordance with the Promoter’s Privacy Statement and you also consent to the Promoter using your name for administrative and promotional purposes relating to the prize draw. For details of the winners, write to the Promoter at 3rd Floor, Waterfront Building, Hammersmith Embankment, Chancellors Road, Hammersmith, London, W6 9RU.

AUTHORED BY TANA L. PEDERSEN (FROM ANCESTRY.COM)

Have you accidentally spelled an ancestor’s name incorrectly throughout your tree? Or discovered that a cemetery name you’ve recorded is actually the wrong cemetery? If you’re like me and make these types of mistakes regularly, you’re in luck. Family Tree Maker has a Find and Replace tool that lets you search for specific terms and names in facts, person notes, media captions and descriptions, to-do tasks, and sources–and replace the incorrect terms when needed.

For example, in my tree I have a tendency to transpose the I and E in my great-grandfather’s name, making him Neils instead of Niels. Instead of sifting through every fact, source, and media item for the incorrect spelling, I use the Find and Replace tool to search for the mistake and correct it.

Before you use the Find and Replace tool, you’ll want to make a backup of your tree since these types of changes can’t be undone.

1.  To open the tool, choose Edit>Find and Replace.
2.  Enter the term(s) you want to search for in the Find field. You can choose how exact you want the search to be and which parts of your tree to search. In this situation I want to search all available options because I am looking for a misspelled name. If you know the term you’re looking for is in a source or a note, you can select only that option.

If your search term includes a date, keep in mind that text in Date fields cannot be searched. A date shows up in search results only if it appears in the Description field or in a note, source, or media item.

3.  Click the Find button. The window expands to show the first item that matches your search.
4.  If you want to open the record or workspace where the search term is used, click the Go To button. If you want to replace the term, enter a new term in the “Replace with” field and click the Replace button. To find the next matching term, click Find Next. Continue searching and replacing terms, as necessary.

Although you can replace all matching text by clicking the Replace All button, I recommend viewing each search result individually. For example, if I had chosen “Replace All” when replacing my great-grandfather’s name, it would have changed a record transcription in a source citation. This is an instance in which I wanted to keep the name as I found it in the record.

Also, don’t feel like you have to use the Find and Replace tool just for correcting mistakes. It can be useful if you simply want to locate specific information. Perhaps you’ve entered important facts in a person note but you can’t remember which individual it’s linked to. Search all notes for the text you remember and then click the Go To button to open the individual and the note.

AUTHORED BY TANA L. PEDERSEN (FROM ANCESTRY.COM)

Family Tree Maker comes with a variety of default reports, and it also has a Custom Report that lets you mine your family tree for the information you’re interested in. Using it I’ve created family health histories, address lists, residency reports, and more. But the report I get asked about most often is a custom cemetery report. I first created one several years ago when I was planning a trip to a cemetery and wanted to take photos of tombstones for my family members buried there. The report helped me keep track of the photos I’d taken and also worked as a research resource to confirm (and contradict!) the facts I had in my tree.

Before you get started, you’ll want to make sure you’ve recorded burial and cemetery information the same way for all the individuals in your tree; otherwise, you report won’t necessarily include the correct individuals. In my tree I use the Description field in the Burial fact to record specific cemetery names.

1. To create a cemetery report, start by opening the Custom Report (located on the Publish workspace under Person Reports).
2. Click the Reset button (a blue arrow button next to the report’s title) to clear any previous settings.
3. Click the Items to Include button (on the far left) in the reports toolbar. Now click the Add fact (+) button and add the Burial fact to the report. At this point, you can add any other facts to the report that you’d like. In this case we’ll stick with birth, marriage, death, and burial. Click OK when you’re finished.

Now we need to determine which individuals should be included in the report–the people who have been buried at a specific cemetery.

4. In Individuals to Include, click Selected Individuals. The Filter Individuals window opens.

5. Click Filter In. The Filter Individuals by Criteria window opens.

6. Click All facts. In “Search where” choose the Burial fact and Description field. (If you’ve recorded cemetery information in a different fact you’ll choose that here.) In the next drop-down choose “Contains.” Then in the Value field, enter the name of the cemetery and click OK.

The Filter Individuals window now shows all the individuals who are buried in the selected cemetery. Click OK to display the report.

Now it’s your turn. Have you tried the custom report yet? If you have, how do you use it?

