Released by Which?:
The Fun and Titillation of Family Ties…
The study of family histories is now so popular that genealogy websites are among the most visited sites on the web, second only to pornography. And, while researching a family tree used to involve hours filling in index cards, the plethora of programs available now makes plotting a family history much easier says Computing Which? today.
Computing Which? tested nine packages to suit the novice to more advanced genealogist, from free downloadable programs through to professional packages. It found that while genealogy software isn’t usually designed to help research family histories, it does make changing, amending, updating and presenting information less hard work.
In its tests, the magazine discovered that genealogy software really comes into its own when automatically generating easy-to-view diagrams representing family trees. All the programs tested were able to present a pedigree tree – a bloodline showing mother and father, their parents, grandparents and so on.
While research isn’t the primary focus of genealogy programs many of the programs did contain links to genealogy sites. In terms of the quality of research tools provided by the software, though, it was a bit of a mixed bag, with only one program scoring well in this area.
Computing Which? also found that adding digital photographs and audio and video files to a family tree can really bring it to life, but some programs were more versatile than others in this respect.
Finally, given the explosion of interest in genealogy online, it’s now not uncommon to find web wizards within family tree software able to help publish family trees online. The better programs also specify which information is to be kept private as genealogy etiquette dictates that details of living relatives and family scandals are not broadcast live online.
Jessica Ross, editor of Computing Which? said:
“The popularity of genealogy as a pastime has exploded recently with family tree software and online resources such as census data making it easier than ever to get started.
“Whatever their level of competency, everyone can now start getting a sense of their own unique history thanks to the plethora of genealogy and family tree programs available.”
www.computingwhich.co.uk
