COMPUTERIZE YOUR ANCESTRY

by Linda Jonas

To get the most from your DNA results, you will need to compare ancestry with other people. You can post your genealogy on the Thompson website. You also can add a pedigree chart to your personal page at Family Tree DNA and to your Ysearch entry. To do so, you will need to computerize your ancestry. If you don’t have a genealogy computer program, start with the free one at FamilySearch.org. This is an easy program to learn, and you can get it right now. If you later decide to purchase another program, you can create a GEDCOM file and transfer all of your data to the new program. At that time, I would recommend Legacy Family Tree because it is an excellent program and it has fields for you to record DNA results. You can get Legacy Family Tree at <www.legacyfamilytree.com>.

1. To get started, go to <www.familysearch.org>. In the blue bar near the top of the screen, click on Order/Download Products.

2. In the white Family History box, click on "Software Downloads –Free."

3. On the next page, click on 77065000-S "Personal Ancestral File 5.2.18.0 – Multi-Language (9.7 MB)."

4. Click the blue "Download" button on the next page.

5. On the Software Download –License Agreement page, click "Continue."

6. Register on the next page. You must have an email address to download the program. This is only for statistical purposes; you will not be contacted. Click "Submit."

7. To download, select English in the PAF v5.2 Single Language Version box and click "Download":

8. When the File Download box pops up, click "Save."

9. When the Save As box pops up, select the directory on your computer where you want the file to be saved. If you want to make it very easy to find, select "Desktop" in the Save in field. Now click the "Save" button.

10. When it has finished downloading, click on the "PAF5EnglishSetup" icon to install the program.