Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter

(+) How to Protect Files Stored on a USB Flash Drive

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

Flash drives (also called jump drives or memory sticks) are a great invention. I use several of them to store and transport various data files. In fact, you can probably find dozens of uses for a flash drive. Today's flash drives are becoming cheap, and they are rugged—almost impervious to damage, other than driving over one with an automobile. I once accidentally sent a flash drive through the washer, and it continued to work perfectly afterwards. (That is not guaranteed by the manufacturer, however!) Today’s flash drives are generally cheaper, more rugged, and have higher storage capacity than CD-ROM disks.

One of the best uses I know of is to take a flash drive in your pocket or purse when visiting a library or archive. Many libraries and a few archives have scanners and microfilm viewers that will save an image of a book or an old microfilm image to flash drives. Instead of feeding quarters into a photocopy machine, many genealogists prefer to save to a flash drive. Flash drives make it easier to transport the images home, copy them to a computer at your leisure, examine them, manipulate the images to improve readability, and easily insert their contents into genealogy programs, email messages, or that book you are writing.

(+) Is Your CD-ROM Data Disappearing?

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

Genealogists are generally concerned with long-term data preservation. A lot of genealogists believe that the only method of preserving data is to print the information on paper. Yet, many of us have handled old pieces of paper that are decaying, crumbling, or fading to the point that the information is not readable. In fact, most paper manufactured in the past 75 years or so contains acids that will hasten the deterioration of the information you wish to preserve.

Even worse, the inks and laser printer toner we use today will fade in a few years, even if the paper survives. I already have papers in my filing cabinet I wrote or photocopied 25 or 30 years ago that have faded quite a bit. Some are already difficult to read because of faded ink or photocopy toner. Those papers probably will be unreadable in another 25 or 30 years.

As we have seen recently in several places around the world, paper is especially fragile. Paper documents are easily destroyed by fires, floods, earthquakes, or building collapse. On a couple of recent occasions, valuable paper documents have been lost forever due to simple burst water pipes.

(+) Price Reduction on the (Almost) Unlimited Cell Phone Minutes for only $19 per Month

In the January 6, 2013 edition of this newsletter, I wrote about a cheap cell phone service that costs $19 a month for (almost) unlimited use. In addition, the customer also had to pay $249 for the cell phone. The company has now reduced the cell phone's price to $199.

I made some changes to the original article to reflect the new pricing. Plus Edition subscribers can read the article at http://eogn.com/wp/?p=23432. A Plus Edition user name and password will be required.

 

(+) Obtain an ISBN Number for Your Self-Published Genealogy Book

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

"ISBN" stands for "International Standard Book Number." An ISBN number is an ISO standard and normally is found in all books published in the United States since 1970 and on many books published in other countries as well. Technically, an ISBN number is not a requirement for any book; you may publish books without such a number. However, experience has shown that an ISBN number is required if you want the book to be listed in the many indexing and cataloging systems available. Also, an ISBN number is required for all books that are to be sold by Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Border Books, and most any other major bookseller. These booksellers use the ISBN numbers to order, inventory, and track books.

Only the smallest self-published and self-marketed books can survive without ISBN numbers.

(+) Turn Vacations into Genealogy Fact-Finding Trips

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

"If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium."

Where will you go on your next vacation trip? A trip to New England? Washington, D.C.? How about to the beach? Or how about a European vacation? How about taking a trip to the town where your grandparents grew up or a visit to the country of your ancestors? Wouldn't you like to actually walk the same streets as your great-great grandfather or see the home where your grandmother was born? This is something you probably want to put on your bucket list.

A trip back to the home town or to "the old country" can be an immensely satisfying experience. Those who prepare for the trip usually report they have great memories and photographs of the experience.

(+) An Easy Way to Make Presentations with PowerPoint in Your Pocket

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

Do you frequently make presentations to groups of people? Are you carrying a laptop computer with PowerPoint, Keynote, or another computer presentation program that can save slides in .PPT or .PPTX format? Are you tired of carrying a laptop computer just to show your slides? Do you own an iPad, an iPhone, or an iPod Touch? If you answer "yes" to all three questions, I may have a solution for you.

Why carry around your laptop to your next presentation? With the proper software on your handheld device, you have the power to present and share your PowerPoint slides anytime, anywhere – straight from your Apple iOS mobile devices – with animations, fonts, colors, graphics, hyperlinks and videos intact.

(+) Hands On with the $169.99 HP Slate 7 Tablet

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

I own one of the original Apple iPad handheld computers. While I like the device, I realize that newer handheld computers have more features, high-resolution cameras, more memory for data storage, and numerous other advantages that my aging device does not possess. In addition, I have realized the iPad's almost 10-inch screen makes it too bulky to carry with me all the time. As a result, the iPad often sits on the desk at home when I really would like to be using it when I am out and about. After all, what good is battery-powered portability when the thing is not convenient to carry?

