Ken, Thank you for your comments. The list is great for getting new ideas and techniques. I don't have as many people as you. My data base only has abour 2500 individuals. I've been using the technique for so long (probably before FTM 10) that I haven't encountered the problem you describe. It sounds as though it is an addressing problem and maybe the index sorting didn't complete. I know that the index is sorted in the background so as to not cause too much delay. If it happens again, I suggest you resort the index, wait a while and then compact the data base. Hopefully it won't happen again. Believe it or not but they have improved on the stability of the data base. In fact I think they have changed the data base two or three times in an effort to get better performance. FTM 16 and earlier used a proprietary data base structure. When they rewrote the program for FTM 2008, they elected to use a commercial data base but I'm not sure whose. BJ On 2/25/2015 3:56 PM, Ken Schroeder via wrote: > BJ, > I used to enter Ada Unknown or Unknown Smith. I liked your method of handling blank surnames better than how I was handling them, so I changed about 50 Unknown names. Then I compacted the FTM file. The Compact crashed the FTM 2014 program, which was stable during Compact (every day). I restarted the program and compacted the FTM file again and the Unknown names were changed but were not located in the People Name Index at the top of the Index. They were at the location where Unknowns used to be in the People Index. I then sorted the People Index by "Given Name, Family" instead of my default "Family, Given Name". The People Index then relocated the changed Unknown surnames to the top of the People Index, the sort order it should be in.I then resorted the People Index back to my default order of "Family, Given Name". The sort order remained correct, at the top of the Index. I did a Backup and shut down.This morning I opened FTM 2014 and the People Index sort order is back ! to! > the incorrect location, alphabetically with the Us.So, I resorted the Index by "Given Name, Family", as I successfully had the night before. The changed Unknowns had then completely disappeared from the Index.I then resorted the Index back to my default "Family, Given Name" order. The Changed Unknowns not only reappeared in the Index but were in the proper sort order at the top of the Index. Oh, ANOTHER mystery of FTM 2014 ... unless my Windows 8.1 64 bit 8GB system is acting up, or I'm using up all my resources, etc. I have 6443 people with 39,000 facts and 1900+ media. FTM size 55 MB and FTM backup file size 3.95 GB.Of course, I can not predict what tomorrow morning will bring as to whether the Changed Unknowns will be present much less sorted in the proper order.And yes I do have a Compacted Backup FTM file from before the changing of Unknowns to your method of Ada (W/John Smith) __________ was implemented. By the way I really like that methodology.And I am fully awa! re ! > of the fact that there are those who will say, this doesn't happen on > my system and will defend FTM 2014 to the hilt. But I can assure you it has happened on my system.I love FTM 2014 even with its quirks, but as a former reliability engineer and software programmer, the platform is not totally stable in my opinion. But how many programs are REALLY bug free? Not many, I'm afraid, if you consider all the potential variables and combinations involved in software usage.Bottom line, Judy in Ocala started the very interesting thread of emails by asking "what everyone would like to be altered/added to FTM 2014". The original question mostly got side-tracked unfortunately into FTM 16 vs FTM 2014 but I found the thread interesting, if not fully addressing Judy's all important question. What a chance to add input to the next generation FTM BEYOND bug complaints. What I would like for FTM 2014 is to be first and foremost STABLE and bug free within reasonable limits of commercial development efforts and cost. My software development background was more! h! > igh reliability demanding then the average commercial packages. But I am not anticipating that level of reliability from FTM 2014 ... not for it's affordability and commercially viable price range. After stability and known bug fixes, then I have a wish list of features (not complaints) that I would like implemented. But that is for another email to be composed. Thank you all who contributed to the thread that Judy started with a very simple yet important question. From some of you I learned what I already knew and that is simply but bluntly put "some people just don't read user manuals". From others I learned that "change is hard for them" (human nature). From others I learned some new ways (for me) of approaching some fundamental issues of data management and organization. I always learn something from Russ and you, BJ. That's why I keep abreast of FTM-Tech emails ... learn learn learn!!!