Alan E. Mann, AG

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alan.familyhistory@gmail.com                                                      Accredited Genealogist

Orem Park Family History Fair                                                                                                 

                                                                                                                                                        

What’s New on the Internet

 

This session looks at some new things on the Internet. There are so many new web sites we can’t possible begin to look at even 1% of what’s new. Rather, I would like to show you several new data sites, demonstrate some new technologies or concepts, examine some new products or services, and give you a few hints on how to keep find more of the same on your own.

 

 

New Data Sites

 

Footnote.com has entered an agreement with the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) to make digital images available for millions of records. The first collections are now available. This service is on a subscription basis ($9.95/mo or $99.95/yr). Free memberships allow you to upload your own images and view limited records, including the Pennsylvania Archives.

 

GenealogyBank from NewsBank is a major newcomer in subscription web sites for genealogy. This site has lots of newspapers, digitized books, and historical documents. For a better description of their content, see www.genealogybank.com/gbnk/keyword.html.

 

WorldVitalRecords is another newcomer in genealogical subscription web sites. One interesting feature is GeoMapping, which has been applied to Social Security Death Index data and several other databases on their site. From SmallTownPapers to Genealogy Blog Planet, they have some unique offerings. The company is aggressively acquiring new databases, and has a valuable offering at a reasonable price. Take a look at www.worldvitalrecords.com/contentlisting.aspx.

 

HistoryKat (also familytoolbox.net, sources2go.com, and genealogytoolbox.com) have a variety of sources. Most notable unique content is various state census records for Wisconsin, Illinois, and Colorado. They are due to have a new site operational by the time of this conference. Take a look at www.historykat.com.

 

Utah deaths online to 1954 has images of death certificates fully searchable, along with a number of other databases. See http://historyresearch.utah.gov/indexes/index.html

 

Scotland’s people has images of Old Parochial Registers online (read article at www.yourfamilytreemag.co.uk/page/yft?entry=scottish_parish_record_images_go)

 

Tutorials continue to be a popular way of sharing instructions. One new tutorial is http://census.byu.edu/.

 

 

New Technology or Concepts

 

A lot is under development at FamilySearch.org. First, there’s the new FamilySearch in Beta testing. There’s also things shown at FamilySearchLabs (for example, see www.familysearchlabs.com/lifebrowser).

 

Automatic citation of sources is something many have dreamed about and some have talked about. Now, an automatic citation tool designed for the academic community shows some promise of being able to be adapted for genealogy. View the demo at www.zotero.org. Also see starting point example at www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0001237.html

 

Digital Museum – more and more of things we can do are moving to the web. Television, radio, entertainment, and news, are commonly accessed on the Internet. Social interaction is via web sites is becoming popular. Now we are presented with virtual museums. One museum is even seeking to help other museums go digital. See http://mylocalhistory.org/.

 

I’ve been encourage participation in blogging and podcasting long enough not to refer to it as a new technology. For those interested, check out NetVibes for blog tracking and iTunes for podcast tracking. Something new is splashcasting. Take a look at www.splashcastmedia.com.

 

Calendar synchronization (www.timetomeet.info) - TimeToMeet gives you a personal URL that others can use to make appointments with you. For them, it's like calling up your secretary and asking for a spot on your schedule. If you want, you can link it with your synchronized calendar and let others see when you are free or busy.

 

Shareable clipboard (www.cl1p.net) – most of us are familiar with copy and paste. Now, use the Internet to copy and paste between computers. Copy something to the clipboard, paste it to a URL, and then retrieve it from any computer.

 

The world’s pedigree online. Several efforts are underway (One World Tree by Ancestry, OneGreatFamily, new FamilySearch, www.geni.com/, etc.)

