Whats New

Pedigree Assistant v4 has the following changes from the prior release (3.24):

• Support for the full versions of Windows 11 and 10 operating systems, only. Earlier Windows versions no longer supported.
• Completely revised and updated help resources including User Guide and extensive new tutorials. All now available as PDF.
• Added new Database Locator facility - a tool that lets you search your computer for Pedigree Assistant databases and provides an easy-to-use way to import from, copy and open databases. Use Database|Database Locator.
• New Similarity Search option, to locate cats/dogs with similarly spelled names. Accessed using the Similarity Search option on the Cat/Dog/Animal menu. It is also possible to carry out an automatic similarity search on an animal's name after adding/updating a record.
• There is a new option Configure|Advanced|Columns which adjusts the columns shown in the main window record list.
• New simpler search mechanism added for searching by keywords. The older, detailed search facility is still as an 'Advanced Search'.
• When you create a new database there is now a more streamlined way to import data from a text/CSV file without having to use the normal Database|Import facility.
• When importing from text/CSV file it is now possible to import records where sire/dam links are given using record numbers and not just names. For a demonstration see the new 'Importing Data' tutorial.
• After importing data, you are now asked if you want to update the displayed columns in the main window to reflect the imported data. This allows the main window columns to more closely mirror the data you have imported, especially for a text/CSV import.
• With many text fields it is now possible to set an initial field value when a record is inserted and/or updated. Use the new Configure|Advanced|Text Field Settings option. This is demonstrated in the 'Working With Data' tutorial.
• Added a new database inconsistency check to list animals that dont have their sex set.
• The column headings in the main window can now be split over multiple lines. This can be enabled by the new Use multiline column headings option on the User Interface tab of the Preferences window.
• Most windows where you need to choose a field now have a 'Show common fields only' checkbox which limits the list to just the most commonly used fields. Uncheck the box to see the full list.
• The popup windows from which you select sires/dams when adding new records have been improved; these can now display a table of information and not just the record name, and the additional columns can be customized (use new options on the Configure|Advanced menu).
• There is a new feature Configure|Advanced|Default Index Columns to select which columns appear, by default, in all standard indexes. When the default columns are changed there is an option to reconfigure all the indexes in one step avoiding the need to adjust every index.
• A new standard index (view) has been added - 'User defined fields' that includes all user defined fields, and 'all columns' that includes every field available.
• A new standard index (view) has been added - 'By date of birth' to list all animals in birth date order.
• What used to be called 'Favourite Searches' in older product versions are now called 'Saved Searches'.
• KCBS import has been discontinued from the dog version.
• The 'User Defined Field Names' window has been made easier to use.
• When manually entering dates with 2 digit years (YY) it now assumes the year is 20YY if YY < 50.
• Added the [t] text macro, which expands to a single TAB character. This was added to as to make it possible to generate TAB separated export output easily.
• Changed the main index ('By name') for new databases so that it includes limited fields, and just the most important ones.
• When displaying search results the 'View' box now contains a description of the search conditions used.
• The search results columns are now set automatically according to the search conditions and the user-defined default columns (as set using Configure|Advanced|Default Index Columns).
• The Database|Database Properties window now also displayed the location of the application data folder.
• The Cat/Dog/Animal menu has been reorganized. It now includes 'Delete Multiple Animals' and 'Similarity Search'.
• When a database is opened that is read only e.g. stored on on CD-ROM or other read-only drive you are now warned that any changes made to the database cannot be saved, and that you should use 'Save As' to save such a database elsewhere.
• When a database is opened that is stored on a removable device such as an external hard drive, and the 'Load most recently used database at startup' preference is enabled, the software now warns you to keep the media in the computer if it is to auto-reopen the file next time you run it.
• The Variety field has been renamed the Colour field.
• Added a mechanism to remove non-existent databases from the most-recently-used list in the Database menu. This is accessed through the new Database|Database Locator window.
• Some options have been moved from the 'Misc' tab to the 'User Interface' tab of the preferences window.
• All the 'User Fields' tabs in record details windows now have the means to rename the fields without having to use Configure|Advanced|User Defined Field Names.
• Additional date formats for data entry, import and export have been added that (a) do not require the day to be entered (e.g. yyyy mm) or (b) only require the year (i.e. yyyy or yy) - to support data import/export where only year or year+month data is supplied.
• An option has been added to the 'User Interface' tab of the Preferences window to set the record list font size automatically depending on the size of the screen and display resolution, but with an option to override.
• A command line option has been added to open the software to open with a specific record type and record displayed: '/goto RECORD-TYPE FIELDCODE VALUE' e.g. '/goto contact user1 A4565' [which means 'open with the contact record displayed which has value 'A4565' in user field #1]. For further details please refer to the Help Reference.
• A command line option has been added to override the application data folder: '/datadir DIR' e.g. '/datadir C:\Temp\MyDataDir'. For further details please refer to the Help Reference.
• New text macros added for additional arithmetic and comparison operators. For further details please refer to the Help Reference.
• New style option 'Exclude Sire/Dam Label' added to rectangular ancestors boxes (within pedigree layouts) which removes the Sire/Dam label from the upper left corner of the ancestor cell.
• An 'Advanced Find' feature has been added.
• Tabular pedigrees can now have zero line thickness - to remove all border and table lines from the ancestors grid.
• Starting with release 4.20d if you log out or shutdown your computer without closing Pedigree Assistant, and if you've made any record changes, Pedigree Assistant will also keep a temporary copy of the database and give you an option to keep that when you next run the software. This will not save your database if you have a computer crash or power cut. The only protection for that is to use the timed autosave facility, a preference setting which will automatically save your database after a period of inactivity if you've changed the data but not saved the database. To configure this, choose Preferences from the Configure menu, move to the Misc tab, click the Rarely Changed Options, then set the Auto-save database frequency to a low number of minutes, e.g. 5. Note that for such auto saving to be effective the software needs to be at the main window, with no popup windows open e.g. the Record Details window.