Webinars and Lectures

While we are slowing down for the summer on conferences, I've still been working on doing some webinars.

Recent and upcoming webinars include:

• Achiving Your Genealogy Work Using the Library of Alexandria Rule The November Beta of UGA's New Virtual Chapter
• Getting Your Notes and Sources Right in Your Genealogy Software May 7th from 11-12:30 MDT for the Southern California Genealogical Society Jamboree Extension Series.
• Further Your Research and Unify Your Family Reunion with Beautiful Genealogy Charts.May 11th from 12-1:30 MDT for Legacy Family Tree Webinars.
  

I am also working on recording several of my lectures so that they can be used in various circumstances and you'll see lots more writing out of me in coming months.

Slowing Down

Whew!! she said wiping her brow with a flourish.

Next weekend, I will be home for the first weekend of this year. We have been through a string of conferences, events, and speaking engagements that have been non-stop. From Mesa to SLIG to RootsTech it has been tons of fun. There is nothing I love more than partying with the people who speak my language. But we've decided it is time to slow down.

Needless to say, no one can keep that kind of pace. There were several weeks where I was home long enough to do the laundry and then pack everything back up to take off again. You can see a few things have suffered. I haven't been blogging as much. I have lists of things to write about but haven't had a second to do it. I haven't been on facebook and twitter as much, and I won't tell you about how the clutter level at the house has slipped. Mostly I'm not sure I've been able to keep up with my sanity.

And on top of that, Generation Maps orders have been accelerating. Typically, our busiest times of the year have been through the summer (family reunions) and during the Holidays (gift giving). Usually we slow substantially during February and March. But this year we haven't. Sales have been steady and we've been working really hard to keep our customer service--the personal touch and attention to detail--up to our standards. At times it has been tough to keep everything humming at home with our clients while keeping such a hectic schedule.

So we've decided to slow down over the summer. I know my heart will be aching that we aren't going to be at NGS, NEHGS, or FGS. But we've decided it is more important to make sure that we are completely taking care of the customers we have. You can see on our calendar that we will be keeping the commitments we've already made. But we are going to focus on being prepared and ready to take care of your needs this summer. So go ahead and plan the chart for your family reunion, anniversary, or just to advance your research. We'll be ready and waiting to give you the individual attention that printing your family's heritage deserves.

Contest for a new name

Generation Maps is growing and we need your help! We have known for quite a while that the name Generation Maps doesn't exactly express what this company does and we are ready now to make a change. So we're offering a

CONTEST PRIZE
$300 Generation Maps Credit!

That could be

• a working chart every year for the next 10 years
• Two 30x40 giclee charts
• or one HUMONGOUS family reunion charts.

We need your help to come up with a name that expresses the family/heritage aspect of this company and tells of the beautiful and professional charts that we create. But we are also looking for something that is snappy and memorable and expresses the fun we have printing charts for our clients.

You can submit your brilliant new name for Generation Maps at http://www.generationmaps.com/contest.
Deadline April 4th 2011.

Thanks to all the geneabloggers who already got the information out about the contest during RootsTech. We've had several great ideas submitted already. Hurry and submit yours. First one to submit the best idea will be the winner.

Geneapress--The place to get genealogy news.

I'm very happy to announce a new blog that I'm hoping everyone in the genealogy community will read. It's called GeneaPress. (www.geneapress.com) I've been receiving lots of press releases and haven't been able to keep up with getting everything published like I would like to. There is also alot of redundancy in the blogging world if you read several of the popular blogs. This new blog will be a wonderful place for people to get the news first hand--from the press releases--and then your favorite bloggers will be able to stick more to the commentary on the news.

According to the "About" information on the blog:
GeneaPress is a communal effort by the genealogy and family history blogging community to manage the large number of press releases received from genealogy vendors and organizations. The goal is to create a repository where bloggers can link to the latest news about the genealogy industry.

Kudos again to Thomas MacEntee of Geneabloggers for leading out in another collaborative effort that will strengthen our genealogy community.

The Sociality of Family History part 3 of 3

Besides working with the Salt Lake Institute team like I mentioned in my last post, we were joined over the evenings and in meetings in the hotel with some of our wonderful board members this year. My fantastic 1st VP Christy Fillerup was Johnny-on-the-spot all week, helping even though she was trying to take a demanding course. And I got to know Kathy Palmer and Patsy Hendrickson so much better. Carrie Keele, our administrative assistant was so helpful too. We had great meetings with all of our new board members--Dan Lawyer, Sue Maxwell, Bud Wood and Jason Harrison. I'm so excited to be able to work with these good people. We had such a wonderful time together, laughing and having fun, working hard and learning. I just feel so incredibly blessed to be able to work with these people. I'm so lucky to get to be president with such an impressive board.

