Genealogy Programs for Macintosh

Macintosh owners may have the best operating system, but they may have a bit of trouble finding genealogy programs. Actually, there are several excellent genealogy programs available for Macintosh, and some are as good as or better than the majority of Windows genealogy programs. However, they do not seem to be as well known, probably because of less marketing effort.

The thing that fascinates me is the international nature of Macintosh genealogy programs. The leading programs are produced in the United States, France, Germany, Australia, and even tiny Iceland.

On the downside, the Macintosh genealogy programs tend to be more expensive than Windows programs of similar capabilities. Windows users can find very useful genealogy programs that are free of charge, such as Legacy Standard Edition. Moving up to the $20 to $30 (U.S. funds) range finds a bunch of very good genealogy programs for the Windows operating system. Even the most expensive of the popular Windows genealogy programs sells for only $34 to $59, depending on which version is selected.

In contrast, there are no free Macintosh genealogy programs, other than a few small programs that lack some essential features. The Macintosh genealogy programs worthy of consideration all sell for $20 to $99.

NOTE: Macintosh users can use some of the free online genealogy services, such as PedigreeSoft Basic Edition and WeRelate.org, mentioned below. These services operate in a web browser and do not install hardware on the local system.

I have written about a number of Macintosh genealogy programs in past newsletters, but those articles are not always easy to find for the newcomer. (Here’s a hint: Use the SEARCH PAST NEWSLETTERS link in the menu to the right of most pages on this web site.)

I thought I would write one article that links to all the major articles I have written about Macintosh genealogy software. I expect to update this article occasionally as new programs appear or existing programs are updated:

Reunion by Leister Productions is probably the most popular Macintosh genealogy program sold in North America. Of course, that is not saying that it is "the best," although it might qualify for that title also. At least, many Reunion users claim it is the best. It sells for $99.00 (U.S.) and is available from many Macintosh retailers. More information may be found at http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2007/03/reunion_version.html and at http://www.leisterpro.com.

Heredis is probably the most popular Macintosh genealogy program in Europe. Produced in France, this full-featured program is available in many different languages. It sells for $69 U.S. You can read more at: http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2005/09/heredis_mac_x2.html and at http://www.myheredis.com.

MacFamilyTree is produced in Germany and offers an excellent GUI, a graphical user interface that is individually configurable to meet the needs of any user. It also is available in many languages, including English. MacFamilyTree sells for $49 U.S. Details are available at http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2007/08/macfamilytree-v.html and at http://www.synium.de/macfamilytree/preview.html.

iFamily for Tiger is a new genealogy program from Australia that is gaining popularity rapidly. It is very much a graphics-oriented program, in keeping with the graphics strengths of Macintosh systems. It sells for $29.95 US. You can read more at http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2007/08/ifamily-for-tig.html, at http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2006/12/ifamily_for_tig.html and at http://www.ifamilyfortiger.com.

Genealogy Pro is a low-cost ($20) Mac genealogy program. It features an easy to use graphical interface to record and chart your family tree. More information is available at http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2006/03/genealogy_pro_2.html and at http://www.genealogypro.net.

Osk is available for both Macintosh and Windows XP systems. The program is produced in Iceland and sells for $40 US. http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2006/11/osk_genealogy_s.html, at
http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2006/11/osk_genealogy_s.html and at http://www.studlar.net/en/software.

Several of the online genealogy programs also work well with Macintosh systems. These programs typically operate in a web browser and store all data online. As such, they are not limited to one operating system. Two leading examples are The Next Generation ($29) at http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2004/06/the_next_genera.html and at http://lythgoes.net/genealogy/software.php and PedigreeSoft (free to $70/year, depending upon options selected) at http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2007/03/pedigreesoftcom.html and at http://www.pedigreesoft.com. Another option is to use the shared database at http://wwwWeRelate.org.

If you own a Macintosh, you can feel smug to know that not only do you own the best operating system, but you also have a variety of genealogy programs to choose from.

