News from SpanSoft

List of invalid/blocked emails added to the Web site

We are increasingly having problems responding to emails and product purchases. This appears to be because customers are either providing invalid reply addresses or there is a problem at the customer's mail server.
Clearly we wish to provide fast replies to support emails and provide new customers with their registration keys quickly.
In order to try to alleviate these situations we have added a list of people who have contacted us but who we have been unable reply to. This list is available here.

Program change logs available on the Web site

We have added the change logs (the list of program changes and bug-fixes) to the Kith and Kin Pro and the TreeDraw pages. Now you can check for new features and bug-fixes before you use "Help | Check for updates" in the program.

Kith and Kin Birthday Alert V1.1.0 released

This is a Windows Vista compatibility release and the program is free for all registered users of Kith and Kin Pro V2.

Please ensure that you have upgraded to Kith and Kin Pro V2.1.1 or later.

New features:

• Now runs on all Windows platforms from Win98 onwards.
• Changed the help system to HTML to make it compatible with Windows Vista.
• Added help manual file KKBirthday.pdf.
• Installer updated to make it compatible with 64-bit Vista.
• Added "Help | Check for updates". Automatically checks our Web site for the latest version of the program.

Kith and Kin Pro V2.1.0 released

This is a Windows Vista compatibility release and the upgrade is free for all registered users of Kith and Kin Pro V2 and Of that Ilk Pro V2.

Note that Kith and Kin Pro is now unlocked with a registration key so we will not be mailing the software on CD-ROM unless you specifically request that. This means that existing Kith and Kin Pro and Of that Ilk Pro users will require a registration key to register the new software. We are currently e-mailling registration keys to all registered users. This may take around a week to complete so please bear with us. If you have not received a registration key within a reasonable time after that please contact us.

Note that Of that Ilk Pro has been discontinued. Existing Of that Ilk Pro V2 users can upgrade to Kith and Kin Pro V2.1.0. We will also be sending out Kith and Kin Pro registration keys to registered Of that Ilk Pro users.

New features:

• Now runs on all Windows platforms from Win98 onwards.
• Changed the help system to HTML to make it compatible with Windows Vista.
• Replaced the KithKinP.txt help manual file with KithKinP.pdf.
• Installer updated to make it compatible with 64-bit Vista.
• Added "Help | Check for updates". Automatically checks our Web site for the latest version of the program.
• You can now zoom in and out of the Tree Area using the mouse wheel.
• Added "Database | Save" function.
• Added thumbnail images to full-sized images links in Web pages export.
• Added picture gallery page to Web pages export.
• Added option to view the Web pages after exporting them.
• Added "Uppercase surnames" option to the GEDCOM import function.
• Added Unicode and UTF-8 character set support for importing GEDCOM files.
• Fixed the error when using "Database | Change name".
• Fixed the problem of "Database | Merge" creating all "probable" links.

TreeDraw Standard Edition (TreeDraw) V3.1.0 released

This is a Windows Vista compatibility release and the upgrade is free for all registered users of TreeDraw Standard Edition V3.

Note that TreeDraw is now unlocked with a registration key so we will not be mailing the software on CD-ROM unless you specifically request that. This means that existing TreeDraw V3 users will require a registration key to register the new software. We are currently e-mailling registration keys to all registered users. This may take around a week to complete so please bear with us. If you have not received a registration key within a reasonable time after that please contact us.

New features:

• Now runs on all Windows platforms from Win98 onwards.
• Changed the help system to HTML to make it compatible with Windows Vista.
• Replaced the TreeDraw.txt help manual file with TreeDraw.pdf.
• Installer updated to make it compatible with 64-bit Vista.
• Added "Help | Check for updates". Automatically checks our Web site for the latest version of the program.
• Shape fill patterns are now correctly exported to PDF files.

TreeDraw Legacy Edition V3.1.0 released

This is a Windows Vista compatibility release and the upgrade is free for all registered users of TreeDraw Legacy Edition V3.

New features:

• Now runs on all Windows platforms from Win98 onwards.
• Changed the help system to HTML to make it compatible with Windows Vista.
• Replaced the TreeDraw.txt help manual file with TreeDraw.pdf.
• Installer updated to make it compatible with 64-bit Vista.
• Added "Help | Check for updates". Automatically checks our Web site for the latest version of the program.
• Shape fill patterns are now correctly exported to PDF files.

Windows Vista drops Windows Help support

If you try to open the help file in any of our programs running under Windows Vista (and possibly "Longhorn") you will get the following error message:
"The help for this program was created in Windows Help format, which was used in previous versions of Windows and it is not supported in Windows Vista."

To get the help system to work you need to download the WinHlp32.exe program from the Microsoft Web site, see: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/917607
Quite why Microsoft have omitted the help system from Vista is unclear. If you have any queries regarding this issue please contact Microsoft.
Subsequent releases of our software will use a different help engine.

All editions of TreeDraw from V3.1.0 and Kith and Kin Pro from V2.1.0 are now Vista compatible.

Credit/Debit card payment method change

We have changed the way that we accept credit and debit card payments.

