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Dan Stone

The Discontinuation Of TMG

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While it is unfortunate to learn of the end of TMG development, I want to thank Bob Velke and Wholly Genes for the great software that they have supplied for all these years. I wish Bob good health, some well deserved relaxation, and lots of family time, as he mentioned that his health was one of the factors in him deciding to step back from the genealogy community. While the other genealogy software has made advancements, none of them has yet to equal TMG in my opinion. Your contributions to genealogy will be well remembered for many years to come.

 

The publishing of TMG's internal file structure and release of GenBridge to developers is greatly appreciated, and should go a long way to preserving users data by migrating to other genealogy software. In case others have not thought of this option, running some type of virtualization software is another option to prolong the use of TMG. I run TMG on a Mac running Parallels Desktop, and this should allow me to continue using TMG well into the future. Similar virtualization software is available for Windows to allow older Windows operating systems to continue being used, and this should also allow TMG to be utilized for quite some time if someone does not want to change genealogy software, or would like to wait for more advanced software to migrate to.

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In the Windows world, there is a "compatibility" option in the properties of programs and shortcuts. The option can be set to run a program that's compatible with earlier versions of Windows.

 

As long as it works, it's a lot easier than running virtual instances of older versions of Windows.

 

I say "as long as it works" in order to hedge my bets with Windows, always a prudent idea. Together with virtual instances of older Windows versions, it's nice to have at least two methods in the event that either doesn't work out.

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For those who wish to migrate from TMG to save worrying about compatibility issues in the future, does anyone have a feel for which rival products will offer the best migration with minimum data loss?

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Martin,

 

I did not make many researches. Up to now, I don't know yet what to do.

 

There are (at least in theory) two ways of migrating the data: a) direct import from the TMG database and B) by GEDCOM files.

 

a) direct import:
I have seen only two programs (maybe there are more) that try to import directly from TMG. However, the data migration is limited by the receiving program's features. In addition to that, TMG has changed the role handling in V9 and this is not (yet) reflected by GenBridge (written by Whollygenes and used by others for direct reading of the TMG database), so at this point of time, even if the target program supports the role/witness feature, there will be a loss of data.

 

- Family Tree Builder from myHeritage, but it has limited features for an experienced TMG user

- Family Tree Maker: there is no trial version available, so I have no personal experience. Comments report about problems. And Family Tree Maker wants to sell you a membership for ancestry.com

 

:( data migration via GEDCOM files

As the GEDCOM specification covers only a part of TMG's features, data loss cannot be avoided.

 

Most of the programs seem to support Unicode/UTF-8 which I am missing in TMG (having many Czech names in may data). This is an advantage.

 

Besides the migration of the data an important point is the mightiness (supported features) of the rival product. For my quick and dirty personal test, I have downloaded and installed trial versions of Legacy Family Tree and RootsMagic.

Both support adapting sentences for events, creating new events/tags, sharing events (witnesses/roles) which I am using.

But they also lack features I am used to like flags and accenting. And there is no F3 (repeat) key, no drag & drop for exhibits, no automatic generation of marriage names, ...

 

Then, I don't like the layout of Legacy (TMG had a very clear layout and I could see all interesting information at the same time) and RootsMagic is available only in English (I am using German).

 

Maybe we should wait for another year or so until TMG has released a new version of GenBridge and the rivals have adopted to the changed situation.

Edited by Helmut Leininger

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My recommendation is to wait. There is no need to migrate quickly - TMG will continue to function for a good while, and Wholly Genes support will continue through the end of the year. User-to-user support will continue for a substantial time after that. As Helmut says, no other program offers many of the features we depend on, and those that come closest do not have direct import capability which is required to retain the data that utilizes those features.

 

More time will allow other vendors to develop at least some of those features, and/or direct import, allowing more successful import when the time comes to do that. Further, the more users who remain with TMG until a good alternative is available, the more incentive other vendors have to expend the effort to provide them.

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Being one of the TMG "pioneers" (beta tester pre release 25+ yrs ago) - I have become lazy in my old age and have not upgraded quickly - am currently on TMG 8. Do you recommend upgrading to TMG 9 anyhow? I have no intention of jumping the TMG ship any time soon - will await other developers making a transition easier for those of us with huge datasets (some of my exceed 20,000 individuals).

