State Archives offers free research classes during October

Utah Archives Month programs planned

The Utah State Archives will observe Utah Archives Month throughout October with weekly events each Wednesday.

The statewide theme for 2008 is “Documenting Utah: Political History, Public Policy, and Archives.” An exhibit of capitol artifacts is on display in the lobby of the Archives building. The display includes notable artifacts, such as a capitol dome light, original office furnishings, historic photographs, design submission competition entries, program of competition booklets, a piece of granite, and commemorative items.

Three classes geared to family historians will be offered on alternating weeks.

• Danielle L. Batson, MLS, AG (LDS Family History Library), will present a class on using United States naturalization records, on October 1, at noon.
• Susan Whetstone, photograph curator at the Utah Historical Society, will provide instruction on preserving photographs on October 15, at 5 p.m.
• “Wake the Dead,” a popular class on family history sources and research in Utah, will be presented on October 29, at 5 p.m. A tour of the research center is included.

The Archives will host the annual Utah fall caucus of the Conference of Inter-Mountain Archivists on October 8.

Training for the Regional Repositories program under the direction of the Utah State Historical Records Advisory Board is set on October 22.

All events will be held in the Courtyard Meeting Room in the State Archives Building, 346 S. Rio Grande Street (455 West), Salt Lake City.

Information about these and other events is listed in the calendar on the Utah Archives Month website, utaharchivesmonth.org.

FamilyInsight in Open Beta

Renee's Note: I found this posting on the PAFInsight Mailing List today.

FamilyInsight Beta version 2008.9.24 is now on the available at www.ohanasoftware.com
This is a BETA version so there are a few problems. Please save a copy of your file before you start to use the FamilyInsight Beta.

In order to use the "Sync with FamilySearch family tree" mode, you must be able to sign in to new.familysearch.org,

If you cannot sign in to new.familysearch.org you can still use the IGI Search mode in either FamilyInsight or PAF Insight.

FamilyInsight will run with a FamilyInsight License or a PAF Insight license or Update license that has time remaining on the update time period.

Aloha

Paula
Ohana Software

New Records added to FindMyPast.com

1901 CENSUS FOR LONDON GOES LIVE AT FINDMYPAST.COM

Findmypast.com today announced that the county of London, comprising over 4.6 million records has been added to its new online version of the 1901 census for England and Wales. The new records join the counties of Surrey, Gloucestershire and Somersetshire, which are already available to search at
http://www.findmypast.com/CensusPersonStartSearchServlet?censusYear=1901. More counties are to follow in the coming weeks.

A fresh look at 1901 census

Findmypast.com's brand new version of the 1901 census is being transcribed from scratch and each image rescanned using the sophisticated scanning technology available today. The result is clearer images and more accurate transcriptions than previously seen.

Elaine Collins, Commercial Director at findmypast.com commented: "It's incredible what the latest advances in scanning have achieved. With findmypast.com's brand new version of the 1901 England and Wales census, it really is possible to find ancestors that you haven't previously been able to find on older online versions, so it's definitely worth taking a fresh look at this key resource."

Like all the records on findmypast.com, the 1901 census can be searched for free at http://www.findmypast.com/CensusChooseSearchType.jsp. Images and transcripts can be viewed with vouchers, pay-as-you-go credits or a Discovery or Explorer subscription.


BAPTISMS ADDED TO THE PARISH RECORDS COLLECTION

Findmypast.com working in association with the Federation of Family History Societies has also added 2.3 million baptism records to The Parish Records Collection, which already includes 15 million burial records and nearly 2 million marriage records. Some of the records date back to 1538, when Henry VIII's Vicar General Thomas Cromwell instigated the recording of records at parish level. They are available to search now at
http://www.findmypast.com/parish-records-collection-
search-start.action?redef=0&event=M.

Among the newly added records are 346,000 baptism records for London's Docklands area covering much of East London and provided by Docklands Ancestors.

About findmypast.com

Leading UK family history website findmypast.com (formerly 1837online.com) was the first company to make the complete birth, marriage and death indexes for England & Wales available online in April 2003.

Following the transcription, scanning and indexing of over two million images, the company launched the first website to allow the public easy and fast access to the complete indexes, which until then had only been available on microfiche film in specialist archives and libraries. The launch was instrumental in creating the widespread and growing interest in genealogy seen in the UK today.

Findmypast has subsequently digitised many more family history records and now offers access to over 600 million records dating as far back as 1538. This allows family historians and novice genealogists to search for their ancestors among comprehensive collections of military records, census, migration, occupation directories, and current electoral roll data, as well as the original comprehensive birth, marriage and death records.

In November 2006 findmypast launched the ancestorsonboard.com microsite in association with The National Archives to publish outbound passenger lists for long-distance voyages departing all British ports between 1890 and 1960.

As well as providing access to historical records, findmypast is also developing a range of online tools to help people discover and share their family history more easily, beginning with the launch of Family Tree Explorer in July 2007.

Over 1.7 million people in the UK have researched their family trees and findmypast.com has over 800,000 active registered users, revealing the mass appeal of genealogy and findmypast.com's position as the leading family history website based in the UK.

In April 2007 findmypast's then parent company Title Research Group received the prestigious Queen's Award for Enterprise: Innovation 2007 in recognition of their achievement.

Findmypast.com was acquired in December 2007 by brightsolid, the company which was awarded The National Archives' contract to publish online the 1911 census.

MyHeritage Acquires Family Social Network Kindo

Renee's Note: The following press release is from MyHeritage. I am not familiar with Kindo but the concept sounds great to me. I was really impressed with the innovative photo management tool that MyHeritage has added to their site. It's only mentioned in passing at the end of the press release. Follow the link there and watch the video on this great photo tagging tool.