We now accept the following cards:

MasterCard
Eurocard
Visa
Visa Delta
Electron
American Express
Switch
Maestro
Solo

TreeDraw Legacy Edition download links changed

With the migration to our new host, the links to download TreeDraw Legacy Edition have changed.
If you have previously purchased TreeDraw Legacy Edition and need to download the program again, please use the following links:
TreeDraw Legacy Edition version 3: http://www.spansoft.org/downloads/tdlegacy/tdlegacy.msi
TreeDraw Legacy Edition version 2: http://www.spansoft.org/data/tdlegacy2.exe

Please note that users of TreeDraw Legacy Edition version 2 must purchase a new registration key from CustomerService@millenniacorp.com if they wish to use version 3.

New support forum now online

We have upgraded our on-line support and discussion forum.

Everyone is able to view the previous posts but you must now register with the forum if you want to post new messages.
I've transferred the majority of previous posts from the old forum since they are useful as a knowledgebase for users. Apologies if I've spelt anyone's name wrong!

Click here to visit the new forum.

E-mail problems

We have now completed migration to our new host and should be having no more problems.

(11 Dec 2005) We are currently experiencing severe problems receiving email. This is due to a problem on our ISP's mail server and is beyond our control. You may find that emails sent to us are returned to you with a "server busy" message. If this happens, please resend your email - it will eventually get through.

We apologise for the inconvenience. We hope to have fixed the problem within the next week by moving to a different ISP / Host and we will announce that here.

In the meantime our on-line forum is still operational for support requests.

Kith and Kin Birthday Alert
New add-on program for Kith and Kin Pro

SpanSoft are delighted to announce the release of "Kith and Kin Birthday Alert", an add-on program for Kith and Kin Pro / Of that Ilk Pro V2 or later.
Kith and Kin Birthday Alert runs when you switch on your PC and checks your Kith and Kin Pro database for upcoming birthdays and anniversaries of all sorts. If an event is found a window pops up to remind you about it. If no events are found the program closes down without having shown itself.
You can control which events to check for, who to ignore, how many days to look ahead and what the alert messages look like. More than one Kith and Kin Pro database can be checked.

This program is provided free for registered users of "Kith and Kin Pro" and "Of that Ilk Pro" version 2 or later. The program will not work with shareware versions nor with version 1. The program is now included on all registered "Kith and Kin Pro" and "Of that Ilk Pro" CDs.

For more information click here.
To download Kith and Kin Birthday Alert click here.

TreeDraw Standard & TreeDraw Legacy Edition V3.03 bug-fix released

This is a bug fix release.
This update fixes both the memory leak in charts with images and the movement of the ruler when dragging the main window.
Registered users of TreeDraw Standard Edition can upgrade by downloading this patch. For information on installing patches see the Downloads page.
Registered users of TreeDraw Legacy Edition can upgrade by downloading the new version at http://www.spansoft.org/downloads/tdlegacy/tdlegacy.msi

Installation fix added to "Hints & Tips" page

If you see the following error message when trying to install any of our programs:

16-bit MS-DOS Subsystem
[path to the installation program]
C:\Windows\System32\Autoexec.nt The system file is not suitable for running MS-DOS and Microsoft Windows applications.

TreeDraw Standard & TreeDraw Legacy Edition V3.02 bug-fix released

This is a bug fix release.
This update fixes the error "0.7 is not a floating point value" error when starting TreeDraw on systems using "," as a decimal point.
Registered users of TreeDraw Standard Edition can upgrade by downloading this patch. For information on installing patches see the Downloads page.
Registered users of TreeDraw Legacy Edition can upgrade by downloading the new version at http://www.spansoft.org/downloads/tdlegacy/tdlegacy.msi

TreeDraw Standard V3 and TreeDraw Legacy Edition V3 released

New features include:

> Wheel style ancestral charts.
> Add boxes around the standard drop-line charts automatically.
> Magnifier added. Read the small print without having to zoom in.
> Adobe PDF file export. Create charts which can be opened with the Acrobat reader.
> Rotateable text. Text can be at any angle.
> Curved lines.
> Floating ruler and cursor position in mm/inches.
> Page setup now printer-independent. Set large page sizes even if your printer does not support them.
> Thick dashed/dotted lines.
> Marriage details font separate.
> GEDCOM import using UTF-8 and Unicode character sets. Reads default GEDCOM files from PAF 5. (TreeDraw Standard Edition only)
> User-definable colours on the colour palette.
> "Import setups" save settings for easy selection. Select a particular setup style before importing a tree.
> "Import graphics" options completely separated from the default settings.
> "Enlarge text" feature is now a fixed font size which is user defined.
> For more details click here.

TreeDraw Legacy Edition V2.22 released

This release brings TreeDraw Legacy Edition into line with the current version of TreeDraw Standard. This version will work with Legacy Standard or Deluxe V3, V4, V5.

