So many FH Software choices out there! 

What will I use? Good Question. You have decided you want to start with a copy of your FamilyTree on your computer which will give you more control over your own data.

I personally upgraded my PAF records to Ancestral Quest quite a few years ago. I have already discussed Ancestral Quest in an earlier blog. It was actually the fore-runner of PAF so for PAF users it is quite easy to use. Some say it is too basic for them but so far I have not found any issues.

I have just found some notes in FamilySearch (albeit a bit dated) describing the various choices. There are hundreds more software choices but all I will describe are those that work seamlessly syncing between FamilySearch Family Tree and the computer based software. (i.e. non-web based software / applications that run on your PC or Laptop of Macbook).

1. Ancestral Quest has both windows and Mac versions. It has a basic version which is free but lacks some of the features of the Premium version. It's a once off fee and then you do pay for any major upgrades if you want to install them). Click here to find out what FamilySearch have to say. 
(Note - the Windows version works much the same).

2. RootsMagic is also available for Windows and Mac and works with FamilySearch. Click here to find out what FamilySearch have to say. 


3. Legacy currently only has a windows version and is considered the most popular Software. So if you are a Windows user this may be the one for you. Click here to find out what FamilySearch have to say. 

For those who are reading this and not interested in linking with FamilySearch, as I mentioned further up, there are literally hundreds of others to choose from. I believe Legacy are working on a Mac Version and Reunion (a Mac product) are working on linking with FamilySearch. Not sure when these become available.

Feel free to contact me with any questions and I will try to find the answers for you.

Ancestral Quest - how do I load my FamilySearch Tree?

In a previous post I explained how to download and install a copy of Ancestral Quest onto your computer. I suggested you start a new (empty) family tree and save it to a place you will find it again.

If until now you have kept all your details only in FamilySearch and you would now like to load your entire tree into Ancestral Quest then you have come to the right place to get the instructions.

1. First create an entry in your empty Ancestral Quest database for yourself. Name and birthdate will do - the rest you will copy later from FamilySearch. 
2. Click on Menu Item (top bar) and select FamilySearch
3. Select "Import Family Lines"
4. The FamilySearch sign-in screen will show - enter your FamilySearch account name and password
5. Click on the following boxes:

• Download my (your name) Ancestors (top button)
• Select the number of generations of your ancestors you wish to download
• Tick all those you want to include (e.g. families, spouses of children, LDS ordinances)
• I recommend that you also select to use Standardised Family Search place names 

6. Click on IMPORT

7. Answer the question if the database contains a record of you with YES (you created one in point 1 above).

8. Select OK to go to the selection screen in Ancestral Quest

9. It will highlight the RIN as 1 which is correct as you have only created 1 record. 

10. Click OK

11. Click Yes on the box "Are you sure you want to proceed". 

The import will now start (depending on the size of your tree can take quite a while) and on completion your Ancestral Quest database should be filled in with all the details except for your own. 

You can now bring your own record up-to-date by clicking on your name and selecting FAMILY  and under FAMILY SEARCH menu item select REVIEW/SYNC individual. This will open two windows. On the left is the information you typed into Ancestral Quest, on the right the information from Family Search. You can now select the boxes to the left of items you wish to move from Family Search (or from Ancestral Quest if you had already set up your full information and need to update it in FamilySearch).

Although there are many steps to follow this is actually quite straight forward and this entire exercise will only need to be done once. When all the data in your Family Search Database is copied to Ancestral Quest you can then decide for future changes, which one you wish to update first and then use the REVIEW/SYNC individual under the Family Search Menu item in Ancestral Quest to keep the two in sync 

These instruction are only meant to get your tree into Ancestral Quest from FamilySearch. If you have a copy of your entire family tree elsewhere (e.g. Ancestry.com) then you need to create a Gedcom file on the site that has your most uptodate data and simply import that Gedcom file into Ancestral Quest. After you have imported it you can then link yourself on your new Ancestral Quest Database to yourself in FamilySearch Family Tree and bit by bit sync each family manually. 

There are many YouTube videos and other help items to show you how to use Ancestral Quest together with FamilySearch. If you get stuck, check with google, or ask a question in FamilySearch or post a comment below and I can contact you. 

Hope you found this helpful.