* Using a laptop or notebook for Family Historian

[Genie15]

Hello readers,
I trying to decide on an alternative machine to my desktop computer.
Not knowing what is available on the market (out of touch) what would be best for using say at a library using their internet system.
A laptop or notebook.
Also what would I need to watch out for in relation to installing Family Historian 6.0. ie. memory, disc space etc.
I have been unable to find out the size of FH6 for installing purposes. Any ideas.
Any useful advice would be appreciated.

[jimlad68]

There are many many options here, mostly depending on how light you want to travel.

When I make my next purchase in the future I am considering a fairly powerful windows7/10 laptop with SSD storage. At home I would use it with additional screen and USB storage + devices etc. The latest laptops are powerful, light and with SSD drives use much less power and boot up very quickly. That way you need only 1 device for everything, no syncing data etc, just ensure you take lots of external and off site backups. With a laptop you also have a built in UPS (uninterrupted power supply) system.

[tatewise]

I have moved this to the FH General Usage Forum that is more appropriate.

I would suggest you have FH V6 installed on both your desktop and laptop/notebook.
Then synchronise your Projects via Internet cloud storage (OneDrive, Google Drive, DropBox, etc).

The desktop has a bigger screen & keyboard, plus mouse, printer, and Internet for updating your Project database, producing Diagrams & Reports, editing Media images, maintaining Backups, etc, etc.

The laptop/netbook then only needs to be used for relatively minor updates away from home.
Bear in mind they have much smaller screens & keyboards, and a touchpad is trickier to use than a mouse, so I suggest you trial one at a shop, or borrow one from a friend, to see how it feels.

As long as the laptop/netbook actually runs Windows it should install & run FH V6 OK.
Memory should not be a problem, and FH V6 installation disk space is only about 50MB.
To that you might want to add Ancestral Sources but that is less than 10MB disk space.
What is much more significant is your Project size. My quite modest Project is about 100MB with attached Media images being the largest component.
To get your Project size, right-click on the Family Historian Projects folder and check the details.
You can get the installed sizes similarly by right-clicking the following folders.
C:\Program Files\Family Historian or C:\Program Files (x86)\Family Historian
C:\Program Files\Calico Pie
C:\ProgramData\Calico Pie
C:\Program Files\Ancestral Sources or C:\Program Files (x86)\Ancestral Sources

[mjashby]

FH Program size isn't really an issue when it comes to choosing a portable Windows computer as the file size is pretty modest, probably around 100 Megabytes, including the dependancies, preference files etc. scattered about in various locations, and in comparison to the other software you might also need install such as an 'Office Package'. What you will need in terms of storage space is far more likely to be dependant on other factors such as the size of your Documents and Media Folders, however, most modern Laptops/Notebooks usually have at least a 256Gb Hard Drive, which is more than enough for most people. One area you really do need to consider is the screen size you are comfortable with and the portability (weight) if you intend to carry it about regularly. Also, anything less than a 12" screen can be difficult for some people and smaller keyboards/trackpads can also be awkward.

Mervyn

[Genie15]

Hello readers,
My problem is related but not directly to this thread.
I recently bought a second hand laptop (three years old) but with no manual, but the same operating software (Windows 7) as my desktop computer.
The laptop has no CD drive so I copied the Family Historian files to the laptop.
Had to put in the security code. OK.
But now I get he message - file mfc100u.dll not found etc: error 126. Copied this file across to the appropriate directory but FH6 will still not work.
Tried internet to download the file from Microsoft but no luck. Although the web sites don't say I think Microsoft may no longer support Windows 7. Wish they would say so instead of telling how to install the updates but not telling me where to get the updates from.
So now I'm stuck.
Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[Peter Collier]

No expert myself here, but one thought occurs. It sounds as if, when you put FH on your new laptop, you just copied and pasted the the files across from your other machine? That will not work -- you have to actually install the software. The installation process makes various necessary changes to your computer's internal registry and if it isn't done, the software won't run even if you have copied over all the files.

If you don't have a physical disk drive, your best bet may be to head over to http://www.family-historian.co.uk/downl ... -day-trial to download and install a trial copy of the software from there. Once it's properly installed, you will be able to enter your licence details to unlock the trial. You will then have the fully functioning program.

