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Thread: MS Access

  1. #1
    Chris85
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    Question MS Access

    Hi

    I was wondering if anyone else used Microsoft Access to store their family tree information.

    I made one myself for my information and it seems to be going well, although there are some things I'd like it to do that I have yet to work out how to do it (if it's possible).

    I just wanted to know if anyone else has tried and found it be be completely inadequate for their needs. It would be a lot of information to move onto another program if it becomes unworkable at some point.

    Thanks,
    Chris

  2. #2
    Peter_uk_can
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    Hi Chris

    I use Access at work, and for what we do it is great. As anyone who has ever looked at it will know, it can be configured a horrendous number of ways and many many years back I did think about using it for my genealogy.

    After seeing Legacy in action, I decided that there were much better ways of spending my time, so I never pursued Access in the genealogy role.

    I am now some 10 years on and still with Legacy, deluxe V7. It is such a low cost piece of software and has proved 100% bug free, so I am happy to sit back and let their people do the hardwork. I now have two many names, sources, places and dates to even consider Access.

    Just my own views on the subject and as always each to their own.

  3. #3
    Famous for offering help & advice
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    Default Legacy & MS Access

    Hi Chris

    I've never used Access so can't directly answer your question, but you (and Peter) may be interested to know that Legacy used to be based on Access, and on the users' group there were questions from time to time about opening the Legacy database in Access in order to tweak it in some way, or to perform some kind of search or sort routine.

    This was a couple of years ago when I was using Legacy v.5; they're now on v.7, so I don't know if the same kind of thing is still possible. However, if it is, you might find that with a bit of fiddling you could import your Access data directly into Legacy. Incidentally, you can get the Standard version of Legacy for free, with no time limitations, and then if you wish pay to unlock the Deluxe version, which has more features.

    Arthur

  4. #4
    Guest
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    The thing to remember here is that computers - both the hardware and the software - are tools. Like any other tool the hardware & software will work best if it is set up to do the job required of it. Because our requirements differ the software solutions to meet those requirements differ also.

    General points for anyone to consider are:
    1. What information do I want to store?
    2. How do I want to add & maintain records? Can I design/obtain data entry and update mechanisms which enable easy input from the raw data obtained?
    3. How do I want to get at the data once it is stored - both in terms of information displayed on screen and in printed form (which in our field might be both textual and graphical)? Can I design/obtain software which will enable creation of the various required outputs?

    It may well be that no single software package meets the requirements but that it is possible to design/obtain a number of programs which will work together.

    For instance, Brothers Keeper suits me admirably as regards data entry but I use the Gedcom interface to transfer information to TreeDraw when I wish to create charts. Gedcom doesn't transfer photographs but I can store what I need elsewhere and import them as necessary.

    If your Access database meets your current and future requirements sufficiently well (and you can extract information for input to another program/programs to cover the shortfall) then fine. However, if the database fails to meet the needs sufficiently well and/or the shortfall cannot be covered without duplicate data entry or complicated interfacing then perhaps another tool is indicated.

    Graham

  5. #5
    MartinM
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    I would agree with Peter..

    I have my own tree on Legacy 7 deluxe, easy to use, and for my purposes without fault.

    I also maintain a database of names (11,000) which are of potential interest, but as yet unproven, in MS Access. It is a brilliant piece of software, but not easy to build a database which will subsequently find and extract a record you may be looking for. As with any software, what you do at the beginning needs to be well structured if it is to deliver the goods later.

    Dpending on your expertise, and on the time you wish to invest, it may be worth using something like legacy, which has had all the hard work already done for you.

    Regards
    Martin

  6. #6
    Geoffers
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    Quote Originally Posted by Chris85
    I was wondering if anyone else used Microsoft Access to store their family tree information.
    There is a programme based on Access - Custodian3.

    Have a look at their web-site (it turns up using a search engine) and see if you can get any ideas from what they have done? - I think you can download a shareware version to see how you can get on with it.

