Family Tree Maker 2008 Platinum (PC)

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Customer reviews

review by: jedra_ date: 2008-09-18 rating:
Good but full of bugs
Unfortunately on my platform (Vista Ultimate 64bit) this software is absolutely riddled with bugs (even after applying the patch). Straight out of the box, it does not connect to the internet - a stressful search around the support site eventually found the patch which enabled internet connectivity. Since then, the program suffers from consistent crashes to the desktop. The upside is that as they are consistent, you avoid performing certain tasks enabling you to use the software reasonably easiliy.

It's interaction with the My Ancestry web site is it's major plus point and recording your family's records is easy and straightforward.

I am hoping that the 2009 version has ironed out all of the bugs and crashes.

If you want an easy life and are running Vista Ultimate 64bit then I would avoid this unless you can confirm it runs on your setup.

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review by: date: 2008-06-26 rating:
Oh dear... don't buy...
I have been using the "less than pretty" Family Tree Maker 2006 as I am a young but very serious family history nut. So I was very excited about the new version. The redesign looks great, but is REALLY REALLY bad. It has annoying glitches, does nothing like the original (trees are much more limited) and was the biggest let down I have ever had with a new program. I actually sent it back. Your money is better spent on an Ancestry subscription than this rubbish. Great packaging, great look, great DVD and booklet - but appalling program.

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review by: date: 2008-05-24 rating:
Why Change
Having used the 2006 version I have traced every member of our family back to around 1840, that's my wife's and mine. This is simply an interface to view your tree, any program is only as good as it's database and whether you use the 2006 or 2008 edition the database holds the same information. If you are just starting to trace your ancestors you will obviously want the latest edition but I see no sense in spending money upgrading just to have a better looking page. I will not be purchasing this edition but gave it 5 stars just for the database alone which is well worth the annual subscription; the price at Amazon will also take some beating.

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review by: date: 2008-05-12 rating:
Upadated and very much IMPROVED
This is a radical change from previous versions of this software, which has since been updated & now works brilliantly. Anyone who is used to using a point-and-click interface, such as a web browser will now find this software very easy to use. Charting is also much simpler to use than older versions. I'm still feeling some resistance to this new version, but that's about familiarity, not functionality. Unlike the old software which used to take regular holidays to Mars whilst it thought about things, this install seems to work almost flawlessly & instantly. Access to online mapping via Micro9soft Virtual Earth is seamless & actually quicker than using the Virtual Earth standalone software. Access to online census data, including LDS data is much improved. Placing all 'media' into a single folder on your computer's hard drive, rather than incorporating it within an ever bigger(and therefore slower) database is a substantial improvement. It also allows direct access to such media 'objects' from within Windows itself so that, for instance, Census images can be much more easily taken into applications such as Photoshop to be cropped & have the black areas removed from their edges, enabling easier viewing on-screen & much less wasted ink on printing.
Only gripe is the renaming of media when imported in a database created in a previous version of FTM.
Its not perfect, but its trying hard to get there & will appeal to seasoned researchers & newby technophobes alike.
Well woth the money. Buy the dearer version as, with the included 6-month online membership, it works out cheaper!!




review by: date: 2008-05-04 rating:
What a shambles
This is not an update, it is a re-write. What is the point? Such a change should be re-titled and not just given a new date. The publishers have already created a confusion with introduction of Ancestry incorporating FTM. What are they playing at? Family history computer games?

It is high time that computer program writers addressed the neglected issue of user-friendliness. The are still writing for the professional computer user and ignoring the thousands of amateurs who form the majority of customers buying programs and subscribing to magazines. It is these amateurs who are the major providers of finance and data to this ever growing industry and their needs should be respected.

The new FTM2008 is an example of indulgence by FH program writers. I am stopping at FTM2006.

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