MyHeritage and Kindo join to offer the best online destination for families

London, England and Tel Aviv, Israel (PRWEB) September 22, 2008 -- MyHeritage, one of the world's most popular family Web sites, today announced the acquisition of family social network Kindo. MyHeritage has more than 25 million members worldwide and is known for its powerful technology that helps families research their history and stay connected, including Smart Matching and automatic photo tagging. The Kindo team's experience in social networking will help MyHeritage realize its vision to be the Facebook for families. As part of this acquisition, MyHeritage will also establish new commercial operations in London.

"Adding the Kindo team to MyHeritage puts the company in an even stronger position to realize its vision of connecting families around the world," said Gilad Japhet, founder and CEO of MyHeritage. "The synergy of our innovative, sophisticated technology and Kindo's social networking and marketing expertise will further solidify our position as industry leader. Kindo successfully created a friendly service with an excellent reputation and great base of users."

Founded by CEO Gilad Japhet, MyHeritage helps people around the world discover, connect and communicate with their extended family network and easily research their family history. The service is unique in its international reach, currently translated into 25 languages with more to follow. Its impressive growth is based on an increasing desire of families to stay closely connected, learn more about each other and share their photos. MyHeritage can be accessed through the Web site or by downloading a simple piece of software for free. Combining MyHeritage and Kindo will create a larger family network and instantly provide more value to its collective user base.

The London-based Kindo team will become an essential part of MyHeritage, joining forces to accomplish the company's vision of creating the best online destination for families. Kindo's users can now get easy access to Myheritage's unique technology, helping them discover and learn even more about their family history. They will also benefit from MyHeritage's photo tagging technology, which automatically scans and identifies people in photos, making it easier for families to organize, search and share their photos.

"MyHeritage and Kindo share a common vision for the future of families online. We both want to give people an easy and fun way to stay connected, organize events, share memories, and strengthen ties across geographies," said Nils Hammar, co-founder of Kindo. "When I worked at Skype, we saw first hand how powerful the Internet could be in helping families communicate, and now we want to take that a step further with MyHeritage."

About MyHeritage
MyHeritage was founded by a team of people who combine their passion for family history with the development of innovative technology. It is now one of the world's leading online networks for families, and the second largest family history website. MyHeritage is available in 25 languages and home to more than 25 million family members and 265 million profiles. The company is based in Bnei Atarot, near Tel Aviv, Israel. For more information, visit www.myheritage.com.
You can find a video about the new photo tagging features here:
http://www.myheritage.com/blogs/companyblog/2008/09/get_to_know_our_smart_new_phot.html

About Kindo
Founded in 2007, London-based Kindo is an internationally focused web-based family networking platform that spans generations. On Kindo, users can build their free next generation family tree and stay in touch with their loved ones. Kindo is available in 17 languages, as diverse as Arabic, Chinese, Russian, and Hindi. The company is funded by high-profile business angels and venture capitalists, including The Accelerator Group (TAG), Stefan Glänzer (last.fm, myblog.de, ricardo.de) and Ambient Sound Investments (ASI), the investment company of Skype's founding engineers. http://kindo.com

Update on NFS Roll-out

It's Tuesday and more temple districts have gone live with new FamilySearch this week. My source at FamilySearch has given me an update of where we stand.

Sister Zamora,

Here’s my latest report on new FamilySearch.

Temples that went live on September 16 were Cochabamba Bolivia, Denver CO, London & Preston England. Temples that went live today, September 23 were Seattle WA, Regina Saskatchewan, and Washington DC. Other announced temples include:

September 30 – Medford OR, Memphis TN, & Spokane WA

October 7 – Anchorage AK, Montreal Quebec, Oklahoma City OK, & Portland OR

Thanks,

I was on break at work when I read this update. I didn't have time to check but I felt that all the temple districts in North America, excluding Utah, Idaho and Las Vegas, now had a official "go live" date. I quickly wrote to my source to inquire. Here is their reply.

Yes, every temple district in North America, with the exception of Idaho, Utah, and Las Vegas have official “go live” dates. Aba Nigeria, Hamilton New Zealand, and Mexico City should receive “go live” dates within the next few weeks. That leaves on the Asian temples (Japan, Korea, and Hong Kong). These temples do not have dates yet.

WAHOO!! We are down to our last major announcements now. The most difficult areas are all that remain to be rolled-out. Here are the stats: 128 Temple districts, 97 Live, 10 announced. I took Las Vegas off my announced list because it really needs to have a new announce date. There are 21 temples that remain to be announced to go live with NFS. There are 5 in Asia which make up, 2 in Japan, 1 in Korea, 1 in Taiwan and 1 in Hong Kong. Then we have the Wasatch Front, 4 in Idaho, 11 in Utah and 1 more Las Vegas. After all that it's open to the whole world.

I have updated my New FamilySearch Roll-out spreadsheet.

See ya tomorrow, for tomorrow is always another genealogy day!

Adventures in FamilySearch Indexing - Week 59

My son that is on a service mission for the Church at the LDS Motion Picture Studio has been hogging my computer for a couple of days now. Have I ever told you that I don't share well? Well I don't. I know my computer is better than his laptop, for some work he needs to do, but come on, I need my time on the computer too!

I like my computer room to think and ponder on things. I really feel the loss of it when it's not available to me. You know in fact I'm lucky I still even have a computer room. Friday I was in there and my old surge protector that sat under my computer monitor decided to give up the ghost and go up in smoke. I was lucky to be sitting there when it happened.

