Personal Ancestral File

Developer(s) FamilySearch
Initial release 1983 (1983)[1][2]
Stable release 4.0.4.18 Windows 2000/02/02
5.2.18.0 Windows 2002/07/23
2.3.1 Macintosh 1994/09/30
Operating system Windows, Macintosh
Available in Multilingual
4.0.4.18 Windows 5 languages
5.2.18.0 Windows 6 languages
2.3.1 Macintosh 1 language
Type Genealogy software
License Freeware
Website www.familysearch.org/eng/paf/

Personal Ancestral File (PAF) is free-of-cost genealogy software provided by FamilySearch, a website operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Personal Ancestral File allows users to enter names, dates, citations and source information into a database, and then to sort and search the genealogical data, print forms and charts, and share files with others in GEDCOM format. PAF can also link images and other media files to individual records, and handles Unicode.

Contents

PAF and Ancestral Quest

Several versions of Personal Ancestral File for Windows have been released by FamilySearch. The current version began with an adaptation of Incline Software's Ancestral Quest program,[3] written by Gaylon Findlay.[4] Findlay has been involved in updates of PAF, of which the current version is 5.2.18.0.[5] Ancestral Quest has been developed separately, although it retains much of the basic visual layout and file structure of PAF. Findlay continues to be involved in the development of the PAF file structure, and, with Version 12.1, has released a series of adaptations allowing a user's PAF file to include information from FamilySearch's new online database known as New FamilySearch.[6]

Version 2.3.1, released in 1994, was the last version of PAF written specifically for the Macintosh operating system, though PAF 5.2.18, written for the Windows operating system, can be installed on Apple Mac OS X using CrossOver Mac.

Future

What is in store for PAF is unclear as New FamilySearch begins to be released worldwide. While FamilySearch continues to support PAF, no updates or fixes have been made in several years. Rumors have been circulating about making the PAF code open source, although no visible moves have been made in that direction.[7] The PAF database structure is equipped to store additional information from New FamilySearch, although the current version of PAF is not able to display this information.

Gordon Clarke, a product manager for New FamilySearch, has stated, "I kind of see new life as being breathed into PAF. I don’t think PAF is dying; I think it is getting a second life." However, no announcements or commitments have been made concerning updates. His statement is likely in reference to third-party software developers, such as Ohana Software, the creators of PAF Insight and now FamilyInsight, which allows PAF files to be synchronized with New FamilySearch.[8][9][10]

Ancestral File Number

An Ancestral File Number (AFN) was intended to be a unique identifier for each individual with a record in the Ancestral File format, but the number is not always unique, since many individuals have been assigned multiple AFNs through the years, making it confusing for those doing research. AFNs are used as a genealogical indexing tool by the LDS Church. AFNs consist of four capital letters or digits, a dash, and then two or three more capital letters or digits. An AFN does not contain any vowels (A, E, I, O, U, or Y). An example is 1BS3-9X1. AFNs can be searched online at the LDS genealogy website, FamilySearch.

FamilySearch is continuing its support for AFNs in its new database, New FamilySearch. Although the AFN is being replaced by the "Person Identifier", one can still search for an individual using an AFN. No new individuals will be assigned an AFN, although each person will be assigned a Person Identifier. The AFN is not displayed when viewing an individual in the new database and New FamilySearch will not be maintaining the Ancestral File database separate from New FamilySearch. When the full transition to New FamilySearch is complete, the Ancestral File database will have been merged with information from several other databases, altering much of the information.

Third-party software developers are designing programs that will allow users to synchronize their databases with New FamilySearch based upon the Person Identifier; it is unclear what role, if any, the AFN will play in synchronization. The list of programs certified to work with New FamilySearch can be found here.

Release history

The history of Personal Ancestral File (PAF) ran in parallel with the evolution of GEDCOM,[11] the de facto specification for GEnealogy Data COMmunication or exchange.

This is a selected release history:

Languages

PAF Companion

PAF offers a limited set of charts and reports. A comprehensive selection of charts and book reports is available from PAF Companion[42], including: Ancestor Chart (with siblings option), Descendant Chart (top-down or left-to-right), Fan Chart, Ancestor Book (Ahnentafel), Descendant Book (Register), etc. The Outline Descendant features a generational recap at the top of each page. Many charts include photos. The charts can be printed on a single large sheet of paper (plotter), or on individual letter-size pages that can be tiled together into a large chart.