Maybe it is natural that an endeavor that studies relationships in families would bring about strong relationships among non-family members too. It seems that in all sorts of Family History endeavors, strong relationships--almost family relationships are formed between people who care about the study of families. It is a good thing when you have a support system for favorite interest. It is such a good thing to have people to talk to who appreciate the nuances of something you love.

I don't know how to write about it without far to many sugary adjectives. I'm sure I sound far too over the top. But I just can't express enough how much I'm loving working with the people in UGA and at Salt Lake Institute this year. It's such a party.

Looking forward to the next one--See you there.

The Sociality of Family History part 2 of 3

Conferences.

What can I say about conferences? You've heard me many times on this blog talk about the great fun we have at conferences. We are heading to the Mesa Family History Expo this week and I just can't wait. We have the St. George Family History Expo, the South Davis Family History Fair and the RootsTech conference coming up right away too. Add to that the teaching at family history centers, and Salt Lake Community College and you would think I'm conferenced out. But I'm not. I love getting to know genealogists. It's a party with people who are as crazy as I am.

This last week I got to see the most amazing conference, from the most amazing perspective. The Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy is an icon in genealogy conferences for a reason. It isn't a conference--where you will take a class on this and a class on that, but it is an institute--a place where you can go and take 20 course hours in a specific topic from the rock stars of genealogists. Literal rock stars. These people are incredible. And then you go over to the library and work with the instructors and the other students in your classes on finding and analyzing the information on your lines.

Being the new Utah Genealogical Association president, I was thrown into administrating SLIG with a new director--the wonderful Adele Marcum--and many members of the new committee who had never worked at Institute (thanks so much Jill Woodbury, Sherry Stevens, Kerry Farnsworth, you guys are not only brave but incredibly competent). And thanks be to Luana Darby, the infallible past UGA president who has kept the ship afloat through some hard years and was there for us with every question we had. I'm so glad she hasn't abandoned ship yet. I so appreciate her companionship. I just wish I'd gotten a picture of everyone together. Something to put on the list for next year. I think if anything, we hopefully proved that we learn quickly from past mistakes.

As is typical with genealogists, the attendees at SLIG were sincere, sweet people. I can't count how many times we heard, "no problem." We had people pitch in and help with handing out lunches, stapling and handing out syllabus materials, taking tickets and etc. And that doesn't even begin to talk about how they helped each other and the great companionship that goes on at Institute. That is why Kim and I choose to run Generation Maps. I love the people in this industry. Genealogists as a whole are good, kind people.

And the coordinators and instructors were patient and generous with a new untested team. These instructors are incredibly knowledgeable--the rock stars of genealogy in the US. I loved the level of conversation all week, and thoroughly enjoyed the classes I got to sit in on. But they are knowledgeable AND generous. I didn't know until this week how truly amazing they are all the way around. They take a personal interest in each of their students and do one on one consultations all week in small and large blocks of time. I was so honored to be able to work with them this week. They all worked diligently with me to put together a 3 year plan for SLIG that will put the conference on a stronger footing. And one of the highlights of the week for me was to be able to present Tom Jones with the UGA Silver Tray award for publishing, to present Paula Stuart Warren as a Fellow of UGA and to present Wilma Adkins with the 2010 Award of Merit. They are, each of them, both scholarly and magnanimous. They are rock stars who are somehow able to make you feel important too.

It was so fun to be so immersed in the sociability of Family History last week. I know many of us came away with life long friends. The level of conversation was so invigorating and energizing. It was great to be able to talk to people who speak my language. Coming back to my regular life, where everyone thinks I'm mildly crazy, it was nice to know there are people out there like me. And it was so great to party with them for a week. Can't wait until next year.

The Sociality of Family History part 1 of 3

You'll have to allow me to wax sentimental here for a bit.

I've been traveling around Utah last fall with Sue Maxwell to re-vitalize and re-energize the UGA chapters around the state. We had a wonderful time in November with Christy Fillerup visiting with the ladies of our new Cedar City Chapter.