The master switch had been making sizzling noises whenever I used it. It was a short quick sound and not bothersome to me. I figured yeah need to get a new one and that was about it. Then I threw the switch Friday and all heck broke out. Zip, zap, crack, pop and smoke I was lucky I could pull the plug before any serious damage was done. I thought at the time, "Gosh, Renee, that was stupid you were even using it in the first place." I guess that's the problem when you have a frugal mentally and figure it's best to "Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without". I can tell you now it's not good to "use" up bad electrical items.

You want to know how frugal our family is? Saturday morning I bought a new surge protector and removed the old surge protector to the trash. As I was throwing it out my husband asked me what I was doing? I replied "Throwing out the old surge protector. That's why I bought a new one." He says "Don't throw it out let me look at it first." I said "Are you kidding? Do you think after it smoked I'd ever use it again even if you think you can fixed it." He was quiet. He also fished the old surge protector out of the garage can without me knowing. Later on he tells me, "Yeah that surge protector was toast. It's all burned up inside and I can't fix it, it's a good thing you got a new one." I just had to shake my head. Yeah, that's called frugal to the point of being called stupid.

Well, at least I am here still, the room and the house are still here too. I just have a son not budging from my computer right. Thank goodness I have a laptop and it doesn't take a lot of quiet time to do FamilySearch Indexing.

There are two messages from Headquarters this week.

From: Headquarters
Subject: Semimonthly Message
Date: 16 Sep 2008

Reminders on indexing census records

On some projects the place of birth information is split into two fields:
State/Territory and Country. If a state is listed as the place of birth do not put a country in the Country field unless it is actually written on the record.

• For example, on the 1870 Census, if New York was the only information written in the Place of Birth column, index that in the State or Territory field and do not put United States in the Country field. Simply press Tab to leave the Country field blank.
  

The line number is located in the margin on either side of the line. Do not add a 0 before the line number.

Tools available for making an image easier to read

Sharpen: This might help to read text that appears out of focus. On the menu bar, click View, and click Sharpen to change the contrast of the edges of text.

Brightness/Contrast: Brightness increases or decreases the brightness of an image. Contrast makes the light colors lighter and the dark colors darker on the image. On the menu bar, click View, and click Brightness/Contrast to change the luminosity of the image.

Invert: Sometimes when a document is hard to read, inverting the image may help make reading it easier. To view a negative appearing image (white writing on black background), on the menu bar, click View, and click Invert.

The next message is:

From: Headquarters
Subject: Marking Other Types of Documents
Date: 22 Sep 2008

Some batches may contain document images that are completely unreadable, contain non-extractable information, or are an exact duplicate of another image in the batch. Whenever the batch that you have downloaded contains a non-extractable image of any kind, you need to identify it and submit the batch.

To do so:

1. On the toolbar in the center of the indexing screen, click on the down arrow in the box labeled Document Type.
2. Click on the appropriate image identification.
3. Click Yes on the warning message.
4. On the menu bar, click File.
5. Click Submit.
   

Note: Occasionally, the project instructions will request that you mark certain document types (such as Agricultural Schedules in the 1870 US Census) as No Extractable Data images. Please remember to mark these batches accordingly and submit them; do not return them.

Pretty basic information that all of us can understand.

I was happy to see that my New York 1870 US Federal Census was still available for me to index tonight. I worked on two batches totaling 80 records. My grand total of records indexed to-date is 8617. I had a lot of immigrants on these two batches. It did say New York City so that isn't to surprising. The nice thing on this census was it told in some cases where in a foreign country they were from. That is helpful for someone trying to jump the pond. I wonder who is indexing my upstate New York records? Wouldn't it be cool if I could actually index my own ancestors. Maybe someday.

See ya tomorrow, for tomorrow is always another genealogy day!

RootsMagic 4 to Sync with New FamilySearch

I was just wrapping up reading my emails and blog feeds for the night when I came across this one I just have to share. The RootsMagic Blog has featured it's sync capabilities with new FamilySearch in it's article today: RootsMagic 4 Unwrapped - New FamilySearch. It has wonderful screen captures of what the interface looks like.

One of the blessing of living in Utah Valley is that I can attend the Utah Valley PAF Users Group meetings. Bruce Buzbee, the developer of RootsMagic is a member and regularly teaches a RootsMagic breakout class there. So, I've been really fortunate to see some previews of how RootsMagic 4 will sync with new FamilySearch.

Bruce has a real knack for giving you uncluttered screens that hold lots of information. He is a programmer that understands the way a genealogist thinks. He also likes to know, given the screen you are on, what would you do next. It's that thought process coupled with the complexidy of new FamilySearch that is going to put this API that interfaces with NFS above the competition. Clean, simplified screens that gives a lot of information. Intuitive and sequential in it processes.

The only problem I think Bruce and RootsMagic is going to run into is the fact they are not New FamilySearch certified yet. Their competitor Ancestral Quest has already become certified. Will people in their rush to get any product that will sync with NFS just go ahead and buy AQ? I am sure there are some that will because AQ is not a bad product. AQ has the jump on the market right now, why is RootsMagic not certified? They have been working with FamilySearch on the API just as long as AQ has. (As well as FamilyInsight and Legacy too I might mention.)

Well I can tell you why they are not certified, it's because RootsMagic 4 isn't quit ready to be release yet. If the program was out then it would be certified by now. Naturally if you certify it and have FamilySearch announce it's certification you would want to go out and buy the program right then. Well it's not ready yet so we just have to be patient. Like the saying goes "Haste makes waste".

One thing that RootsMagic 4 interface with NFS has that Ancestral Quest doesn't is FamilySearch Central. (I am stealing an image of it from the blog.) FamilySearch Central is the beating heart that an API needs for anyone using NFS. It's the guiding light to tell you what work you still need to do. I like having an active snapshot of where my database stands against what NFS has.

Click on the image to enlarge. If that doesn't work try the same thing on the RootsMagic blog image.