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A very sad milestone. All good things do have to come to an end at some point but it is unsettling nonetheless to witness the retirement of the best-of-the-best of genealogy software: bar none! Bob, I do hope that the removal of the stress of keeping TMG alive for we few loyal customers will mitigate whatever health issues you might have.

 

I have no intention of migrating until, heaven forbid, TMG becomes unusable. I do not anticipate that will happen any time soon provided the Micro$oft OS does not change dramatically.

 

That said, I have most always upgraded electronically and wonder if there will be an offering for the purchase of a copy of the software on CD so that I will have a solid backup available should I need to re-install?

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Being one of the TMG "pioneers" (beta tester pre release 25+ yrs ago) - I have become lazy in my old age and have not upgraded quickly - am currently on TMG 8. Do you recommend upgrading to TMG 9 anyhow? I have no intention of jumping the TMG ship any time soon - will await other developers making a transition easier for those of us with huge datasets (some of my exceed 20,000 individuals).

I am in the same boat, shouldn't the upgrade prices be reduced since there is only six months of support left on a discontinued product ?

 

Ken

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In my opinion, even if you decide not to upgrade right now, I would make a point to purchase Version 9 while it is still available so you will have the option later.

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That said, I have most always upgraded electronically and wonder if there will be an offering for the purchase of a copy of the software on CD so that I will have a solid backup available should I need to re-install?

You can download the 'trial' version, which is always the latest TMG version, and write it to a CD yourself.

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In a posting to TMG-L, I said:

 

On 7/30/2014 9:48 AM, Terry Reigel wrote:

 

"You can download the "30-day trial" from the WG website. That is a fully functional installer for the current version. You can store that on your computer (you do have a robust backup plan to keep safe copies of all your important files, right?) and/or copy it to any external media you like for safekeeping. Keep a copy of your unlock code in the same place. With those two you are good to re-install in case of any failure on your system.

 

Should WG issue any updates with bug fixes before the end of the year, remember to download the new installer to replace the one you have."

 

----------

 

I don't think that is the whole story. True, you can download the "30-day trial" from the WG website but Terry's second sentence is the key. It seems to me that what you are downloading is a "fully functional installer"; not the full version of the program files (directly). When you then execute the downloaded installer, it connects to a website and downloads the actual program files. So, let's say 5-years after you download the installer, you need to execute the installer again. Will the needed program files (or even the website) still be available?

 

So, for those of us with licensed TMG software, is it possible for us to get the "full" CD-version of the latest software without paying the full retail price again (or even the upgrade price)?

 

Chuck White

Xenia, OH

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As I posted on TMG-L, Chuck, you are misinformed. The single download "trial" version file contains the entire program. No other file is required. Running that one file will install the entire program and all its many files. That one file, and your registration data, is all that one would need to store on a CD.

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I started using TMG with version 4 because it was the only program that allowed me to source data in a reasonable fashion. I believe it was the third program I tried and the first I kept with for long. I've always kept a second program in my hip pocket for a couple of years for siblings/cousins who needed a copy of my data. It was easy to direct them to a free version of the other program and send them a formatted database, with them set up as the primary instead of me, so they could start using the data quickly and easily. (Person 25 in my database is blank so I can renumber me there and renumber the recipient as 1)

 

I've contacted my secondary program this AM and suggested they jump on Genbridge. While I'll keep going with TMG I'm also seeing the inevitable and want my alternative(s) as strong as possible in the interim. If I, as a user/owner, of their program start lobbying now for changes that'll best meet my needs they will more likely be available when I have to make the change.

 

Sort of like financial planning. You write the will, make the investments, and set up the trusts before you die not after.

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It seems to me that what you are downloading is a "fully functional installer"; not the full version of the program files (directly). When you then execute the downloaded installer, it connects to a website and downloads the actual program files.

That's complete fiction. TMG has never used an installer configuration where files were downloaded from the internet. As Michael said, the current installers are complete and contain all files necessary to install TMG. They download nothing from the web during installation. There are two installers... the US version and the UK version. The 'trial' version downloads are these complete installers.

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That said, I have most always upgraded electronically and wonder if there will be an offering for the purchase of a copy of the software on CD so that I will have a solid backup available should I need to re-install?

You can download the 'trial' version, which is always the latest TMG version, and write it to a CD yourself.