It was so beautiful to see the great support group they had formed in Cedar City. That is such an important part of genealogy. There are times that my non-genealogist friends think I'm crazy. But it is so good to have good friends who understand. To have a shoulder to cry on when you just cannot find that marriage record, and to have someone who will jump up and down with you when a distant cousin sends you pictures.

We had such a wonderful time talking with these sweet ladies. They took such good care of us. They are passionate about the same things we are. We learned alot from them and look forward to learning alot more. It was amazing how the common ground of family history could create such fast friends so quickly. I was amazed at how quickly we had soooo much to talk about.

Some may think that real life meetings are going by the wayside in this busy virtual digital world. And while it is great to have the convenience of virtual meetings and to make friends with social networking, I don't think they will ever replace the beauty of a support group where you can share your successes and frustrations with people who understand.

It is good to have someone who understands your passion.

Recommendations

I have worked with A.C. extensively over the last year with the Utah Genealogical Association. He is a vibrant spot in the genealogy world. You'll do well to watch his information on Mac genealogy and mobile genealogy and he also does lookups at the Family History Library in Salt Lake. Take a look:

For immediate Release
Sunday, January 2, 2011

A FRESH LOOK FOR A NEW YEAR

Find My Ancestor Has Received a Makeover

January 2, 2011 - Taylorsville, UT. Find My Ancestor has announced the redesign and update to their site. The site has received many new pages and features including new downloads, new resources, a completely new blog design, social media integration and
many more. With the new design, Find My Ancestor is much easier to navigate and find
your way around making it a more enjoyable experience for the users. Using the new
website builder makes it very easy for creating new pages, quickly allowing Find My
Ancestor to be able to create more pages, how-to’s, downloads and many other features
to help it’s users learn more about genealogy and the tools available to help them in their
research.

About A.C. Ivory

As a genealogist specializing in the use of technology, social media and Mac computers, A.C. Ivory relies on his young genealogist perspectives to relay the importance of using the new tools and resources that will help genealogists achieve their research goals faster, easier and more efficiently. As the creator of FindMyAncestor.com, he has striven to provide genealogists with genealogical news, events, conference reports and new technology updates available to help genealogists in their research efforts.

About Find My Ancestor

Find My Ancestor provides various services to the genealogy and family history community including education, design, Family History Library research assistance and more.

A.C. Ivory is the driving force for Find My Ancestor. A.C. Ivory has been involved with genealogy and family history for over 4 years. A.C. Ivory is only 23 years old and full of genealogy knowledge and ambition.

Follow Find My Ancestor on Facebook (http://facebook.com/findmyancestor), Twitter (http:// twitter.com/findmyancestor) and on our blog at http://blog.findmyancestor.com

Family History--What's in it for me.

Last year, while we were putting together a new Generation Maps Mission Statement, I spent some time reflecting on why Genealogy is important. I've been putting together some new lectures for 2011 and I want to show you one of the graphics from one of the sets of Powerpoint slides. To me, it clearly explains the 4 reasons I believe Genealogy can save the world. (Said with a little tongue in cheek, but not much.)

