FHS Software Description
The Family History System software consists of 22 programs (25 programs in the extended version) which are tightly connected through a single Main Menu of program options. The family file format permits recording standard items of information such as: Names (Given name, Surname), Birth/Marriage/Death dates and places, addresses, comments and parent identification. It also provides separate record formats for recording Education, Occupation, Military and Medical information. As many as 32000 name records can be recorded in a single family file and there are no limits to the number of marriages or children that can be recorded for each individual or for the number of generations of relationships that can be recorded. (Some reports allow only 2 digits for the child number or for the generation level, but this is not a limitation on the number of children an individual may have or on the number of generations of relationships that can be recorded in the file.)Requirements for running the programs are:
A printer is recommended for making full use of the system but is not required for creating, maintaining or displaying information in the files.
- an IBM PC, PCjr, XT, AT, PS/2 or compatible computer
- a HD diskette drive or a Hard Drive on which to install the programs
- an 80 column monitor
- at least 512k of RAM
- DOS 2.0 or later
Although the software is not written for Windows, it will run under any version of Windows as a DOS application. It will even run "in a window" if you are using an 800x600 or higher resolution for your Windows environment.
Reports and charts produced by the public version of the software include:
- Ancestor Reports - listing ancestors by "ahnentafel" or "lineage" number
- Descendant Reports - listing descendants grouped by "family" or by generations
- Ancestor and Descendant Summary Reports
- Relative Reports - which list in a single report all descendants of each ancestor of an individual
- Relationship Summary Table
- Family Group Reports - Showing all information about an individual
- Meged Group Reports - combining multiple family group reports into a single report
- Register Reports - a type of Merged Group Report using conventions that are widely recognized for reporting descendancy (although it is adapted here for Ancestors and Relatives as well)
- Blank Group Worksheets - for recording information to enter into a family file
- Blank Ancestor Charts (4 or 5 Generation styles) for recording information to enter into a family file
- Complete sets of linked Ancestor Charts - for up to 53 generations of Ancestors in 4 or 5 generation styles
- An "Ancestor Map" - showing up to 53 generations of ancestors in a single continuous chart
- Ancestor Box Charts - showing up to 53 generations of ancestors in a single chart, with generations of ancestors arranged horizontally or vertically
- Descendant Box Charts - showing up to 99 generations of descendants in a single chart, with generations of descendants arranged horizontally or vertically
- Family Path Charts - box charts showing the "path" of relationships connecting two relatives through a common ancestor.
- Lists of individual information for selected records in ID# sequence
The system extensions, provided to registered users, add the following reports:
- Lists of individual information for selected records in sorted sequence;
- Indexed summary reports
- Tiny Tafel reports
- A printed index for detail reports and charts
The publc version of the software includes a GEDCOM utility which allows transfering basic types of information (Names, birth/death dates and places, marriages, and family relationships) between FHS and other genealogy software supporting the GEDCOM specification. Other utilities in the public version provide functions for exporting information to "mailmerge" format files and for "validating" information in an FHS family file.
Documentation for the software consists of a 158 page manual describing both the public version of the software and the system extensions that are provided to registered users. This manual is provided in the form of Microsoft Word formatted documents.
Both the manual and the programs in the public version of the software are available for download from this site.
Order Form - for ordering/registering to receive Family History Software on diskettes