Mark Your Calendars–UVTAGG Meeting! (formerly UVPAFUG)

UTAH VALLEY TECHNOLOGY AND GENEALOGY GROUP MEETING (UVTAGG)

The next regular, second-Saturday-of-the-month meeting of the Utah Valley Technology and Genealogy Group - UVTAGG (Formerly the Utah Valley PAF Users Group - UVPAFUG) will be on Saturday, 11 Jun 2011, from 9 am to noon in the LDS "Red Chapel", 4050 North Timpview Drive (650 East), Provo. Information about the Users Group, main presentations, classes, and class notes are available on the Group's website http://uvpafug.org and the press releases are at http://blog.uvpafug.org/ . With the organization's name change these URL's will also be changed eventually.

The main presentation for this meeting will be by Donald R. and Diane M. Snow on FORMING AND ANALYZING A DATABASE OF LETTERS USING THE ERASTUS SNOW FAMILY TO ILLUSTRATE. The Snows will describe procedures and freeware programs they have used to transcribe and form a searchable database of the nearly 300 personal letters they have of the Erastus Snow family. The tools and ideas include help in transcribing the handwritten letters, ways to name the files for ease in searching and forming a spreadsheet to analyze and draw charts, ways to identify and edit the names and places, programs that can be used to search the entire collection for names, words, and phrases, and keeping track of interesting items in the letters. The Snows gave a presentation on their database at the Mormon HIstory Association meeting in St. George two weeks ago where the emphasis was on the text of the letters themselves. Here the emphasis will be on the technical aspects of forming and analyzing the database, but they will illustrate with the text, as well.

The Snows have been involved with family history for many years and both are retired faculty members from BYU where Don taught Mathematics and Diane taught Humanities. Don is a great grandson of Erastus Snow and they have been on four family history missions for the LDS Church, including being the Directors of the New York Family History Center in Manhattan, serving in Nauvoo, and serving at the London Family History Center in the Hyde Park Chapel in England. They have 6 children, 30 grandchildren, 4 great grand children, and now are "snowbirds" splitting their time between Provo and St. George. They are speakers at many family history venues.

Following the main presentation there will be several classes about family history and technology with something for everyone at any level of expertise. The teachers and classes presently scheduled for this meeting are as follows:

1. Getting the Most Out of Family Tree Maker (PC and MAC), by Duff Wilson
2. Get Help From Strangers by Publishing on the Internet, by Merlin Kitchen
3. Increasing Productivity on the new FamilySearch Website, by Andrea Schnakenburg
4. Personalized Help, by Don Engstrom & Finn Hansen
5. Q&A: Forming and Analyzing a Database of Letters Using the Erastus Snow Family To Illustrate, by Don & Diane Snow
6. Video of last month's main presentation: Resources Available at the Riverton FamilySearch Library, by Suzanne Curley
7. Ancestral Quest, by Gaylon Findlay
8. Legacy 7.5, by Joel Graham
9. Roots Magic 4, 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. The officers are Gerhard Ruf, President; Laurie Castillo, 1st VP; Don Snow, 2nd VP; Liz Kennington, Newsletter Editor; Kay Baker, Gerry Eliason, and Don Engstrom working with finances and membership; and Bruce Merrill and Marie Andersen, working with the DVD Library. Several of these will be there to help with membership, answer questions, distribute the current issue of the monthly newsletter, and check out DVDs of past presentations and classes to members of the group. Information about the Users Group, presentations, classes, and class notes can be found at the websites mentioned above. For further information contact President Gerhard Ruf atpres@uvpafug.org ( 801-225-6106 ) or 1st VP Laurie Castillo at laurie@everythingisrelative.net or 2nd VP Don Snow at snowd@math.byu.edu.

RootsTech 2012 Call for Presentations

The following is from RootsTech.

Call for Presentations RootsTech 2012 in Salt Lake City, Utah

Dates/Venue:  February 2-4, 2012, Salt Palace Convention Center, Salt Lake City

Call Opens:     May 25, 2011

Call Closes:     June 30, 2011

Notification:    August 27, 2011

The inaugural RootsTech Conference in 2011 was a huge success. Over 3000 attendees filled the presentation venues to learn about technologies and applications that could impact the many emerging facets of family history-related consumer markets worldwide. The Community Zone bustled with technology vendors and demonstrations and the Internet buzzed with blogs, tweets, chats, and articles for a month following the close of the conference. We expect RootsTech 2012 to continue to exceed expectations.

Consider being part of the RootsTech 2012 excitement as a presenter! Please look into the list of suggested topics attached or below as a guideline for what we're seeking (you are certainly welcome to suggest additional topics). RootsTech 2012 presentations will be 40-50 minutes.