AUTHORED BY TANA L. PEDERSEN (FROM ANCESTRY.COM)

If you haven’t visited FamilyTreeMaker.com recently, it’s time to take another look. Recently, Family Tree Maker launched its newly redesigned website with simplified navigation and more features to help you find answers to your questions.

Here are a few highlights:

• A tour of the software shows some of the key features and tools available in Family Tree Maker.
• A “tips and tricks” section helps users of all levels be more productive.
• An updated FAQ answers questions about sharing files, upgrading the software, and more.
• A learning centre gives you quick access to webinars, message boards, and tutorials.

We’re excited about the new changes and hope you’ll find the new site easier to use and filled with useful resources.

To purchase Ancestry.co.uk™ Family Tree Maker® 2011 or Family Tree Maker® for Mac, visit ancestryshop.co.uk.

AUTHORED BY TANA L. PEDERSEN (FROM ANCESTRY.COM)

The Family tab on the People workspace provides a comprehensive view of your tree. This is where you enter information about individuals and families in your tree—and where you will spend most of your time in Family Tree Maker. Over the next few weeks I’ll spend some time explaining each section of the workspace in detail. You’ll find tips and tricks to help you quickly navigate in your tree and enter information more efficiently. Today we’ll focus on the pedigree view. 

The pedigree view lets you see several generations of your family at once and easily navigate to each member of your family. The individual on the far left side of the tree is the “root” individual of the pedigree view. “Root” simply means that this person is in the primary position of the pedigree view and his or her ancestors are being displayed: paternal on top and maternal underneath. 

Changing the Root Individual

If you want to change the root individual, hover your mouse over an individual in the pedigree view until an arrow appears (see fig. 1). Click the arrow and the individual moves to the root position and his or her ancestors are displayed. 

Figure 1 

Navigating within the Tree

You’ll notice that other types of arrows appear next to individual nodes on the tree. These arrows can help you navigate to other people in the tree. 

A solid right arrow (fig. 2) indicates that the individual has parents (ancestors) who are not being displayed. Click this arrow to view these additional generations. 

Figure 2 

A white arrow (fig. 3) indicates that no parents (ancestors) have been entered for the individual. If you click this button, you can add a father or mother for the individual. 

Figure 3 

A solid left arrow (fig. 4) that appears to the left of the root individual indicates that he or she has children (descendants). If you click this button Family Tree Maker moves the root person’s first child (or the child in the direct line of the home person) to the root position of the tree. 

Figure 4 

A solid down arrow (fig. 5) underneath the root individual indicates that the individual has children. Click this arrow to see and/or navigate to his or her children. Note: If the individual has more than one spouse, the drop-down list displays only children from the individual’s preferred marriage. 

Figure 5 

You can also change the number of generations that are displayed in the pedigree view–up to five generations. Simply drag the slider at the bottom of the view to the number of generations you want (see fig. 6). 

Figure 6 

We were very excited to receive a call earlier from the team at Your Family Tree magazine, announcing that this month marks their 100th birthday edition and to tell us how they’re celebrating.

The 100th issue of the magazine contains a 1911 special, looking back 100 years to the most recently available English and Welsh Census, and features information to help you uncover the secrets of your 1911 forebears and the stories of their day-to-day lives. 

It will also aid you in discovering where your military ancestors were serving at the time and even show how they lived in a special photography showcase of images from the year.

A commemorative wallet includes a Your Family Tree mousemat, five exclusive prints of 1911 Britain and a packed CD full of fantastic resources, as well as the first ever issue in full on PDF.

Finally, to celebrate this milestone event, the first 80 subscribers to Your Family Tree will receive a Family Tree Maker 2011 Deluxe version worth £39.99, as part of a very special subscription offer.

The offer is only valid until 28 February 2011.  You can subscribe today either online www.myfavouritemagazines.co.uk/yft318 or call on 0844 848 2852 (Please quote YFT318 to claim the offer).

AUTHORED BY TANA L. PEDERSEN  (FROM ANCESTRY.COM)

We all wish we had an unlimited amount of time to work on our family history. But since none of us do, it can be frustrating when the software you’re using seems to get in the way instead of helping. If Family Tree Maker starts running more slowly than you expect, here are six steps you can take to increase the software’s performance:

Verify that your computer meets the minimum system requirements

Make sure that your computer meets or exceeds the minimum requirements. You can find them listed in the packaging and documentation that came with your software. Also, keep in mind that the more information you enter, the greater the amount of free hard drive space and available RAM you will need.