 

Thanks. I already did that but somehow my little brain expected the file to be bigger than 46Mb. If that is truly all I need, I am good to go. Thanks again

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Being one of the TMG "pioneers" (beta tester pre release 25+ yrs ago) - I have become lazy in my old age and have not upgraded quickly - am currently on TMG 8. Do you recommend upgrading to TMG 9 anyhow? I have no intention of jumping the TMG ship any time soon - will await other developers making a transition easier for those of us with huge datasets (some of my exceed 20,000 individuals).

Sandy,

 

Yes, I think you should upgrade. Using TMG v9 provides the best platform for compatibility with modern versions of MS Windows.

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I am in the same boat, shouldn't the upgrade prices be reduced since there is only six months of support left on a discontinued product ?

Ken,

 

I hope that there is no discount offered. TMG users who didn't upgrade are a leading cause of the demise of TMG, and it seems plain wrong to reward that behavior now that WG has decided to discontinue it.

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I've been using TMG since version 4, I think. I still remember Bob Velke offering to personally deliver the software to my house when there was some kind of shipping problem. I'm now running v9 on a Mac using Parallels and Win7. I had started looking at Mac genealogy programs to see what was available, but nothing really appealed to me. I've been spoiled by TMG. Which, after a moment's panic, I know I can keep using for a very long time.

 

Thank you, Bob, and best wishes for a happy and healthy retirement!

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Being one of the TMG "pioneers" (beta tester pre release 25+ yrs ago) - I have become lazy in my old age and have not upgraded quickly - am currently on TMG 8. Do you recommend upgrading to TMG 9 anyhow? I have no intention of jumping the TMG ship any time soon - will await other developers making a transition easier for those of us with huge datasets (some of my exceed 20,000 individuals).

You really ought to upgrade otherwise how are you going to read my 20,000 plus individuals, many of whom you are responsible for giving me in the first place? Was it you who directed me to TMG or did I manage to find it on my own? :notworthy:

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Ken,

 

I hope that there is no discount offered. TMG users who didn't upgrade are a leading cause of the demise of TMG, and it seems plain wrong to reward that behavior now that WG has decided to discontinue it.

 

(posted by John Cardinal)

 

John,

 

Frankly, I am quite surprised by your reply: users who didn't upgrade are a leading cause of TMG's demise! Wow! Blame TMG's current and former users! -- If TMG were a superior product, or even truly competitive, it would be attracting new users by the carload, and upgrading wouldn't be a question for nearly anyone. -- Despite TMG's unique feature set, there are plenty of perfectly good reasons users have been abandoning it, and sales aren't increasing. It is very naïve to think otherwise.

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Life is full of bad stuff. As with others, I wish Bob Velke the best. The news that TMG is coming to an end is a real kick in the gut for me. I'm 78 and am closing out 25 years of research and was getting ready to hand it over to my kids with TMG. I've been bragging to them for years how good TMG is and how much info I've put into memos. --how 1000s of exhibits are tied to individual persons. Oh boy----!!! I'm sick at the thought of loosing the info in the memos. For me, I'll stick to TMG to the end. For my kids??????

 

So far, the best advice is to hang tight and see what develops. I'll be watching this forum closely.

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Maybe we should wait for another year or so until TMG has released a new version of GenBridge and the rivals have adopted to the changed situation.

Is there any indication that a new version of GenBridge is on the way? I use the current version in my GedStar Pro Android product, but it does not support the V9 role changes. I didn't see anything in Bob's letter that would indicate further development on GenBridge.

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Bob said in his letter:

 

In the interest of preserving users' data, I have released a document that details TMG's internal file structure and I will make GenBridge available for free to developers who wish to produce a direct import from TMG insofar as their programs support the same features.

I hope this means that GenBridge will be updated ("... in the interest of preserving users' data..."), otherwise htis would not make much sense.

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"If TMG were a superior product, or even truly competitive, it would be attracting new users by the carload"

 

I completely agree with John and hope no discounts are offered. Especially to those that gripe about the product!

TMG has always been an outstanding product, best in class, in my opinion...and I have trialed nearly all, supposed competition.

 

Only exception, would be for those who are unable to appreciate its' capabilities.

 

I'll keep using TMG for as long as I possibly can.

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