SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH - The newest version of Personal Ancestral File, a Windows-based version of genealogical management software, is the only software of its kind that can record information in all languages. In addition to being able to type characters from all the Roman alphabets, users can type characters from languages around the world, including Japanese, Chinese, Korean and Russian.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is offering the new software program free of charge via the Internet at the Church's distribution web site.

Steve Cannon, product manager for the Family and Church History Department says, "This new version of PAF is unique because, for the first time, it provides a way for genealogists researching Cyrillic (e.g., Russian, Ukrainian) languages to input and organize data. It will also allow users to customize fields according to how they like to enter new information to their personal genealogy databases."

PAF 5.0 does not provide genealogical data. Instead, the program helps users organize their family history records. It can produce, in automated or manual form, records for personal family histories or charts and logs to help users in their search for missing ancestors. The new version includes new multimedia features as well as enhancing the more popular features of PAF 4.0.

System Requirements:

• Windows 95B, 98, Me, NT 4.0, 2000 or Windows 95A with Microsoft Internet Explorer
• Pentium PC or iMac with a Windows emulator
• 32 MB memory
• 20MB to 60 MB hard disk space
• 256-color display adapter supporting 800 x 600 screen resolution
• Optional: Internet access, printer, mouse

Personal Ancestral File 5.0 will also be available on CD ROM for a nominal price in the Spring of 2001. Users will be able to purchase it from the Church's distribution centers worldwide.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has worked with churches and governments in more than 100 nations to gather and preserve the world's heritage through the records of its diverse peoples. The Church is committed to producing high-quality products for the family historian. It maintains the world's largest repository of genealogical resources. To promote local and family history (genealogical) research, the Church also maintains the Family History Library in Salt Lake City and more than 3,700 Family History Centers in 64 countries.