Customer Reviews

Family Tree Maker Version 16 Collector's Edition

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Excellent product. The 'over $450 value' might be a bit overstated but the packages is still an excellent value. During installation, the 1 year free trial to [...] showed up as a 30 day trial but was resolved quickly through familytreemaker.com support and a subsequent call to ancestry.com support. Ancestry.com provided a 1 year free trial to their US Deluxe product over the phone and didn't ask for a credit card number for renewal. To me, that's a sign that they're a reputable company. Some of the additional software in the package is buried on the installation CD but is worth the extra manual effort to find and install - especially the GenSmart software.

Family Tree Maker Version 16 Collector's Edition
I found this version almost 12 years later than my original, to be of almost no value. The displays, moving between screens, and reports are either the same or not as good. The searching of the web sites is of benefit, but the reporting techniques do not follow the parameters of the search. For example, if I wanted ONLY death references I get everything. I then have to wade through all the unwanted references. You can not even SORT by, say, the source type: Death, Birth, Marriage. I can not understand the superhype about this system and it not having basic search capabilities like a grown up program!
If you do not own any Tree program then this is worth it. You should take a look at My Heritage Family Tree for comparison.

The manual provided is a full print version which is commendable in todays software climate where nothing can normaly seen in print without a screen. However the Type chosen is so small that anyome with normal vision cannot possibly folow the text without a magniying glass. Definitely tis version of a great softeare is not designed for mere mortals especially if they are ageing

The Collector's Edition has features not included in the 2006 Version 16. The GenSmarts option is a definite plus in searching for your ancestors.

I have been using the Family Tree Maker products for a number of years. I love its ease in the ability to add new people into the genealogy charts. I am a little disappointed in the change that moved the screen away from looking like a tabbed folder. I feel that the old style was a lot more user friendly, both visually and functionally.

I was familiar with the way that the Family Tree Maker works because I have owned several older versions with version 10 being the most current. I was satisfied with the actual charts, but the writing in the books is so small that I needed a magnifier to read much of it and the illustrations were completely useless because they were illegible.

I have used a few other genealogy products and this is the best so far. I am a novice and for me Family Tree is easy to use and has a lot more features than Roots Magic. The initial cost was more but the extras included made it a better value.

This is a very good program for either the beginner or an experinced family historian. With a easy to use interface and designed to make things simple for the user to add family members to the family tree this program is a joy to use.

This SW is fantastic. Having the on-line access made this product perfect, without ionline access this product would only be a storage device for family history that you already know. I was able to get info on my family back to the 1800's in a matter of days since other relatives did all the research (relatives I don't even know).

Family Tree Maker comes with a 'free' trial membership to Ancestry.com. The software is linked in numerous ways to this site, so it is very tempting to activate the free 3,6,9, or 1 year membership (depending on which version you buy). The 'free' membership is actually an annually recurring membership that will automatically charge your credit card for a whopping $155.40 after your 'free' membership expires. The company will not issue a refund if you dispute the charge and they will file rebuttal letters with your bank if you try to charge-back their charge to your credit card (a credit card is required to use Ancestry.com). None of this information is included in the printed material that comes in the box, on the box, or in the 88 page users guide that comes with the software. The software has no information on the recurring annual subscription policy either. You can cancel the subscription if you notify them in advance of being billed, but in my case, I had no idea that I had signed up for a recurring service so I had no reason to notify them that I wanted to cancel a subscription that I had finished using 6 months prior to being billed. In the end, I wound up paying about $250.00 for this software. Buyer beware.