The DAILY genealogy technology newsletter for genealogy
consumers, packed with straight talk - hold the sugar coating - whether
the vendors like it or not!
The genealogy software marketplace has always been competitive but this week became even more so. One popular genealogy program recently released a new version in which the user interface has been changed significantly. Feedback from that program's long-term users has been mixed.
Family Tree Legends is a different program that serves the same marketplace. Now Family Tree Legends has offered an "amnesty program" to encourage users to try Family Tree Legends at a reduced price.
I attended the Family History Fair in New York this past Sunday and must say that it was a very successful event. I am not sure of the total number of attendees, but seasoned veterans of this event told me that the size of the crowd looked to be about the same as last year's event when 700 people signed in.
The following message came from Fintan Mullan, Executive Director of the Ulster Historical Foundation:
Irish American Cultural Institute - Tracing Your Irish Ancestors - Irish Perceptions Fall 2004 Series
You may be aware that as Ulster Historical Foundation’s Executive Director, I have been invited by the Irish American Cultural Institute to deliver a series of lectures on the theme of ‘Tracing your Irish Ancestors’ as part of its Fall 2004, Irish Perceptions series. The tour will run from 19- 29 October 2004. I will be speaking at eight venues in 7 states. These are evening lectures lasting about 1 hour and are free to the public.
Every week I write numerous articles relating to genealogy topics, including software, Web sites, current events and more. However, there are even more genealogy-related articles available on the Web, written by many different authors. While I do not carry all the stories in this newsletter, I do provide links on this newsletter's Web site to the ones that I find interesting.
Thousands of headstones will be removed from old graves to make room for more burials at Karrakatta Cemetery, much to the dismay of families of people already interred there. The Metropolitan Cemeteries Board says there is no new land left at the cemetery, and it has no choice except to relocate headstones if the cemetery is to remain open. The headstones are being relocated elsewhere in the cemetery or stored until families decide what to do with them.
The following announcement is from the Genealogy Department of the Allen County Public Library:
Addicted to genealogy? Love libraries and research? Interested in learning about new resources? If this describes you, sign up for an exciting electronic newsletter from one of the most popular genealogical research libraries in the nation.
Time is running out to get the discounted registration for the ICAPGen(SM) Annual Meeting and Professionals Conference. Applications postmarked after October 20th will have to pay a higher fee. This is going to be a terrific conference for both advanced researchers and professional genealogists. For a complete conference program and registration details, go to http://www.icapgen.org.
Jennie Hernandez Gin is still searching for her memories. Her Toyota RAV4 was stolen this week. The car was recovered a few hours later only three blocks from Jennie's home. However, the hand-written genealogy book that had been in the back seat was missing.
The following is an announcement from the New England Historic Genealogical Society:
NEHGS is pleased to announce the launch of senior research scholar Gary Boyd Roberts' new website, NotableKin.org! Just in time for election day, the website contains full genealogical charts of both presidential candidates, which show their connections through at least eight Massachusetts and English ancestors. You can also download your own pedigree charts and family group sheets to help you keep track of your own connections. The website, which is accessible to all, will soon feature an interview with Gary, in which he discusses his thirty years at NEHGS. Links to selected articles he has authored on celebrities, royalty, politicians, and other Notable Kin will also be added at a later date.
Genealogists and historians can now view local directories from England and Wales as far back as 1750 by going online. The University of Leicester collected the directories and converted them to digitized images, using a grant of £335,000 from Lottery funds.
The following is a press release concerning a new book written by Chris Pomery in the UK although I see the book is actually printed in Canada:
A few seconds spent using a small ball of cotton to pick up some skin cells on the inside of the cheek may prove to be the best investment that you can make if you're curious to know more about your family history. The cheek cells adhering to the cotton contain your personal DNA signature. A new book from The UK National Archives in Kew, DNA and Family History, argues that the power of DNA testing is about to change genealogy forever.
Many oral history stories are lost over the generations, not handed down to later generations. Now one of the largest oral history projects ever undertaken is working to save today's oral histories. The project started last October and hopes to compile 300,000 interviews over 10 years.
Looking for that e-mail or text document you used last year? You don't remember where you filed it on your disk drive? Google can help. Today the search engine giant announced it is offering a test version of a free Windows application designed to let users search for information stored on their desktop computers.
The Naval Historical Center's (NHC) Hunley project staff and consultants positively identified Joseph Ridgaway, a Hunley crew member, through DNA testing.
I am not familiar with this company but the following press release looks interesting:
Winfield, IL - October 13, 2004 -- Many genealogy buffs will once again be sharing new finds in their family trees with family and relatives this holiday season. Thanksgiving, Hanukkah and Christmas are the traditional times of family get-togethers when many people will be showing off their family trees in printed form. In many families, a printed genealogy chart will also be a popular gift to parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles.
The most misused Social Security Number of all time was 078-05-1120.
In 1938, wallet manufacturer the E. H. Ferree Company in Lockport, New York, decided to promote its product by showing how a Social Security card would fit into its wallets. A sample card, used for display purposes, was inserted in each wallet. Company Vice President and Treasurer Douglas Patterson thought it would be a clever idea to use the actual Social Security Number of his secretary, Mrs. Hilda Schrader Whitcher.
Genealogists use the Soundex system to find ancestors and other relatives in public records. Now the federal government uses the same system to identify potential airline hijackers. The government is learning the same lessons that genealogists learned long ago: the system doesn't work very well.
The following is an announcement from GHCS Software:
GHCS SOFTWARE of Rochester Hills, MI announces the release of V1.3 of
GedStar Pro, featuring support for V5 of Legacy Family Tree, a product of
Millenia Corp. GedStar Pro is an advanced viewer for genealogy data that runs
on PalmOS handheld PDAs such as the Palm Tungsten and Zire, Sony Clie,
and many others.
If you can be in New York City next Sunday afternoon, you can join hundreds of other genealogists at the annual Family History Fair. This event promises to pack sixteen workshops into five short hours.
A new version of a popular Windows geneaogy program has been announced. The following is a press release from Calico Pie Limited in England:
Family Historian version 2.3 adds Narrative Reports, a New Unique Copy-and-Paste Feature, Improved Support for Sources, and Much More. It’s Due out on November 5th … and it’s Free.
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