Of course, if you did actually install the software then your problem lies elsewhere, and I apologise for teaching my granny to suck eggs!

Windows 7 is still supported. Mainstream support ended this past January, but that basically just means they won't add any new features, and you would probably have to pay to call tech support now rather than having a freephone number. Extended support for Windows 7 continues until 2020. After then you'll be on your own!

Were you aware that anyone with a genuine copy of Windows 7 can upgrade to the current operating system, Windows 10, completely free of charge? The offer is only available during the first year, but you still have a few months left (Windows 10 launched in July). Se http://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows/ ... 10-upgrade. Mainstream support on Windows 10 runs until late 2020, with extended support until 2025.

[tatewise]

Installation error 126 is covered in how_to:family_historian_installation_problems|> Family Historian Installation Problems.

See also the how_to:family_historian_migration_guide|> Family Historian V5 & V6 Migration Guide.

BTW: You cannot use the FH 30-day Trial 'trick' if your FH is an Upgrade Licence.

[Gowermick]

Genie15,

I have a similar setup and needed to install FH6 on a similar CD less laptop.
I can't remember how I installed it exactly, but 1 of 2 methods were used successfully:

1. Access your PC's CD drive over a network, and install it remotely from there. Obviously it can't be autorun, but if you look in the autorun.inf file on the CD, you'll see what setup file is run during the autorun process.

2. Copy CD files and directories to a USB stick, and using same setup file as in method1, install from the USB.

Whichever method I used, it installed perfectly with no problems.

With a CD less laptop, you'll find you can install most software this way, not just FH6!

Mike

[tatewise]

Mike, is correct and that same advice about using a USB stick is given in how_to:family_historian_installation_details|> Family Historian Installation Details.

[Gowermick]

I should point out that one piece of software I know you can't install this way, however, is the National Burial Index!

As part of a piracy protection scheme, the program checks for presence of CD in CD Drive on startup. Without CD, program won't run. (FFHS, the authors, are looking at ways to overcome the problem)

HoHum - you can't win em all!

[mezentia]

There's a little utility called magicISO that can be used to mount a disc image as a virtual cd drive. It might be enough to fool the NBI software. You will need to create a .iso copy of the original cd though.

[RSellens]

There's a little utility called magicISO that can be used to mount a disc image as a virtual cd drive. It might be enough to fool the NBI software. You will need to create a .iso copy of the original cd though.

I have tried that trick previously on my MAC, that doesn't have a CD drive, and it will not recognise the ISO image as the disk.

[Gowermick]

For what it's worth, I have contacted FFHS, producers of the Burial CD, and whilst they recognised the problem with CDless laptops, they couldn't offer any way round it.

They are currently looking at ways to overcome the problem for their next update, without jeopardising the security aspects of their anti-piracy scheme.

[Peter Collier]

You could just buy an extenal DVD drive and plug it in to your laptop when you need it. You can get one (new) for as little as £5–£10 these days.

[Genie15]

Hello readers,
Thank you for the replies and I appologise for delay, but I have had trouble topping up my EE Mobile Broadband account. Even now the EE MyAccount is stating that I have an Apple iPhone 6 and not a Hauwei E3533 dongle. The mind boggles.
As for the laptop I will certainly look into a DVD drive which I thought of but, thought it might be more than £10. But I'll see.
As for the other suggestions supplied I will check them out tomorrow.
Many thanks to you all.
Will let you know how I get on, shortly.

[Genie15]

Hello all,
I have now bought a DVD drive, be it for £29.99.
The drive was bit slow and not showing on Windows Explorer, but I persisted then the drive showed along with the files then disappeared.
Tried again and everything now OK with drive.
Now installed Family Historian 5 from the DVD which also stated it will install version 6 (which I had left on the drive) and I would need the codes for both versions.
Done all that and everything OK.
Thank you to you all.
Can now go to local Records offcie with the laptop. Should make things easier.

[tatewise]

Great that has all worked OK.

BUT now follow the how_to:family_historian_migration_guide|> Family Historian V5 & V6 Migration Guide to ensure everything is transferred correctly.

You may also want to synchronise both PC via DropBox or OneDrive or Google Drive.