New features include:

> Drawing Area can now be scrolled by dragging with the right mouse button
> New buttons available on the button bar for zooming the Drawing Area
> Improved birth date column display in "Select root person"
> Weekdays for pre-gregorian dates (pre Sep 1752) are now correct
> Privacy for dates of birth/christening if the person is still alive
> Program no longer constantly asks for the user's registration key
> Dates which include a valid date and a string of text are now OK
> Removed the "?"s from incomplete dates using the first 6 date formats

Kith and Kin Pro V2.02, Of that Ilk Pro V2.02 and TreeDraw V2.21 bug-fixes released

Please see the "Info" buttons on the Downloads page for details.
Registered users of these programs can upgrade by downloading the patches from the Downloads page.

Mailing list available again

We have reinstated the mailing list maintenance form so that you can add and modify your e-mail address on our mailing list. The mailing list form is here.

Kith and Kin Pro V2 released

Major upgrade with new features.

New features include:

> Julian/Gregorian calendar date adjustments
> Julian/Gregorian date converter tool
> Age calculator tool
> New "Dead" field for people
> Partial dates no longer require "?"s
> Date modifiers ABT, BEF, AFT and EST can be user-defined
> Larger description field for pictures and objects
> Probable links from people to families
> Modified record tracking
> Private birth dates in reports and exports
> Privacy level for user-defined fields
> Bulk record editing
> Odd/even page printing
> Right button drag for scrolling the Tree Area
> Sorting for multiple notes
> Additional GEDCOM tags for user-defined fields

TreeDraw V2.2 released

This is a Kith and Kin Pro V2 compatibility release.

If you are upgrading to Kith and Kin Pro V2 you will need this new version of TreeDraw to read the new style databases correctly.
There are also some new features:

> Julian/Gregorian calendar date adjustments
> Date modifiers ABT, BEF, AFT and EST can be user-defined
> Probable links from people to families (not GEDCOM)
> Private birth dates (not GEDCOM)
> Privacy level for notes and user-defined fields (not GEDCOM)
> Right button drag for scrolling the Drawing Area
> Additional GEDCOM tags for user-defined fields
> Import all pictures or only those with "Print" flag set

TreeDraw Legacy Edition for Legacy V4 released

This is a Legacy compatibility release.
This update (V2.13) is required if you are using Legacy V4 but can also be used with Legacy V3. There are no functional changes to the program.
Registered users of TreeDraw Legacy Edition can upgrade by downloading the new version at http://www.spansoft.org/data/tdlegacy2.exe

TreeDraw Legacy Edition V2.12 bug-fix released

This is a minor bug-fix release with the following changes:
The "Update text" and "Auto update text" features did not update locations, addresses, temple names, event types or marriage statuses if the appropriate Legacy family file had not already been accessed in the current TreeDraw session.
Registered users of TreeDraw Legacy Edition can upgrade by downloading the new version at http://www.spansoft.org/data/tdlegacy2.exe

This bug does not affect TreeDraw Standard Edition

V2.11 TreeDraw Standard and Legacy bug-fixes released

This is a minor bug-fix release with the following changes:
TreeDraw Legacy Edition:
"Format | Line style | Other" and then "Cancel" reset the line width to 0 (Hairline).
Importing a tree with pictures gave an "Access" error if the path to an image file was empty (ie. the Legacy file did not contain a path for the image file). TreeDraw now ignores such pictures.
Printing to Epson Stylus printers under WIN98 did not work.
Registered users of TreeDraw Legacy Edition can upgrade by downloading the new version at the same link supplied on their order-confimation e-mail.
TreeDraw Standard Edition:
Option added to avoid the "Do you want to change the grid's vertical spacing to match the import fonts?" question when importing a tree with the snap-to-grid switched on. If the question is not asked, TreeDraw will always match the grid spacing to the import fonts.
The selection lists in the "Import tree", "Select person" and "Select family" dialogs all produced a spurious horizontal scrollbar when run on a PC with the "Large fonts" display setting.
If the "Options | Preferences | File settings | Save file settings" function had never been used, using "File | New" did not reset the paper size to the default setting.
When editing text, the background colour of the edit box was the system window colour instead of white.
"Format | Line style | Other" and then "Cancel" reset the line width to 0 (Hairline).
Printing to Epson Stylus printers under WIN98 did not work.
Registered users of TreeDraw Standard Edition can upgrade by downloading the V2.04 to V2.11 patch file.

TreeDraw Legacy Edition released

SpanSoft and Millennia Corp are delighted to announce the release of a special edition of TreeDraw for Legacy Family Tree.
TreeDraw Legacy Edition imports data direct from Legacy family files so there's no need to use GEDCOM. This edition allows you to import many more of Legacy's data types, including events, addresses and pictures, and still gives you TreeDraw's superior control over formatting.

For more details and to order on-line, visit www.LegacyFamilyTree.com

Slide Librarian V2.4 released

This is a minor upgrade release with the following changes:
"Gamma correction" feature added for printing contact sheets. Increases the brightness of the printed slides - particularly useful for black-only printers.
Placement of slide prefix/Ids on contact sheets improved.
Displaying slides on the Light Table which had a thumbnail image larger than 120 x 120 pixels caused a "Printer is not printing" error. Fixed.

Registered users can upgrade by downloading the new version here,
or from the Downloads page.

Slide Librarian Pro has also been upgraded to V2.4.