• Understanding and Emotional Healing. If you haven’t found someone in your family history who is a scoundrel, you haven’t done enough family history. Likewise, if you haven’t found anyone in your family who accomplished amazing things, you haven’t done enough family history. My husband and I run a genealogy chart printing company. As we print descendancy charts for family reunions, it never ceases to amaze us how often we can see trends running through family lines, even just in the vital information on a genealogy chart. Divorces, or illegitimate children can sometimes be seen running through generations on some lines, and then you can see where when one person breaks the cycle, and intact families follow. In my own family, among many other things, there are lines of addictive personalities and I know that is something I come by easily. And in my husband’s family, it is easy to see where the trend started that gave my mother-in-law her sense of self. Understanding these trends, and how they play through the generations can help us heal and deal with family members in a more compassionate and understanding way. I know some of the personality traits ran through my family, and into me, long before I started collecting family history. But now I understand them so much better.
• Realizing Potential. I've written many times about being inspired by your family history. (It's easier to broadcast to the world, than all my stories about healing and understanding the problems in my family's history.) Once when my very scientifically minded son was struggling over yet another dreaded book report, I made the comment to him that he certainly had it in him to write well because he came from a long line of prolific writers. After a bit, he stopped the procrastination and finished up the report. I am continually amazed at how such small comments inspire confidence in my children. Likewise, in my 20’s, when I was given a short personal history of my great-grandmother, I found that she had been through a hard trial similar to mine at about the same age. It inspired me to know that those trials hadn’t defined her life and she had gone on to be very successful. I recently learned more about the sacrifices she made when she was the same age I am now. I look at my challenges and say “I can do this. It’s in my DNA.”
• Grounded and Enveloped in Love. If you think about how much your grandmother loved you, you can imagine how much your great-grandmother, or even great-great grandmother loves you even though you might not have had a chance to know them in this life. I want my children to know as much as they can about the sacrifices that have been made in their behalf by their ancestors so that they could have the good life that they have now. Family history is often a solace for people whose current family ties aren’t what they want them to be.
• Spiritual Power. I've written many times about the spiritual power of Family History. I usually like to call it Serendipity, because that takes out some of the religious connotations. The coincidences, psychic connectedness, hunches, “I don’t know why,” luck, synchronicity, inspiration, intuition, and providence cross all religious, social, political and etc. boundaries. Megan Smolenyak wrote in her book, In Search of Our Ancestors,“If you were to gather fifty genealogists in a room, chances are that forty-five of them would readily admit to having experienced a few unexplainable incidents in their search for roots.” (pg.1) I teach a class on serendipity that is one of my favorite classes to teach because you can feel everyone in the room give a sigh of relief that they aren't the only crazy genealogist. And when I open up the floor and ask the class if they've ever experienced serendipity in their research, I get to hear the most fantastic stories. I absolutely love teaching that class. It leaves everyone with an amazing sense of awe and an awesome feeling of connectedness.

So go out and share your love of family history with someone--especially your own family. You just might save the world for someone.

Verklempt

If you ever watched Saturday Night Live when Mike Meyers was on, he had this on-going skit called "Coffee Talk'' and got `verklempt'' at the mere mention of Barbra Streisand. I'm really not Yiddish, but I've studied German and Hebrew, and I think this is the best word at the moment.
Flattered but overwhelmed.

Overcome.

Saturday I was installed as the president of the Utah Genealogical Association.

Yikes.

I would be scared spitless, but Luana Darby has done a wonderful job the last two years getting UGA into a place where someone in their right mind would be willing to take on this responsibility. During Luana's presidency, the organization has completed a new website and new social networking communication avenues including a stronger newsletter system, facebook, twitter, blog (Thanks A.C. Ivory). This last year we've put together a better organization including a renewed committee structure and books for each committee chair to begin passing down the institutional knowledge that will sustain UGA in the future. And Barry Ewell has orchestrated the purchase of a new virtual meeting system that will not only make the organization run more smoothly, but also has facilitated the development of our new Virtual Chapter, and the UGA Online Training and Tutorial Library. While Luana was in office, our journal Crossroads (yea David Ouimette and Christy Fillerup) has been revamped and the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy (go Adele Marcum) has remained one of the premiere sources of genealogy training in the country. And probably the biggest accomplishment of Luana's presidency was the immensely successful hosting of the National Genealogical Society Conference in 2010 which showed off Utah’s assets to the genealogy community at large, strengthened UGA’s status in the genealogy community and set UGA on a strong footing for future development.

So we are in good shape. We have a great new board. I have two fantastic Vice Presidents, Sue Maxwell and Christy Fillerup. And we are excited to take UGA into a new year. It is the 40th anniversary year and there is lots to get going on, lots still to do. Let me know where you want to help.

Extended Deadlines

We've been working hard to keep up with the demand for meaningful family gifts this season. We're enjoying the holiday season so much, we've decided to extend things a little for domestic orders.

• Custom chart orders are due by Monday December 13th.
• We've extended the deadline for Family ChArtist and Pre-created charts to December 17th.
• All rush orders must be submitted by December 20th.

Go to www.generationmaps.com, give us a call at (801)87CHART or drop us a line at info@generationmaps.com if we can help you share and inspire your family this year. We really delight in helping you show off your family history.

Safety Rule #3 for the Genealogy Internet Playground

Safety rule #3 for the internet genealogy playground: Don’t throw sand in other people’s eyes.

Remember, remember, remember that you aren’t just talking to a computer screen, or even a database, you are talking to people. And you are talking to people about one of the most emotional topics around—their roots. Often you are even talking to people about family members that they knew and loved.

