GeneaBlogie is between homes right now. No, we're not homeless; some of you have noticed that we have two homes! We are at both:
http://geneablogie.blogspot.com AND http://blog.geneablogie.net.
We will be moving permanently to the latter site. This has been in the works for quite awhile; we had several hiccups along the way. But with the recent spam-flagging of several legitimate blogs on Google's Blogger system, I really accelerated the process. I'm not in need of a nanny; I can be master of my own domains, so to speak.
If you visit us in our new home, you'll see it's not totally ready, but our guests will be comfortable. In a few days, our old place will be boarded up. So update your address books now to:
http://blog.geneablogie.net
Showing posts with label Blogging. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Blogging. Show all posts
Sunday, August 03, 2008
Friday, July 25, 2008
Genealogy:The Next Generation
We've talked often about getting younger folks involved with family history and sometimes we've lamented about the seeming lack of interest on the part of young people. We've been disabused of that latter notion by great folks like Jessica of Jessica's Genejournal.
And today I want to introduce my readers to Jeanna (pronounced like "Gina"), whose new blog is called RootsReading. She describes herself as a "a twenty-something African-American woman who, in the process of tracing her lineage, hopes to gain a better understanding of herself. "
Jeanna is just getting started with her research and is going through all the exciting and frustrating issues we all confronted early on. As for blogging, in her latest post, Jeanna wonders about balancing family privacy with the desire to discuss her discoveries publicly. We've all been there, too!
Please stop by RootsReading, meet Jeanna, and share with her your experiences!
And today I want to introduce my readers to Jeanna (pronounced like "Gina"), whose new blog is called RootsReading. She describes herself as a "a twenty-something African-American woman who, in the process of tracing her lineage, hopes to gain a better understanding of herself. "
Jeanna is just getting started with her research and is going through all the exciting and frustrating issues we all confronted early on. As for blogging, in her latest post, Jeanna wonders about balancing family privacy with the desire to discuss her discoveries publicly. We've all been there, too!
Please stop by RootsReading, meet Jeanna, and share with her your experiences!
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Keeping Up: Facebook
I've had a bit of difficulty keeping up lately. One cause among many: Facebook! (see Tim Agazio's remarks here. I concur with a lot of what you say, Tim!) I do enjoy the networking among folks with similar interests, but it can get out of hand
I actually did find people that I actually know on Facebook. That fact and George Geder's recent posts about his school days led me to post this photo:
That's me and a high school friend I hadn't seen or heard from in over 35 years until I noticed she's on Facebook. It was fun to re-connect and get caught up.
Like Tim, I got into Facebook primarily because I want to participate in the Unclaimed Persons group. But I haven't had time, what with all the Friend requests, Karma sending, updating status, etc.! I'm going to have to be more efficient at this.
From a research point of view, I see a number of advantages, though, to Facebook. The collaboration that goes on in the Unclaimed Persons group is a good example. I wrote once about an ad hoc group that convened by email to solve a problem in one of the family lines we were all researching. Facebook would have enhanced that experience.
I searched on Facebook to find possible cousins, but I didn't find this all that helpful. I did the same thing on LinkedIn and that seemed much easier.
The thing we have to keep in mind is that social networking is a tool, and not an end in itself. Otherwise, one could spend an entire lifetime with only virtual contact with human beings. On to Second Life!
And finally, in the category of keeping up with the Geders, take a look at this:
I actually did find people that I actually know on Facebook. That fact and George Geder's recent posts about his school days led me to post this photo:
That's me and a high school friend I hadn't seen or heard from in over 35 years until I noticed she's on Facebook. It was fun to re-connect and get caught up.
Like Tim, I got into Facebook primarily because I want to participate in the Unclaimed Persons group. But I haven't had time, what with all the Friend requests, Karma sending, updating status, etc.! I'm going to have to be more efficient at this.
From a research point of view, I see a number of advantages, though, to Facebook. The collaboration that goes on in the Unclaimed Persons group is a good example. I wrote once about an ad hoc group that convened by email to solve a problem in one of the family lines we were all researching. Facebook would have enhanced that experience.
I searched on Facebook to find possible cousins, but I didn't find this all that helpful. I did the same thing on LinkedIn and that seemed much easier.
The thing we have to keep in mind is that social networking is a tool, and not an end in itself. Otherwise, one could spend an entire lifetime with only virtual contact with human beings. On to Second Life!
And finally, in the category of keeping up with the Geders, take a look at this:
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Pix from Burbank
Above: George G. Morgan, flanked by Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak, and Stephen Danko, responds to a question during the first-ever Genea-Bloggers Summit on June 28, 2008, during the 39th Annual Southern California Genealogical Jamboree.