 

Timelines: see www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/timelines/kings_queens/index.shtml

  • Genealogical events and associated records for an individual
  • Genealogical events and associated records for an individual's family (parents, siblings, spouse, children)
  • Modern day and historic maps showing the geographic locations of these events (think Google Earth or Google Maps)
  • Historical events that would have impacted people in that place and time
  • Historical events that might not have impacted the person but which have impacted their ancestors
  • Historical texture (fashion, sports, transportation, entertainment, etc.) throughout the ancestor's life

 

New Products and Services

 

OnDemand Books. I’ve previously talked about Lulu.com as a publishing alternative, but now another phenomenon is ready to debut - the Expresso book dispenser. Check it out at www.ondemandbooks.com (4 minute video on site).

 

Speaking of books, how about www.libraryireland.com?

 

I’ve often mentioned automatic backup services, and I’ve tried to use several. One of my long time favorites, Mozy, has introduced unlimited size backup service for a fee of only $4.95/mo. Alternatively, you get a free 2 gb (+256 mb if you use this link - https://mozy.com/?ref=6H24GG).

 

Immortal computing – Microsoft project to create an artifact which preserves information. Could this change the experience of a cemetery visit? Could we use it to create genealogical time capsules for our posterity? Read more in an article at http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/300636_msftimmortal22.html).

 

I’m not sure exactly what will be done with this, if anything. Here’s a look at what’s being called Genealogy motion graphics - www.metaportaldermedienpolemik.net/blog/Blog/2007-01-16/rhnav+-+rhizome+navigation+used+to+create+genealogy+motion+graphics

 

Web 2.0 is a popular term often used to describe new services offered using recent web technologies. For a great video production on Web 2.0, see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gmP4nk0EOE. For a genealogical example, see www.genealogieonline.nl/genealogie-berkemeijer/I9510.php.

 

Google has made it possible for those wanting to try a little programming to design customized Google searches. For a few examples of such searches, see:

·        Louis Kessler Behold GEDCOM search www.google.com/coop/cse?cx=003272412690902578152:w4zkyxikgvi

·        Genealogy Search Engine - www.google.com/coop/cse?cx=016788498868153188874%3Ahdis5clq-wo

·        Genealogy Blog Finder - www.google.com/coop/cse?cx=008603050331564176105:yaixtxoe8z0

·        Genealogy Search - www.google.com/coop/cse?cx=008603050331564176105%3A4jqxeigfu_k

·        Family Matters Search Engine – www.google.com/coop/cse?cx=007395176570678229864%3Aic_yipahyl4 

·        Thrall Local History & Genealogy Guide Search - www.google.com/coop/cse?cx=003429394268644649346%3A-bctpapjdnu

·        UTGenWeb - counties - www.google.com/coop/cse?cx=003987159868624404791:_r0z_sdof4o

 

 

How to Find More on Your Own

 

There are thousands more such sites on the internet. It would be impossible to list them all here. Even if I could list them all, there would be more that weren’t listed by tomorrow! So how can you find more? There’s a lot you can do to be aware of developing technology. I would suggest:

 

·        Read online newsletters, chiefly Dick Eastman’s newsletter (www.eogen.com). See www.cyndislist.com/magazine.htm#E-zines for a list of many others.

·        Participate in or read Genealogy Blogs (http://genealogyblog.com, www.genhelp.org, http://genealogysites.blogspot.com, www.dearmyrtle.com, www.randomgenealogy.com, http://genealogy.about.com, or others.

).

o       Linkpendium (www.linkpendium.com)

o       Search Systems (www.searchsystems.net)

o       Genealogy Sleuth (www.progenealogists.com/genealogysleuthb.htm)

o       State Archive site list (www.sos.state.ga.us/archives/what_do_we_have/other _state_archives/default.htm).

o       Cyndi’s List (www.cyndislist.com/primary.htm#Online)

o       Genealogy Links (www.genealogylinks.net)

©Copyright 2006-7 by Alan E. Mann. All rights reserved. Written permission to reproduce all or part of this syllabus material in any format, including photocopying, data retrieval, or the Internet, must be secured in advance from the copyright holder.