In some cases we can’t ever come to a knowledge of exactly what happened in a historical situation because we weren’t there. The best we can do is collect quality sources and learn how to interpret them the best we can. Sometimes that leaves a lot of disparity between opinions. Care must be taken to be diplomatic in all cases. Especially in dealing with people you don’t know very well.

Sometimes a discussion in a collaborative environment results not so much in the person with the most knowledge coming out victor, but the person with the most time to devote to the cause. Just double check yourself before you hit the enter key. Would you say that to a person in real life?

Play nicely and be safe on the internet playground. The internet is a fantastic boon to family history researchers. It creates an exciting gathering place where we can find distant cousins and fast friends to help us research our family tree. And remember, as any internet genealogist will tell you—Share, Share, Share is the name of the game. If you cast your bread upon the waters it may come back to you an hundred fold. It’s never too late to play by the rules and have fun. Be sure to follow these three basic safety rules and you’ll have a great time.

Generation Maps Partners with MyHeritage

Salt Lake City, Utah - November 18, 2010 - Generation Maps is happy to announce another partnership making it easier for the world to print and display genealogy charts. In addition to other database and software partners, MyHeritage has joined the team of companies looking to Generation Maps for professional large scale genealogy printing.

"It is wonderful that MyHeritage users will now be able to simply and easily print genealogy charts straight from their family sites on the database," says Kim Hovorka, president of Generation Maps. "Again, a simple built in feature for printing means that the user won't have to find a large scale printer that understands the genealogist's needs, he can simply order what he wants for a chart and it will arrive on their doorstep."

Generation Maps quick printing turn around times, impeccable attention to detail, and high customer satisfaction rate makes this a win win situation for genealogy users. The various paper options and domestic and international shipping options round out a complete opportunity for the user to get exactly what they are looking for.

Portions of the My Heritage press release:
London, England & Tel Aviv, Israel - November 18, 2010 - MyHeritage.com, the largest and fastest growing family network on the web, unveiled today a host of new online family tree chart designs and features. Going one step further in enabling users to showcase their family history, MyHeritage.com launched today a professional poster printing service for any chart produced on the website.

More than 16 million families have created a site on MyHeritage.com; a private place for exploring family history, finding long-lost relatives and keeping in touch. Innovative tools, such as Smart Matching™ and photo sharing with facial recognition technology, provide a friendly and secure setting where millions of users have planted their family tree online.

Users can now create a family tree chart from their family site in a few clicks, by choosing from numerous different chart types, with a choice of 18 different predefined chart styles. As of today, MyHeritage.com adds a professional poster printing service for any chart produced on the website, starting as low as $20 per poster. With worldwide shipping, any user can now order a high quality printout of their chart packaged in a protective tube, either directly to their home or shipped as a gift to any other address. The print can be ordered on a variety of paper types (including standard paper, matt photo, glossy photo, vinyl and canvas), in almost any size and with optional lamination. For special occasions like family reunions, posters can be as large as an entire wall.

“Our beautiful family tree charts are a great reward for families who have spent many hours researching their roots”, said MyHeritage.com Founder and CEO, Gilad Japhet. “Family history is much more fun when you can share what you’ve discovered with others, and family tree charts are perfect for that. Our attractive new family tree posters will be a source of pride in every home and are perfect as a gift for the upcoming holidays”.

Existing users of MyHeritage.com can create their own family tree charts by simply clicking on the 'family tree' tab on their family site and choosing 'charts and books'.

About MyHeritage.com:
MyHeritage.com is the most popular family network on the web. Millions of families around the world enjoy having a private place for their families to keep in touch. MyHeritage.com’s Smart-Matching technology empowers users with an exciting and innovative way to find relatives and explore their family history. With all family information stored in a secure site, MyHeritage.com is the ideal place to share family photos, and celebrate and preserve special family moments. Offering 36 languages, 650 million profiles and 16 million family trees, MyHeritage.com is nurturing family relationships and uniting families worldwide. For more information please
visit www.myheritage.com

About Generation Maps:
Generation Maps was established in 2004 to help families express their heritage in an attractive way for all to see. Generation Maps charts provide a visual reminder of your family’s history and help establish feelings of love and confidence that come from knowing who you are and that you are part of a family. Generation Maps charts can awaken individual potential embedded in one’s inherited traits and nurture emotional healing through understanding a family’s history. Family ChArtist will carry on the Generation Maps tradition by offering a new, simplified, personalized way to create decorative charts that promote family traditions and unity.