The all-star panel finds themselves looking at themselves looking at themselves thanks to Elizabeth O'Neal's Little Bytes of Life.
Genea-bloggers gather: front row from left--Kathryn Doyle; Dick Eastman; George G. Morgan; Stephen Danko. back row from left--Leland Meitzler; Schelly Talalay Dardashti, Randy Seaver, Craig Manson, Elizabeth O'Neal.
SCGS Jamboree: Elizabeth Scoops Bloggers at Summit
BURBANK, Calif.--As some of the geneablogosphere's brightest stars sat on a panel discussing what they do and how they do it, the story was being scooped by genea-blogger Elizabeth O'Neal from her vantage point in the third row. At 10:28 AM PDT, less than half an hour after the session began, she posted the following:
(click to enlarge)
Kathryn Doyle mentioned it to Dick Eastman, who pulled it up onto the screen in the room. The panel soon found themselves looking at themselves looking at themselves looking at themselves . . . .
Way to go, Elizabeth! Go to her site, Little Bytes of Life, to find how to follow her Twitter updates.
(click to enlarge)
Kathryn Doyle mentioned it to Dick Eastman, who pulled it up onto the screen in the room. The panel soon found themselves looking at themselves looking at themselves looking at themselves . . . .
Way to go, Elizabeth! Go to her site, Little Bytes of Life, to find how to follow her Twitter updates.
Friday, June 27, 2008
Genea-Jamboree: Day 1
BURBANK, Calif.--The 39th Annual Southern California Genealogical Jamboree got underway this morning at the Burbank Airport Marriott Hotel. The Jamboree began with a class on "Beginning Genealogy," which for reasons I noted last night I did not attend. More about what I did instead later. I went downstairs about 12:15 PM and spotted Randy Seaver at the check-in desk. We chatted for a few minutes, and then went off in different directions. We would meet up again later.
The hotel is under reconstruction and it's not the easiest place to get around in right now. I thought I'd go have lunch in the hotel restaurant, but as I got there, I heard an employee tell another attendee that there were sandwiches in the Convention Center. So I walked back over there and signed in for the Jamboree and had a hot dog. I had a couple of great conversations with other attendees from various places; I enjoyed that a lot.
By the time I finished lunch, it was time for the afternoon sessions to begin. I went first to Leland Meitzler's presentation on "The X Files--Dealing with Black Sheep in the Family Tree." Leland is a great storyteller and he illustrated his presentation with a number of anecdotes about his family. He also described a number of websites and other sources for discovering the, ahem, unsavory branches of one's family tree. Some I was familiar with, others were new to me. This presentation was well attend; so much so that extra chairs had to be brought into the room.
There was a thirty minute break after that presentation, so I went to a table outside the conference rooms to use the computer. I sat down at a table where there were two other people, one of whom was genealogy blogger rock star Schelly Talalay Dardashti! What a great surprise! We had a great conversation. Schelly is a great wit and a very interesting person. When the break was over, Schelly and I headed off to see Steve Morse's presentation, "From DNA to Genetic Genealogy: Everything You Wanted to Know But Were Afraid to Ask."
Steve Morse is a computer scientist, not a geneticist or biologist. But his description of DNA and its relevance to genealogy was the best such presentation for lay persons I've ever heard. It occurred to me that it was much clearer and much more educational than a similar presentation I'd heard as a judge designed to get us up to speed on DNA and genetic evidence. It was cogent and funny in the appropriate places. If you haven't seen Steve's "One-Step" pages, go there now! (Well, wait til you finish this!)
Following Steve Morse's presentation, I wandered into the hallway and ran into Stephen Danko. He had flown down from Northern California today. We had a great chat, too. It is a bit weird, though, meeting all these folks that I've just known on the Internet!
At 4:30, Schelly gave a presentation on gen-blogging. I attended, as did Randy Seaver, Elizabeth O'Neal and Kathryn Doyle. It was, of course, excellent, and a number of potential new bloggers attended. Tomorrow is the "Bloggers Summit" featuring many of the top genea-bloggers.
Some of the other presentations that I couldn't get to due to scheduling were:
There were also presentations on Legacy Family Tree 7 and RootsMagic 4. This is not a complete list of all the topics, but several that I thought were interesting.
Well, now it's time for the Friday Banquet, featuring keynote speaker Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak of Roots TV. I'll report on that early tomorrow morning. Also tomorrow, we'll talk about the Bloggers Summit and the Exhibition Hall.
The hotel is under reconstruction and it's not the easiest place to get around in right now. I thought I'd go have lunch in the hotel restaurant, but as I got there, I heard an employee tell another attendee that there were sandwiches in the Convention Center. So I walked back over there and signed in for the Jamboree and had a hot dog. I had a couple of great conversations with other attendees from various places; I enjoyed that a lot.