The word is RootsMagic 4 will be available by the end of the year. Of course, the new FamilySearch sync feature is not the only new feature planned for RootsMagic 4. Bruce told us that the blog would roll-out minor features and progress onto larger items as he goes on. With NFS features this week I can't wait to see what else is coming up.

I think you just might want to keep a eye on the RootsMagic blog like me.

See ya tomorrow, for tomorrow is always another genealogy day!

MyGenShare.com Coming in the Fall

I was so excited to received an email from Barry J. Ewell announcing a free genealogy website he is creating. I first sat in on one of Barry's presentations at Education Week 2007. He was practically the only speaker there on genealogy so I attended every one of his classes.

As each new day came, for another group of classes, I had to arrive earlier and earlier so I could even get a seat into his classes for the day. It appears everyone told someone, and they told someone, and they told someone, etc. about this new great genealogy lecturer. He had loads of materials and what more, if you would send him your email address he would give you 150 pages or more of the materials he also had on the subject.

Barry wasn't into making money from helping people with their genealogy. He freely shared his research on a variety of genealogy how-to topics with others. He won my heart over at once. I'm sure it has been an overwhelming thing for him to keep up with the demands of sending these genealogy research papers to everyone that attends his classes. This new website he has created sounds like the perfect match.

Here is a copy of the email he just sent out.

Over the last couple years, I have met genealogists world-wide through conference presentations, genealogy research, and common interest to help one another in our search for ancestors. The focus of this email is simply to let you know that a new and exciting genealogy website will launch in the fall of 2008.

www.MyGenShare.com

What is MyGenShare.com?

MyGenShare.com is a world-class website designed to provide genealogists with how-to resources. MyGenShare.com has been two years in the planning and development. You’ll find hundreds of knowledge-based articles, podcasts, and videos to help genealogists with their research.

What am I asking of you?

1. Please register with email to receive the announcement when my GenShare.com launches. In addition you will be given free access to free premium content.

2. Please share the news that MyGenShare.com is coming with others you think will have an interest.

Kindest regards,

Barry J. Ewell
barry.ewell@mygenshare.com

I hurriedly went to this new website www.MyGenShare.com to check out what he might have already put there. I found a little intro about the site, the header says "Sharing Information to Join Generations". It also has a sampling of the topics he will cover there. In the upper right hand side there is a box to type in your email address so you can be notified when the site is officially launched.

After filling in your email address this message comes up.

Thank you for your interest in MyGenShare.com. We'll notify you prior to launching our site.

When MyGenShare.com launches, you will find a resource that is designed to help you understand the how-to's of genealogy research. While we put the finishing touches on MyGenShare, we would like to know a little more about you and your needs as a genealogist. Click on the button to take a 5-7 minute survey. All answers are anonymous.

Upon completion of the survey, I will send you a 150-page article entitled "How to Effectively Work with Libraries and Historical Societies."

I always marveled over how he can refer to his materials as 150-page articles. That's actually the size of many one subject genealogy books. Didn't I tell you he was generous. Take him up on his offer. I just can't praise him enough and I so look forward to what his site will offer. I think we could all use a little Barry Ewell in our lives. Genealogy is not always easy and technology over-whelms many. It will be great to have a website willing to spread the knowledge and how-to's freely around.

See ya tomorrow, for tomorrow is always another genealogy day!

Homestead Records Available at Footnote

The following information is from Footnote.

HOMESTEAD RECORDS BECOME AVAILABLE ON THE INTERNET FOR THE FIRST TIME ON FOOTNOTE.COM

Original Records Documenting the Lives of Early Settlers Offer a Unique View Into 19th Century America

Lindon, UT -- September 18, 2008 – In an event held today at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Footnote.com along with several partners announced a project to make available hundreds of thousands of original Homestead Records on the Internet for the first time. This project involved the efforts of organizations including The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), the National Parks Service, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and FamilySearch.

“It’s exciting to see various organizations with different strengths and capabilities come together to make this information widely available,” says Russ Wilding, CEO of Footnote.com. “This record collection is just one example how individuals on Footnote.com can connect their own family history to the big picture of American History.”

The Homestead Act of 1862 was a landmark event at a time when the American Nation was being torn apart by the Civil War. These records, most of which have never been microfilmed, contain more than simply the names of those who petitioned the U.S. Government for land. They tell the rich story of a fast-growing country and those men and women eager to live the American dream by becoming land owners.

Footnote.com has already digitized and indexed the Homestead Records from Broken Bow, Nebraska featuring almost 40,000 records. To view samples of these records and see what Footnote users have discovered, click here. Working together with its’ partners, Footnote.com will continue to release more records on the site.

Footnote.com has focused on making real history accessible to everyone and providing tools that enable people to connect with history and with each other.

Footnote.com recently released Footnote Pages, which allows users to create interactive pages for an individual, group, place or event. These pages bring history to life by allowing users to create:

• Interactive timelines and maps
• Photo galleries
• Stories
• Links to other related Footnote Pages and Footnote Members
  

“We encourage everyone with an interest in these Homestead Records to come and enrich this content with your contributions,” says Wilding. “When people come together and share their insights, a new and exciting side of history is revealed.”

Learn more by visiting http://www.footnote.com

About Footnote.com
Footnote.com is a history website where real history might just surprise you. Footnote.com features millions of searchable original documents, providing users with an unaltered view of the events, places and people that shaped the American nation and the world. At Footnote.com, all are invited to come share, discuss, and collaborate on their discoveries with friends, family, and colleagues. For more information, visit www.footnote.com.

My Ancestors Found is now Family History Expos

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Mark Your Calendars! - UGA Meeting

The next meeting of Utah Valley chapter UGA will be on Friday, September 19th. The topic will be the "Pioneer Certificates", and new Pioneer Database that UGA is currently working on. The presenters will be those responsible for this project.