Generation Maps remains the premier printing service for any kind of genealogy chart you can imagine. In addition to the new Family ChArtist program, Generation Maps continues to offer a multitude of custom chart printing services, including both decorative and working genealogy charts. Custom decorative designs come with an online preview system that gives you personalized attention and feedback until the chart is exactly the way you envisioned it. Working charts are oversized, inexpensive, family reunion-type charts that display your entire file in one place. You can write on and add information to working charts. Generation Maps has printed working charts up to 800 feet long with information for over 30,000 people. In addition, Canvas Giclee Fine Art photos are available at Generation Maps for a very competitive, reasonable price. All charts can be printed on any of 8 paper choices, plus canvas. Free consultations are always available at http://www.generationmaps.com/consult.

Inspire and Involve Your Family with their Family History this Holiday Season

A few of the comments we've enjoyed over the years.

• The kind of family tree chart I wanted was more complicated than I could do myself with the software I bought. The chart was a gift and I wanted it to be perfect... and on time. The staff at Generation Maps was friendly, professional, creative, and, most important, patient with all of my revisions. I received a preview of my chart by e-mail and it blew me away. Just as wonderful is the fact that it will be shipped today so I can give it to my friend on time. I can't thank you enough! M.M. New York
• Here are some photos that were taken when we presented LaRee with her descendant chart at the family Christmas party. She was quite overwhelmed. She was a little quiet at first and the more she looked at it, the more involved she became when she realized just what it was. She was really quite moved. Thank you, thank you, thank you for all of your wonderful work for us. The whole family was very impressed. R.G. Utah
• I must say I have been amiss not writing you and thanking you for the wonderful job you did on the family trees back in December... the delight my children and sister showed when they received them. Excited does not begin to explain their reaction to them... I can't sing your praises enough. F.G., Texas
• You were our Christmas... you have done something for our family that will outlive those of us that are trying to put the pieces of our puzzle in place. Already, my grandchildren are asking for some of the records. I thank you... I think it will make it possible for my sisters and I to continue at the same point. They are suddenly interested after years of telling me they did not want the information. J.M., Texas

We love being an outlet for all the research that you have collected, and an easy, beautiful way for you to share your research with your family. Christmas is a great time to do it. Go to www.generationmaps.com, give us a call at (801)87CHART or drop us a line at info@generationmaps.com if we can help you share and inspire your family this year. We really delight in helping you show off your family history.

Two New UGA Initiatives

If you've been reading this blog you know I've been serving as Vice President at the Utah Genealogical Association this year. They have been working on some great new projects that I wanted to share with you if you haven't seen them on the UGA blog. Since I wrote it over there, I'm going to cut and paste the announcement here. I'm not plagarism if it's my own writing right? We've been working hard on this projects and we'd love to have your feedback.

The Utah Genealogical Association is pleased to announce the launch of two education initiatives for genealogists of all kinds--the UGA Genealogy Training and Tutorial Library (UGaTT) and the UGA Virtual Chapter. An introductory overview of both virtual projects covers the designs and plans for each project as well as the dates and stages of roll-out. The introductory video is a great way to understand the sweep of the plans and get excited about the progress that is coming as we take UGA into its 40th anniversary year.

First, we are pleased to present the first tutorials of the UGA Genealogy Training and Tutorial Library (UGaTT). The topics covered so far are Top U.S. Research Records, Organization for Genealogists, and The Five-step Genealogy Research Process. These first tutorials are the first three pieces of the "Bronze Level" of the program. As the program continues to roll-out there will be over 100 topics covered with a bronze, silver and gold level self-evaluation program in place to to test your comprehension and track your improvement. Participants earn pins and certificates for program completion. Parts of the Bronze level will always be free to the general public, with the more advanced Bronze, Silver and Gold Levels available to UGA members as they are completed. Please fill out the survey to give us your feedback on this initial release.

Second, the first beta version of our Virtual Chapter has been released as well. The meeting is one hour long and includes an introduction and a presentation by Barry Ewell entitled "How to Effectively Conduct Genealogy Research on the Internet." Again, please give us your comments and feedback in a short 6 question survey. A second beta will be released on November 23rd with Janet Hovorka presenting "Archiving Your Genealogy Work Using the Library of Alexandria Rule" These two beta videos will be released to the general public and regular live sessions of the virtual chapter will commence in January with access to all UGA members.

