Customer Reviews

Family Tree Maker 2008 Deluxe [OLD VERSION]

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(14)

 

 

Today, I received an email from the makers of FTM who are hosting a webinare to try and get people more familiar with the FTM 2008 program. I also received a first - a survey to ask me what I liked and disliked about the program. Evidently FTM 2008 is not being embraced by enough people. For me it has been an unpleasant program to work with and I have removed it from my computer and have reverted to a much earlier version. I am not a Luddite - but if a program like FTM 2008 doesn't work easily or make my hobby easier, then I have no time to fuss with it.

FTM 2008 is for me the Edsel of genealogy programs for two reasons. First, the developers have created a program for genealogy beginners, one that is very tightly tied to Ancestry.com's fee based product lines accessible through their web site, and two, the developers have completely forgotten how advanced hobbyists approach family groups.

And like the dashboard of the 1958 Edsel, the user interface of FTM 2008 is full of lots of clutter, distractions and commands which seem to be counter intuitive. I would assume that for older users, this clutter would make it not only difficult to add data, but would also make those who use it yearn for Version 11, the last "plain Jane" version of the program.

What I wanted to see on this program was greater functionality in its report generator area and its ability (when exporting *.rtf reports) to better interface with standardized office productivity suites (MSWORD, etc.) - which is an issue with the core program not being updated to work with non-ancestry fee based services.

It just seems to me that with all the advances in data manipulation available today that the people behind FTM could do a better job at charting marriage between families and within families, but they seem to have a finite skill set and think that enough tinkering will distract people from the lack of innovation that their products feature.

In my personal opinion, this version of this program is not only unnecessarily complicated, and makes no real strives beyond what previous versions accomplished.

This isn't a step backward - it's a three hour flight backwards. I've been using FTM products for 10 years, enjoying the improvements with most of their updated versions. Some have been minor and some have shown true innovation. Until now, none have been a step backward.

This program is a memory pig. It takes a long time to initialize - longer than any other program I run. Once up, the entire interface is new with no option to use FTM "classic" like so many other programs now permit. Processes that I have frequently performed quickly and easily in the past are now either unavailable or too complicated to figure out.

When I uninstalled the program to run FTM 9, I found that all the online support features had been disabled. So much for that. Trapped.

Online searches that used to be easy are now difficult and most require some sort of subscription, none of which are cheap.

Family Tree Maker is going to have to work hard to get my business next time. Frustrating.

Unless you are a beginner, DO NOT UPGRADE! The 2008 version is not worth the trouble.

1) It's poorly designed.
2) It's a memory hog.
3) Beware of the merge feature!
4) Some of the features that are in 2006 ar not available in 2008 which they don't bother to tell you.

One feature I use a lot in 2006 is the ability to create a book with table of contents and an index. In the 2008 version, you are directed to ancestry press which only has 3 types of books for up to 4 generations. Only 4 generations! Truly only for a beginner.

I called Family Tree Maker Customer Support, who directed me to Technical Support, who directed me to a 3rd person. (I could tell none of them had really used the product.) When I asked if I could get a refund, they said to take it back to the store where I purchased it. I told them that I had opened the box and the store wouldn't give me a refund. They said Family Tree Maker couldn't give me a refund either. Instead they gave me an email address to write to - customersolutions@tgn.com.

So, does anyone know of a good genealogy software package?

I've been using different versions of Family Tree Maker for at least 15 years. I've never seen a new version go so far backwards. Gone are all the features I most often use. I can no longer make the reports or charts I use most commonly. I can't make a book. My old books are gone. Now I guess I have to find a "pre-Vista" computer to run version 16 on if I actually want to do anything with my family tree? I predict the next version will simply be a link to the Ancestry website and nothing else.... for about 50 bucks.

If anyone can recommend a replacement program by a different maker, please e-mail me.

