The Microsoft Internet Explorer Web site.
If you decide to go further with family research, you should know that there are two basic formats used for genealogical information--GED files and FTW files. Most computer programs will accept either format . You should also be aware that there are two basic programs used by most genealogists. The first is Personal Ancestry File, and the second is Family Tree Maker. But first let's talk about browsers.
The headaches of setting up web pages for the variety of browsers now available are monumental. I've set up this Page to run on Internet Explorer, which is by far the most popular one used. IE6.0 works with all Windows Operating Systems from Windows 98 on. I'm not sure about Windows 95, so if you have that OS, you might be stuck with IE 5.0. I've even included a link for you to use to upgrade to IE 6.0. You can download it yourself by clicking on the icon below
You should also download the MrSid plug'in for your browser if you are going to look at the census data sheets. It is free and very useful. It can be found at by clicking on the following logo:I keep most of my data on a program called "Family Tree Maker" a very versatile program available for about $30 retail (often discounted in places like Office Depot, Amazon .com or Barnes and Noble). It is very easy to use and can generate a variety of reports on your family. You can read more about the program by clicking on the following logo:
I have sometimes used a free program published by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (the Mormons). The Mormon Church has the most complete set of genealogical information on the planet (it is their belief that ancestors of Church Members who are identified are given access to Heaven, even if they weren't Mormons). It is called Personal Ancestral File and is available by clicking the icon below. The program is a good one and creates trees in a variety of formats. The current version is 5.2.18. It can also be download at
You probably have Adobe Reader already installed on your computer. It's a free program that allows you to read documents in a certain format, but not to amend them. You can print them out, but can't easily change them to a different format.
Because there are so many different word processing programs and so many versions of them, I've decided to use Adobe Reader for some of the detailed documents. The format of a Family Tree is important, and many programs can't read indenting, underlining and changes of font the way they were intended.
For this project, I've set up Adobe Reader text files where appropriate. You may download it for free directly from Adobe by clicking on the button below. The current version is Version 5.0. If you haven't installed it previously, you are unusual because it has become the standard way to read and share documents.
