The DAILY genealogy technology newsletter for genealogy
consumers, packed with straight talk - hold the sugar coating - whether
the vendors like it or not!
The following is a Plus Edition article written by and copyright by Dick Eastman.
You can find many excellent free Windows programs to download and use. Doing so will make your PC far more useful as you have a variety of useful programs and utilities to choose from. The problem is the difficulty of (1.) learning about all the useful free programs available, (2.) finding them, (3.) downloading each of them, and (4.) installing them. In addition, there are lots of options to choose from on some of these programs. The difficulties can be overwhelming, especially if you are not a software expert. Now there's a solution that simplifies everything.
The following announcement was written by the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration:
WASHINGTON, June 30 -- On Sunday, July 4, the National Archives celebrates Independence Day with its annual ceremony, its first ever National Independence Day Parade float, and a brand new logo.
The first ever National Archives Independence Day Parade Float features the Declaration of Independence and other "National Treasures" from the holdings of the National Archives. This float will launch the National Independence Day Parade in front of the National Archives Building. The parade starts at 11:45 a.m.
The new Canadian plan to collect less information on the 2011 census has created a lot of controversy. The changes will leave future Canadians with very little information about their own families and the country's history, in a move the government says was prompted by privacy concerns.
The Vancouver Sun has a detailed article by Shannon Proudfoot that explains the concerns. You can read the article at http://tinyurl.com/28s3nft
The following announcement was written by Ancestry.ca:
Toronto, June 30, 2009 – Canada Day is not only a great day to spend with family – it’s the perfect time to get together and learn more about the lives of your ancestors from nearly 100 years ago. To celebrate our 143rd birthday, Ancestry.ca is making available the 1911 Canadian Census records free of charge through July 4, 2010.
This database is an index of individuals enumerated in the 1911 Canada Census, the fifth census of Canada since confederation in 1867. The 1911 census includes nine provinces - Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, and Saskatchewan, and two territories - the Yukon Territory and the Northwest Territories.
London Lives is a brand-new, free online archive containing 240,000 manuscripts and printed pages, published between 1690 and 1800. The new web site provides a valuable insight into the lives of millions of ordinary people during those years. The online documents include workhouse records, criminal registers, coroners' reports, court orders and papers governing the dispensation of poor relief.
Funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, and produced by the universities of Sheffield and Hertfordshire, the site allows both amateur and professional historians to search the archives for individuals.
The details of about 19,000 Marlburians buried in the region since 1890 are now more readily accessible after the Marlborough District Council made them available online.
Fairhall, Havelock, Omaka, Picton and Tuamarina cemeteries are listed, and can be searched by surname, first name, cemetery or year of burial. Rural cemeteries, including Taylor Pass cemetery in the Awatere and Mahakipawa cemetery on Queen Charlotte Drive will be uploaded in the future.
A change being implemented by the Canadian government will reduce the amount of detailed information obtained by the census. The Conservative government is scrapping the mandatory long census form for the 2011 census, replacing it with a voluntary national household survey.
The Conservative government is scrapping the mandatory long census form for the 2011 census, replacing it with a voluntary national household survey. All Canadians will still receive a mandatory short census. One in three households will be sent the new household survey as well. Previously, one in five households were sent the mandatory long-form census.
The Maine Genealogical Society Family History Conference will be held on Saturday, September 25, at the Point Lookout Resort & Conference Center in Northport, Maine. This is a great resort on the waterfront, and the genealogy conference is being held during the foliage season, a great time to visit Maine's rockbound coast.
If I may engage in a bit of shameless self-promotion, I'll point out that I will be delivering the keynote address with the title of Maine Outhouses I Have Known and Loved. Yes, you read that right. THOSE outhouses. I'll even describe a three-story outhouse and will hopefully have a photo or two as well.
I will suggest that this is a non-traditional topic for genealogy conferences!
The Nicolas Martiau Descendant Association (NMDA) has sponsored an historical/archaeological dig in Yorktown, Virginia for possible family artifacts of progenitor Nicolas Martiau, the father of Yorktown and ancestor to several Declaration of Independence signers and to George Washington.
This appears to be a first for any family lineage based organization, financially supporting an attempt to recover family artifacts that date back to nearly the first settlers of this country in the early 17th century in colonial Virginia/Jamestown/Yorktown.
In the April 07, 2010 newsletter, I posted an article about a planned reduction in the operational hours of the Clayton Library for Genealogical Research in Houston, Texas. The proposed cuts were drastic.
I publish the Plus Edition newsletter online at http://www.eogn.com/wp/ and I also send a copy of all the Plus Edition newsletter articles posted in the past week to every Plus Edition subscriber by email. The email message usually gets sent every Sunday evening although occasionally it gets sent on Monday. This week, I am experimenting with a new bulk email server and a new "From:" email address.
