Comparison of PAF 3.01M and PAF 4.04
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I am frequently asked to compare Personal Ancestral File 3.01M with PAF 4.0.4:

Things that I like best about PAF 3.01M:

• PAF3 allows one to easily create a text file for a report; it is more difficult in 4.0.
• PAF4 is very slow at merging two individuals for a large file compared to PAF3, since it does a very slow individual-list operation on the entire file for each merge, even for a merge that was just cancelled after first doing the operation.
• Most DOS single-key shortcuts of PAF3 are not available in PAF4, which makes data entry slower. (PAF4 does have some single-key shortcut keys and several Alt-key and Ctrl-key standard-type-Windows shortcut keys.) However, data entry is still faster with PAF4 than I have found for any other Windows genealogy program.
• Allows automatic capitalization of names; PAF4 does not.
• It is more difficult to add a marriage with an unknown spouse to an individual in PAF4 than it is in PAF3. In PAF4 one must either add a fictitious spouse and then delete it or add a child first.
• Allows deletion of many individuals; PAF4 does not.

Things I like best about PAF 4.0.4:

• It makes smaller gedcom files than PAF3.
• It has more sophisticated focus options than PAF3.
• It remembers the child of each parent as one moves up the ancestor tree with the single-key shortcut "p", which makes it very fast to move back down the tree to the starting point with the single-key shortcut key "c".
• A special shortcut-keys help file is very useful.
• It has a special "Getting Started" help file.
• It has a way to read FAQs and to send feedback to the developers.
• It allows more information on descendants'-list reports than PAF3 does. It could use more, however. (However, the PAF Companion (see above) currently does not work with Windows 2000, which I have been running for the last year.)
• It has a global search and replace for places; PAF3 does not. The PAF Pal add-on adds search and replace for places, names and dates; the latest version even allows one to replace text in date fields (e.g. the Private often in World Family Tree date fields, which now saves me hours of work. One still needs a way to replace the "WFT Est. ...." with the ... or nothing.) PAF Pal is also available for PAF3 as a separate program. (PAF Pal can be purchased from Pal Software, 1065 West 10210 South, South Jordan, UT 84095; E-mail: StevenCannon@Bigfoot.com Telephone: 801-254-0160)
• It has an easier-to-use and larger name and place memory to save typing, which can be turned on or off. (Watch out for automatic inclusion of second given names that are not wanted.)
• It allows an indication of how each individual is related to a specific individual.
• It has a more extensive, and therefore slower, file-check-repair facility.