(+) GEDCOM Utilities

GEDCOM files are handy for many purposes. All modern genealogy programs can export database contents in GEDCOM format, a more or less standard file format. The beauty of the GEDCOM format is that you can export your genealogy data from your regular genealogy program, and you can then use the resulting GEDCOM file to import your data into another program.

Most modern genealogy programs even allow you to export a part (or branch) of your database. A few simplistic programs, however, offer an "all or nothing" approach: you can only export the entire database in GEDCOM format. (These are the programs that are lacking a lot of features, many of which can be added by the use of GEDCOM utilities.)

For more information about GEDCOM files, see my "GEDCOM Explained" article at http://eogn.typepad.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2004/11/gedcom_explaine.html

This week I thought I would describe some of the uses for GEDCOM files. I will describe some of the programs and utilities that will accept your database in GEDCOM format and then perform functions that may not be available in your present genealogy program. Best of all, these programs are either free or else available for very modest prices.

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