Make sure you are using the latest version of the software

Periodically, Family Tree Maker releases updates that fix various software bugs and issues. Make sure that the Family Tree Maker software is up-to-date by going to the Help menu and choosing Check for Update. A message alerts you if you need to update the software.

Run the Compact File tool

The Compact File tool re-indexes your file, removes unnecessary data, and optimizes your tree’s performance. Check your tree for duplicate individuals

Check your tree for duplicate individuals

Duplicate individuals can increase the overall size of your tree and make running reports, creating charts, and navigating your tree inefficient. Periodically you’ll want to make sure you’ve merged or deleted any unnecessary people. You can find detailed instructions on merging individuals in the Family Tree Maker Knowledgebase.

Work offline

If you have a day where you’re simply entering information and not using the Web Search or virtual maps, consider temporarily disabling your Internet connection within Family Tree Maker. This can really speed up your system, especially if you’re working in a large tree.

To work offline, go to the File menu and select Go Offline. To reenable Internet access, go to the File menu and select Go Online.

Disable Fastfields

Fastfields speed up data entry by automatically filling in repetitive data as you type. For example, if you type “San Jose, California” into a location field, then go to another location field and begin to type “San,” Family Tree Maker will recognize the similarity and suggest “San Jose, California.” Disabling this feature can increase performance, especially in large databases.

To disable Fastfields, go to the Tools menu and select Options. Deselect the checkboxes in the “Use fastfields for section” and click OK

AUTHORED BY TANA L. PEDERSEN  (FROM ANCESTRY.COM)

Got a Mac? Ancestry.co.uk announced the launch of Family Tree Maker for Mac, the new Mac version of the world’s No.-1 selling family history software. It is available for purchase online starting at £59.99. The program is also available in select retail stores, including Apple Stores, Amazon, Office Depot, and Office Max.

As a Mac user for many years, I couldn’t be more excited. And I hope you are too. Any new software release generates a lot of questions so I will try to answer the questions I’m hearing.

• What type of Mac will the application run on? You will need an Intel-based based Mac running Mac OS X 10.5.8 or later.
• I have been using the PC version of Family Tree Maker. Will I have to start over? Family Tree Maker for Mac includes a migration utility (used on a PC) that will convert your Family Tree Maker Windows files (2010 and 2011) so they can be opened on a Mac (and vice versa).
• How is the Mac version different from the PC version? The Mac version has the same functionality as Family Tree Maker 2010.
• Can I download the software from the Family Tree Maker website? No, at this time the software is available on CD only.
• Can I import a tree I created in Reunion? Yes. You will need to export your file as a GEDCOM and then import it into Family Tree Maker.
• I am used to using the PC version of Family Tree Maker and don’t want to learn a new program. How different is the Mac version? The Mac version is based on Family Tree Maker 2010, so if you’ve used Family Tree Maker 2008, 2009, or 2010, the transition will be easy.

AUTHORED BY TANA L. PEDERSEN  (FROM ANCESTRY.COM)

One of my favourite enhancements in Family Tree Maker 2011 is the ability to add photos and embellishments to charts—anywhere I want. It’s a simple thing, but the result is beautiful family trees I can’t wait to share. You can use your own backgrounds, borders, and embellishments (basically any image file on your computer) or take advantage of the design elements included in Family Tree Maker 2011.

When I created a pedigree chart for my grandmother (shown below), I only wanted to include a photo of her. In previous versions of Family Tree Maker, if I wanted my grandmother’s photo to appear in the chart, I would have had to display portraits for everyone in the tree. With 2011, I can insert only her portrait and drag it anywhere on the chart. I also used flourishes (included in Family Tree Maker) to decorate the chart’s title.

In this next example, I have created a portrait tree. I started with standard pedigree tree and deleted all the included facts so I that the tree would display only pedigree lines. I then added a tree image for the background and added portraits for three generations of my ancestors.

I don’t know what I’m going to do with all of the decorative family trees I’ve made (there are only so many my family will allow on the walls), but I sure have had a good time creating them. For any of you who have been wanting to creating a family poster or just want an attractive way to display your family tree in your home, I think you’ll enjoy this new enhancement.