I also use an iPhone, but its screen is a bit too small for some applications, and “typing” on its glass keyboard is quite difficult for anything longer than a few words. I feel like I am reciting a fairy tale of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. However, I can identify with her “problem.” One device is too large to carry, another has a screen too small to be useful all the time. Like Goldilocks, I was looking for the one that is “just right.”

I started looking at the various 7-inch tablet computers that have become available in the past two years or so.

(+) How to Use Evernote to be a Better Genealogist

The following is an update to a Plus Edition article I published about a year ago. Some of the information has changed since the original article was published. I have updated the article and am re-publishing it today.

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

One of my favorite computer tools is Evernote. I've been using it for more than four years now and love it. Sometimes I wonder how I ever got along before Evernote. While Evernote has many uses, I use it primarily as a digital filing system. In fact, I find that it is a perfect complement to almost any genealogy program, often compensating for the shortcomings of whatever genealogy program you might use to track your research.

Admittedly, all this didn't happen overnight. When first installed, Evernote presents the new user with a blank screen. That user typically says, "Now what?" This article will hopefully answer that question.

(+) How to Create Blogs and RSS News Feeds – Part 3

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

Two weeks ago I described the easiest way to start a new blog (web log): sign up for a service that hosts blogs on their own servers. The process is simple. You can publish your first articles within a very few minutes after opening an account. The drawback is that people can only read your blog by going to some other company's web server.

Last week I described how to install blog software on your own web server. The advantage is that the blog remains on your own URL (web address). However, the process is significantly more complicated, requires more systems administrator expertise, and entails more future hours to perform system backups and to fix technical problems as they arise.

This week I will describe the best of both worlds: host your blog on someone else's web servers, but make it look like it is on your web site. While it is a bit complex to set up, once installed, you can forget all about system maintenance issues. The hosting service will handle all that for you. Yet your readers will be able to find your articles by going to your own web site.

(+) How to Create Blogs and RSS News Feeds – Part 2

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

Last week I described the easiest method to start a new blog (web log): sign up for a service that hosts blogs on their own servers. Indeed, that process is usually simple and inexpensive. However, for business reasons or for personal preferences, many people will want their blogs hosted on their own servers so that the URL displayed in the top of the web browser shows a desired domain name, not that of a blog hosting service.

Another reason for installing blog software is because you might want some features that are not available on a remote hosting service. For instance, the Plus Edition articles of this newsletter are posted in a password-protected blog on this newsletter's web site at http://www.eogn.com/wp/. None of the blogging services that I found could support a separate user name and password for each reader and keep them up-to-date easily. Since the user name and password system was already installed on the eogn.com web server, putting the blog software on the same web server was the easiest solution for me.

(+) Why a Search Engine Cannot Find All Online Genealogy Information

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

Internet search engines such as Google and Yahoo and Bing are great inventions for genealogists. We can go to a search engine and enter a name of an ancestor or other relative. The search engine will then provide us with a “hit” list—a list of web pages that contain that name. If the name is an uncommon one, we often can find the information we seek within seconds. The more common names may be a bit more difficult as the search engines return too many "hits" for us to read quickly. In these cases we can narrow the search by entering the person’s place of residence, occupation, family members' names, and other facts from the person's life, hoping to find web pages that contain those facts in addition to the person's name.

However, search engines never return information about certain records, even though we know that those records are already available online.

(+) How to Create Blogs and RSS News Feeds – Part 1

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

Perhaps two of the hottest new words on the World Wide Web these days are "blogs" and "RSS." OK, so RSS is not really a word–it's an acronym. It stands for "Really Simple Syndication." Whatever it is, RSS is becoming more and more popular every day in the same manner as blogs. Millions of blogs are already online, and thousands more are added every day. It seems as if almost everyone from teens to grandparents writes a blog.



Many people write personal blogs to share their recent experiences, their photographs, their political beliefs, or perhaps the activities of the local Cub Scout troop they help lead. Blogs can be about any topic at all. Many corporations and non-profit societies also publish blogs. These may describe new products or provide the finer points of using a product.

Both blogs and RSS news feeds have applications for publishing genealogy-related information, especially newsletters, project status news, software release notes, and other information that changes frequently. Almost all major genealogy conferences now publish blogs in the months preceding the conference to communicate last-minute details, describe the sessions being held, and provide biographies of the presenters. Several genealogy societies and others even publish their newsletters as blog articles. In fact, this newsletter has been produced on a blog publishing platform with accompanying RSS feeds for nearly nine years.

(+) Free Online Translation Services

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

If some or all of your ancestors came from non-English speaking countries, you will probably need to translate some documents sooner or later. By far, the best known online translation service is Google Translate. However, the results from this service can sometimes be humorous. You can’t always trust Google Translate to be entirely accurate. The problem gets worse when it comes to archaic words, idioms, or technical terms.

Actually, any automatic, machine-generated translation is going to be equally poor or worse. Luckily, Google is not the only translation service on the Web.

(+) Consider the Source: Original, Derivative, or Copy

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

Experienced genealogists are always aware that they must verify information by looking at original documents or a microfilm or digital image of an original document. We should know better than to believe a statement on a web site, in a genealogy book, or a verbal statement from Aunt Tilley about the "facts" of our family trees. However, what is the definition of an "original document?"

