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<DIV>I think that Brother's Keeper can do either all or at least most of what
you want. You can download a copy at <A href="http://www.bk.com">www.bk.com</A> Also at the bottom you can send an
email to John Steed the author of Brother's Keeper. Explain why and what you
want to be able to do and ask John if you can do it with his program. I have
found that John is very responsive and you can find out from the author himself
if his program will do what you want.</DIV>
<DIV>Let me know what you find up and what you end up doing.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Good Luck,</DIV>
<DIV><FONT lang=0 size=2 face=Arial FAMILY="SANSSERIF" PTSIZE="10">Dave
Sloan<BR>Grandkids Ancestors LLC<BR>Specializing in East central IN, West
central Ohio, Quaker Records, and Brethren Records.<BR>"The world is my country,
and my religion is to do right" David Hoover 1781-1866
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>
<DIV>In a message dated 10/26/2010 10:51:54 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
raybeere@yahoo.com writes:</DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE style="BORDER-LEFT: blue 2px solid; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px"><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>I've
added my comments on your specific requirements, below.<BR><BR>--- On Tue,
10/26/10, Katherine Pickering Antonova <katherine.antonova@qc.cuny.edu>
wrote:<BR><BR>> - I want to keep track of three interrelated families from
the 17th<BR>> century to the present. So, I need to be able to print
something more<BR>> complex than a “tree” structure with all the branches
coming from one<BR>> common ancestor or one common descendant. This has
been a problem with<BR>> some of the trials I’ve looked at.<BR><BR>
With _any_ software I am aware of, you'll have problems with
this, depending on what you're trying to do. You could print trees of each of
the three families, and you could print certain other charts - but you
probably cannot print a single chart showing all individuals in these three
families. (I say probably because the precise answer would depend on the exact
nature of the inter-relationships.)<BR><BR>> - I have to be able to attach
notes to each entry. At least one bit of<BR>> block text, along with birth,
marriage and death dates.<BR><BR> Almost all genealogical
software allows for notes, usually formatted as block text. Some allow you to
print notes on charts - but since notes are very variable in size and thus
different programs handle them differently, you may have trouble with this
feature using just about any program.<BR><BR>> - I want to be able to print
a report that includes birth and death<BR>> dates, and distinguishes
between males and females<BR><BR> I cannot think of any
software that will _not_ allow you to do this.<BR><BR>> - I want to input
all the info I have, but be able to choose to print<BR>> only simplified
versions of the tree with only the branches I’m most<BR>> interested in on
it.<BR><BR> The Master Genealogist for Windows is quite
strong in this area. It allows you a _great_ deal of flexibility in choosing
who will be included when you generate a report or chart.<BR><BR>> - I want
to be able to use the software on different computers, and<BR>> backup
files very easily. It would be nice if the files were easily<BR>> converted
to other formats. These features are not essential, just<BR>>
desirable<BR><BR> Since you mention using it on different
computers, I suspect you mean you should be able to _sync_ files, not just
back them up. I happen to have a very strong interest in emergency
preparedness - and there is _no_ genealogy program with a built in function
suitable to rely on for critical work. You'd be much better off setting up a
separate, custom solution.<BR> The software I use myself to
sync my most important files is an open source application called Toucan.
Unlike nearly every backup / syncing solution I've tested, I am reasonably
sure that I cannot make a mistake which will result in the loss of
irreplaceable data. _But_, I am a fairly experienced computer user,
comfortable writing batch files and macros - and after I set up the settings
for my environment, I tested them thoroughly.<BR> The
bottom line here: unless you are an experienced user, you would be _much_
better off paying a _reliable_ geek - _not_ the "Geek Squad" - to either set
up Toucan or a similar tool for your needs, and show you how to use it, or to
write and install a custom AutoHotKey script on your computers which will
perform as you need it to. With something as critical as this - and the use of
multiple computers - I think in your situation, I'd choose the AHK script,
since it can be bulletproofed for your situation. And the expense would be
more than justified, considering the amount of work you'll be putting into
this.<BR><BR>> - I have a lot of information to enter and time is a very
big factor,<BR>> so I need the input to be easy, and the learning curve
minimal (I<BR>> already tried doing all this on a database of my own
devising using<BR>> Filemaker, and it became hopelessly
complex)<BR><BR> A minimal learning curve rules out the
programs most likely to suit most of your other requirements - except the most
basic ones. You need unusual flexibility. Flexible programs take a long time
to learn, because they can't be flexible without providing a lot of complex
options.<BR> A custom database might actually be a better
solution - but unless you are a database designer, don't even think of trying
to do it yourself. Since it would be designed to fit your needs, it need only
include the options you want, which would make it simpler to learn. But you'd
need to hire a good database designer - and a database capable of reflecting
genealogical relationships is a major project. I doubt you could afford to do
this, although I've never tried to price a project of that
magnitude.<BR> Either you're going to have to spend
thousands to get someone to set something special up for you, you're going to
have to accept a very steep learning curve, or you're going to have to forget
about all your most demanding requirements. You just can't get a program which
will do the things you need, and which is also easy to learn.<BR>
Ray Beere Johnson II<BR><BR><BR><BR><BR>
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