Alan
E. Mann, AG
alan.familyhistory@gmail.com
Accredited
Genealogist
BYU 2007 Computerized
Genealogy conference www.alanmann.com/articles
Tips for Using
the Family History Library Desktop
This
session looks at the Family History Library Patron Desktop, the system
available on computers at the Family History Library. The Desktop is designed to emphasize the
electronic resources which are available at the Library. We will look at the
screens, the organization, and the content of the Desktop. Along the way, we’ll
mention some of the things which are available only to those in the Library.
This
presentation is available online at www.alanmann.com/articles/fhldesktop.htm.
The
Desktop runs in active desktop, which means that the home page (Find Ancestors, shown below) can’t be closed. To return
to the home page at any time, close the page you are on, or click the Stop Sign
on the Task Bar. The left hand navigation column, the top message bar, and the
bottom copyright and taskbar act as a frame for menu pages.
The top message bar allows
Library staff to send communication when needed. The left side navigation
column has links to four major menu pages, but also has a link for patrons to
provide feedback, include suggestions. It also has a magnifying glass tool to
help the visually impaired. The remainder of this presentation follows the
Desktop organization scheme, which presents four tabs on the left side of the
screen, namely,
·
Find Ancestors
·
Manage Records
·
Submit Records, and
·
Learn.
Find Ancestors
The Find Your Ancestors page has
nine menu choices (shown in bold,
below). The first choice takes you to the Internet using the Internet Explorer
web browser. The starting point is always FamilySearch, but you can type any
Internet site address into the address box. Internet browsing allows patrons to
visit any non-objectionable site. If you do encounter a site which is blocked,
please use the feedback link to let us know if you think the site should not be
blocked.
Subscription Web Sites lists
fee-based web sites which the Family History Library provides free to patrons
at the Library. Shown here at left, these sites are not available outside the
Library unless the patron has a paid subscription.
BYU Family
History Archive links to the cooperative project between BYU and the
FHL to digitize family history books. This is available on the Internet, but
listed here to call attention to this valuable project of searchable family
histories.
Favorites is a list of
web sites organized in the pattern of the Family History Library Catalog. These
links help our patrons find other web sites quickly. These
favorites have been loaded into the web browser at the FHL, and is
available for download from our Desktop for those wishing to take it home.
Databases on
the Network is a list of databases available on the Desktop, shown here at
right. These are mostly CD-ROMs which have been purchased from commercial
vendors or donated by individuals. It is not a list of all the CDs and other
databases, but rather a list of those which the Library has permission to
deliver via the network. The license agreement on some
commercial products only allow us to let one patron at a time view their
database, so we have instituted a checkout
procedure which enforces this license. Thus, patrons may receive a message
telling them a particular CD is currently checked out by someone else and to
return later to see if it is available.
The remainder of
the links on the home page connect to resources which are free to use
from home (with the possible exception of PERSI for some users). Family History Library Catalog connects
patrons to the Library’s catalog. This is the same catalog as is available on
FamilySearch. WorldCat links to the valuable service
containing catalogs of thousands of libraries around the world. Use this site
to find a library which has the source you are trying
to find when the FHL doesn’t have it. Periodical
Source Index (PERSI) is an index to millions of articles published in
genealogical periodicals since 1800. We link to this resource separately because
we feel it is underutilized. Soundex Converter is
a simple tool which gives one the Soundex code for
any name they input.
Manage Your Records
This menu will launch various
versions of the Personal Ancestral File program (PAF), as well as launch
·
GenViewer, a product
for viewing GEDCOM files without having to import them into a genealogy
database program.
·
GenSmarts, a program
which analyzes your data file or GEDCOM, makes research suggestions, and
automates searching several web sites directly from your database.
·
IrFanView, a program
to crop, resize, print, compress, or reformat graphics.
·
The latest issue of PAFology,
a newsletter about PAF.
·
Instructions on how to burn a CD on our computers.
·
Windows Explorer, WordPad, or WinZip.
Submit Records
This menu, shown here at left, is to
guide patrons to submitting their GEDCOM file to Pedigree Resource File or
preparing to submit individuals for temple ordinances. The links on the right
side include links explaining the steps to TempleReady
as well as handouts on how to use TempleReady, and an
explanation of the requirements for providing temple ordinances.
Learn
The final menu, shown here below,
provides links to resources on learning more about family history.
This menu links to
many available online resources, including the schedule of classes offered in
the Family History Library. It has links to basic tutorials on using a computer
and learning about a computer, as well as information on genealogical research,
the Family History Library system, and the
Finding aids are useful research
tools, many of which may not be available outside the Library.
The Library Answers Database is a
guide to research in the
©Copyright 2007 by Alan E. Mann and Intellectual
Reserve, Inc. 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.