  7. #7
    CanadianCousin
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    Quote Originally Posted by arthurk View Post
    ... you (and Peter) may be interested to know that Legacy used to be based on Access ...
    As far as I know, it still is.

    Tim

  8. #8
    Famous for offering help & advice michaelpipe's Avatar
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    Default

    I started out using Access to store all my data. I also run Legacy 7, but my access databases are critical sources of information. In the process of creating a 'one-name study' I needed to be able to store all bdm data for several thousand individuals. Access offers that ability, with the essential facility that one can extract information based on an endless variety of parameters.
    Access in my opinion is the best way to store data, but one still needs software such as Legacy in order to construct a tree.
    And don't forget to back-up elsewhere!!

  9. #9
    Johnzee
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    ACCESS

    Some thoughts on ACCESS and and support for the views expressed by previous correspondents above. Having been through several databases over 30 years I find ACCESS is as good as they can get and I have developed my own system for quite different professional purposes (in text it would work out to about 21000 data lines each with 40-50 separate bits (in columns) of info). Personal preferences or specific usage may favour other programs.
    In the strict sense ACCESS and LEGACY only use a similar background program and data cannot be directly transferred to or from each other as they do not store those data in the same way (the blocks of data are not identical). The data blocks in LEGACY are not in every instance easily appreciated in text which we can read. TMG is a far more complex system and its blocks are unreadable. GEDCOM is in a simple readable text, in a specific line order and includes specific computer instructions to handle father-son/mother-daughter relationships, and the data can be translated by a genealogical program into the format used by the program.
    ACCESS can handle bulk data of which one, the person's surname, is usually the primary information and the forename, birth date, place, etc are secondary. To associate individuals in ACCESS is a programming problem, utilising a lineage link function (gf, father, son etc) and ACCESS, being a lateral or associative tabular program is not really designed for that. Genealogical programs are and the associated data are tagged to the key names (surnames). ACCESS is absolutely marvellous for associating secondary data by sorting on key words or phrases - sorting all those born in adjacent years in the "boondocks" may point to some relationship between the persons.
    Having taken three surnames from several broad localities (London is big enough, but the names are not common !!!) out of A......y, 50 at a time, and placed them in ACCESS there is a lot of rearranging of the data and deleting some which I consider unnecessary, before it makes sense (storage of dates is nightmare if the date is incomplete, or "circa" or "Abt", let alone y/m/d in US or UK or "month-text" format). But it certainly saved much retyping and associated errors and typing several hundred names and associated data is time consuming, hence I only use ACCESS for genealogical purposes where electronic data are readily available in mass. Once in ACCESS I have selected and re-sorted in many different ways giving possible research leads (of which a few have been successful). I think ACCESS would be a boon to one name reseachers. Although it can be done, so I'm told, I have not programmed my system to take selected information out of ACCESS and into LEGACY which I have used for some 10 years (and recently shifted to TMG merely on the basis of its screen presentation which I like). Once relationships between persons are confirmed they are then typed into the genealogical program. I have also another ACCESS database incorporating the passenger lists for some 200 ships coming to NZ (incomplete at present and mainly before 1880 - 20,000+ names) - a real boon for finding all those of the same name sorted by the date, ship and ports of their departure and arrival.

    Thus I use the two programs for quite different ends.
    ACCESS gives me the opportunity to see possible relationships of persons through sorting by place, date, etc.
    LEGACY/TMG/and others, give the fixed and probably final relationships of persons with all their associated data and photos in a readable text.

    best wishes

    Johnzee

  10. #10

    Default

    Access - I have imported Excel into it, plus other formats. As Lesley said, Works is another option, most research CD's I have come in that format.
    One thing I have noticed is that Access file sizes are large compare to the same file in Excel or Works. I have just changed from FTM to My Heritage Family Tree Builder, still finding my way round it but impressed at the moment.
    Just remember, databases are good, for storing data, sorting data, and being linked with for reports. It really makes no difference as long as all the programs are compatible.

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