I’ve been down that road with FTM which I started with back in 1998. I also used The Master Genealogist simultaneous which meant updating both of them at the same time. FTM was a good product until Version 16/2006. After that, I made the mistake of locking in all my data in the failed 2008 version then 2009. A few versions later I decided that FTM was no longer a good application to use for serious genealogy. The only option I had at the time was to export a GEDCOM then import into Legacy 7. I can’t remember if FTM 2014 exports to a Legacy format since I uninstalled it from my computer. I only used it for exports from Legacy to FTM to upload to family trees.
Back in FTM 2009 days, my GEDCOM import had to be totally cleaned up in Legacy which included re-attaching images (people photos and source images), major work with the source details, cleaning up locations (still not finished), and going through thousands of people to make sure the transition was successful. It was actually good I had to do the cleanup process because I was able to fix a lot of my own errors and sources. The source detail (source citation in FTM) was a major drawback because Legacy does not have a central location where you can link one citation to many. It’s all copying to the source clipboard then pasting to each person it applies to. One of my major complaints about FTM is that the media section is seriously flawed. I reported it to Ancestry many times and it’s never been fixed or updated. It’s still the same as the 2008 version. There are no professional tools to work with them or to re-link images that have been moved. Heaven forbid if you change folders because you will have to re-link every single image individually which I had to do many times. Legacy makes this process very easy. Also Legacy has much better reports and tools for professional research. One huge mistake I made with importing my GEDCOM into Legacy was to not uncheck the third checkbox on the left that reads: “Put unrecognized items into notes field.” Leaving it checked put all my source text from Detail Text into Detail Comments within Legacy. This is major work if you have a lot of people and sources in your tree. It’s a very tedious process of fixing it. Bill Boswell From: Gregory Winters [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Thursday, July 10, 2014 4:32 PM To: [email protected] Subject: [LegacyUG] Switch From FTM 2014 I have been using Family Tree Maker for nearly ten years, but to me, it’s obvious that they are never going to really get serious about their product. I have a number of serious, seemingly irreconcilable problems with it and have decided that as painful as it’s going to be, I want to switch software packages. Legacy v8 seems to have generated a lot of buzz. What I’m asking the members of this list is how I can find a real Legacy architect – someone who knows how the product is built – so I can ask questions about the system level functionality of the product and not just bells and whistles. This person should know all of the pitfalls of GEDCOM import and understand what the term ‘data validation’ means. I am willing to pay the right individual to help me migrate my FTM database of 9300+ individuals, but free advice is also welcome! I have a complete list of requirements. Thanks in advance to any and all who can point me in the right direction. Gregory Winters Legacy User Group guidelines: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Etiquette.asp Archived messages after Nov. 21 2009: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ Archived messages from old mail server - before Nov. 21 2009: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ Online technical support: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Help.asp Follow Legacy on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/LegacyFamilyTree) and on our blog (http://news.LegacyFamilyTree.com). To unsubscribe: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/LegacyLists.asp Legacy User Group guidelines: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Etiquette.asp Archived messages after Nov. 21 2009: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ Archived messages from old mail server - before Nov. 21 2009: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ Online technical support: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/Help.asp Follow Legacy on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/LegacyFamilyTree) and on our blog (http://news.LegacyFamilyTree.com). To unsubscribe: http://www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/LegacyLists.asp
