The Browser Used in Family Tree Maker, and how to fix problems

 The browser in FTM is of the Chromium family, similar to Google Chrome.  However, it is independent of Chrome, not ssharing any of the files of chrome, such as the cache.  That's why sometimes you will go to a web site and that site will pop up a message saying that it needs to store cookies, even though you have been to the same web site using Google Chrome. 

Sometimes the browser will have not work as you expect.  For example, I can think of times when the scissors  function will not work to cut pictures to store in your media.  (By the way, the first thing to check if the scissors function fails to draw the dashed lines around the picture you want to copy is to make sure the Media tab is "in focus" = selected in the "Person from your tree" frame.)  

Whenever the browser does not work as expected, it is best to "clear the cache."  The cache stores all the temporary information the browser uses to display a web page.  But "temporary" is a relative term, since browsers can have information for months or years in the cache if it isn't regularly cleaned out, so it will get a "fresh" copy of the information. 

To clear the FTM browser's cache in Windows: 

1. Close Family Tree Maker.
2. Press Windows key + R on your keyboard to open the Run dialog box.  
3. Enter %localappdata% and then click OK. The AppData folder opens in a file management window.  (You don't really have to do #2 if you can see the AppData folder, which is hidden by default, in you File Manager.)
4. Find The_Software_MacKiev_Comp folder and double-click it to open it, then find a folder labeled FTM.exe_StrongName_seih5jkxwe5jgqf34wadynpglkq344as and open that.
5. Right-click the CEF folder and click Delete on the context menu. This will empty the cache.
6. Close the file management window and open Family Tree Maker 2019.

Here is an example of the file structure to the CEF folder:

Note: After clearing the CEF cache, if you were previously signed in to any websites from FTM you will need to sign in to them again. Also, some sites may seem slower at first because images and other content will need time to reload.

Unfortunately, the browser used in Mac computers is Safari.  I have not been given guidance on how to empty the cache, but if the program is simply sharing the existing Safari space, here are the instructions.

1. In Safari, go to the menubar and Click Safari and then Preferences.
2. Click the Advanced Tab and check the box next to "Show Develop menu in menubar"

3. From the menu bar, select Develop.Empty Caches