HtmlPedigree - FAQ for users

What are the program's system requirements?

The program runs on Microsoft Windows operating systems, 95/98/2000/NT 4.0/Me/XP, and the installation requires 3MB of disc space.
The memory requirements depend on the size and contents of your GEDCOM file. For files larger than about 1MB, it's recommended that your computer has 56MB or more of RAM. If you need to process very large files, please download the free trial version to check that your computer has enough memory.

How is the free trial version of the program different from the full version?

The free version is provided for evaluation only, so that you can decide whether to buy the full version. All the functions of the full version are included, except that dates of death and burial are replaced throughout by the phrase "[Registered version only]".
If you decide to buy the full version, all you need to do is purchase a registration key (which will be delivered by email), start up the trial version and enter the key. The program already installed will then run as the full version - no further download is necessary.

I don't have a GEDCOM file. How can I produce one?

The GEDCOM format was intended as a common standard to enable genealogical data to be exchanged between people using different computer programs. Therefore most genealogical software has the option of exporting data as a GEDCOM file. For use by HtmlPedigree, the GEDCOM file must be in ANSI format (rather than UNICODE or ANSEL), so it's important to select this option when exporting the file.
If you don't currently use genealogical software, one possibility is to use Personal Ancestral File, a popular free program produced by the LDS Church, which can be downloaded from the FamilySearch website. This offers a user-friendly way of inputting the data and exporting a GEDCOM.

What kind of web-hosting account will I need?

The web pages produced by the program do not require any special processing by the web server, so an ordinary web hosting account is all that's needed.
Note that some free web hosting services modify your web pages in order to insert advertising banners. This is likely to cause problems, so these accounts are not suitable. However, if the service presents your web pages unchanged within a frame, they should function properly.

How many web pages will be produced, and how big will they be?

This will depend on the type of information in the GEDCOM, and to some extent can be changed if you alter the parameters governing the size of the files (see How information is written to web pages).
As a very rough guide, with the default settings, the program may produce about 500-1000 files per megabyte of the GEDCOM file. The total size of these files may be about 5-10 times the size of the GEDCOM file.

How do I upload the pages to the web server?

Although the Windows operating system provides a basic facility for file transfer (FTP), a number of programs are available that provide much more user-friendly ways of uploading files to a web server. A list of programs available to download from the Internet, including some good free ones, is available at Tucows.
The pages can be uploaded either to the main directory of your website, or - if they will form only part of the site - to a subdirectory within it.

Can I view the web pages on my hard disc, or copy them to CD?

Yes, the web pages are designed so that they can be viewed off-line as well as through the Internet. The only requirement is that the computer used to view them has a suitable web browser installed (see Browser support).
(However, the Search facility will work only if the pages are on a website.)