Comments

[Keith Wilson]

Hi Dick

You seem to have made two (major) omissions:

1. GEDitCOM at http://www.geditcom.com

2. A reference to http://www.macgenealogy.org

Keith

[Dick Eastman]

The programs listed above are all the MAJOR genealogy programs for the Mac. There are quite a few others that are not nearly as popular.

- Dick Eastman

[Jon]

I do wish that the company that owns FTM had not bought and promply buried the Generations program, which is the Windows version of Reunion. I started with Generations and having had to convert to another program has caused me hundreds of hours of work and numerous headaches.

[Bev Anderson]

Thanks for posting this info, Dick! :-) I have marked the web sites in my Favorites file. I can't say I'm in the mood to change genealogy programs, but if I ever change my mind, I have the info and I can do further research later.

I happen to have Reunion (albeit I still use an earlier version, so I badly need an upgrade). The original selling points for me were the fact that the way the program works and displays on the computer screen mirrors what I had in my physical files for some 40-odd years before I got my first computer, and that I could make a genealogy web site that I didn't have to post on the genealogy program manufacturer's web site. Only later did I know that it takes only two clicks on a menu to make an entire web site of over a thousand pages in less than a minute, links to image pages and everything else completely intact. I then edit the front page, add .gif logos I made to personalize my home page, and do an .ftp transfer to my ISP's web server.

A Mac iBook was my second computer and I bought the Reunion genealogy program the same day in early '02, all of that about five months after I got my first PC in the fall of '01.

Before I got my iBook, I had downloaded some half a dozen trial versions of different genealogy programs to my PC and discarded them shortly thereafter. I did buy one version of FTM because it came with additional info CDs, and when I went to fill out data the menus wouldn't let me make a web site that I could post anywhere I want, but only to their web site. That nixed any hope of my using FTM (aside from the fact I find everything about the program cumbersome except the pedigree charts; I've never wanted to post my data on anyone else's web site except my own), so I only keep FTM on my PC in case I need to look at the additional info CDs that came with it.

I can't attest to the other Mac genealogy programs and how they work, but I can say that I'm very happy with Reunion! (I'm about to get ulcers, however, 'cuz my iBook had it's first snafu last week, the whole thing is in the repair shop, and while my genie data is safe and rescued - and I do genie backups weekly, if not more often, to both CD and to the jump drive, so nothing would have been truly lost - they're waiting for a replacement hardware part to make the wireless part work again, so I'm feeling distinctly cranky without my genie program and iBook at my fingertips.)

[Bob Ruskin]

I'm a devoted Macintosh user and have used both FTM and Reunion. As you say they're both good. I give a slight edge to Reunion because of the ease in moving around while editing (adding names etc) and flexibility in organizing and designing charts

[Jon]

"I did buy one version of FTM because it came with additional info CDs, and when I went to fill out data the menus wouldn't let me make a web site that I could post anywhere I want, but only to their web site."

Be very careful about uploading data to FTM's servers. Unless their TOS has changed, once you upload, you have signed away all legal rights to your research to FTM and its parent company.

[Liz]

I never comment but must post to say that I'm a big fan of my Reunion program. Reunion is highly intuitive to use & very flexible in formats/reports. Now if GenSmarts would just come out w/a Mac version!!!

[Betty Gregory]

I have always used an Apple, so when the iMAC came out I bought it. I also have an iBOOK, which I love. I bought the FTM when it first came out, but when they didn't do an upgrade version and said they would not be doing any more for the MAC, I bought Reunion. I am very happy with Reunion and have recently added the upgrade. One thing I really like about the program is when you have a question, the person who answers the phone can respond to your question. No having to punch a lot of numbers before you get a real person to talk to. I invested in a lot of CD's when I had the FTM program and of course cannot use them. Had hoped they would put out a CD that would let me use them, but no luck.

[Larry Shannon]

Good information Dick

In March I bought an IMAC so had to look for a new Program. I chose ReUnion which works fairly well but is limited. I have been a TMG user for years. I finnaly installed Parellel and installed TMG which gives me the best of both worlds.

