Well, here we are. It's been almost two years, so time for another post.

Cream is still in maintenance and minor update mode. I continue to enjoy getting into the code, but it happens less than is necessary to add major features.

The CAD front on Linux continues to be quite disappointing. I now believe it will be at least 5 years before there is even the possibility of Free Software available to industry. The area is overrun with modelers, but nobody who writes these remotely understands the point of CAD, dimensioned drawings, scale, etc. With 3D CAD software like Rev*t becoming mainstream, Linux will continue to get even farther behind.

I finally gave up on GRAMPS and bought a copy of RootsMagic for my old Windows box. It is such a joy to use--the interface is deceptively simple and yet the data structuring and tools are exactly what an experienced genealogist needs. GRAMPS has gone down the road of a huge interface with lots of supposed features, but it has tried to be so flexible and politically correct (design by committee) that it forgot what its main purpose is. I never got the impression that any of the developers have even a fleeting interest in genealogy, so, no surprise. After 9 years of Free Software, I'm finally comfortable purchasing the rare software again if it does exactly what I need.

I'm getting ready to upgrade to Fedora 9. My first (successful) Linux install was Red Hat 5.1 and I've never missed a release in between. Wow, I think this will be the 20th version I've used. (And I've yet to loose a single piece of data.)

Until next time...