These certificates are available for anyone whose ancestor arrived in Utah before 1900 and are available to descendants of early residents including railroad workers, cattle men - actually any one who arrived in the state before 1900. There is also a massive project to centralize information
online about Utah Pioneers that will be of interest to those with Utah heritage.

For additional information contact beckyanneroberts@msn.com

People Like ME, Wahoo!!

I am just tickled pink that Janet Hovorka of The Chart Click, nominated me for the "I Love Your Blog Award". It's always so great to know that people like you.

The hardest part for me is just picking seven blogs that I love. Seven, are you kidden? I have to honestly say that Janet and I think a lot alike. I would nominate all the ones she said. Can a blog be nominated more than once? It sounded like Janet's blog was nominated twice but in the same day by two different people.

The rules for the award are thus:

1. Can put the logo on his/her blog

2. Must link to the person who gave the award

3. Must nominate 7 other blogs and link to them

4. Must leave a comment on each of the nominated blogs

So: the 7 blogs I nominate are:

1. Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter by Dick Eastman. I learned about blogs from one of Dick's articles and this motivated me to start mine. He is the master.
2. Upstate New York Genealogy Blog by Dick Hillenbrand. Full of helpful information for doing my upstate New York research.
   
3. JLog by someone who likes the letter J. I like how this person thinks, might be a little sarcastic at times but I find them funny. I understand how their brain works when they explain how to use technology with my genealogy.
4. Ancestry Insider by name withheld. I know who the Ancestry Insider is but I promised not to tell anyone. It's helpful to me to get another LDS point of view on the new FamilySearch roll-out from him.
   
5. Genealogy Insider by Diane Haddad. Love the variety of subjects she reports on. Always has timely news.
   
6. Genea-Musings by Randy Seaver. I just can't get over how many blogs he reads and how much testing and researching he does. How many hours in the day does Randy have? He is super human and a wonderful blogger. Always useful information.
7. RootsMagic Blog by Bruce Buzbee. My favorite genealogy software program is giving me glimpses of what RootsMagic 4 will have. I feel like I'm sitting on a cliff hanger every week waiting for the next thing to be showcased. Keeps me coming back to learn what else is coming.
   

So, if you compare my list to Janet's you will see I nominated two for the award that she already had. I just couldn't resist because they are my mostest favorite and that's what the award is all about.

See ya tomorrow, for tomorrow is always another genealogy day!

Eastman's Video Interview with Paul Nauta of FamilySearch

I just read and listened to Dick Eastman's newsletter article "Video Interview of Paul Nauta of FamilySearch". He has an excellent interview with Paul and I thought I would share it here with you.

Temple Districts Going Live on 30 Sept

It was just announced that the following temples will go live with new FamilySearch on 30 September.

Spokane, WA

Medford, OR

Memphis, TN

New FamilySearch Update

The word is back from my FamilySearch source on the latest temple districts to go live with new FamilySearch.

September 16
Cochabamba Bolivia
Denver CO
London England
Preston England

September 23
Seattle WA
Regina Saskatchewan
Washington DC

Out of the the 128 temple districts around the world, 94 are now live with new FamilySearch. There are 11 announced with one on hold, 23 temples are still awaiting word of when they will roll-out. I have updated my New FamilySearch Roll-out spreadsheet.

See ya tomorrow, for tomorrow is always another genealogy day!

Ancestral Quest 12.1 Available to Sync with NFS

Renee's Note: I found the following email on FHCNET from Gaylon Findlay stating Ancestral Quest 12.1 is now available to all, and able to sync with new FamilySearch. This is the first commercial product available to sync with NFS. In the coming months we will see FamilyInsight, RootsMagic and Legacy offer their own versions.

All:

We know that many PAF 5 users and Family History Center consultants are anxiously awaiting the release of FamilySearch Certified PAF Add-ins to help them synchronize PAF 5 data with the Family Tree of new.FamilySearch.org. Incline Software released Ancestral Quest 12.1
over a month ago to a limited group, and we are now ready to open up access to any PAF 5 user who would like to synchronize their PAF 5 data with new.FamilySearch.org, and to any Family History Center that would like to have a copy of AQ 12.1 avaliable for their patrons.

Things you should know about this certified PAF add-in:

• Incline Software gave a copy of the AQ source code to the LDS church in 1999, from which PAF 4 and PAF 5 were derived. So if you are familiar with PAF 5, and you use Ancestral Quest 12.1, most of it will feel very familiar to you.
• Even though AQ 12.1 is a full program that could replace PAF 5, you can also use AQ simply as an Add-in for PAF 5. If you don't care to use all the features of AQ, simply use the new features that synchronize your PAF 5 data with new.FamilySearch.org and ignore the rest of the program. After you install AQ to your computer, you will find it listed in the "Tools" menu of PAF 5. You can use this tool, and focus on AQ's menu labeled "FamilySearch" to synchronize your PAF 5 data with nFS.
• You can download LDS ordinance data directly from NFS into your PAF file. You will find this easier than using the old methods of searching through the IGI to update your temple data -- in part because the FamilySearch team has already combined many of the duplicate records that used to exist in the IGI.
• You can try AQ 12.1 for free for 60 days. After the 60 days, you can continue to view your PAF 5 data with NFS IDs, you can continue to link your PAF records to NFS, and import Family Lines from NFS without purchasing a key to fully unlock the program. To otherwise exchange data between your PAF file and NFS, you would need to purchase a key after 60 days. Family History Centers are granted a free license to activate AQ on all the computers in their center. If you would like to receive the unlock key for your center, send a request to ancquest@ancquest.com.
• There are screens to let you quickly link any of your PAF 5 records with their corresponding records in the Family Tree of new.FamilySearch.org
• You can use some extra options in the Advanced Filtering to determine which of your records are linked to nFS and which are not
• You can import new records and data directly from nFS into your PAF 5 file
• You can upload your PAF 5 records and data directly to nFS
• You can download ancestral lines from NFS directly into either a new PAF file, or into your existing PAF file. This will include all LDS ordinances for these people. (This feature will continue to be free, even after the 60-day trial expires.)
• If you download LDS ordinances labeled "Ready" -- indicating that they can be submitted for temple work, you can quickly find these records using the Advanced Filtering by searching for "Any Ordinance Date" matching "Ready".
• AQ 12.1 has been out of beta testing for 6 weeks, now, and is being released to the third phase of its roll-out.
  

