I’m glad I use Family Tree Maker to work on my family tree. I was having an issue with their product and I received great support from them. Ancestry has been buggy lately, probably due to the increased usage from their holiday promotions. I did not realize how annoyed I was with Ancestry’s lack of performance until I received quick support Software MacKiev, something users are not experiencing at Ancestry. The forums are filled lately with reports and complaints about glitches on the site.
I’m going to reduce the time working on my family tree until my DNA test goes into processing. Theoretically, this would be a good time for me to get some work-related goals done while I wait. The backlog customers are experiencing for DNA testing is approximately an additional month added to the time the DNA test is received by the lab and the time it takes to go into processing. Once the test goes into processing, the the wait times are normal. The message Ancestry has regarding delays is very vague stating there is an additional wait of 6-8 weeks. Many customers would not feel frustrated or complain if they modified their notice to say specifically when the delay happens; during the period when the kit is received by the lab and when it can enter into processing.
I’ve been working on fixing glitches with my tree, which is tedious, but Family Tree Maker makes it much easier to deal with. The Ancestry online tree simply does not have all the tools that Family Tree Maker has to troubleshoot issues, make reports, etc. To be blunt, Ancestry does not have the tools needed to properly manage a tree. Unfortunately, this results in many people have errors in their tree they are completely unaware of. For example, while the hint system is very helpful for finding new leads, it is easy to add a person twice to their tree. Ancestry has a Merge Duplicates tool but it does not have a Find Duplicates tool. As the tree becomes larger, without an outside tool, it becomes challenging to find duplicates.
In general I advise everyone to use a software program to manage their tree simply so to have complete control over their tree, with backups. Genealogy is a lot of work, rewarding but time consuming. It pays to make sure the hard work is preserved.
