Reunion Software

[Jan]

Does anybody know of any program that will read old Reunion files. A friend
has asked me to help as they used it years ago and backed up files to a
floppy and having not done any research for a few years have lost the
original disk and changed computers. He did save a copy of the Reunion
application to disk but when you try to run it it comes up with the error
message cannot find leinster.dll. I know there is a Mac version available
but does anybody know where he can purchase an old PC version of Reunion or
what program he can use to read these old files. I have tried to import
them to various genealogy programs that I have but without success. They
have the extension .rcx, .fdb, .pdb, .rel, .rb1, .ndb, .ndx. Any help
appreciated.
Many thanks.

[Dave Hinz]

On Thu, 11 Nov 2004 18:56:22 -0000, Jan <[email protected]> wrote:

Does anybody know of any program that will read old Reunion files. A friend
has asked me to help as they used it years ago and backed up files to a
floppy and having not done any research for a few years have lost the
original disk and changed computers.

I run Reunion on my Mac. If you would like to send me that file, I can
read it in with the current version of Reunion (or at least I can try to
do so) and send it back in GEDCOM or some other format.

Alternately, perhaps Legacy can import this file? It has excellent
import functionality, and the basic version is a free download.
My email address is correct if you would like to send me the file,
I can turn it around this evening.

Dave Hinz

[Robert Heiling]

Dave Hinz wrote:

Alternately, perhaps Legacy can import this file?

Only PAF & gedcom.

Bob

[Mike Hobart]

The .rb1 file is a Reunion backup file that contains all the others.
That appears to be a group of files from Reunion for Windows (you
didn't specify whether it was Reunion for Windows or Reunion for PC).

I have helped quite a few people with old Reunion for Windows datasets
convert these either to the current Generations format (successor to
Reunion for Windows) or export them to gedcom. <no charge for this
help, of course> <g>

Mike Hobart

On Thu, 11 Nov 2004 18:56:22 -0000, "Jan"
<[email protected]> wrote:

Does anybody know of any program that will read old Reunion files. A friend
has asked me to help as they used it years ago and backed up files to a
floppy and having not done any research for a few years have lost the
original disk and changed computers. He did save a copy of the Reunion
application to disk but when you try to run it it comes up with the error
message cannot find leinster.dll. I know there is a Mac version available
but does anybody know where he can purchase an old PC version of Reunion or
what program he can use to read these old files. I have tried to import
them to various genealogy programs that I have but without success. They
have the extension .rcx, .fdb, .pdb, .rel, .rb1, .ndb, .ndx. Any help
appreciated.
Many thanks.

[Dave Hinz]

On Sat, 13 Nov 2004 18:36:39 GMT, Mike Hobart <[email protected]> wrote:

The .rb1 file is a Reunion backup file that contains all the others.
That appears to be a group of files from Reunion for Windows (you
didn't specify whether it was Reunion for Windows or Reunion for PC).

I have helped quite a few people with old Reunion for Windows datasets
convert these either to the current Generations format (successor to
Reunion for Windows) or export them to gedcom. <no charge for this
help, of course> <g

I can tell you that Reunion 8 on a Mac does not recognize Jan's files.
From further email discussions, it indeed seems that these are for
Reunion for Windows. If Jan doesn't jump in here, I can forward your
note to Jan.

Dave Hinz

[Jan]

Dave Hinz wrote:

On Sat, 13 Nov 2004 18:36:39 GMT, Mike Hobart
[email protected]> wrote:
The .rb1 file is a Reunion backup file that contains all the others.
That appears to be a group of files from Reunion for Windows (you
didn't specify whether it was Reunion for Windows or Reunion for PC).

I have helped quite a few people with old Reunion for Windows
datasets convert these either to the current Generations format
(successor to Reunion for Windows) or export them to gedcom. <no
charge for this help, of course> <g

I can tell you that Reunion 8 on a Mac does not recognize Jan's
files.
From further email discussions, it indeed seems that these are for
Reunion for Windows. If Jan doesn't jump in here, I can forward your
note to Jan.

Dave Hinz

I really can't thank everybody enough for their help. These are not my
files but a friend at work whose interest in his family tree has reawakened
after a few years gap and he is desperate to get the data and he is not
really a 'computer literate' person at all. As he knows I'm quite keen he
thought I may be able to help, and I agreed thinking I could import his
files into one of my family tree programs, which I have discovered I cannot.
I don't understand Reunion at all so don't really know what file is what to
be honest and they seem to be rather a mess. He's quite sure it is Reunion
4 - does anybody out there have it and can help - there are more files than
I thought at first so I'm afraid it would mean sending quite a lot of data
via e-mail.
Thanks in advance.

