If you have one of the Palm Operating System computers made by Palm, Handspring, Visor, or any of several other manufacturers, you probably have fallen in love with the device. Almost everyone I know who has one of these tiny units uses it constantly. These devices are great when used as a PIM (Personal Information Manager), but they also have the capability to run other programs written by third-party companies. You can even obtain a genealogy program specifically written to squeeze as much information as possible into the Palm device’s limited memory. The best-known and most powerful genealogy program for the Palm Operating System is called "My Roots." The author of My Roots recently released version 2.01.

My Roots provides a database that you can carry in your shirt pocket or purse, far more convenient than carrying the three-ring binders as I used to do years ago. I find it convenient to carry my database to the library, the courthouse, or even to a genealogy society meeting where I may want to compare notes with others. Carrying my genealogy data in a handheld device allows me to quickly search for and display data as needed.

Keep in mind that there are two popular operating systems for handheld computers: Palm Operating System and Windows CE. My Roots works on only on the Palm Operating System. For information on genealogy programs written for Windows CE (as used in the Compaq iPAQ, Hewlett-Packard Jornada, and numerous other handheld computers), see my articles at www.ancestry.com/library/view/columns/eastman/3097.asp and www.ancestry.com/library/view/columns/eastman/2950.asp.

My Roots is indeed a full-fledged genealogy program; it is not a "file viewer." You can enter data into My Roots and even transfer it back to your primary desktop program via a GEDCOM file. Macintosh owners will be pleased to learn that My Roots will transfer data to and from both Macintosh systems and WindowsOf course, My Roots is a bit basic when compared to modern Windows and Macintosh genealogy programs that run on desktop systems. What else would you expect with a genealogy program and database you carry in a shirt pocket?

One of the first questions anyone asks is, "How much information can I store in a tiny handheld computer?" The answer depends upon several factors. The constraints are memory size and processor power. Early Palm computers typically had only two megabytes of memory, which certainly limits the database size. However, today’s models typically have much more memory plus many feature expansion slots where you may plug in even more RAM memory, if you wish. In theory, there is no maximum limit to the database size.

Reality soon takes over from theory, however. Due to the Palm device’s limited processing power, My Roots will run somewhat slowly on a database containing more than a few thousand people. The program’s GEDCOM import routine is also limited to a maximum of 10,000 people.

My Roots features are as follows:

• One-tap navigation from a person to parents, children, and related events (two taps to get to a sibling)
• Import from an existing GEDCOM file (PC and Macintosh)
• Export data to a new GEDCOM file (PC and Macintosh)
• Sort the people in your family tree by name, year of birth, or year of death
• Specify up to 3 separate filters to view a subset of your data
• View a graphical representation of your family tree (both ancestors and descendants)
• Ability to keep several databases
• Create separate notes for each person and event
• Find Person function for quickly locating an individual
• Automatically create categories for major surnames that are retained across import/export
• Support for REFN tags to allow merging with desktop data
• Display the Soundex code for any surname
• Tracking of changes for easy update of desktop data
• 38 built-in event types in 5 categories and the ability to create 50 custom event types
• Support for handhelds with a color display
• Support for handhelds with expansion cards

As mentioned earlier, My Roots can be used as a freestanding genealogy program. You don’t need to own a desktop computer; you can create all the records in its database manually, using nothing other than the Palm computer and My Roots software. In fact, you can even export this information as a GEDCOM file. However, I suspect that most people will prefer to import GEDCOM files containing genealogy data already created on their desktop PC or Macintosh systems.

My Roots will read GEDCOM files created by most of today’s popular genealogy programs. However, anyone using Family Tree Maker, Personal Ancestral File, Legacy Family Tree, Brothers Keeper, or Reunion for Macintosh will want to read the notes in the My Roots user’s manual or online at: www.tapperware.com/MyRoots/faq.html.

I have often warned that transferring data from one genealogy program to another will normally result in some lost data. In the case of My Roots, the Palm computer database does not keep the source notes or occupations or other data items that are kept in more powerful genealogy programs. Such data is ignored when imported into My Roots. The producer of the program warns, "If you export data from your desktop program, import it into My Roots, export it back out to a GEDCOM file, and merge it back into your desktop program, you are likely to lose data!" Rather than merge the data back into the desktop program, I recommend you always transfer data from the Palm device to a new, empty genealogy database on your desktop system. After examining the new data, you can then import the records you wish into your primary desktop genealogy database.

In operation, My Roots is easy to use. Rather than trying to describe all the data screens in this textual newsletter, I would suggest you look at the screenshots available at: www.tapperware.com/MyRoots/index.html and at www.tapperware.com/MyRoots/manual.html.

When first imported, all records appear in an alphabetical list. While you can scroll up and down to find a record, I found it easier to enter the first letter of the surname, using the Palm’s built-in Graffiti handwriting recognition program. The list quickly jumps to the first surname that begins with that letter.

Another method of finding records quickly is to use "filters." You can set filters to show either all people in the database or only living individuals. You can also filter by surname, given name, birth location, death location, birth year, and death year, as well as any combination of these. Names and locations can use "starts with," "contains" or "unknown." Dates can be set for "during," "before," "after" or "unknown." For instance, I found that I could set filters to show all people whose surname starts with "eas" and a birth date before 1900 and a birth location that contains the word "Maine." Within a few seconds I was looking at a list of all the individuals that met these criteria.

Once a person is selected, My Roots has the options of showing all of that person’s ancestors or descendants. Each new generation on the displayed list is indented for ease of reading. You can then tap on any person’s name with the stylus to display that person’s ancestors or descendants.

You can select any one individual and then display the details associated with that record: full name, name of father, mother, spouse, siblings and children. Other details available include the dates and places of the following events:

• Birth
• Adoption
• Death
• Divorce
• Engagement
• Graduation
• Marriage
• Retirement

The user may add other event types to this list.

The user interface seems to be intuitive, and I suspect that many users will rarely look at the user’s manual. However, if you are thinking of purchasing My Roots, you might want to read that user’s manual before purchasing the program. The user’s manual is available online at www.tapperware.com/MyRoots/manual.html.

My Roots is a shareware program. The unregistered version that you download will let you create or import only a few records. This is a good method of taking the program on a "test drive" without paying for it. You can then upgrade to the full version that holds thousands of records for $19.95 (U.S. funds).

I was pleased with My Roots. It will not replace the powerful desktop genealogy program that I like to use. However, it is a great supplemental tool that allows me to keep a subset of my database with me at all times. I always keep my database with me when attending conventions or genealogy society meetings. You never know when you need to look up a record!

For more information about My Roots for the Palm computer or to safely order and download the program online, go to www.tapperware.com/MyRoots.

To view an online demo of My Roots for the Palm Operating System, click on "Online Demo."

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