Though I whole heartedly agree that the best research is done with records and reliable books, I have found the Family Tree Maker CD's a very valuable tool in my research. The best way to make sure that you won't get stuck with a CD that you don't need is to do a little research about the entries first. Do a search at the Family Tree Maker web site to see where potential relatives a located on a CD. There is a wonderful web site of volunteers that will do look-ups for you of CDs that they own. The CDs are also valuable for not only finding relative dead and gone but those that are still alive. I have made a wonderful connection with a family member that we hardly new where they were. But because he had submitted his information to be on the World Family Tree and I found it, now we are able to reunite that side with mine. Granted when it comes to documentation, Family Tree Maker CDs ARE NOT the way to go. But they do make a helpful aid in the search for the past and present. Mike Snow