DiggerTM (for WindowsTM 3.1, 95, 98, ME, NT and 2000) and CD Answer® (for Macintosh and MS-DOS®) are ideal for searching genealogy-related databases on CD-ROM. They make searching these databases quick and easy, and they allow very detailed search criteria to be used. Some of the features of DiggerTM and CD Answer® that you will especially appreciate are:
- speed – these software packages are optimised for searching large databases on CD-ROM;
- ease of use – just enter the information you are looking for, or choose from a list of all the values in the database;
- fielded database searches – you don’t need to memorise the names of the fields in the database;
- advanced searches can be undertaken using Boolean or proximity searching;
- a list of all entries or words in a field can be viewed and selected into the search screen;
- truncation searches: ie Hall* retrieves Halls, Halloran, Haller etc;
- reverse truncation searches: ie *Donnell retrieves Donnell, O’Donnell, MacDonnell etc;
- wild card searches: ie Je*cott retrieves Jephcott, Jefcott and Jeffcott (great for finding those spelling mistakes!);
- ‘like’ (phonetic) searches: ie ‘like’ Myer locates Mier, Meyer etc;
- results can be viewed in list or single record formats;
- in list format the data can be sorted by any field;
- printing and exporting in list or label format;
- exporting in formats compatible with word processing and database software; and
- support – fully supported in Australia by MACBETHs, including Internet support.
Those using DiggerTM and CD Answer® to distribute their data on CD-ROM will also appreciate the advantages these features will give to their product:
- CD Answer® runs on MS-DOS® and Macintosh operating systems;
- DiggerTM runs on WindowsTM 3.1, 95, 98, 2000, NT and ME;
- Your database can be encoded so the data cannot be ‘lifted’ from the CD;
- the number of records printed or exported can be restricted to any limit you choose, increasing the security of your valuable data;
- you can include images in your database;
- full text retrieval – large documents can be included and searched;
- very large databases can be compressed, reducing the number of CD-ROMs you need;
- DiggerTM can be customised to your needs: e.g. print out a certificate application form, connect to your internet site;
- it can be used over a network; and
- many small databases can separately be put onto one CD.