[Amelia J.]

Thanks for talking about this. I still use Gene, an older shareware program that requires OS9. I love it's simplicity and single person view (I don't know if there is a technical term for that) I've tried some fancier programs but find them too busy. It would be nice if the promised upgrade of Gene to OSX happened, but I am not optimistic. Are you aware of any premium programs for the Mac that have a single person view?

[Marilynn B]

Which of the Macintosh programs most closely resembles Legacy? I use a Powerbook laptop, but have kept my Windows tower for a couple of programs, including Legacy, not available on the Mac. I am accustomed to Legacy, although more features than I actually use, so a simpler Mac program is okay too. (I am NOT interested in emulating Windows on the Mac. The reason I switched was to avoid all the virus/spyware/malware hacks that infest Windows and the bloated fortifications you need to protect yourself.)

Also, is there a PDA program that is compatible with any of the Mac genealogy apps? I use GedStar Pro to upload Legacy data to my Palm TungstenE. It's a searchable database in a user-friendly format, rather than an interactive program, so it is limited for field work. Nevertheless, having all my data available in my purse at all times is very handy!

[Bev Anderson]

Posted by: Jon | September 19, 2007 at 01:55 PM

I do not use FTM specifically because I can't upload my genealogy data to any web site but theirs. (FTM is also much more difficult to work with than Reunion, so what little data I had on FTM when I first got it and tried to experiment with it I deleted.)

I have two genie web sites online and am working on a third, and it's easy to make an entire web site with two clicks on the Reunion menu. My web sites are/will be posted only to my local ISPs web server (my ISP also has fantastsic local people only a local phone call away if I run into a snafu). I can upload or take down the sites at will and replace them with updated info any time on my ISPs web server. Because I do so much research in Digitalarkivet's web site in Norway and they continually add info (weekly, it seems, sometimes even daily), I am always adding info so that section of my genie data is always a work in progress, and I need the flexibility of being able to do updates at will; Reunion and my local ISPs web server gives me that ability.

[Lorenzo]

As a librarian, I am in favor of programs which will create a Word type document, where you can edit text, etc. It can then be printed onto paper. I love being able to use computers for genealogy work, but books are forever compared to web sites. I personally have moved ISP's 4 times in 12 years, cause they went out of business. Uploading to Rootsweb, etc. means that someone has to have a computer and an internet connection to even see the data.

Not so with a book, which can be carried anywhere. OTOH, its cheaper and faster to do things online, and to slipstreams corrections and changes.

[Al Jones]

Thanks Dick for the great Mac info, Just curious why GEDitCOM by John Nairn(http://www.geditcom.com) hasn't been mentioned. I have been using it off and on for the past few years. John has been extremely reponsive to any of my requests. Thanks Again for your Mac Blog

Al Jones

[Marilynn B]

Question for seasoned Macintoshers: How do you import a document with diacriticals intact? I know how to insert them when typing, but I have a text file e-mailed to me by an elderly Swedish cousin from which I would like to simply copy & paste the names. It reads fine, umlauts & all, on Windows machines but no matter what program I use on the Mac it replaces the diacriticals with punctuation. I've experimented with different character sets in the input menu but have had no luck.

My (2nd, once removed) cousin's file covers 8 generations of names and places, so you can understand why I don't want to manually replace the letters. I also am leery of using global replace, since there may be some instances where the character shouldn't be changed. Any help will be much appreciated.

[theKiwi]

Have you tried eMailing the text from one machine to another?

Can you eMail the text file to me - rogerkiwi@aol.com - and I'll take a look at it to see what might be going on.

Roger

[Marilynn B]

Roger, I downloaded the e-mail directly from the mail server to each machine, as well as to one of the XP computers at the Family History Ctr. It came up correctly in all the Windows text apps without my having to do anything. Conversely, no matter what I do on the Mac it comes out wrong. I'll send you an e-mail from each of my home computers (Mac laptop & Windows XP tower). Thanks for checking into this.