Let's take one well-known claim of an original document that isn't really accurate: the U.S. Declaration of Independence. Almost all American schoolchildren are familiar with this document; and, if we paid attention in class, we know that the document is on display at the U.S. National Archives building in Washington, D.C. In fact, millions of us, myself included, have visited that building to view the document on display. However, how many of us were ever told that the document displayed in Washington is not the original, hand-written document? Instead, it is one of many copies that were produced on a printing press.

No, this isn't a story plot from a Nicholas Cage movie.

(+) Obtain a Distant Telephone Number at Low Cost

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

NOTE: This article contains no genealogy information, other than a minor reference to saving money when talking with your relatives in distant places. If you are looking for true genealogy articles, I suggest that you skip this one. However, this article does describe a high-tech method of saving money for many people and some small businesses.

If you have family in another state or in another country, you can call them at relatively low rates using any of a number of methods. Low-cost VoIP providers (see Footnote #1) abound; telephone companies often offer flat-rate unlimited calls; and some cellular companies also offer very low prices for long-distance calls. However, wouldn’t it be nice to offer those relatives the opportunity to call you at no charge or for a very low charge, as well?

For instance, if you live in Australia, wouldn’t it be nice to offer your relatives in England the chance to call you for free or for very low toll charges? Of course, the calls do not need to be international. Perhaps you retired to Florida but would like to keep a Chicago phone number so that your children and grandchildren in that city can call you toll-free. All they do is call a Chicago phone number, and you answer the phone, regardless of where you are.

(+) Create Your Own Mini-Cloud to Make Secure Online Backups

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

Cloud computing is in the news almost daily—and for good reasons. It offers cost-effective capabilities that would have been very expensive only a few years ago. Probably the most popular cloud computing application for consumers is that of making off-site backups to protect your files against hard drive failures or from in-home disasters, such as fire, flood, burst water pipes, hurricanes, tornados, or other tragedies. Companies providing cloud-based backup services include Backblaze, Mozy, Carbonite, CrashPlan, McAfee Online Backup, Norton Online Backup, Jungle Disk, and dozens of others as well.

(+) One Secret to Making Money from Your Genealogy Web Site

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

Disclaimer: I think all computer users should be aware of this information. In fact, I would suggest that all computer users should be aware of this so that each of us can understand why some sites are trying to obtain some of your money, and how. The information is provided here for your education only and should not be interpreted as an endorsement or a recommendation by me. I will list some of my opinions and experiences near the end of the article.

This week I will tell you how to make money from your genealogy web site. Yes, it is true: you can place genealogy data online about your own family tree although you can probably make more money by providing “how-to” information or even images of old records or even digitized books. You will quickly ask, “How much money can I make?” I can only answer, “It all depends.” You might only make enough to buy a cup of coffee, perhaps not even at Starbucks’ inflated prices. Then again, rumors float around claiming that a handful of genealogy-related sites are making thousands of dollars per month.

(+) What is the Cloud and Why Should I Care? - Part 3

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

The first part of this article explained what the cloud is, and the second part described using genealogy applications in the cloud. In this third segment, I thought I would address frequently-asked questions about cloud computing. Namely, is it secure? How do I access the cloud? What does it cost to use the cloud?

Security

Is the cloud really secure? The quick answer is: nothing is ever perfect. However, data that you store privately in the cloud is probably is more secure than data stored on the hard drive in your computer at home or on your laptop computer. Let's look at several examples.

(+) Update: (Almost) Unlimited Cell Phone Minutes for only $19 per Month

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

On January 6, 2013, I published a Plus Edition article at http://eogn.com/wp/?p=23432 describing a low-cost cellular phone service. I was trying it out at the time and was pleased with it. I have now switched to this service. Since, then I have published two updates to the original article, the first at http://eogn.com/wp/?p=23432 and the second at http://eogn.com/wp/?p=24102. I am pleased with the service and have now switched to it permanently.

(+) What is the Cloud and Why Should I Care? – Part 2

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

On March 3 I published Part #1 of this article at http://eogn.com/wp/?p=24174 and it is still available there. Part #1 provides an explanation of cloud computing. In this new article, I will provide a bit of history of cloud computing and then will focus on genealogy-specific uses of the cloud.

In the beginning...

When home computers first appeared in the late 1970s, they were free-standing devices. Home computers in those days typically did not communicate with other computers. If you wanted to get information out of your computer, you or someone else had to first put the information into the computer and store it. In those days, information was usually entered from the keyboard or from audio cassette tapes that had been recorded on another, similar computer. In the early 1980s, floppy disks started to become common.

By the mid-1980s, modems became popular, and a home computer user could dial the modem to connect to another computer. We could even transfer files over the telephone lines. Using the 300-baud modems that were popular at the time, transferring an entire book might require several hours. Compare that to today's high-speed broadband Internet connections where the same book can be transferred in a few seconds!