Safety Rule #2 for the Genealogy Internet Playground

Safety rule #2 for the internet genealogy playground: Share your pail and shovel.

Ok. So you know not to pick up half-licked suckers on the playground and not to go home with anyone you don’t know. But to play fair on the internet genealogy playground, you need to make sure that you are a good playmate yourself. In order to do that, you’ll need to provide the sources for what you have researched.

You might say, “Why bother?”
• “It’s just a hobby. It doesn’t matter where I got it.”
• “I’m never going to publish a book or anything.”
• “The fun is in the searching”
• “I’m too busy. As long as I know it’s right that’s enough.”

To which one might answer:
• “As you work your way up, are you ever going to find a cousin genealogist?”
• “Do you want them to share what they have learned?”
• “Are you ever going to participate in a collaborative database?”
• “Do you want your children and grandchildren to be able to build on your work or do you want them to have to recheck it?”

Now I’m not naive. Typing in all the particulars about where you found some information is not the fun part. But, if we are going to play together on the internet genealogy playground, we are not going to get anywhere in a collaborative environment if we don’t cite our sources. If we submit data to any genealogy database without the source information, we are only contributing to conjecture—not building anything for future generations to work with. Our children will have to start all over to verify what we have done.

Citing your sources doesn’t have to be a perfect science. Record enough information so that another researcher can follow your path and not have to redo your research. And, by the way, anything can be a source—even if it is your mother’s memory or a silver tea set with a wedding date engraved on the back. However, only cite sources you have personally seen. If your cousin tells you about a census record, your cousin is the source, not the census record. If Great-Grandmother said something that was written in your aunt’s journal which was then copied into your cousin’s book which your dad emailed you about, your dad’s email is the only source you can cite. Remember, though, that a good researcher will go back to their cousin’s book, their aunt’s journal and will talk to Great-Grandmother, if possible, to get as close as they can to the original source.

It is also important to record any analysis surrounding the source. Record why you think this is a good or bad source and why you came to that conclusion. Perhaps you know that the family bible passed through the hands of an aunt who didn’t want any illegitimate births in the family recorded as such. Or maybe Grandfather lied about his age to get into the military. Elizabeth Shown Mills writes, “Once we refer researchers to a specific source, we are obligated to alert or caution them, as they may be less experienced with the materials“ (Mills, Elizabeth Shown, “Citing Your Sources,” OnBoard 1 (September 1995): 24). Even recording other researcher’s false information, and noting why, will be helpful to future researchers. Usually this kind of analysis is recorded in the notes section.

Originally published in the Generation Maps Newsletter

Safety Rule #1 for the Genealogy Internet Playground

Safety Rule #1 for the Genealogy Internet Playground
Don't pick up half-eaten suckers.

Many people who would never break the sucker rule in regular life, don't think twice about breaking a similar rule in genealogy. Some people who would never think of picking up a half-eaten sucker on a playground will take half-researched genealogy information from the internet-not knowing where it has been-and save it as gospel truth in their family history.

It used to be that when you wrote a letter to a cousin to ask about your family's history, your cousin would send you actual sources-a copy of the birth certificate, a page from the family bible, or whatever they had that would satisfy your quest. Now, when you contact a cousin about their genealogy, you often receive a computer file (such as a GEDCOM) which contains information about your family, but the file has no footnotes or citations about the sources that were used to compile the data.

Quite often, on the internet genealogy playground, the situation can be even stickier. In collaboration databases such as Ancestry's One World Tree, or new.familysearch.org, information comes from many
different people-some who cite their sources and some who don't. If you are lucky, you may be able to contact the person who submitted the information, but sometimes it is impossible to figure out where it
came from.

A researcher can get stuck when they find information on the internet that conflicts with information from sources they already have. When you come to a conflict, the only way to resolve it is by comparing sources. Comparing where both sets of information came from will allow you to resolve any differences. If there are no source citations, or the information came "from the internet somewhere," the researcher cannot determine which information is correct.

For example, if I have an immigration certificate and a church baptism record stating that my great- grandmother's birthday was June 14, 1897, and my second cousin has put information in FamilySearch stating that the birthday was July 18th 1897, there is only one way we can figure out which date is right. We will need to compare my immigration certificate and church baptism record to his sources-perhaps a copy of Grandmother's obituary. We will probably decide that the children who wrote the obituary were not as reliable a source concerning their mother's birth date as the priest who baptized her as a baby.

