Cumberland Family Tree seems to have been resurrected. Ira Lund stopped supporting it a few years back, which gave me serious sadcakes.
I’d been using CFT happily for a few years, then upgraded to a 64-bit version of Windows. And found that CFT was not 64-bit compatible. Ira had made a 64-bit version of CFT, but it had been released, and then he’d quit supporting or distributing it, before I’d upgraded my computer. So I was stuck. After much hunting, I found a kind soul who was hosting the 64-bit compatible version for download, and I snagged a copy of it, and it’s worked fine. But now, Ira is back to updating and distributing CFT. It’s a Christmas miracle, yo.
It’s a very Windows 3.1 feeling program. No frills. It’s not the program you are going to use to generate pretty books for your relatives or to create a gorgeous website. But what it does have, and what other programs I’ve tested lack, is a powerful global search and an easy, effective way to locate people who are in the same place at the same time, across your whole tree. That allows you to see connections you would miss if you’re using other programs.
I also like the way it handles source citations. Much sleeker and efficient than Family Tree Maker, and much easier to navigate than Legacy Family Tree. (The latter has a powerful and flexible sourcing module, but you could literally spend half your life learning it, and that seems excessive to me. The point of source citations is to lead others to the place where you found the information you are providing. If your source citation does that, then you’ve met your obligation as a researcher.)
I’m going to continue exploring Legacy Family Tree, because it does have all the bells and whistles. However, for my single name study on the Basquilles, I’m going to stick with Cumberland Family Tree.
red paper boat 