Submit your presentation proposal(s) online at RootsTech 2012 Call for Presentations.

Please forward this email to colleagues, business partners, friends, or anyone else you think might be interested in presenting at RootsTech 2012.

About RootsTech

The RootsTech conference is designed to bring technologists together with genealogists to learn from each other and find solutions to the challenges faced in family history research today. The conference’s activities and offerings are focused on content that will help genealogists and family historians discover exciting new research tools while enabling technology creators to learn the latest development techniques from industry leaders and pioneers.

Call for Speakers

February 2-4, 2012 | Salt Lake City, Utah

Genealogy is a fast growing market segment with broad consumer interest. The second annualRootsTech Conference brings genealogy technology users and consumer technology creators together to learn, collaborate, and shape the future of family history. Genealogy technology users at this conference are progressive, forward-thinking, and early adopters of devices and tools that simplify family history research. Technology creators include innovators, writers of code, developers, and other individuals who produce tools, services, and devices that could be used to simplify and increase involvement in family history.

Unique tracks will be offered that address the specific needs of genealogy technology users and technology innovators. We invite proposals that address technology challenges and solutions that have the potential to improve family history and genealogical research. Special emphasis will be placed on submissions that find ways for genealogy technology users and technology creators to work and interact together. Particular consideration will also be given to proposalsthat provide a hands-on or interactive experience, with presenters giving step-by-step approaches to using technology, software, hardware, algorithms, APIs, plug-ins, extensions, etc.

Possible session topics include:

•           GPS and geo-mapping

•           Mobile devices

•           Social applications

•           Imaging and visualization

•           Gamification

•           Cloud-based solutions

Submissions are due by June 30, 2011, with an extended deadline of October 15, 2011 for limited, late-breaking technologyresearch submissions.

Types of Sessions

1.     Presentations: Classroom settings that engage participants.

2.     Panels or Discussions: Formal panels of experts discussing specific topics, led by a facilitator.

3.     Hands-on Workshops: Labs where attendees have hands-on experience in a specific task or objective.

4.     Unconferencing: Informal, participant-led discussion groups.

Submission Information

Proposals will be accepted online at RootsTech.org from May 25, 2011 through June 30,2011. Complete submission guidelines will be available on the website at that time. Syllabus materials will be due from participating presenters on November 1, 2011.

Presenters participating in the RootsTech Conference will receive a complimentary conference registration and a syllabus. There is no monetary compensation for presenters at this conference. Out-of-state speakers selected to present four or more lectures will also receive hotel accommodations.

Community-Requested Session Topics

Check back frequently as the community weighs in on RootsTech session topics.  Recent suggestions include:  geo-mapping, setting up a blog, archiving, gene research, how technology can accelerate the research process, scanners, how tech gadgets can be used for genealogy, video podcasting, genealogy on a Mac, digitizing photographs and papers, voice recognition, and mobile apps.

BillionGraves.com Launches to Preserve Family History on Memorial Day

The following is from BillionGraves.com

PROVO, Utah – May 26, 2011 – Memorial Day is coming soon, and AppTime (http://www.apptime.com), the group behind the family history app MobileTree (http://www.mobiletree.me), has a new project they’re thrilled to share. It’s calledBillionGraves.com, it’s as ambitious a project as the word “billion” makes it sound, and they want you to take it with you to the cemetery this Memorial Day.

“It’s a huge opportunity for everyone in family history,” says Rob Moncur, the head developer for the BillionGraves.com website. “We want people from all over the world to be able work together and pool resources so everyone can find the ancestors they’re looking for.”

BillionGraves.com aims to be the largest repository of headstone records, images, and locations in the world. This will give family historians access to previously undocumented information that can further their genealogical research. The site is built with these researchers in mind, and its structure is inherently collaborative. The first step in the BillionGraves process is to have iPhone users download the BillionGraves camera app and take it with them to local cemeteries—hopefully at times when they would already be going, like on Memorial Day. Those people snap quick pictures of the cemetery’s headstones, and the app uploads the photos to BillionGraves.com. The photos are tagged using the iPhone’s location services so the exact location of each grave is recorded.

Once the photos are on BillionGraves.com, anyone with a BillionGraves account—whether they have an iPhone or not—can transcribe the records on the headstones and make them easily searchable. Then anyone can search for their ancestors and find not only the information recorded on headstones, but also see the headstones and the exact locations of ancestors’ final resting places. Those records, formerly undocumented and hard to access, open up to family historians worldwide.