Likewise, I might have a great-grandfather who did lots of family history work in the early 1900s (which I do). What if now I have a cousin who thinks grandfather chose the wrong ancestor and then
continued to trace the wrong family line (which I do)? The only way we can figure out which ancestor is right is by comparing the sources my grandfather obtained to the source my cousin is looking at. My grandfather may have had access to documents that no longer exist. Or my cousin may have found records my grandfather never saw. Likewise, my great grandchildren will need to know what sources I build my research on-unless I want them to just start over as if I never did any research. If we want these collaborative databases to be of any use in the future, we have to make sure we are entering the sources we have used.

So, what do you do when you come across information about your family on the internet playground? Look at the notes and sources included with the information. Notes and sources tell you the quality of research that you are dealing with. When there are good source citations you can often just spot check the information and make sure that you can ascertain where the data came from. When there are poor source citations, you can use the data as a pointer to future research. (Like thinking "Hey there are suckers around this playground-I wonder where I can get one?") Well documented sources establish the credibility of the researcher, and well documented sources help in analyzing the research of another
person.

Coming soon, rules 2 and 3. If you subscribed to our newsletter, you would already know what rule 2 is . Subscribe now to find out what rule 3 is in a couple of weeks.

Giclée--Final sale for the Month of October

Starting today, October 25th through the 31st. Canvas Giclee will be 50% off the last week of October. Submit your picture of your favorite trick-or-treaters, or any other family or family history picture. We'll print you a beautiful art piece to enjoy for many years to come. Just enter the code 3CG103150 at check out.

A giclée(zhee-CLAY) is an individually produced, high-resolution, high-fidelity reproduction done on a special large format printer. Giclée are produced from digital images or scans of existing artwork. Also, since many artists now produce only digital art, there is no "original" that can be hung on a wall. Giclée solve that problem, while creating a whole new vibrant medium for art.

Generation Maps produces your favorite photograph on high-grade artist canvas to create the texture and feel of an oil painting. Giclée are perfect for family history photos because the texture fools the eye and softens a grainy antique picture. They are a truly personalized work of art.

Generation Maps offers three options for ordering and displaying your canvas giclée.

First, you can order the canvas alone, sent to you rolled up in a tube. This option is great if you are planning to do special framing yourself or if you have another option in mind for display. Sizes range from 8x8 inches to 36x48 inches, and come in popular contemporary looking squares or traditional rectangles. If you want a size that isn't listed, you can call us for special sizing options.











Second, you can order the canvas mounted on to 5mm (3/16 inch)thick foamcore. This is a great option for framing if you already have a frame you know you want to use.















Or Third, you can order the canvas stretched on stretcher bars like a piece of art. This most archival option is great for high quality framing or even for hanging without a frame. The stretcher bars are 1/2 inch thick on the sides, so be sure to tell us whether you want to the image to wrap around the sides (leave an extra 1/2 inch on each side) or whether you want white or black sides.

Give us a call (801)836-6748 or drop us a line at info@generationmaps.com if we can help you place your order. We love helping you show off your family history. Hopefully you have taken advantage of our sales this month to save money off our already fabulous prices while you do it.

Holiday Deadlines

What do you get the person who has everything? A beautiful Generation Maps Genealogy Chart of course.

The Holiday deadlines for this year are:

• Chanukah international November 8th
• Chanukah regular November 17th
• Chanukah rush November 24th
• Christmas international December 1st
• Christmas regular December 13th
  
• Christmas rush December 20th

There is no better way to tell Mom and Dad thank you, and tell your siblings and children you are glad they are part of the family. Let us help you make this holiday special. With 1/2 off any extra copy, you can have everyone on the chart and it won't cost you too much either.

And with all the sales we have going on this month, now is a great time to get those holiday gifts all taken care of so that you can relax and enjoy the season. Let us know what we can do to help you make it easy.

Guest Blogger--Happy Customer

Another happy customer.

"I spent several days looking for the right genealogy printing company, and I couldn't be happier that my search ended with Generation Maps. I asked Generation Maps to do a fairly large and complex chart showing all 209 of my known ancestors and they came through with flying colors. They helped my put together my 13 generation chart and showed extreme patience along the way making sure that the details of my 15 years of work were displayed accurately and attractively."

Gary B.
Mill Valley, California

Thanks for the feedback Gary. We are so pleased to be able to help you display all your hard work. And thanks for letting us show off your chart.