Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter

Genealogy Software Compared

A great comparison of available genealogy software can be found on... Wikipedia. That's right, the world's largest encyclopedia contains comparisons of genealogy products, including both free and commercial programs. Software compared includes Windows, Macintosh, Linux, and web-based products.

The Wikipedia article begins at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genealogy_software and then you can scroll down the page to find links to a comparison of genealogy software installed locally on personal computers and to a comparison of web-based genealogy software. Explanation of many terms, including GEDCOM,are also available in the article or in articles linked to the article.

On The Road Again, This Time From a Motorhome

This article comes to you from a Winnebago motor home in a campground in South Carolina, near the Georgia state line.

I travel often, as has been mentioned before in this newsletter. However, this week I am trying something new: travel in a Winnebago motor home. If it works, I expect to spend a lot more time living in the motor home. In short, I will become a genealogy researcher "on the road."

Ancestry.com Releases the 1930 Mexico National Census to Open Gateway for Hispanic Family History Research

The following announcement was written by Ancestry.com:

Access is Free to Public for Most Comprehensive Mexican Census Published Online

PROVO, UTAH – (September 16, 2011) – Ancestry.com, the world’s largest online family history resource, today announced a significant addition to its growing collection of online Mexican and Hispanic historical records. With nearly 13 million records, the newly available 1930 Mexico National Census (El Quinto Censo General de Población y Vivienda 1930, México) is the most comprehensive historical Mexican census available online[1]. It is estimated that this census counted approximately 90 percent of the population, therefore for nearly 30 million Americans who can trace their families to Mexico, it provides a valuable gateway to begin researching Mexican family history, especially if family, vital or religious records are lost. 

Mexico’s first formally recognized federal or national census was taken in 1895. Starting in 1900, censuses were taken every 10 years, making the 1930 Mexico Census the fifth official government census, or formally the Fifth General Census of Housing and Population. This particular census is significant in Mexican history as federal officials sought to make it a vehicle for national unity. A successful campaign urging citizens to take part as a civic duty resulted in an extremely high participation rate - the primary reason why the 1930 Mexican Census is considered the best Mexican census conducted in the 20th century.

(+) Is It Protected by Copyright?

The following is a Plus Edition article written by and copyright by Dick Eastman.

I recently posted an article about "copyright myths" at http://goo.gl/q6DA8. I was surprised by some of the statements in the comments section following that article. I decided to write a quick tutorial to help readers determine if a statement or article they find is protected by copyrights.

Can you use the information in your own research? Can you post the information online on Ancestry.com or other web sites? Can you publish the information in a book or even make a single photocopy to give to a relative? This article should answer many such questions.

i-Postmortem Keeps Your Website Around Long After You’re Gone

i-Postmortem offers two services, one for the living and one for the dead. For $120 a year, customers who still walk the earth can create their own personal memorials ahead of time, including photos, videos and text that they want to leave to their descendants as well as last wishes and instructions to descendants. This “i-Memorial” is a secure product, so you could include passwords to your computer and email accounts that would only be accessible to your spouse after you pass away.

NYGB: Cutting-Edge Genealogy 24 Sept 2011

I must admit that I am looking forward to the Cutting-Edge Genealogy program next week in New York City. I would hope that you can join us. The following announcement was written by the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society:

The New York Genealogical and Biographical Society Presents a Day-Long Program on Cutting-Edge Genealogy, Saturday, September 24th

Learn from Three of the Field’s Top Experts -- Dick Eastman, Ruth A. Carr, and David Kleiman -- How to use New Technology and Thinking to Move your Research Forward

NEW YORK, NY, August 15, 2011 – On Saturday, September 24th, the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society will present Dick Eastman, Ruth A. Carr, and David Kleiman in a full-day program designed to enhance your online genealogical searches.  The program will take place in the South Court Auditorium of the New York Public Library’s Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, Fifth Avenue at 42nd Street, New York, NY.

Copyright Myths

Here are a few old wives' tales that I have heard recently:

"I found the information on the Internet, so I have a right to copy it and use it on my own Web site."

"Everything on the Web is free."

"If I attribute where I found it, I can copy it and use it."

"I can use that information as long as I don't charge for it."

FGS Conference is a Success

People from all over the United States as well as from Canada, England, Israel, India and perhaps a few other countries were in Springfield, Illinois last week to learn more about their family trees. The Federation of Genealogical Societies wrapped up its national conference with 198 educational sessions, along with 98 guest speakers and 76 vendors, at the Prairie Capital Convention Center on Saturday.

Attendance was great this year with more than two thousand people registered. Even more stopped in the convention center for the free exhibits. You can read my earlier daily reports at http://goo.gl/ZpgrF, http://goo.gl/mNhYD, and http://goo.gl/bo8dU.

EOGN Dinner in Springfield

For years, I have hosted informal dinners for newsletter readers shortly after the close of major conferences. Last Saturday, 52 of us met high above Springfield, Illinois on the 29th floor oft he Hilton Hotel. We sat and watched the sun go down and lights appear for as far as the eye could see. All this was accompanied by steaks, chicken, salmon, salads, and a variety of pastries. It was my kind of event!

The dinners are always held after the conference closes as I don't want to compete with any of the conference activities. The plan is simple: food, drinks, door prizes, and great conversation. I think we succeeded this time.

Help Wanted at Mocavo

I have written a number of times about Mocavo, a great genealogy search engine for genealogists. You can read my previous articles by starting at http://goo.gl/r3CXo. Now Mocavo is hiring. The company is growing rapidly and is looking for a number of engineers and business development specialists. All positions are located in beautiful Boulder, Colorado.

