An excellent source for the answer to almost any general genealogy question is The Signal Newsletter of the United States Internet Genealogical Society (USIGS).  Another "don't miss" site is John Fuller's Genealogy Resources on The Internet   The Journal of Online Genealogy is a monthly online magazine filled with helpful articles.

Downloading is the process of moving files from one computer to another through the use of a modem or other communications device. In fact, you have already downloaded many files without even realizing it. Every time that you point your web browser to a location, your browser downloads the page data and all the associated components (graphics, Java applets, etc..) and then displays them. That is why it takes more time for more complex pages to load; there is more information for your computer to download.

Shareware, like freeware can be downloaded from the internet for free. The difference is that the authors of shareware expect you to pay them for the use of their software if you enjoy using it and would like to continue using it. Many times once you have paid for the shareware the author will send you an enhanced version of the product and send you updates as they are released. Paying for shareware is based on the honor system, but remember, this is the way that the author gets paid for the hard work and effort involved in creating the product you are using.

It depends on the size of the file and the speed of your modem. Another factor that can affect downloading time is how busy the computer that you are downloading from is. Other factors that effect downloading time is the workload on the computers that the information must pass through to get from the remote computer (computer that you are downloading from) to your computer. Downloading very early in the morning would be the optimum time since there would be less people on the internet to slow down the flow of data. Of course what is early morning where you are is prime time elsewhere. The Web is world wide and used at all hours. Remember, when you are browsing the web you are downloading information so if you are downloading a file and browsing at the same time, the processes will slow each other down.

    The acronym GEDCOM stands for GEnealogical Data COMmunications. It is the standard file format for exchanging information between genealogy programs. GEDCOM files will have the filename extension of .ged. GEDCOM is used to transfer information into your genealogy software program from another genealogy program that supports GEDCOM and vice versa. Nearly all genealogy software programs being written today support this standard. The Family History Department of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) developed the GEDCOM standard.
    Currently, the latest version of GEDCOM is 5.5, but new standards are being worked on.
    Why Use Gedcoms?  Most genealogy programs store data in proprietary data forms which cannot be read by other programs. Which is fine if everyone used the same software, but they don't! If I wanted to share information from my Family Tree Maker program with a friend who used another genealogy program, I'd be out of luck unless both programs supported the import and export of data in GEDCOM format. Today, almost all of the programs available support GEDCOM, so you can share your data with just about everyone.
    For instance, let's say I want to share a particular line from my Family Tree Maker file with a friend who uses a different program. To generate a GEDCOM file, I open the Family File which I wish to share, and use the Save As... command to tell Family Tree Maker to export the data in GEDCOM format. Some programs allow you to specify how information will appear in the GEDCOM file by choosing a particular version of GEDCOM, whether you wish notes included, and whether you wish tags to be abbreviated. Check your program to see what particular options you have when exporting a GEDCOM.  
    Once the GEDCOM file is created, you can give it to your friend on a disk, or attach it to an e-mail. You can also view your GEDCOM using a word processor or text editor. Although a GEDCOM is nothing more than a text file, you should not alter it unless you are familiar with GEDCOM standards.
    Upon receiving your GEDCOM, your friend can import it into her genealogy program, and voila! A data exchange has taken place. With GEDCOM you can view others' research, incorporate it into your own file, print it out, and add or subtract to it without having to type the data in by hand.  For additional information on Gedcom files and their uses please visit the following link -  GEDCOM

• Most files available on ftp sites, bulletin boards and electronic services like CompuServe are distributed as archives. Two benefits of using archives for electronic file distribution are that only one file transfer operation ("download") is required to obtain all related files, and file transfer time is minimized because the files in an archive are compressed.
• It is often useful to send a group of related files to an associate. Rather than distributing individual files it is often easier to distribute the files as an archive to benefit from the file grouping and compression.
• Some files are important but used infrequently. To save disk space simply compress these files into an archive when they are not used, and decompress them only when needed.
  
 

About WinZip - What's new in WinZip 10.0    WinZip is The most popular compression utility for Windows, with more than 150 million downloads!

What the Press Says

Current Features allow users to:

• Type each person's information only once.
• Import and Expoort Gedcom files from others
  
• Link individuals to families.
• New: Type names and places using characters from any language.
• New: Create templates to customize data entry.
• Print pedigrees, family groups, or lists.
• Track your research sources.
• Use photos, sound clips, video, and notes to add interest and value.
• Search, find, and correct information.
• View family information in different ways.
• Match/merge duplicate entries.
• Filter searches.
• Share your information with others.
• New: View screens and print reports in either English, German, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, or Swedish.