To download a copy of this new FamilySearch certified PAF add-in, go to this web page:

www.ancquest.com/Ver12-1Info.htm

Whether you already have training on how to use the new.FamilySearch.org or not, you will certainly have questions about how to synchronize your PAF 5 data with the Family Tree. We recommend that you watch the tutorial we have provided for PAF 5 users. It is available on this page:

http://www.ancquest.com/Ver12-1Tutorials.htm

Be aware that the FamilySearch team is expected to provide us with additional processes (called APIs) that will allow AQ to give you more options in the near future. For now, AQ 12.1 provides the tools you need to start linking your PAF 5 records with NFS.

In the near future, AQ will also provide these other capabilities not yet in the program:

• Allow you to download sources from NFS into your PAF 5 file (AQ will let you view the NFS sources now, but you cannot yet make them part of your PAF 5 file)
• Allow you to create a source for each record or piece of information you download into your PAF 5 file from NFS
• Allow you to separate improperly combined persons in NFS
  

Of course, you can only use these new features in AQ if you have an ID on the new.FamilySearch.org site. This means that most people in Utah and the Pacific northwest cannot yet use them, but we know that those of you who do have access to NFS will be excited to start using these tools immediately.

Good luck,

Gaylon Findlay
Incline Software

New FamilySearch Update - Well Sorta

I dropped the ball. I didn't get a list from my source at FamilySearch for the temple districts going live with new FamilySearch today. I realized my error when a faithful reader and good friend sent me the following email.

London went live today; I was there last Friday and the system is geared to barcode print outs while you wait if you bring small ordinance numbers. Large batches just have to wait longer! There is still a limited capacity for TempleReady but it goes very shortly and you would be a little unwise to still use it. I'm kicking myself for not taking barcodes with me as they were running test sets and would have printed mine!

Henry Mantell

I am checking with my source at FamilySearch to see what other temple districts went live today. I will update you when I hear back. I'll try to be on the ball better next time.

See ya tomorrow, for tomorrow is always another genealogy day!

FamilySearch Record Search Update

12 September 2008

The following free collections were added to the Record Search pilot this week at FamilySearch.org (go to Search Records and then Record Search pilot or directly at http://pilot.familysearch.org). Thanks as always to the growing number of online FamilySearch Indexing volunteers who help make these historic records so readily available. Individuals interested in volunteering on current or future indexing projects can do so immediately at FamilySearchIndexing.org.

Project	Images	Indexed Records	Comments
1850 U.S.	Yes	587,550	Added Louisiana and Wisconsin
1850 U.S. Slave Schedule	Yes	243,023	Added Slave Schedule for Louisiana
Mexico—Burials and Marriages, 1700 to 1900	No	1,486,827	Database was reloaded with enhanced search capabilities to recognize more family/surnames.
Norway—Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1700 to 1900	No	6,018,831	Database was reloaded with enhanced search capabilities to recognize more family/surnames.
Spain, Avila—Catholic Parish Records 1530 to 1935	534,149	No	Digital images only; preparatory to indexing online.

FamilySearch Indexing Update

Renee's Note: At the UGA Conference they mentioned that we are indexing 1.5 million records per day.

12 September 2008

The table below shows the FamilySearch projects that are currently available for indexing this week online.

Anyone can help. Individuals who would like to volunteer can begin immediately by registering and downloading the indexing software at www.familysearch.org or www.familysearchindexing.org. A typical batch takes about 30 minutes to complete and new batches are added regularly. Volunteers have seven (7) days to complete a downloaded batch. Completed indexes are free to the public and can be searched now at FamilySearch.org (go to Search Records and then Record Search pilot).

We suggest using the Save to Server (Save Online) feature instead of saving your work-in-progress to your personal computer’s hard drive. Saving your work online on the FamilySearch Indexing server means that any indexing work you are able to do on a batch—be it 5 minutes or 5 names—will not be lost. If you are unable to complete the batch in seven (7) days, another indexer will be able to pick up wherever you left off! If you find a batch too difficult for whatever reason, no problem, choose another batch. FamilySearch offers very helpful online tutorials and quick Support for anyone just getting started.

Imagine the impact of thousands of volunteers who might only be able to donate a few minutes of time a month to index!

