Should we include false information?

[RJ_Paton]

Family Tree Maker is (according to the company's publicity

Family Tree Maker is the #1 selling software product for building, customizing, searching and sharing your family history.

Personally I found it very americanised but a number of people like it .... it's had a number of owners (ie parent companies) as they have been bought up by bigger players in the market. One of their original concepts and possibly what made them a good buy was that they offered the opportunity to create a World Tree - ie they supplied storage space and an indexing and database search facility if you supplied the information. This was before the current explosion in internet usage and the real advent of personal web space.

As pointed out these facilities have to be paid for and the manner in which they did this was by selling access to the data.

I agree with Guy regarding the bottomline ..... if you enter into a contract no matter what it's for always read it ..... if you don't agree with any of it don't accept it or enter into the agreement.

[kerryb]

Strange that if they are the No 1 product, I've not heard of them!!!!

It always pays to read the contract and especially the small print.  How many times have I learnt that!!

Kerry

[downside]

Hi Everyone

Er ... what contract?  You mean there was a contract?

I don't remember seeing any contract.  I was entering data one day and up popped a message saying "Congratulations you have enter xxx number of individuals - how about contributing to the World Family Tree"  Click OK now or words to that effect.  Presumably a GEDCOM file then went off into cyberspace.

I don't know what happened to that data and I'm having trouble tracking it down.  As far as I work out a company called genealogy.com own World Famliy Tree and I need to be a subscriber in order to access  Vol 106 Tree 3675 which I suspect might include the data I sent a few years back. 

My main beef is that I no longer have control over that data, some of which is slightly incorrect based on what I currently know.  I also have a lot more information now so that old data is out of date in all respects. 

The bottom line is that subscribers might be paying to see out of date information and that some of that data might be on fixed media i.e. CD ROM's which cannot be altered.  Like most people starting out on their genealogical quests I was a little naive in the beginning.  I'm beginning to regret what I did some time ago and I'm trying to correct the situation.

downside

[kerryb]

Presumably the contract would only be if you were paying for services.  There would be no contract if you use something for free?

I think anyway

Kerry

[Guy Etchells]

No KerryB I am afraid you are wrong, the relevant part of the contract is
8.     MyFamily.com, Inc's Proprietary Rights
   A.   Subject to the Genealogy.com Privacy Policy, by inputting, uploading or posting any family tree information, data, family stories, ideas, drawings, opinions, messages, eyewitness accounts, or any other information or materials, or engaging in any other form of communication (each, a "Submission") through the Sites, you grant MyFamily.com, Inc. and its Affiliated Companies a royalty free, irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive, unrestricted, transferable, worldwide license to (i) use, copy, sublicense, adapt, transmit, distribute, publicly perform, archive, and display any such Submission in any medium now known or hereafter developed; (ii) exploit any proprietary rights in such Submission, including but not limited to rights under copyright, trademark, or patent laws in any relevant jurisdiction; and (iii) sublicense to third parties the unrestricted right to exercise any of the foregoing rights.

   B.   You represent and warrant that (i) all content and information included in your Submission(s) is truthful and accurate; and (ii) if you post information relating to any living person in a Submission, you have obtained all appropriate permissions to post such information on the Sites and to allow us to use such information in accordance with this Agreement. We will not be subject to any obligation of confidentiality, attribution, or otherwise with respect to Submissions, other than as expressly set forth in our Privacy Policy, and will not be liable for any use or disclosures of any Submissions, or any content contained therein. You release MyFamily.com, Inc. and its Affiliated Companies from any and all claims or liability (now known or hereafter arising) in connection with any Submission made by you, and agree to indemnify fully MyFamily.com, Inc. and its Affiliated Companies in connection therewith. This section shall survive any expiration or termination of this Agreement.

Cheers
Guy

[kerryb]

Guy

Well you live and learn!!!!!

But actually I suppose that does make sense, I think

Kerry

[downside]

How about TRUE information?

Apparently these myfamily.com affiliates are not supposed to display living individuals and yet when I do a search for myself I appear a couple of times.  Yes I've just checked I'm still alive 

They make up the rules and then promptly disobey them.

downside

[RJ_Paton]

They make up the rules and then promptly disobey them

Partially true ...... if they ask that as part of the terms and conditions , people submitting information to them exclude the living then they are reasonably entitled to assume that this has been done or where the living are included that the permission has been granted for such inclusion ...... It is then (perhaps unfortunately) up to those living who have found their information displayed without their permission to highlight this and bring it to their attention and request (if so desired ) its removal.