[Ron Parsons]

In article <[email protected]>,
"Jan" <[email protected]> wrote:

Dave Hinz wrote:
On Sat, 13 Nov 2004 18:36:39 GMT, Mike Hobart
[email protected]> wrote:
The .rb1 file is a Reunion backup file that contains all the others.
That appears to be a group of files from Reunion for Windows (you
didn't specify whether it was Reunion for Windows or Reunion for PC).

I have helped quite a few people with old Reunion for Windows
datasets convert these either to the current Generations format
(successor to Reunion for Windows) or export them to gedcom. <no
charge for this help, of course> <g

I can tell you that Reunion 8 on a Mac does not recognize Jan's
files.
From further email discussions, it indeed seems that these are for
Reunion for Windows. If Jan doesn't jump in here, I can forward your
note to Jan.

Dave Hinz

I really can't thank everybody enough for their help. These are not my
files but a friend at work whose interest in his family tree has reawakened
after a few years gap and he is desperate to get the data and he is not
really a 'computer literate' person at all. As he knows I'm quite keen he
thought I may be able to help, and I agreed thinking I could import his
files into one of my family tree programs, which I have discovered I cannot.
I don't understand Reunion at all so don't really know what file is what to
be honest and they seem to be rather a mess. He's quite sure it is Reunion
4 - does anybody out there have it and can help - there are more files than
I thought at first so I'm afraid it would mean sending quite a lot of data
via e-mail.
Thanks in advance.

From the Reunion 8 "How to Upgrade" file:

"Reunion 8 can upgrade (or convert) version 4, 5, 6, and 7 family files."

If it turns out that the data is for an older version, there was a
separate upgrade application.

A note of caution though to all PC/Windows genealogy users, once you get
a look at Reunion for Macintosh, you won't want to go back.

--
Ron Parsons

[Dave Hinz]

On Sun, 14 Nov 2004 13:44:12 GMT, Ron Parsons <[email protected]> wrote:

In article <[email protected]>,
"Jan" <[email protected]> wrote:

"Reunion 8 can upgrade (or convert) version 4, 5, 6, and 7 family files."
If it turns out that the data is for an older version, there was a
separate upgrade application.

Do you know where I can get that, Ron? I've already got the data files
already, so it'w sorth a shot.

A note of caution though to all PC/Windows genealogy users, once you get
a look at Reunion for Macintosh, you won't want to go back.

It's so good it's worth switching to Mac for. Jan, I'' see if I can find
the conversion stuff

Dave

[Dave Hinz]

On 14 Nov 2004 17:31:55 GMT, Dave Hinz <[email protected]> wrote:

On Sun, 14 Nov 2004 13:44:12 GMT, Ron Parsons <[email protected]> wrote:

"Reunion 8 can upgrade (or convert) version 4, 5, 6, and 7 family files."
If it turns out that the data is for an older version, there was a
separate upgrade application.

Do you know where I can get that, Ron? I've already got the data files
already, so it'w sorth a shot.

Or "It's worth", even. Darn fingers. Anyway, following up to my
own post; Ron', your hint was what it took. In the "open file"
dialog, is an option of "upgrade file" that I missed earlier. Right
next to "open", even.

Jan, you have email with a gedcom file. Hope it works, if not, let me
know and we'll try it again.

Dave

[Mike Hobart]

The upgrade will be for Reunion for Mac files. Reunion for Windows
files need to be converted to the Mac format first Note that the
Generations files (successor to Reunion for Windows), have kept the
Reunion v5 format.

Mike Hobart

On 14 Nov 2004 17:31:55 GMT, Dave Hinz <[email protected]> wrote:

On Sun, 14 Nov 2004 13:44:12 GMT, Ron Parsons <[email protected]> wrote:
In article <[email protected]>,
"Jan" <[email protected]> wrote:

"Reunion 8 can upgrade (or convert) version 4, 5, 6, and 7 family files."
If it turns out that the data is for an older version, there was a
separate upgrade application.

Do you know where I can get that, Ron? I've already got the data files
already, so it'w sorth a shot.

A note of caution though to all PC/Windows genealogy users, once you get
a look at Reunion for Macintosh, you won't want to go back.

It's so good it's worth switching to Mac for. Jan, I'' see if I can find
the conversion stuff

Dave

[Mike Hobart]

Reunion for Windows and Reunion for Mac of that vintage (pre-v5) had a
special Reunion Transfer Format (.rtx on the Windows side) in order to
transfer data between the two operating system versions.