Current FamilySearch Indexing Projects

	Project	Language
1	Alabama - 1920 US Federal Census	English
2	Argentina Censo 1869 - Buenos Aires	Spanish
3	Brandenburg Kirchenbücher, 1789-1875	German
4	California - 1920 US Federal Census	English
5	España Lugo Registros Parroquiales, 1530-1930	Spanish
6	Florida 1945 Census	English
7	France, Coutances, Paroisses de la Manche, 1792-1906	French
8	Guanajuato Censo de Mexico de 1930	Spanish
9	Guerrero - Censo de Mexico de 1930	Spanish
10	Illinois - 1920 US Federal Census	English
12	Louisiana 1850-1954 Death Certificates	English
13	Massachusetts - 1920 US Federal Census	English
14	Minnesota - 1870 US Federal Census	English
15	Morelos - Censo de Mexico de 1930	Spanish
16	New York - 1870 US Federal Census	English
17	Nicaragua, Managua Civil Records, 1879 - present	Spanish
18	North Carolina - 1870 US Federal Census	English
19	Pennsylvania - 1870 US Federal Census	English
20	Quintana Roo - Censo de Mexico de 1930	Spanish
21	Trento Italy Baptism Records, 1784-1924	Italian
22	UK - Cheshire - Poor Law, 1848 -1967	English
23	Venezuela Mérida Registros Parroquiales, 1654 - 1992	Spanish

Adventures in FamilySearch Indexing - Week 58

Where did the week go? I can't believe I missed indexing this past week. I have no idea what I was doing that was so important that made me miss doing that. I did attend the UGA Conference held at the Family History Library in Salt Lake Friday and Saturday. It was very good by the way, and the price was right - FREE! That still doesn't explain why I couldn't index in the beginning of the week. My, my how time does fly.

I am back on track at indexing today and that is the important thing. There were two messages from headquarters since the last time I indexed.

From: Headquarters
Subject: Semimonthly Message
Date: 02 Sep 2008

Indexing reminders and tips:

Record Type

For projects that require putting in a record type, click the Record Type field to have the drop-down arrow appear. Then you can choose the record type and the associated template will come up.

Page Number

If there is a page number on an image, but you cannot read the handwriting, it is too faded, or for any other reason you are not sure what to index, go to previous and/or next image to compare the page numbers.

Indexing Names

Remember to index any middle initials with the given name. For example, the name Robert C. Smith would be indexed as:

Given Name: Robert C

Surname: Smith

Printing Messages

FamilySearch indexing does not currently have a print funtion for My Messages. To print or save these messages, you will need to do the following:

1. Click once in the message body.
2. Press Ctrl+A to highlight and select the message.
3. Press Ctrl+C to copy the highlighted text to the computer clipboard.
4. Open your word processor (such as Word or Word Pad) or a new e-mail document.
5. Click once in the text body of the new document.
6. Press Ctrl+V to paste the copied text.
7. You can then print, save, or e-mail the message.
   

The second message.

From: Headquarters
Subject: Minnesota - 1870 US Federal Census
Date: 12 Sep 2008

To All Indexers:

There are some important differences between the Minnesota - 1870 US Federal Census project and the rest of the 1870 Census projects.

*Many batches in this project will contain two pages on an image instead of one. This means that you will be responsible for indexing 80 names instead of 40. Please remember to check the entire image (scroll down and left) to make sure all of the records are indexed before you submit your batch.

Often there is no information on the left page of the image and at first the image may appear blank. Check to see if there is information on the right page. If there is, start indexing on line 1 of the right page. If not, mark the image as a black image.

*There are agricultural records, produce records, etc, included in this project. Mark these records as No Extractable Data image(s). To do so:

• On the toolbar below the image on the indexing screen, click the down arrow in the box labeled Document Type.
• Select No Extractable Image.
• Click Yes to the warning messge.

I was really anxious to see if there were any New York projects left to index. Someone the other day mentioned to me that there were hardly any English projects left to index. That had me concerned. Lucky for me there appears to be plenty of English projects for me to pick from, and YES! New York is among them. I hurriedly select the New York 1870 US Federal Census project.

It didn't take me long to index two batches. I indexed 80 individuals making my grand total of indexed records to date as 8537. I would of done more it's early in the evening, but our friends invited us over for dinner tonight so I gotta run.

See ya tomorrow, for tomorrow is always another genealogy day!

New FamilySearch Update

My source from FamilySearch updated me yesterday on the recent temples that have gone live with new FamilySearch or received an official date for going live.

Sister Zamora,

Here is the latest:

Atlanta, Columbia River, Louisville, and St Paul went live today. Regina Saskatchewan, Seattle, and Washington DC were officially announced for September 23.

Thanks,

The status now of our 128 Temple Districts are 90 Live, 14 announced, 24 unannounced. Of those 24 there are 15 in UT, ID yet to receive word. The Las Vegas, NV temple has been on hold indefinitely and it is rumored that it will go live at the same time as the UT and ID temples. A date is still to be announced amongst them. That gives us 9 temple districts around the world that we are waiting to hear word on their status. Those nine are:

Mexico City, Mexico (currently under renovations)
Cochabarnba, Bolivia
Aba, Nigeria
Tokyo, Japan
Fukuoka, Japan
Seoul, Korea
Taipei, Taiwan
Hong Kong, China
Hamilton, New Zealand

I just have to mention a rumor that is going around concerning when the Utah, Idaho temple districts will go live. I've heard two. One is next August, 2009 and the other is as long as 18 months from now. Heavens no, that can't happen! I heard that Salt Lake wasn't pleased with that projection either and said it was totally unacceptable. So, it might be a long time that we wait for word of the Wasatch front going live with new FamilySearch. Now wouldn't it be wonderful if those rumors are proven totally wrong! Of course my source at FamilySearch won't confirm those rumors so I don't know how valid they are. Time will tell, time will tell.

See ya tomorrow, for tomorrow is always another genealogy day!

Hispanic Genealogy Conference

The following was posted on FHCNET.

Hispanic Genealogy Conference - Sat Oct. 18
8:30 am - 4:00 pm.
Salt Lake Family History Library

For more info. visit www.familysearch.org - upper tab click on library - click on education - click on left menu - Family History Library Research Series there you will find a flyer with the info.

Seating is limited. To register, send an e-mail to FHLClassReg@ldschurch.org or call 801-240-4950.

