FAMILY TREE?? advice please..?

Question

have you ever done 1, and how hard was it? also any tips.. iv just got a pc mag with a free cd to do my family tree and just want some advice before i start.

Answer 1

What're you worrying about or waiting for - just follow and act on the instructions of the cd!

Answer 2

family tree maker is the best cd but you have to buy it

Answer 3

What was the free CD?  Was it Family Tree Maker or something else.  If it was FTM, what version?  Knowing these thing will help in getting advice on using your CD.

Answer 4

As Wendy said it is only a programme for storage, and to be able to organise, and print out your family tree.

I use Family Tree Maker, but as with any family tree programme software you will still have to do searches, on either Free BMD,or Ancestry.co.uk, Roots web etc, etc., in order to verify,or to find information further back than what you already know.

Start with yourself,parents, and grand parents and their siblings., and then do look ups on the site that you may wish to subscribe to after the earliest dates you already have. It means searching through Census', and Births, Marriage, and Death records. You will come across many people with the same names, so don't assume immediately that the one you have found is the exact one. Also if you join a site like Ancestry, when you have other peoples trees come up, don't assume that their information is always correct. A lot of people on there use the husbands name for the wife when they cannot find out the wifes' birth name.

We are all here to help if you get stuck, go for it, and don't be afraid to come back and ask.

Answer 5

My advice...

understand that ANY PROGRAM is just a form of storage, it is not the facts of your ancestry.  Ancestors and genealogy have been around for hundreds of years.. and a computer is only a tool to communicate, and store data.

Frankly.. when it comes to software, I use the program that is offered free from the LDS church, because it has been around for YEARS, and will continue to be. Many people have started out with "off brand" programs, and come to regret it.  

Your FIRST thing is to understand how research is done (finding records, working from you, backwards).  Next, is how to use the internet to help find those records (they will not be all online).  You can play with the programs, to get familiar.. but don't put that at the top of the list.

Most regulars realize genealogy is a long term hobby, not a one shot deal.  You KEEP doing it, because it is fun. And the fun comes when you hit a challenge, and work to find the solution.

edit-

reread your question and see that it contains PAF?? that is the LDS program.

Answer 6

don't try to put everyone on it. just do your dads family or your mums. by putting everyone on it, the family tree will just look crowded.

Answer 7

I echo Wendy's response!!

Also found out the hard way that it is better to have a seperate file for each side of your family. It also works nicer to invite people to help you. I use ancestry and family tree maker.  I started with both my parents and then made a seperate tree for my father's side as I have invited cousins to view and help.

I still have the combined one for my immediate family but have started to work on a seperate file for my mother. It is an ongoing project and one you definitely get addicted to.  I also have my daughter and grandson addicted.

Answer 8

Write, talk to relatives something I have only just started doing.  I find rootschat quite good even if you don't pay the 1881 and another for free if you can afford £90 for the year or you can go on genes reunited and other sites with a pay for view scheme but I find £5 for 10 census unless you know what you're looking for is expensive.

Answer 9

Plan ahead.

I have 1500 people on my tree now, so it is impossible to print or view.

You should ensure that records for living individuals are not made public.

Don't believe everything you find in the IGI, or in other peoples' trees.