RootsMagic 5: First Look at New Features

This morning, I was surprised to learn that RootsMagic has introduced Version 5.

I have been using RootsMagic 4 for some time now and am generally pleased with its features. I had no idea that introduction of Version 5 was imminent. In fact, I learned about the new version being available when I ordered a copy of RootsMagic 4 for a client. Version 5 is what is shipping now. I went ahead and placed my order and the confirming email gave me the option of downloading a  copy so that I could take a look.

Apparently, I am not the only one who was not aware that a new version was ready to be introduced. A Google search for "Rootsmagic 5" turned up only the official website; no mentions in blogs, news announcements, or reviews.

For now, I am keeping a copy of my databases in RootsMagic 4, but I am also opening them in RootsMagic 5 to make a  comparison between the two versions and learn how 5 is better.

First impression: I like the look of the new version, and in reading over the What's New list, the enhancements mentioned seem to me to be useful.

Here are some of the new features:

The Research Manager is now able to create unlimited research logs to document your work and aid your research, and you can quickly search for any text in any research log.

One feature that interests me is CountyCheck, which automatically checks every county you enter (US, Canada, UK, Australia) to verify that it actually existed at the time of the event. Also, a report can be printed out that gives you a list of all events in counties which didn't exist at the time. You also can access maps and county histories for the US, Canada, UK, and Australia. This will be a timesaver for me, I believe, as I have been spending considerable time going on www.epodunk.com and www.wikipedia.com to check county names.

A Timeline View shows a full timeline of the current person's events and those of their parents, siblings, spouses, and children.

There also are numerous changes/improvements to People Views and Database Tools. It will take some time for me to try these out and report on them.

To read the What's New list on your own, click here.

I will be posting further impressions on my other blog: www.CollectingAncestors.blogspot.com.