Review: GedScape – GEDCOM Utility for OS X

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GedScape came to my attention back when I was writing some articles about GEDCOM files, and the conversion of Unicode/UTF-8 GEDCOMs on Macs. Actually that’s only partly true – I had been aware of it for a while, but I didn’t have the time to fully explore it and get a proper writeup on MacGenealogy.org. When I began looking at GEDCOM files on Macs, it took center stage, since it’s the only utility like it that exists.

I can’t stress this enough – it is not genealogy software for a mac like say MacFamilyTree or Family Tree Maker for Mac 2. Don’t download this software and think it’s going to be an all-in-one genealogy solution for you. It has very specific goals and a very specific audience.

With that said, it meets those goals and should satisfy that audience, not just because it’s the only GEDCOM utility like it for Mac OS X.

Read the GedScape Review.

(If you’d like to leave a comment, the comments are open on the review page)

MacFamilyTree 6.2.8

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Genealogy Software for Mac OS X MacFamilyTree has been updated to version 6.2.8.

It’s mostly bug fixes, although the document closing and saving behavior has been improved. Recommended for all MFT users.

MacFamilyTree 6.2.8 Updates
* Several bugs fixed editing notes and source text
* Improved behavior saving and closing documents
* Several other bugfixes

Current MacFamilyTree 6.x users should see the update the next time they load MacFamilyTree or they can click on the MacFamilyTree menu and select “Check for Updates”. If you purchased it through Apple’s Mac App Store, it should also be available through Apple’s Mac App Store Update feature.

It can also be purchased through Apple’s Mac App Store

Adobe Photoshop CS6 – Open Beta for Mac & Windows

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Adobe has posted a public beta of ADobe Photoshop CS6 – March 21, 2012. The Photoshop CS6 beta covers both Photoshop CS6 and Photoshop CS6 Extended – keep in mind that Extended has additional features that the normal Photoshop doesn’t have, such as 3D image editing.

Update – it is a 60-day trial edition.

Just over a month ago, I posted about a video that Adobe posted concerning Photoshop CS6′s Content Aware features. That’s one of many new or upgraded features.

Features of Photoshop CS6
- Aforementioned Content-Aware upgrades, such as “Content-Aware Patch”
- Increased performance from the “Mercury Graphics Engine”
- Upgraded User Interface, a “modern UI”
- “New and re-engineered design tools.”
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New Heredis for Mac – 2012, A Few Details

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If you were a Heredis Mac X.2 user, you were probably wondering what Heredis is up to. They’ve went back to the drawing board to design a completely new Heredis for Mac, that takes advantage of, and works with Mac OS X 10.7 Lion. It is being designed for the Mac from the ground up and they are sticking with their “Genealogy made easy” slogan for the new Heredis, and this is their guiding philosophy:

“This version is based on the principles that Heredis should be easy to pick up and use. And it is designed to be like “Mac” with its ease of use.”

Very little information is available right now, due to it being still in the alpha phase, and with features changing, but here’s a little information:
- Currently in alpha testing with a wide range of testers from several different countries. Testers cover a wide range of experience from beginners to experts, and previous users of Heredis as well as non-Heredis users.
- Will be entering beta testing later this spring
- Will integrate Unicode/UFT-8 support
- Will have support for LDS/TempleReady information

My impressions from the screenshots:
- They have achieved their desire for a “Mac-like” genealogy program
- The user interface looks good
- The information in the different views is clear
- I like the “Immediate Family” view where you get both photos and brief information (names, birth/death years or dates depending on level)
- The illustrated index of locations also looks interesting, complete with a clear display of who lived, died, or was married there, statistics about certain locations, support for web addresses.
- The Charts/Trees (Single-Page Charts, Designed Charts, Fan Charts, etc.) has a very nice interface, similar to Mac OS X’s Finder “Cover Flow”.

Links:
- New Heredis for Mac page at Mac Genealogy Software
- New Heredis for Mac – 2012 Screenshot Gallery

MacFamilyTree 6.2.7

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Genealogy Software for Mac OS X MacFamilyTree has been updated to MacFamilyTree 6.2.7 today. It’s most improvements (GEDCOM Exporting, UI), but new websites have been added to the Web Research function.

Previous Web Search/Research Websites in MacFamilyTree 6.2.6:
- Ancestry.ca
- Ancestry.co.uk
- Ancestry.com.au
– Ancestry.com
- CollectionsCanada.gc.ca
- EllisIsland.org
- FindAGrave.org
- FootNote.com
- Google.com
- MyHeritage.com
- WorldVitalRecords.com

Web Search/Research Websites added to MacFamilyTree 6.2.7:
- FindMyPast.co.uk

Changes/Updates in MacFamilyTree 6.2.7
* New Websites added to the Web Research function
* GEDCOM Export improved
* Performance improved
* Several crash bugs fixed
* Alignment in the My Tree pane improved
* Minor UI improvements

If you’re currently a MacFamilyTree 6.x user, it should show up if you have automatic updates selected, otherwise you can manually download it through the normal software update.

It can also be purchased through Apple’s Mac App Store