“This is something anyone in the world can access and participate in,” says Curtis Tirrell, AppTime’s CEO. “Everyone has unique access to their local cemeteries. You have access to someone’s ancestor, access they may not be able to get alone. We’re creating a way for everyone to help other family history researchers and remove problems of distance.”

The BillionGraves crew is excited about the prospects for BillionGraves.com, but they all know that they need the family history community to back them in their endeavor.

“We don’t know where all the cemeteries in the world are,” says Moncur. “There are cemeteries that aren’t plotted on any maps, and we can’t go out and find those. But people know where they are. All those people need to do is let us know and snap as many pictures as they can. We want to make that process simple and easy, which is why we’re releasing the app and launching the website right before Memorial Day. Lots of people will be going to cemeteries anyway. We just want them to do a little something extra while they’re telling stories about great-grandpa, and that extra will help people all over the place.”

To learn more about the BillionGraves.com project and what you can do to help, visit http://BillionGraves.com orhttp://billiongraves.blogspot.com (the project’s blog) and, if you have an iPhone, download the BillionGraves Camera app. The app is free May 25-June 1. After that it will cost $1.99 to ensure only responsible users download it.


(BTW, there is a Droid version is in the works, just not by this weekend.) 

Family History Survey Results

Over a month ago I received word that the Genealogy Survey results were in.  It's only now that I had a chance to review them.  I found the results very interesting and thought you might to check them out. What I learned is that I'm your typical genealogist that answered the survey, except I am LDS and the vast majority are not.

The following is from Myles Proudfoot, who conducted the survey.

Thanks to all who participated in the March-April genealogy survey. The full results are now available. I invite you to review the results and comment on my blog, or in other public venues on the conclusions. What surprises you? Or doesn't? What can the genealogy community learn from the responses?

http://familyhistory21ster.blogspot.com/2011/04/results-from-family-history-survey-now.html 

Myles Proudfoot

It's been a tough month for New FamilySearch Affiliates

If you have tried this month to test any of the FamilySearch affiliate programs you may have noticed long delays, freezing, issues with logins, slowness, etc.  This probably did not give you confidence that these programs worked. This has not been the month for testing affiliate programs.

A couple of weeks ago Amazon had server problems.  FamilySearch uses Amazon servers and there were connection issues using NFS depending on which servers you were being routed through.  While this was happening FamilySearch was dealing with their own server issues. The FamilySearch affiliates that sync with NFS can only work as good as the connection is to NFS.  Bad NFS connection = bad response in affiliate software.

No sooner did we think things were resolved than a new situation comes up.  FamilySearch gave the following notice Monday to the affiliates, updating them on what was happening.

Affiliates,

Beginning Friday May 20th between 5:00 and 6:00 PM we have been experiencing some extreme internal network issues in our data center. This has caused major performance issues with our Production APIs. Our Operations Team has been working on the issue over the weekend and will continue to work around the clock until the problem is resolved. We apologize for the inconvenience this has caused to both you and your customers.

I will be sure send out another email when the problem has been resolved.

Thank You!

FamilySearch Developer Support

FamilySearch did send out another email today on the situation.

From FamilySearch support:
Affiliates,
 
Our Operations Team was able to locate a bad piece of network equipment that was causing the issues. The equipment was removed and replaced last night and things have returned back to normal. Again we apologize for the slowness over the weekend. Thank you for your patience as we worked through these problems!
 
FamilySearch

I would encourage anyone that has been trying to test out any of the affiliate programs during this past month to take into consideration the problems going on with the new FamilySearch website.  Please try the programs again, if performance issues made a big factor in your decision on which program to use.

Popular Affiliate Software: Ancestral Quest, Family Insight, Legacy Family Tree and RootsMagic

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

FamilySearch Records Update 23 May 2011: 1930 Mexico Census Now Complete Online; 25 million records for 16 countries also added

The following is from FamilySearch.

May 23, 2011

25 Million New Records and Images for 19 U.S. States and 16 Countries

The FamilySearch volunteers did it! With the completion of the state of Veracruz, they indexed the entire 1930 Mexico Census—almost 13 million records. Add the census to the millions of Mexico church records FamilySearch also has online for free, and FamilySearch patrons now have a phenomenal, fundamental asset for their Mexico ancestral research. There were 59 collections updated in this release, comprising 25 million new images and records for 19 U.S. states and 16 countries. See the table below for more details. You can search all of these updated collections now for free at FamilySearch.org.

If you are enjoying the steady stream of free records added weekly, please consider “giving back” as a FamilySearch volunteer. You can start and stop volunteering at any time. Find out more at indexing.familysearch.org.