Regards,
Mike Hobart

On 13 Nov 2004 21:35:35 GMT, Dave Hinz <[email protected]> wrote:

On Sat, 13 Nov 2004 18:36:39 GMT, Mike Hobart <[email protected]> wrote:
The .rb1 file is a Reunion backup file that contains all the others.
That appears to be a group of files from Reunion for Windows (you
didn't specify whether it was Reunion for Windows or Reunion for PC).

I have helped quite a few people with old Reunion for Windows datasets
convert these either to the current Generations format (successor to
Reunion for Windows) or export them to gedcom. <no charge for this
help, of course> <g

I can tell you that Reunion 8 on a Mac does not recognize Jan's files.
From further email discussions, it indeed seems that these are for
Reunion for Windows. If Jan doesn't jump in here, I can forward your
note to Jan.

Dave Hinz

[Mike Hobart]

Send them to me and I will be able to do the conversion. The files to
send are ONLY the .rb1 files as these are in compressed format and
contain all of the other files for the particular family file.

The pre-v5 Reunion/Generations format used a varying number of files
that when taken together constituted the entire family file. This
caused some problems if one of the files got damaged or was not saved,
so they went to a single data file beginning with v5.

Regards
Mike Hobart


On Sat, 13 Nov 2004 22:45:38 -0000, "Jan"
<[email protected]> wrote:

Dave Hinz wrote:
On Sat, 13 Nov 2004 18:36:39 GMT, Mike Hobart
[email protected]> wrote:
The .rb1 file is a Reunion backup file that contains all the others.
That appears to be a group of files from Reunion for Windows (you
didn't specify whether it was Reunion for Windows or Reunion for PC).

I have helped quite a few people with old Reunion for Windows
datasets convert these either to the current Generations format
(successor to Reunion for Windows) or export them to gedcom. <no
charge for this help, of course> <g

I can tell you that Reunion 8 on a Mac does not recognize Jan's
files.
From further email discussions, it indeed seems that these are for
Reunion for Windows. If Jan doesn't jump in here, I can forward your
note to Jan.

Dave Hinz

I really can't thank everybody enough for their help. These are not my
files but a friend at work whose interest in his family tree has reawakened
after a few years gap and he is desperate to get the data and he is not
really a 'computer literate' person at all. As he knows I'm quite keen he
thought I may be able to help, and I agreed thinking I could import his
files into one of my family tree programs, which I have discovered I cannot.
I don't understand Reunion at all so don't really know what file is what to
be honest and they seem to be rather a mess. He's quite sure it is Reunion
4 - does anybody out there have it and can help - there are more files than
I thought at first so I'm afraid it would mean sending quite a lot of data
via e-mail.
Thanks in advance.

[Jan]

Dave Hinz wrote:

On 14 Nov 2004 17:31:55 GMT, Dave Hinz <[email protected]> wrote:
On Sun, 14 Nov 2004 13:44:12 GMT, Ron Parsons <[email protected]> wrote:

"Reunion 8 can upgrade (or convert) version 4, 5, 6, and 7 family
files." If it turns out that the data is for an older version,
there was a separate upgrade application.

Do you know where I can get that, Ron? I've already got the data
files already, so it'w sorth a shot.


Or "It's worth", even. Darn fingers. Anyway, following up to my
own post; Ron', your hint was what it took. In the "open file"
dialog, is an option of "upgrade file" that I missed earlier. Right
next to "open", even.

Jan, you have email with a gedcom file. Hope it works, if not, let me
know and we'll try it again.

Dave

Oops, sorry Dave, I think you've been spammed. Could you possibly re-send.
Once again thanks to all.

[Dave Hinz]

On Sun, 14 Nov 2004 20:17:53 GMT, Mike Hobart <[email protected]> wrote:

The upgrade will be for Reunion for Mac files. Reunion for Windows
files need to be converted to the Mac format first Note that the
Generations files (successor to Reunion for Windows), have kept the
Reunion v5 format.

Well, I don't know, but it worked. It had an option for reunion 5,6,7,
and another for reunion 4. I used the one for 4, and got 254 people or
so, in what looks like a coherent tree structure. So maybe that
conversion has been built into Reunion8 for Mac now. I exported to
Gedcom (4.0, also had the option of Gedcom 5.5; which should I use?),
and will resend it to Jan in a bit.

[Ron Parsons]

In article <[email protected]>,
Dave Hinz <[email protected]> wrote:

On Sun, 14 Nov 2004 13:44:12 GMT, Ron Parsons <[email protected]> wrote:
In article <[email protected]>,
"Jan" <[email protected]> wrote:

"Reunion 8 can upgrade (or convert) version 4, 5, 6, and 7 family files."
If it turns out that the data is for an older version, there was a
separate upgrade application.