See also

References

  1. ^ Chapter 8: Automating the Records, BYU Studies, vol. 34 (1994), Number 2--1994 - "Personal Ancestral File (PAF) was initiated in 1983 as a part of the Ancestral File project."
  2. ^ Early Genealogy Programs - The Humble Beginnings of Genealogy Software on the Computer - By Dick Eastman - "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints first introduced Personal Ancestral File (PAF) in 1983. The program had a previously unheard-of low price of only $35." About.com, a part of The New York Times Company.
  3. ^ Ancestral Quest
  4. ^ Gaylon Findlay - "President of Incline Software" - Mesa, Arizona Family History Expo 2008 - Family History Expos
  5. ^ Personal Ancestral File for Macs - Selected FAQ "The current version of Personal Ancestral File for the Macintosh is 2.3.1. The current IBM versions of Personal Ancestral File are 4.0.4.18 and 5.2.18 (as of Aug 2002).
  6. ^ Incline Software's press releases Press Release
  7. ^ Open source rumors about PAF
  8. ^ The Death of PAF?
  9. ^ LDS Tech » Blog Archive » Official statement on the future of Personal Ancestral File (PAF) - From Gordon Clark, Family and Church History, LDS Church (March 31, 2008)
  10. ^ LDS Tech » Blog Archive » “Official” statement about status of PAF premature - April 14, 2008
  11. ^ Subject:Timeline of GEDCOM versions and PAF"The evolution of GEDCOM runs parallel to the development of PAF that for many years, especially 1985–1989, was LDS' real-world implementation of GEDCOM." George Archer - Date:Mon, 20 Nov 2000 21:34:35 -0500
  12. ^ Chapter 8: Automating the Records, BYU Studies, vol. 34 (1994), Number 2--1994 - "Personal Ancestral File (PAF) was initiated in 1983 as a part of the Ancestral File project. It was released in April 1984"
  13. ^ LDS.org - Ensign Article - News of the Church: “Personal Ancestral File: New Genealogical Software for Home Computers,” Ensign, June 1984, 78 - "At present, Personal Ancestral File has been developed for IBM PC and IBM PC/XT computers"
  14. ^ RootsWeb: ROOTS-L Re: Genealogical Programs From: Cliff Manis "I still have the PAF 1.0 in BASIC." - Date: Sun, 28 Oct 90 18:17:06 CST
  15. ^ NSGS--NEBRASKA ANCESTREE Vol VII, no. 3, page 83 - Winter 1984-5 From: Keith W. Chambers, Beatrice, NE KEITH'S COMPUTER KORNER - "I read an article in the World-Herald about a new computer program that was being introduced by the LDS Church"
  16. ^ *LDS.org -Kathleen Lubeck, “The Church and Computers: Using Tools the Lord Has Provided,” Ensign, Jun 1984, 24 "“The Genealogical Department has just completed development of a new genealogy software program for those who own or have access to personal computers,” he added. Personal Ancestral File is now available"
  17. ^ LDS.org - Ensign Article - News of the Church - “New Genealogy Software Available for Computers,” Ensign, July 1986, 75 "While the original software package (Personal Ancestral File 1.0), released two years ago, was written in BASIC, Personal Ancestral File 2.0 uses “C,” a computer language that allows faster operation and fits on fewer diskettes."
  18. ^ RootsWeb: ROOTS-L Re: Genealogical Programs - From: Ron Holt Date: Sun, 28 Oct 90 16:23:48 GMT - "I'm one of the original developers of PAF (version 2.0) and know there was a Unix (actually Xenix) version done. Though the original version was developed on an IBM PC, we got to the point that we did most of our development work on the Xenix version and then ported that version to the PC, Apple II, etc." Date: Sun, 28 Oct 90 18:17:06 CST
  19. ^ "Chapter 8: Automating the Records, BYU Studies, vol. 34 (1994), Number 2--1994 "The earliest version of Personal Ancestral File had one glaring deficiency-poor response time. Release 2.0, a complete rewrite that was available in April 1986"
  20. ^ LDS.org - New Era Article - Lori Stephenson Dawson, “Even in an Ordinary Ward,” New Era, Nov 1987, 9 Personal Ancestral File - "Personal Ancestral File (release 2.0) is available in versions for MS-DOS computers, Apple computers, and CP/M computers."
  21. ^ Family history data can now be submitted on computer diskette By R. Scott Lloyd - Church News staff writer -Published: Saturday, July 16, 1988 "Named "Release 2.1" to distinguish it from earlier versions of the Personal Ancestral File, Releases 1.0 and 2.0, which are no longer available,"