Collection	Records	Images	Comment
Austria, Vienna, Population Cards, 1850-1895	36,823	37,409	Added images and index to existing collection.
Brazil, Catholic Church Records	0	211,410	Added images to existing collection.
Canada, Lower Canada Census, 1831	0	3,259	New browsable image collection.
Canada, New Brunswick Provincial Deaths, 1815–1938	92,009	96,135	Added images and index to existing collection.
Canada, Quebec Notarial Records, 1800-1900	0	54,920	Added browsable images to existing collection.
Chinese Genealogies	0	750,021	Added browsable images to existing collection.
Czech Republic Church Books, 1552-1935	0	20,237	Added images to existing collection.
Germany Church Records, 1544-1945	0	140,265	New browsable image collection.
Germany, Baden, Church Book Duplicates, 1810-1869	43,560	0	Added records to existing index collection.
Germany, Mecklenburg-Schwerin Census, 1867	0	253,140	New browsable image collection.
Germany, Miscellaneous City Records	0	7,102	Added browsable images to existing collection.
Guatemala Civil Registration, 1877-1934	0	978	Added browsable images to existing collection.
Italy, Civil Registration, 1806-1940	0	985,543	Added browsable images to existing collection for several provinces, including new images for Bologna and Genova.
Mexico Census, 1930	1,126,587	538	Added the state of Veracruz. This completes the 1930 Mexico Census!
Mexico, Jalisco, Catholic Church Records	0	5,772,188	New browsable image collection.
Mexico, Morelos, Catholic Church Records, 1598-1969	0	914	Added browsable images to existing collection.
Mexico, State of Mexico, Catholic Church Records	0	269,871	New browsable image collection.
Mexico, Tabasco, Catholic Church Records	0	121,419	New browsable image collection.
Netherlands, Passenger Lists Holland-America Line, 1900-1974	0	113,050	New browsable image collection. Includes passenger lists for the Holland-America Line (Holland Amerika Lijn), which transported numerous refugees from war-torn Europe to the United States prior to 1941.
New Zealand, Immigration Passenger Lists, 1855-1973	85,349	152	Added images and index to existing collection.
Peru, Civil Registration, 1874-1978	0	15,354	Added browsable images to existing collection.
Philippines Civil Registration, 1945-1996	0	1,809,282	New browsable image collection.
Poland, Roman Catholic Church Books, 1600-1950	0	843,095	Added browsable images to existing collection.
Poland, Roman Catholic Church Books, 1600-1950	1,002,155	81,805	Added index records and images to existing collection (indexes for Tarnow; browsable images for Lódz and Kielce).
Portugal, Braga Catholic Church Records, 1530-1890	0	520,913	New browsable image collection.
Puerto Rico Civil Registration, 1836-2001	8,712	3,599	Added images and index to existing collection.
Russia, Samara Church Books, 1869-1917	0	52,170	New browsable image collection.
Spain, Cádiz, Passports, 1810-1866	0	19,802	Added browsable images to existing collection.
Spain, Municipal Records	0	98,118	Added browsable images (Leon and Lugo).
U.S., Alabama, County Marriages, 1809-1950	216,021	128,241	New index collection.
U.S., Alabama, County Probate Records	0	56,738	New browsable image collection.
U.S., Arkansas, Draft Registration Cards, compiled 1948-1959	0	31,882	New browsable image collection.
U.S., California, San Mateo County Records, 1856-1967	0	53,404	Added browsable images to existing collection.
U.S., District of Columbia Deaths, 1874-1959	103,160	106,382	New index collection.
U.S., Georgia Headright and Bounty Land Records, 1783-1909	0	35,881	New browsable image collection.
U.S., Illinois, Probate Records, 1819-1970	0	126,521	Added browsable images to existing collection.
U.S., Louisiana, First Registration Draft Cards, compiled 1940-1945	0	26,821	New browsable image collection.
U.S., Maine, State Archive Collections	0	73,678	Added browsable images to existing collection.
U.S., Maryland, Probate Estate and Guardianship Files, 1796-1940	6,488	151,200	Added records to existing index collection.
U.S., Maryland, Register of Wills Books, 1792-1983	0	5,137	Added browsable images to existing collection.
U.S., Michigan, County Marriages, 1820-1935	0	292,239	New browsable image collection.
U.S., Minnesota, Death Records, 1866-1916	383,230	173,016	New index collection.
U.S., Mississippi, Tippah County Records, 1836-1923	0	38,645	Added browsable images to existing collection.
U.S., New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1891	0	6,399	Added browsable images to existing collection.
U.S., New York State Census, 1865	0	21,307	Added browsable images to existing collection.
U.S., New York, Orange County Probate Records, 1787-1938	0	59,885	New browsable image collection.
U.S., New York, Queens County Probate Records, 1899-1921	0	34,382	New browsable image collection.
U.S., Ohio, Stark County Court Records, 1809-1917	0	37,995	Added browsable images to existing collection.
U.S., South Carolina Probate Records, Bound Volumes, 1671-1977	0	222,728	New browsable image collection.
U.S., South Carolina Probate Records, Files and Loose Papers, 1732-1964	0	652,423	New browsable image collection.
U.S., Tennessee County Marriages, 1790-1950	219,217	198,208	Added images and index to existing collection.
U.S., Texas, Daughters of the Republic of Texas, Membership Applications, 1892-2010	0	26,147	New browsable image collection.
U.S., Texas, Gonzalez de la Garza Genealogy Collection	0	98,801	New browsable image collection.
U.S., Vermont Enrolled Militia Records, 1861-1867	4,350	0	Added records to existing collection.
U.S., Virginia Births and Christenings, 1853-1917	1,422,855	0	New index collection.
U.S., Virginia, Danville City Cemetery Records, 1833-2006	0	4,093	New browsable image collection.
United States, Civil War Soldiers Index	6,282,360	0	New index collection.
United States, Naval Enlistment Rendezvous, 1855-1891	262,742	34,965	New index collection.