The Mocavo.com web site states:

1940 U.S. Census Records to be Free

This "news" has been mentioned in previous newsletter articles but I discovered last week at the FGS conference that not everyone has "received the word." Therefore, I'll repeat the news in an attempt to tell even more people.

The 1940 U.S. census records will be released by the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration on April 2, 2012. That's less than seven months from now. Best of all, the more than 3.8 million original document images containing 130 million-plus records will be available to everyone free of charge.

To be sure, not everything will be available on April 2. Not only are the records unavailable to genealogists prior to April 2, those records are also unavailable to indexers and unavailable to the companies that host the records online. EVERYONE gains access on April 2. The companies involved in making the records available online will require several months to digitize and index the records and then to make them available online.

Updated Paper on Preserving Your Family History Records Digitally

Nearly a year ago, I published an article about Gray Wright's definitive whitepaper on preserving your family history records digitally. Gary is an employee of FamilySearch. In his paper, he explained the many issues involved with digital archiving, including the pitfalls of digital storage of priceless paperwork and of old family photographs that have been digitized. As he explains, if done right, digital archives will last for decades. If done wrong, they may not last three years.

Gary has now updated his white paper. Changes in the new version include:

You may be able to Help Solve a Genealogy Murder Mystery

Rosemary Thornton is a nationally known speaker and writer. Her distant aunt, named Addie Hoyt, married Enoch Fargo in 1896. They lived in Lake Mills, Wisconsin. In 1901, Enoch murdered Addie.

There is local lore about the murder, including a local history book written by Enoch's granddaughter, in the 1980s. The murder was covered up by Enoch, a rich and powerful man. There are no court, police or autopsy records and the like, because of the coverup. There isn't even a burial permit! There is a grave, but it could be empty. Rosemary has been searching for documents, trying to uncover the facts.

Genealogical Tourism: A Phenomenological Examination

I briefly mentioned in a previous article (at http://goo.gl/adgiM) that a newly-created Genealogical Tourism Award was awarded at last week's FGS conference. The award recognizes those who help fill the largely unrealized (and certainly unadvertised) potential for the resources we use to serve as a magnet for tourism dollars.

The Records Preservation and Access Committee, a joint committee of the Federation of Genealogical Societies, the National Genealogical Society, and the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies, has now published a paper by Professor Carla Santos, entitled Genealogical Tourism: A Phenomenological Examination.

Jimmy Parker, R.I.P.

Jimmy Bruce Parker passed away on Friday, September 9, 2011. He joined the staff at the Genealogical Library of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Salt Lake City in 1963 where he helped thousands of genealogists with their research. He served in many positions in the family history department, including the research department and priesthood genealogy department. He was the manager of the Family History Library for five and a half years and retired in December of 1999.

Jimmy was a well known writer and a great educator, teaching all over the North American Continent at the National Genealogical Conferences and BYU Education Week. He served on the board of The International Commission of the Accreditation of Professional Genealogy, president of the National Genealogical Teachers of America, Association of Professional Genealogist and President and Fellow of The Utah Genealogical Society.

Anne Roach's Interview with Dick Eastman

I had a fun conversation with Anne Roach, Director of Content Development for Archives.com. Anne's co-workers captured the conversation as a video and have placed it online, making it available to everyone.

Anne and I gave our reactions to the conference, talked about this newsletter as well as about the Encyclopedia of Genealogy, and discussed several other items as well. This sholud be especially helpful if you weren't able to attend the FGS conference this year.

(+) Turn Your Nook Color into a full Android Tablet

The following is a Plus Edition article written by and copyright by Dick Eastman.

On April 27th, 2011, I wrote a Plus Edition article describing how to convert a low-cost Nook Color handheld ebook reader into a powerful Android tablet computer. The Nook features a gorgeous, 7-inch color screen, the Android operating system, wi-fi wireless networking, audio (it makes a great music and movie player), a leading e-book reader program, a microSD slot for memory expansion, an accelerometer, a web browser that runs Flash, an email program, a calendaring program, and the capability to download and install new programs. Not bad for a $250 device!

In the article, I described a method of converting the Nook into an Android handheld tablet that has all of the above but then adds even more software capabilities. The Plus Edition article, (+) A $249 Bargain Android Tablet Computer, is still available at http://eogn.com/wp/?p=15451. However, now an even simpler method has emerged, requiring no work or software modification by the user.

Another 67,000 Scottish Records Added to Deceased Online

The following announcement was written by Deceased Online:

Burial and cremation records for the cities of Aberdeen and Edinburgh are the latest additions to www.deceasedonline.com

Over 22,000 burial records dating back to 1824 are from three Aberdeen City cemeteries; Nigg, Trinity and St Nicholas Kirkyard. The records are in the form of scans of burial registers, dues registers and burial indexes (full details are in the database coverage section on the website).

Report from Day #3 of the FGS Conference in Springfield, Illinois

(Click on any image to see a larger picture.)

The annual conference of the Federation of Genealogical Societies continued today in Springfield, Illinois. (You can read my report of Day #1 at http://goo.gl/Wb68I and the report of Day #2 at http://goo.gl/zN1IC.) The conference continued today in much the same manner as the previous days.

One exception was the weather: the excellent autumn-like weather of Wednesday and Thursday was replaced by low hanging clouds, some wind, and occasional rain showers. However, it didn't seem to dampen the enthusiasm of the 2,000+ attendees.

Oldest Vermont Newspapers To Become Available Online

Up to 100,000 pages of 19th and early 20th century Vermont newspapers are being scanned and will become available online as part of a two -year project paid for with a federal grant. So far the Vermont Digital Newspaper Project has made about 50,000 pages of 19th-century Vermont newspapers available online. Another 50,000 are still to be converted as part of the project paid for by the National Endowment for the Humanities.