FREE RootsMagic Magic Guides

RootsMagic MagicGuide w logoGreat news for RootsMagic users! The popular family history software company has released the first of its forthcoming “Magic Guides.” These free how-to handouts each cover a single RootsMagic topic, step-by-step, with tips and illustrations.

“Magic Guides are in .pdf format and are viewable and printable with any PDF viewer,” says a RootsMagic announcement. “They may be freely copied and distributed (but not sold), so they can be used as handouts in user group meetings or when teaching RootsMagic classes.”

Click here to download available RootsMagic Magic Guides, which currently include “Backup and Restore a RootsMagic Database” and “Copying a RootsMagic Database to Another Computer.” Forthcoming guides include:

  • Installing RootsMagic from the CD
  • Downloading and Installing RootsMagic for Windows
  • Downloading and Installing RootsMagic for Mac
  • Creating a Shareable CD.

RootsMagic bundleRootsMagic is a longtime sponsor of the free Genealogy Gems podcast. Click here to read WHY Lisa Louise Cooke loves their software so much that she partners with them. We report RootsMagic news now and then on the blog, like its availability on Amazon Prime, RootsMagic’s collaboration with MyHeritage (another partner of ours, too!) and how RootsMagic stacks up alongside other family history software programs we like. Click to read more!

RootsMagic 7 Update Can Now Import Family Tree Maker Files Directly

Family Tree Maker users can now directly import their trees into an update of RootsMagic 7.

RootsMagic family history software just announced the release of RootsMagic 7.1.0.1. This new version that allows users to directly import any Family Tree Maker file.

According to a RootsMagic press release, importing Family Tree Maker files was “mostly effective” when users imported them as GEDCOMs. However, files were “often lacking data and details only found in the original file” and added an extra step in the conversion process.

Now RootsMagic 7 can actually import a bigger variety of Family Tree Maker files (more past versions) than the current software itself can do. These include Family Tree Maker 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2014 for Windows; Family Tree Maker 3 for Mac; Family Tree Maker 2010 and 2012 for Mac; and Classic Family Tree Maker files ending with the file extension .ftw.

This is a free update for RootsMagic 7 users (look for the “Update available” indicator in the lower right corner of your RootsMagic 7 program screen and click on it). Click here to purchase RootsMagic 7 (for new customers and those who have previous versions of RootsMagic). For specific instructions on importing Family Tree Maker files directly into RootsMagic 7, visit the RootsMagic blog.

More RootsMagic 7 and Family History Software Gems

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RootsMagic Update And Free Support for Users

Recently I heard from my friends at RootsMagic about a new version of their excellent family history software, as well as tips for getting help using it. I’m a huge fan of RootsMagic software-click here to read my RootsMagic review. I’m also huge fan of keeping your master tree on your own software rather than just in an online tree (click here to read why). From the RootsMagic press release:

“We have released a new update for RootsMagic 7 users, version 7.0.5.0.  This update includes the option to automatch with FamilySearch when doing WebHints, as well as a number of small bug fixes.” Click here to see a list of what is new and fixed. “If you haven’t already downloaded the update, look for the “Update Available” indicator in the lower right corner of your RootsMagic 7 program screen, and click on it.”

A Note About RootsMagic Help

“While we try our hardest to make our software as easy to use as possible, we also realize that a program with as many features as RootsMagic can sometimes seem intimidating. That’s why we try so hard to provide as many ways to get help as we can.

On the other hand, we are a small company (yes, we try to look big) and can often get buried with the amount of support calls and emails we receive. But the one thing we don’t have a shortage of is great customers who are willing to help each other.

Way over half the support requests we receive are answering “how-to” and “can the program do this” kinds of questions. Did you know that we have message boards, mailing lists, and other ways to talk to other RootsMagic users to get answers to a lot of these questions?  We also have online classes (webinars) and tutorial videos (RootsMagic TV) to help you learn how to use the features of your software.  We have an entire knowledge-base of answers to frequently asked questions.” To see all the different ways you can get help with RootMagic software, click here.

We are proud to have RootsMagic as a sponsor of the free Genealogy Gems Podcast.

RootsMagic + MyHeritage = Heritage Magic!

If you’re a MyHeritage user, you know how powerful their search and record matching technologies are–and how many records and trees they have. If you use RootsMagic, you know how adeptly this family history software helps you build and maintain your master family tree. Now you can work more heritage magic by combining these powerful family history tools!

MyHeritage’s Smart Matching™ and Record Matching technologies have been integrated into newly-released RootsMagic 7 in a feature called WebHints. Whenever new records become available that match people in your RootsMagic tree, MyHeritage will send you a clickable alert. It’s kind of like having Google Alerts for MyHeritage embedded right within MyHeritage! Some records will be free to view; others will require a MyHeritage subscription. Either way, don’t you want to know what’s out there that you might be missing? (Bonus: WebHints also include hints from FamilySearch.org!)

Lisa Louise Cooke's Genealogy Gems PodcastPersonally, I’m so pleased to see this collaboration. RootsMagic is a longtime sponsor of the free Genealogy Gems Podcast. MyHeritage also sponsors our podcast now, too. These companies offer products I love to share with readers and listeners because they are truly “genealogy gems.”

A few more good-to-know facts:

  • RootsMagic assures users that “information sent by RootsMagic to MyHeritage for matching is never collected or shared, and is deleted after matching to ensure the complete privacy of RootsMagic users and their data.
  • You do have the option to turn off WebHints if you need to for whatever reason. In the software, go to Tools, File Options, and then uncheck WebHints.
  • MyHeritage matching technologies are also being integrated by Dutch genealogy software Aldfaer and the online genealogy services of Coret Genealogie in the Netherlands.

Is it time for you to try a free trial of RootsMagic and MyHeritage? Test drive them both with their freebie versions (still powerful and totally compatible with the paid upgrades). Click here to learn about RootsMagic 7 (and the free version, RootsMagic Essentials) and here to learn about free and paid subscription options at MyHeritage.com.

What are you finding in your WebAlerts on MyHeritage (or by searching the site yourself)? I’d love to hear from you! Post your discoveries on the Genealogy Gems Facebook page!

Free Helps for PAF and RootsMagic Users

RootsMagic, the makers of award-winning family history software, now offers free guides for users of PAF (Personal Ancestral File, the free family tree software that is becoming obsolete), FamilySearch Family Tree and their own RootsMagic software.

RootsMagic and PAF conversion“RootsMagic for PAF Users: A Quick Start Guide”  is a 16-page, full-color booklet that guides PAF users through the transition to RootsMagic. It addresses common questions and is available as a free download here.

In addition, RootsMagic hosts several tutorial videos on its own You Tube channel, RootsMagicTV.com. Dozens of short videos are organized by the most popular and recent videos and by topic: installing and using RootsMagic; using RootsMagic with PAF; and using RootsMagic with FamilySearch’s Family Tree.

If you’re a RootsMagic user (or are thinking about becoming one), check these out.

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