I have been a RootsMagic user for quite a few years – back to 2010, actually. I generally love hard copy manuals when they accompany software products, especially when that software is the program I use to compile my genealogy research.

Getting the Most Out of RootsMagic 10 by Bruce Buzbee contains a hefty 383 pages of information needed to navigate RootsMagic 10.

The Table of Contents has topics with many sub-topics, but no chapter numbers, so I will only list the main topics here:

Introduction
Getting started
The Main Screen
Home Page
File Page – Using Databases
People Page
Building the Family Tree
Editing People
Facts and events
Associations
Places – Mapping, Geocoding, and Gazetteers
Sources and Citations
Media – Pictures, Sound and Video
Tasks
Addresses and Repositories
Searching for Information
Printing Reports
Large Format Charts (Wallcharts)
Custom Reports
Publishing Your Family History
Creating a Shareable Drive
Putting Your Family on the Web
FamilySearch Family Tree
Ancestry TreeShare
Tools
Settings Page – RootsMagic Options
Appendix
Index

Here is where I need to add some commentary. I am still transitioning from RootsMagic 7 – which I honestly prefer – to RootsMagic 10. Although I upgraded to RootsMagic 8 and RM9, both versions seemed to fly by and we are now in RootsMagic 10.

I loved the manual for RootsMagic 7, with one exception. I don’t really like the source citation templates, which are not intuitive or user friendly when just starting out using them. Nor was the RM7 manual any help in answering my questions about naming master files vs. sub-files and other template subtleties.

In spite of that limitation (which made me ready to throw my computer out the window), the RM7 manual was very easy to read and had clear images that were very helpful.

When RM9 was released, I also purchased the new manual. That was a complete waste of money. I could deal with the lighter font style in the text, but the images – of which there are hundreds – we almost totally unusable.

Here are a couple of images to compare, both scanned from the paper books, but not digitally changed in any way. The original images are all approximately the same size in the books, too.

Although the RM7 image says RootsMagic 5 on the top, it is from RM7:

Not only are the charts easy to read, even the icons on the top aren’t difficult.

Now look at the image from RootsMagic 9:

Yes, it’s a list and not a chart, but all the other images in the book are the same grayed out type of color, making them very hard to read.

So, how does the physical composition of the RM 10 manual compare?

Generally, the images are not quite as sharp as those in the RM 7 manual, but are way better than RM 9. Thank you, Bruce Buzbee, for the improvement! The RM 10 manual is therefore usable and will get opened more than the two or three times that RM 9 was opened.

As for the information in the RM 10 manual, the Table of Contents is exactly the same – as RM 9. The only variation I found was that RM 10 eliminated the words “Search Page” from the topic Searching for Information. RM 10 is 27 pages longer than the RM 9 manual, so some new information has been added.

Since I spent zero time using RootsMagic 8 and have spent only a very little time dabbling in RootsMagic 9, as a user, I can only compare the clarity of the language in the RootsMagic 7 manual vs. the RM 10 manual.

If you aren’t a RootsMagic user, be aware that RootsMagic 7 is very “old style” in terms of user interface with RM 8, 9 and 10 so be aware that I’m not comparing the programs, just how the information is presented in the manuals.

As mentioned, the RM 7 manual did the job, except for the too short and terrible explanation on Sources and Citations. I think I need a separate book titled Using Genealogical Source Templates for Dummies.

The RootsMagic 10 manual has an entire section – 20 pages long – devoted to a detailed explanation about Sources & Citations. The format of the information seems to be clearer than in the old RM 7 manual.

However, what I would really like to see are a couple of step-by-step examples beginning with the very first thing the user has to do. For example, demonstrate how to create the citation for a family history book and, say, the 1900 census from start to finish, including how master sources are named (not “name it whatever you want”).

This definitely isn’t my usual style of book review, but I don’t think I’ve reviewed many “how-to” manuals.

Overall, Getting the Most Out of RootsMagic 10 is a handy reference for RootsMagic 10 users. I’m still not thrilled with the Sources & Citations section, but that’s my personal hang up because I don’t view the templates are very user friendly. I think the addition of examples, mentioned above, would do a lot to improve the instructions for new users.

Also, while the images in the RM 10 manual are somewhat improved over the RM 9 manual, and the font style and darkness is much improved over the RM 9 book, the images still aren’t the quality of those in the RM 7 manual.

I purchased both the RM 9 manual and the RM 10 manual online. If I had seen the RM 9 manual in person, I would have saved my money, walked away and done without. As for the RM 10 manual, if I had seen it in person, I think I would have browsed through it, put it down and come back later to decide it was worth the purchase.

If you are new to RootsMagic or, like me, are still taking baby steps in RootsMagic 10, then the manual will be a big help getting started.

Getting the Most Out of RootsMagic 10 by Bruce Buzbee, hot off the presses this summer, can be purchased online at Amazon for under $18.00.