Read-only Status Coming for New.FamilySearch.org

I am still talking to quite a few people who persist in working on New.FamilySearch.org despite the almost constant announcements of the fact that it will be made "read-only" at the end of the year. I guess I should point out that that is less than three months away at the date of writing this post. It is also clear that at the end of 2014, the program will be removed from the Web.

Please see Ron Tanner's post entitled, "Major Migration Milestone Coming for new.FamilySearch.org" for more details.

Despite the clear announcements being made about the migration of New.FamilySearch.org, I am positive that there will be a huge number of people who will claim they knew nothing about the changes in the program come December 31st. I would think it would be a good idea for FamilySearch to put a notice with a count-down on the New.FamilySearch.org website, telling users how many days left they have before the program goes inert.

Here are a list of questions I have been answering over the past few months. The answers are my own and if you find anything that is inaccurate, please make a comment and I will correct the information in subsequent posts.

What does it mean that the website will become "read-only?" 

It means exactly what it says, the website will be locked and no changes, additions, or other use can be made of the website once it is made read-only. Users will be able to view the information and that is all.

Why are the forcing everyone to move to a new website?

First of all, this shouldn't be a surprise. FamilySearch.org's Family Tree was introduced in February 2012 and has been in active use now for almost two years. At the introduction of Family Tree it was made clear that New.FamilySearch.org would one day cease to function.

Isn't Family Tree still in the testing stage?

Family Tree is still undergoing changes, as it probably will throughout its life and for the foreseeable future. Websites either constantly change or they die. Family Tree is not a preliminary or Beta program. It is a fully functional and complete program. There are a few features that can only be fully implemented once New.FamilySearch.org goes into Read-only mode, but that has been known for some time.

Can you reserve names for the Temple with Family Tree?

I cannot believe how many times I have been asked this question. It shows me that the people asking have yet to look at Family Tree or spend any time with the program. Yes, you can reserve names for the Temple and yes you can print Family Ordinance Request (FOR) forms and take them to the Temple to have the Temple cards printed. [Note: The Mesa FamilySearch Library has the capability of printing Temple cards from the FORs]

Why is are the people on my Family Tree file so messed up?

I am surprised to still be getting this question. Family Tree merely reflects the status of the records as they now exist. If there are mistakes, inconsistencies, wrong people etc. they are what has always been part of the overall record for each individual. In other words, the mistakes have been there all along and Family Tree has merely given us the first opportunity we had to correct the information.

What can I do about someone who was wrongly combined in New.FamilySearch.org?

Not a whole lot until the programs are separated and New.FamilySearch.org goes read-only.

This isn't all the questions by far, but it these are the most common ones. If you have any additional questions, please feel free to post a comment.