In Spanish read all about it on Lynn Turner's Hispanic Genealogy blog
http://hispanicgenealogy.blogspot.com/

Lorraine Hernandez

WorldVitalRecords Needs Local Researchers for Focus Group

I received this email from my manager at work today at WorldVitalRecords.com .

We are looking for 4-5 local family history researchers who conduct genealogy research for others for a fee. Though preferred, they do not have to be "professional" researchers. They will be participating in a 1 hour focus group at our office in Provo. Participants will receive a free 30 day membership to our collection. Lunch will be provided.

If you know of anyone who might be interested please send me their contact information.

If you fit the criteria and are interested just email me at harrisena@gmail.com . I will pass your contact information along. They would like to put the group together this week.

See ya tomorrow, for tomorrow is always another genealogy day!

1901 CENSUS FOR SURREY GOES LIVE ON FINDMYPAST.COM

Findmypast.com today announced that it has added the county of Surrey comprising more than 748,000 records to its new online version of the 1901 census for England and Wales. The new records join the counties of Gloucestershire and Somersetshire, which are already available to search at http://www.findmypast.com/CensusPersonStartSearchServlet?censusYear=1901. More counties are to follow in the coming weeks.

A fresh look at 1901 census

Findmypast.com's brand new version of the 1901 census is being transcribed from scratch and each image rescanned using the sophisticated scanning technology available today. The result is clearer images and more accurate transcriptions than previously seen.

Elaine Collins, Commercial Director at findmypast.com commented: "It's incredible what the latest advances in scanning have achieved. With findmypast.com's brand new version of the 1901 England and Wales census, it really is possible to find ancestors that you haven't previously been able to find on older online versions, so it's definitely worth taking a fresh look at this key resource."

Like all the records on findmypast.com, the 1901 census can be searched for free at http://www.findmypast.com/CensusChooseSearchType.jsp. Images and transcripts can be viewed with vouchers, pay-as-you-go credits or a Discovery or Explorer subscription.

OVER 13,000 OVERSEAS MARRIAGE PARISH RECORDS GO LIVE ON FINDMYPAST.COM

Findmypast.com has added more than 13,000 marriage records for British subjects overseas, some dating back to the seventeenth century at http://www.findmypast.com/parish-records-collection-search-start.action?redef=0&event=M. The records have been transcribed by Cliff Webb from originals housed at the Society of Genealogists in London.

The exotic collection includes Japan Embassy Marriages (1867-1899), Tobago marriages (1788-1816), India Calcutta marriages from 1713 and Jacobite Registers from the court of St Germain en Laye dating back to 1690, among others.

Mark Your Calendars - UVPAFUG Meeting!

UTAH VALLEY PAF USERS GROUP

The next regular, second-Saturday-of-the-month meeting of the Utah Valley PAF (Personal Ancestral File) Users Group will be on Saturday, 13 Sep 2008, from 9 am until noon in the LDS "Red" Chapel at 4000 North Timpview Drive (650 East), in Provo. The main presentation will be by Tim Crabb on A RECORD SEARCH OVERVIEW. Record Search is the website linked on http://www.familysearch.org where the records are available that many of you are helping index through http://www.familysearchindexing.org .

This is a wealth of indexed records worldwide with millions more being added regularly. The home page has a clickable world map that will take you to a list of indexed records for that part of the world, or click on "View All Collections" to see them categorized by world location. These records include census, vital, church, and many other types, and the list shows which ones have images attached at present.

Tim Crabb is the Product Manager for Record Search in the Family and Church History Department of the LDS Church and will be describing the project. Previously Mr. Crabb worked in the high-tech industry for 17 years in many different capacities including sales, Information Technology and development, and enjoys using that experience in the exciting project of helping people find their ancestors using Record Search. For further information about Record Search you can also log onto http://labs.familysearch.org/ and Click on Record Search. The FamilySearch Labs blog, accessible from there, will keep you up to date on new developments and you'll see Tim Crabb's name there answering many questions about the project. To volunteer to help index go to the FamilySearch Indexing website shown above.

Following the main presentation there will be several classes taught concerning technology and family history. As usual, there will be something for everyone at all levels of expertise. The classes currently scheduled for this meeting are the following:

1. Searching for Completed Ordinances: IIGI and new FamilySearch, by Duane Dudley
2. LDS Databases, by Pat Andrus
3. Q&A on Record Search, by Tim Crabb
4. Individual Mentoring
5. Ancestral Quest, by Paul Johnson
6. Legacy, by Dean Bennett
7. RootsMagic, by Sue Maxwell.
   

All meetings of the Users Group are open to the public whether members of the Group or not. The Users Group has the goal of helping individuals use technology to further their family history and there are usually 100-125 attending the monthly meetings on the second Saturdays. Several of the officers, including Gerhard Ruf, President; Brian Cooper, 2nd VP; Eileen Phelps, PAFology Editor; Kay Baker and Gerry Eliason working with finances and membership; and Bruce Merrill, Lynne Shumway, and Marie Andersen, working with the DVD & Video Library, will all be there. They will help with membership, questions, distribute the current issue of the monthly newsletter PAFology, and check out DVD's and videos of past presentations and classes to members of the group. Information about the Users Group, main presentations, classes, and class notes are available on the Group's website http://uvpafug.org . For further information contact President Gerhard Ruf at pres@uvpafug.org (801-225-6106), VP1 Elder Don Snow at snowd@math.byu.edu, or VP2 Brian Cooper at vp2@uvpafug.org.

Volunteers needed to test new Pioneer Project

Marilyn Markham from the UGA is asking for people to volunteer 2 hours to test a new program.

She needs this done before Sept 9 and a response sent to her -- can you help?

It is to test the new Pioneer Project

Please E mail her at Marilyn Markham at markhammj@familysearch.org