Since I am taking a serious look at Reunion, but the demo is crippled almost beyond usefulness, I am going to contact them tomorrow to see if they have any answers. After all, a genealogy program has to be able to deal with international characters or it isn't much use!

[theKiwi]

Reunion can deal with international characters with no problem. It uses Unicode for the character set now, and you can export files with UTF-8 encoding which is what I use to get extended characters out of Reunion and into my websites using TNG. Take a look at

http://testing.lisaandroger.com/getperson.php?personID=I16&tree=Roger

and in the section titled Joan's Notes you'll see an excerpt from one of your files that has been copied from that file, pasted into Reunion and then exported out to a GEDCOM file and imported into TNG for presentation on the web. All appears to be intact.

Roger

[Howard Metcalfe]

As Dick recently wrote a nice short review of Personal Ancestry Writer II (PAWriter) for the Macintosh, I'm surprised he didn't include it in his list of free Macintosh genealogy programs. It currently has 250+ registered users and many more who haven't bothered to register. It was given four mice in the July MacWorld reviews.

Click on my name to go to the site where PAWriter can be downloaded and used at no cost.

[Marilynn B]

I e-mailed the folks at Leister Productions to let them know that the Reunion demo was not going to work for me as I could not import any file that had not been created in Reunion. They replied right away with a registration key that allows me to use the full program for one week. I had no problem importing a GEDCOM created in Legacy with foreign characters, image files, and everything. Having looked over several of the applications mentioned here, I think Reunion suits me the best by far and will be buying it soon.

Roger, I checked "Joan's Notes" and saw the entry with my ancestors. I had to laugh wondering what she thought of her newfound Swedish relations! Thanks again for testing my file for me.

[Robert Tripi]

I just got a copy of iFamily for Tiger. It runs well on my 2Gb laptop, but I was wondering if anyone had tried it on an older PowerPC mac. I was offered an iMac to use for just genealogy, but I want to see how it works before putting out money for it oand a memory upgrade.
Thanks
Bob

[Hal Whitmore]

A new Intel based iMac allowed me (using Parallels Desktop) to do away with my Dell PC and run TMG on my Mac. Windows usage is limited to TMG and the old Windows solataire.

Hal

[Susan Pentico]

Thanks for this very interesting bit of information on all these programs for MAC's. I have REUNION and really like it. I have used FTM when I helped cousin on her PC. I am a true MAC user and it is nice to see other options for the people just starting out who may not want to expand alot up front.
I really stress a MAC in my classes because of the Virus situation. My daughter had so many blocks on her computer(non MAC) regarding viruses it wouldn't operate properly. Yes that was the paid technicians comment. Fortunately, both my grandsons now have MAC's.

SusiCP

[Bridget Wynne]

I'd like advice about what software to use to create and publish a web site with my genealogy on it. I use Reunion 9 and like it. However, its capability for creating web sites requires more understanding of programming than I have, and I don't want to have to learn about html and ftp and so on if I can help it. I'm interested in genealogy, not software and programming.

I purchased something called The Next Generation of Genealogy Sitebuilding, which I thought I'd be able to use, but it is way too complicated for me. I've spent many hours on its forum, emailing with tech support, and so on. I hate to have wasted the money on this, but it is just too hard to use.

What could I use that would be extremely user-friendly?

I have a MaciBook G4 with OSX 10.4.11.

Thanks for any advice you can give!

Bridget

[theKiwi]

It doesn't come a whole lot easier than having Reunion generate Web Cards and Person Sheets and then uploading them to your web space where you currently have the TNG installed.

The other option, which perhaps is easier to just get your data "out there" is to upload a GEDCOM file to somewhere like the World Connect Trees at Rootsweb.com. See this page

http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/

to take a look at that. There are other sites that allow uploading of GEDCOM files - some free, some you pay for, but I know nearly nothing about any of them. I have my Reunion 9 data online using TNG :-))

Cheers

Roger