Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter

New WWI & WWII Documents Released on Footnote.com

The following was written by Footnote.com, the sponsors of this newsletter:

For those who haven’t been to Footnote lately, we recently added some exciting new records. Just taking a couple of minutes to skim these new titles, I found interesting stories about the battles and administration in WWI & WWII as well as aerial photographs of bombing targets in Japan. Here are those new titles:

Cyndi on RootsTelevision

Many people are familiar with the work of Cyndi Howells, the lady who runs Cyndi's List. Looking for something special or unusual in genealogy? You can probably find it on Cyndi's List. Have you ever met Cyndi or heard her speak? She is a delightful person, enthusiastic, and always has a bunch of stories to tell.

I had an opportunity to chat with Cyndi last week when we were both on board the Wholly Genes cruise in the Caribbean. Cyndi talked about the challenges and the enjoyment of maintaining the world's largest list of genealogy web sites. A camera crew from RootsTelevision was also there and recorded the conversation.

To watch the video right now, go to http://www.rootstelevision.com/players/player_howto.php?bctid=1299131268.

FINDMYPAST.COM Launches New Image Viewer

The following announcement was written by Findmypast.com:

Findmypast.com, the UK family history website, today launches a new image viewer to simplify the process of accessing the historical records on its website.

Previously, findmypast's customers were required to download a "plugin" (a small computer programme) onto their computer to view images of the millions of historical documents on the website. From today, new customers will be able to view the images without downloading a plugin, thanks to the new default "standard viewer". Existing customers who have already downloaded the plugin will continue to be able to view images using what is now called the "enhanced viewer".

West Virginia State Archives Director Fired Under Questionable Circumstances

Fred Armstrong has been fired from his position as the West Virginia State Archives Director. At least one local newspaper describes the firing as being handled "clumsily." In fact, Armstrong was fired abruptly and then was immediately escorted out of the Cultural Center by a security guard. That seems surprising when Armstrong’s 30 years of employment at the State Archives was described as "exemplary."

His crime? He reportedly opposed his boss' efforts to convert the Cultural Center archives library into a café/catering service/mini-Tamarack gift shop.

Kyrgyzstan Collaboration DNA Study Announced

Most of us will not care much about this announcement. However, anyone Kyrgyzstan ancestry will be very interested. The following was written by the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation:

Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation and International University of Kyrgyzstan Announce Progress, Expansion Plans for Joint DNA Collection Project

SALT LAKE CITY & BISHKEK, KYRGYZSTAN--The Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation (SMGF), a non-profit scientific organization that has created the world's most diverse and comprehensive collection of genetic genealogy information, and the International University of Kyrgyzstan (IUK), Kyrgyzstan's flagship institution of higher learning, today reported significant progress in their collaborative research partnership to study genetic genealogies, migration and demographic patterns of Kyrgyzstan's various populations.

Legacy Genealogy Cruise 2008 to feature DearMYRTLE

Speaking of cruises... It seems this newsletter is full of news about genealogy cruises as we are now at the height of the cruise season. Looking ahead to next year, the 12-day 5th Annual Legacy Genealogy Cruise was announced a few weeks ago but now the special guest lecturer has been announced as well.

The following was written by Millennia Corporation, producers of Legacy Family Tree software:

The 2008 Legacy Genealogy Cruise to Europe will feature one of genealogy's favorites - DearMYRTLE! The 5th Annual Legacy Genealogy Cruise, held July 16-28, 2008, will leave Dover, England and will sail to Copenhagen, Denmark; Berlin, Germany; St. Petersburg, Russia; Helsinki, Finland; Tallinn, Estonia; Stockholm, Sweden; and back to Dover.

4th Annual Family History EXPO in St. George, Utah

The following announcement was written by My Ancestors Found:

MORGAN, UTAH - FamilySearch and My Ancestors Found (MAF) announce the 4th annual Family History EXPO in St. George, Utah, February 8-9, 2008. The EXPO (formerly known as the Genealogy and Family Heritage Jamboree) has become one of the largest and best attended family history events in the country.

Update: VoIP Enables Ancestry.com Users to Record Oral Family Histories

Yesterday I posted an article with a title of "VoIP Enables Ancestry.com Users to Record Oral Family Histories." In that article, I wrote "The two new services apparently are not yet operational." This morning, a representative of Ancestry.com called me with a correction. It seems that the new conference and intreview features ARE enabled right now and are available to all Ancestry.com customers. Even better, a method of recording live video is also available now.

This service is free for any registered user of Ancestry who has created a Family Tree. You can either attach an audio story to an individual, or you can assign it to the entire tree.

Charting Companion 2.0 for Family Tree Maker (and Others)

Charting Companion is a program that adds attractive printed charts to Legacy Family Tree, Ancestral Quest, Personal Ancestral File, and Family Tree Maker. Now Progeny Genealogy has added a new version for Family Tree Maker. Indeed, many Family Tree Maker users who recently upgraded have been dismayed to find that Family Tree Maker 2008 does not contain all the charting capabilities of the earlier versions. Charting Companion 2.0 for Family Tree Maker should solve many of those problems.

The new Charting Companion 2.0 for Family Tree Maker continues to work with older versions of Family Tree Maker as well as the 2008 version. It is also compatible with Windows XP, 2000, and Vista.

VoIP Enables Ancestry.com Users to Record Oral Family Histories

VoIP is an acronym that stands for "Voice over Internet Protocol." Almost all the new online services that allow you to place voice calls over the Internet use VoIP technology. That would include Skype, Vonage, and a number of other voice services. It is easy to place long-distance telephone calls for free or for very little money. You can see some of my past articles on the topic at http://tinyurl.com/3yn9bq.

Now Ancestry.com is adding VoIP voice services to record oral histories and to interview family members.

Video: the World's First Genealogy Wave?

RootsTelevision has captured video of what is believed to be the world's first genealogical wave that took place a few days ago -- appropriately enough -- on a somewhat wave-tossed cruise ship. It shows the enthusiasm of the folks in the Wholly Genes genealogy cruise. You can see the video of "the wave" at http://www.rootstelevision.com/blogs/megans-rootsworld/2007/11/worlds_first_genealogical_wave.html

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Report on the Wholly Genes Genealogy Cruise to the Caribbean

It has been quiet on this newsletter for the past week - simply because I wasn't here much. I was on board the Caribbean Princess cruise ship, along with about 350 other genealogists. We all enjoyed a wide variety of genealogy presentations made by several genealogy experts, including:

Robert Charles Anderson
Tony Burroughs
John Cardinal
Barbara Grempler
John Grenham (from Ireland)
Sandra Hewlett
Lee Hoffman
Cyndi Howells
Hank Jones
Kent Riggins
Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak
John Titford (from England)
Bob Velke
and myself