Between 1899-1902, Dutch-speaking settlers and soldiers from the British Empire fought battles in South Africa. More than 55,000 British soldiers were killed, captured or wounded in the Second Boer War. Another 12,000 soldiers died from disease, 86 soldiers were killed or injured by lightning, while one was eaten by a crocodile.
Jule Miller writes a genealogy column in the Broomfield Enterprise, a newspaper and web site published in Broomfield, Colorado. I would suggest that Julie's latest column should be required reading for all new genealogists.
Julie writes, "The Internet has drastically changed how genealogy research is done. The amount of information posted on the Internet is increasing at an amazing pace every day. The ads might say you can find your complete family history by searching a Web site, but even though the Internet has billions and billions of pages filled with information, not everything is on the Internet."
I travel often and am leaving once again. However, this is a "day trip." I'll fly to Washington, D.C. tomorrow (Saturday) morning, give a talk at the American Library Association's annual conference, and then fly home tomorrow evening. It should be an easy trip but don't look for any new articles to be posted to the newsletter on Saturday. I'll be busy.
I haven't seen this book yet but must say that this press release makes it sound interesting. The book reportedly contains all true stories. The following announcement was written by the author:
PARADISE, Calif. -- Ancestry, genealogy and family trees are all hot topics these days. The new book, Mr. Locator, tells the true stories of Robert Nemecek, an expert genealogical researcher, as he examines unsolved cases involving unclaimed inheritances. Investigating through a vast research network, including computer systems, public records, genealogical resources, as well as through speaking with friends, neighbors, employers and family members is the way that missing heirs are found.
The nation's most sacred final resting place has failed in its efforts to modernize its pen-and-paper record system. According to a story in today's Washington Post, the nation's most hallowed military cemetery uses a flawed and antiquated paper system for tracking the whereabouts of thousands of buried service members and their relatives. Although the cemetery has spent $5.5 million over seven years to upgrade its records, problems abound, according to an Army inspector general investigation and other Army documents.
Dozens of burial plots appear on maps as occupied but have no headstone, and some graves that have a headstone are recorded as vacant. Cemetery workers have begun to dig graves in what they thought was an unoccupied plot but then found that someone was buried there. In some cases, grounds crews have found that graves are marked with headstones for other decedents.
The following announcement was written by FamilySearch:
25 June 2010
A project to index Freedmen Letters from North Carolina is now available. This is the second Freedmen’s Bureau collection FamilySearch has worked on with the National Archives. These records provide the earliest major compilation of information on many emancipated slaves, freed Blacks, and Black Union soldiers, including names, marriages, education and employment information, and receipt of rations, health care, and legal support.
The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) has issued the following notice. I added some bold text to it:
NARA is concerned with the reports of problems with NARA records digitized by its current digitization partners. NARA has established an email address, digitization@nara.gov, to report indexing and missed documents that have been digitized. The report should include a URL and a description of the problem in order to facilitate the correction.
This email box is not the place to report misspelled names; it is for indexing and missed documents only. Both Ancestry and Footnote intend to make the corrections within 30 days, unless there are extenuating circumstances.
The following announcement was written by the History Section of the Reference and User Services Association:
CHICAGO—Thomas Jay Kemp, director of genealogy products for NewsBank, is the 2010 recipient of the Genealogical Publishing Company Award—a citation and $1,500 cash prize to a librarian who has demonstrated professional achievement in historical reference and research librarianship.
The award is administered by the History Section (HS) of the Reference and User Services Association (RUSA) and is sponsored by Genealogical Publishing Company. Kemp was selected for his long-time leadership role in both HS and in the field of genealogy librarianship, as well as his significant contributions to genealogy publications. He is well-known as one of genealogy’s primer librarians and authors, and several of his sources are classics known even to non-genealogy librarians and to novice genealogists. Mary Mannix, award committee chair, cited Kemp’s enthusiasm for the profession as a characteristic that sets him apart from his peers. “He is an old school genealogist who quickly embraced new technology and the opportunities it brings both us and our patrons,” she said. “He is an educator at heart who always has time to explain even the most complicated of answers, and many of us in the History Section are involved today because of Tom’s welcoming manner and his encouragement. He has also instilled in many of us the belief that ‘It’s a great day in genealogy!’”
Genealogists often are concerned about the life expectancy of data stored on digital devices. Most digital cards, jump drives, and similar devices typically are guaranteed to store data for only a few months or years.
SanDisk has now announced a one gigabyte Secure Digital card that can store data for 100 years, but can be written on only once. Secure Digital cards are used in many digital cameras as well as other devices. The WORM (write once, read many) card is "tamper-proof" and data cannot be altered or deleted, SanDisk said in a statement. The card is designed for long-time preservation of crucial data like legal documents, medical files and forensic evidence, SanDisk said.
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