  22. ^ LDS Church News - Upgraded software soon available for home-computer genealogy - By R. Scott Lloyd - Church News staff writer - Published: Saturday, Nov. 18, 1989 "For now, Release 2.2 is only available in a version for MS-DOS (IBM-compatible) computers."
  23. ^ LDS Church News - Upgraded Personal Ancestral File available Published: Saturday, Jan. 8, 1994 "Release 2.3 of the program, for MS-DOS computers"
  24. ^ PAF 2.3 Still Has Problems! - THE LIVERMORE ROOTS TRACER - VOLUME XIII AUTUMN 1994 NUMBER 5 - Livermore-Amador Genealogical Society "Personal Ancestral File (PAF) Release 2.3 is no longer being offered or distributed by the Family History Department of LDS. There are some known "bugs" that they are still trying to fix."
  25. ^ Personal Ancestral File 5 Tips and Tricks - Family History Conference Class Handout - By:Kevin Owen - 25 October 2008 - Brigham Young University - Idaho
  26. ^ Personal Ancestral File for Macs - Selected FAQ
  27. ^ LDS Church News - Church releases new PAF version for computers Published: Saturday, June 7, 1997 "A new DOS version of Personal Ancestral File 3.0"
  28. ^ LDS Church News - Newest PAF version available on Internet Published: Saturday, July 10, 1999 "Personal Ancestral File 4.0 was made available on the Internet service on June 28, just five weeks after the service's launch."
  29. ^ Ancestral Quest - Program Description - PAF Compatibility - "NOTE 1: In 1999, Incline Software donated a copy of the source code for Ancestral Quest 3.0 to the LDS Church. The LDS Church then used this code as a base for creating PAF 4 and PAF 5. This is part of the reason why the two programs are so compatible."
  30. ^ FAQS - "Is there a relationship between PAF and Ancestral Quest? - In 1999, Incline Software, with some strategic help from its partners, helped the LDS Church develop PAF 4 based on the newly released AQ 3.0. Both PAF 4 and the newer PAF 5 are therefore very similar to AQ. Since 1999, while the LDS Church has developed adjustments and new features into PAF, Incline Software has also develop dramatic new features into AQ." - Incline Software
  31. ^ LDS Church News - Software upgrade makes names easier to submit to temple Published: Saturday, March 24, 2001 "(PAF 5.0 was recently updated to accept most of the world's alphabets and now has screens in and prints reports in Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Swedish and German.)"
  32. ^ PAF 5.0 - Dick Eastman Online 1/3/2001 "Languages and Cultures. The biggest change in PAF 5 is that you can type and store characters from many of the world's languages. Not only can you record information in your own language, but you can also type characters from the languages of any of your ancestors. Technically, the database has been redesigned to accommodate all Unicode data."- Archive - Ancestry.com
  33. ^ LDS Church News - Key new features now on PAF 5.0 "Key new features include a Palm OS application" Published: Saturday, June 16, 2001
  34. ^ GedStar and MyRoots, Can You Have It All in One Palm OS Handheld Database? By Janet Brigham Rands, From The PAFinder, June 2002, GedStar is so similar to PAF for Palm in design and navigation that it appears more like a sibling than a kissin' cousin.
  35. ^ Palm OS Genealogy Viewers, Genealogical Computing, 2003/1/10 - Archive, October/November/December 2003 Vol 23 No. 2, Ancestry.com After my last review, some may have wondered why I did not review the free PAF for Palm product. It is equivalent to the older GedStar 3.1, but has not been upgraded since, to my knowledge.
  36. ^ GedStar Version 4.0, Dick Eastman Online, 4/18/2001 - Archive, Ancestry.com
  37. ^ GedStar, GHCS Legacy Products Home
  38. ^ LDS Church News - Software upgrade makes names easier to submit to temple Published: Saturday, March 24, 2001 "PAF 5.1 will check the FamilySearch Internet site and check for updates. This upgrade is now available"
  39. ^ LDS Church News - Updated PAF 5.2 available - Published: Saturday, Aug. 10, 2002
  40. ^ Personal Ancestral File 5.2 and PAF Companion 5.4 - Software Version Changes
  41. ^ PAF 4.0.4 is the most current version for French, Spanish, and Portuguese speakers.
  42. ^ [1], PAF Companion is available from FamilySearch

External links

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Ahnenblatt · Ancestral Quest Basics · Family Tree Builder (free ver.) · Legacy Family Tree (standard ed.) · Personal Ancestral File (PC) · RootsMagic Essentials  · SmartGenealogy
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