FamilySearch International is the largest genealogy organization in the world. FamilySearch is a nonprofit, volunteer-driven organization sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Millions of people use FamilySearch records, resources, and services to learn more about their family history. To help in this great pursuit, FamilySearch has been actively gathering, preserving, and sharing genealogical records worldwide for over 100 years. Patrons may access FamilySearch services and resources free online at FamilySearch.org or through over 4,600 family history centers in 132 countries, including the main Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Utah Festival of Books

The following is from FamilySearch.

We would like to make you aware of a family history event occurring soon on the campus of Brigham Young University in Provo.

As part of the Utah Festival of Books on June 4, 2011, there will be a family history venue with presentations from 10:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m. It will be located in 3714 HBLL, on the south side of the Harold B. Lee Library.

There will be many family history and local history presentations to choose from. The family history events are as follows:

10:00–10:45 a.m.              “Research Resources” by Jim Greene, FamilySearch

11:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.     “FamilySearch 2011 and Beyond” by Jim Greene, FamilySearch

12:00–12:45 p.m.              “Chasing Provo’s History: Seldom Told Tales” by Robert Carter

1:00–1:45 p.m.                  “Learning to Love Our Own Ancestors” by Jayare Roberts, ­­­­­­­­­­­MLS, AG, FUGA,

2:00–2:45 p.m.                  “How to Write a Memoir” by Douglas Thayer, local author

3:00–3:45 p.m.                  “Crash Course in Family History” by Paul Larsen, author

4:00–4:45 p.m.                  “True Miracles with Genealogy” by Anne Bradshaw, local author

5:00–5:45 p.m.                  “Getting the Most Out of Ancestry” by Crista Cowan, Ancestry.com

All presentations are free and open to the public. This event is hosted by BYU Bookstore and sponsored by KSL and Read Today.

The festival also includes other family-friendly events held on BYU campus. For a complete schedule, please refer to the festival website at www.utahfestivalofbooks.com. A program will also be printed in issues of the Deseret News.

Note: We suggest you park in the Marriott Center parking lot. A shuttle will be provided for transportation to campus. There will be construction near Heritage Halls, limiting Campus Drive to one lane. The main entrance to the Wilkinson Student Center will also be closed for construction.

  

For further information, please contact:

Marva Ellis                      or                Jo Calabio

m_ellis@byu.edu                            jo_calabio@byu.edu

Sincerely, 

FamilySearch                    

Ohana Software Webinars

The following is from Ohana Software.

— UPCOMING WEBINARS —

A FamilyInsight: Beyond the Basics  Presenter: Cina Johnson  OhanaSoftware Customer Service & Training  If you are comfortable using FamilyInsight™ but want to better utilize its features, this class is for you!  Learn how to link people, and add other data, fix "places" that contain descriptive information instead of an actual place name, and much more.  Join this class to take your use of of FamilyInsight to the next level!  Wednesday, June 8, 2011          Register Now   7:00 PM - 8:00 PM MDT

Increasing Productivity on the FamilySearch Website Presenter: Andrea Schnakenburg  Learn how to increase your productivity using SharingTime™, a new tool that integrates into the new FamilySearch ™ website.  Quickly link to and auto-searchdozens of Internet resources, e-mail collaborators in seconds, and focus your research on ancestors that are closest to being ready for temple work.  Tuesday June 21, 2011                   Register Now 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM MDT