I've been using FTM since 1994. This version is a total re-write that was released way too early. It has dropped some features from previous versions, for instance, this version will not produce a narrative ancestry report. A program that is supposed to provide graphics of historical postcards from across the USA will not run without crashing within 60 seconds of starting. My attempts to receive help from customer support were met with simple denials that the program is flawed. What may be the worst flaw, this version publishes user data to FTM site when the user attempts to create a "book" report, a mind-boggling violation of confidentiality. I am sorely disappointed in this software and will be looking for another company to do business with, after I send these disks back for a refund.

I bought this having used many previous versions with a data file already in place.

This new 2008 version was missing all kinds of reports. It was panned on internet genealogy sites. Improved it is NOT.

The manufacturer would not stand behind it because I bought it on Amazon.

Amazon would not stand behind it because it shipped it from Nothing but Software web store.

NBS did issue and RMA and exchange it for me for Version 16 which has everything still intact. BE VERY CAREFUL ABOUT 2008( V 17). THEY DUMBED IT DOWN.

Read about 2008 on geneolgy sites before you but 2008. It is horrendous.

I purchased this to help with my family's tree. It would have been nicer if it had been supplied with a printed manual to refer to when you have a question about how to do a particular task. There may be a manual on the CD, haven't checked. Printed is always better, though.
There is literature that comes but it only is a video and a catalog to buy more things, nothing helpful (printed) to learn the program and a video that probably most, like me, won't watch.
The leaf is handy, but it is tricky trying to figure out how to attach something to someone in your tree. Just because they are in your tree on your computer, if you haven't "shared" it online, it won't let you select someone to add website content except for merging information.
My computer is a new XPS 700 series with 4 gig and I haven't experienced any lockups EXCEPT for when attempting to merge an older version with my existing tree. The task never did complete satisfactorily (merging file was 35 meg to a 25 meg on computer). It either omits or compresses the data because converting from version 16 to this one shaved 10 meg off the file size.
A particularly nice feature is the ability to select yourself as Home Person and then click on others in your tree. It will display their relationship to you. Easily lets you tell if you have someone not related in your tree (careful if by marriage, though).

I've been using Family Tree Maker for many, many years, and I've always purchased their upgrades and found them an improvement. However, this one was released before it should have been, IMO. The fact that it's missing the one report I rely on heavily (the Genealogy Report) has caused me to abandon it without really investing too much energy exploring the "features." I also don't appreciate the fact that it takes forever for the program to open. I'm seriously considering switching to RootsMagic. What I see of that program so far, I like.

I have used Family Tree Maker since version 9 and currently use FTM 2006, which is a great program, with an excellent training video. I had high hopes that FTM 2008 would be a worthwhile upgrade - don't waste your money. I have no clue who wrote this software, but it no improvement at all. It is an overly busy main screen with several different panes, all of which are small even with my 19" flat screen. It is not user friendly. The training DVD is not even close to as good as the one that came with the 2006 version. I was planning to use this 2008 upgrade and give my cousin my 2006 version of this program, but sent the 2008 FTM back for a refund and purchased my cousin the 2006 version on Amazon at a bargain price. Genealogy is a passion for me - who needs software that is a pain to use.

I've used earlier FTM products and been moderately happy with them. Not so with FTM 2008, which is mostly a major step back. The only positive is an improved way of managing sources with multiple citations. The major negatives are: (1) The slowest program to initialize I've ever seen, (2) Grossly inadequate help - they seem to be trying to force people to pay an extra $26 for the information they should have included, (3) A big step backward in reports - too few, and unless used in the most simplistic way they frequently give mysterious results, (4) Bugs/design flaws - One example, I have one man who was married twice. The FTM 2008 "Register Report" insists on printing the 2nd one first, and there apparently is no way to control this. And it prints out nonsense like "Isaac Newman and Eliza Evidon. He married Ruth Chase", where Ruth is wife one, Eliza wife two. (5) Because of this and other howlers, I found it necessary do editing. They dont make this easy - to get an .rtf file out you need to stumble on an undocumented right-click at a crucial momdent. The .rtf file, when read into WORD, is a complex table that is exceedingly tedious and difficult to modify. Bottom line: I should have read the reviews before purchase!