Do you know where I can get that, Ron? I've already got the data files
already, so it'w sorth a shot.

A note of caution though to all PC/Windows genealogy users, once you get
a look at Reunion for Macintosh, you won't want to go back.

It's so good it's worth switching to Mac for. Jan, I'' see if I can find
the conversion stuff

Dave

Upgrade from version 4 is built in. Start Reunion, go to the Open File
dialog and there will be a Upgrade button.

The literature says to contact Leister if you need to upgrade from
Version 3 or previous. I think that will take a direct contact for I
didn't see anything on the web site.

--
Ron Parsons

[Jan]

Ron Parsons wrote:

In article <[email protected]>,
"Jan" <[email protected]> wrote:

Dave Hinz wrote:
On Sat, 13 Nov 2004 18:36:39 GMT, Mike Hobart
[email protected]> wrote:
The .rb1 file is a Reunion backup file that contains all the
others. That appears to be a group of files from Reunion for
Windows (you didn't specify whether it was Reunion for Windows or
Reunion for PC).

I have helped quite a few people with old Reunion for Windows
datasets convert these either to the current Generations format
(successor to Reunion for Windows) or export them to gedcom. <no
charge for this help, of course> <g

I can tell you that Reunion 8 on a Mac does not recognize Jan's
files.
From further email discussions, it indeed seems that these are for
Reunion for Windows. If Jan doesn't jump in here, I can forward
your note to Jan.

Dave Hinz

I really can't thank everybody enough for their help. These are not
my files but a friend at work whose interest in his family tree has
reawakened after a few years gap and he is desperate to get the data
and he is not really a 'computer literate' person at all. As he
knows I'm quite keen he thought I may be able to help, and I agreed
thinking I could import his files into one of my family tree
programs, which I have discovered I cannot. I don't understand
Reunion at all so don't really know what file is what to be honest
and they seem to be rather a mess. He's quite sure it is Reunion 4
- does anybody out there have it and can help - there are more files
than I thought at first so I'm afraid it would mean sending quite a
lot of data via e-mail.
Thanks in advance.

From the Reunion 8 "How to Upgrade" file:

"Reunion 8 can upgrade (or convert) version 4, 5, 6, and 7 family
files."

If it turns out that the data is for an older version, there was a
separate upgrade application.

A note of caution though to all PC/Windows genealogy users, once you
get a look at Reunion for Macintosh, you won't want to go back.

Eureka, Dave Hinz has managed to extract a Gedcom for me. I can't wait to
get to work tomorrow and show my friend. Many thanks to all - you really
are a helpful lot.

[Dave Hinz]

On Mon, 15 Nov 2004 19:29:24 -0000, Jan <[email protected]> wrote:

Ron Parsons wrote:
In article <[email protected]>,

"Reunion 8 can upgrade (or convert) version 4, 5, 6, and 7 family
files."

Eureka, Dave Hinz has managed to extract a Gedcom for me. I can't wait to
get to work tomorrow and show my friend. Many thanks to all - you really
are a helpful lot.

Ssssh, don't tell everyone, we have this certain reputation to uphold.
I assume you got the janfile2.ged file OK then?

Dave

[Jan]

Dave Hinz wrote:

On Mon, 15 Nov 2004 19:29:24 -0000, Jan
[email protected]> wrote:
Ron Parsons wrote:
In article <[email protected]>,

"Reunion 8 can upgrade (or convert) version 4, 5, 6, and 7 family
files."

Eureka, Dave Hinz has managed to extract a Gedcom for me. I can't
wait to get to work tomorrow and show my friend. Many thanks to all
- you really are a helpful lot.

Ssssh, don't tell everyone, we have this certain reputation to uphold.
I assume you got the janfile2.ged file OK then?

Dave

Yes thanks Dave, replied to you off group.

[L Covey]

Jan wrote:

Does anybody know of any program that will read old Reunion files. A friend
has asked me to help as they used it years ago and backed up files to a
floppy and having not done any research for a few years have lost the
original disk and changed computers. He did save a copy of the Reunion
application to disk but when you try to run it it comes up with the error
message cannot find leinster.dll. I know there is a Mac version available
but does anybody know where he can purchase an old PC version of Reunion or
what program he can use to read these old files. I have tried to import
them to various genealogy programs that I have but without success. They
have the extension .rcx, .fdb, .pdb, .rel, .rb1, .ndb, .ndx. Any help
appreciated.
Many thanks.

Looooong shot, but understanding that he has a PC, has he tried using MS
Word, Windows Notepad or Windows WordPad? The last two applications
come with Windows. A word processor application such as one of the
above might help.

LC