By the time I finished lunch, it was time for the afternoon sessions to begin. I went first to Leland Meitzler's presentation on "The X Files--Dealing with Black Sheep in the Family Tree." Leland is a great storyteller and he illustrated his presentation with a number of anecdotes about his family. He also described a number of websites and other sources for discovering the, ahem, unsavory branches of one's family tree. Some I was familiar with, others were new to me. This presentation was well attend; so much so that extra chairs had to be brought into the room.
There was a thirty minute break after that presentation, so I went to a table outside the conference rooms to use the computer. I sat down at a table where there were two other people, one of whom was genealogy blogger rock star Schelly Talalay Dardashti! What a great surprise! We had a great conversation. Schelly is a great wit and a very interesting person. When the break was over, Schelly and I headed off to see Steve Morse's presentation, "From DNA to Genetic Genealogy: Everything You Wanted to Know But Were Afraid to Ask."
Steve Morse is a computer scientist, not a geneticist or biologist. But his description of DNA and its relevance to genealogy was the best such presentation for lay persons I've ever heard. It occurred to me that it was much clearer and much more educational than a similar presentation I'd heard as a judge designed to get us up to speed on DNA and genetic evidence. It was cogent and funny in the appropriate places. If you haven't seen Steve's "One-Step" pages, go there now! (Well, wait til you finish this!)
Following Steve Morse's presentation, I wandered into the hallway and ran into Stephen Danko. He had flown down from Northern California today. We had a great chat, too. It is a bit weird, though, meeting all these folks that I've just known on the Internet!
At 4:30, Schelly gave a presentation on gen-blogging. I attended, as did Randy Seaver, Elizabeth O'Neal and Kathryn Doyle. It was, of course, excellent, and a number of potential new bloggers attended. Tomorrow is the "Bloggers Summit" featuring many of the top genea-bloggers.
Some of the other presentations that I couldn't get to due to scheduling were:
- Arlene Eakle, "American Church Records"
- Dick Eastman, "Grandpa in Your Pocket" [on new hardware solutions]
- George Morgan, "How to Get the Most out of Attending a Genealogy Conference"
- D. Benton Simons, "Researching Witchcraft in New England"
There were also presentations on Legacy Family Tree 7 and RootsMagic 4. This is not a complete list of all the topics, but several that I thought were interesting.
Well, now it's time for the Friday Banquet, featuring keynote speaker Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak of Roots TV. I'll report on that early tomorrow morning. Also tomorrow, we'll talk about the Bloggers Summit and the Exhibition Hall.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Firefox 3 Download Day
I added 3 to the zillioins of Firefox 3 downloads today. First one came about 1:00 pm PDT and went very well. Second and third ones were at 7:30 PDT (probably peak California download time, I'm guessing, with folks getting home from work, kids finishing dinner, etc.) and took a bit longer. But I'm happy with Firefox 3!
Sunday, June 08, 2008
Problem Solved (Mostly)
Our tech problems are solved for the most part, so we're back at our usual address, blog.geneablogie.net. I say "solved for the most part" because I really mean "solved so you can't tell what's going on in the background."
Saturday, June 07, 2008
One Moment, Please
We're redesigning the site and having a little trouble with one of our tech partners, so we're back at geneablogie.blogspot.com for the time being. I hope this interruption is brief!
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Back in the Saddle Again
This Memorial Day weekend has started out a bit gloomy here in Carmichael--weather-wise, that is. On the other hand, the few horrible weeks we've been through here seem to be resolved. So, it's time to get caught up on a number of things!
This weekend, I'll share with you one or two research adventures; some practical advice gleaned from the recent experience of handling my late sister-in-law's matters; and some things specific to Memorial Day. So don't go away (unless it's to a holiday weekend getaway!) . . . there's good stuff coming up!
This weekend, I'll share with you one or two research adventures; some practical advice gleaned from the recent experience of handling my late sister-in-law's matters; and some things specific to Memorial Day. So don't go away (unless it's to a holiday weekend getaway!) . . . there's good stuff coming up!
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Exam Week
It's the first week of final exams here, so I'm quite busy with that. And we had some family things out in Missouri to attend to, which I'll write about soon. And finally, as the footMaven's loyal readers know, I'm the guest blogger this Friday at Shades of the Departed.
My final grades have to be turned in by Monday a.m., then school's out for the summer--except of course for faculty, school's never really out!
My final grades have to be turned in by Monday a.m., then school's out for the summer--except of course for faculty, school's never really out!
Monday, March 31, 2008
Monthly Profile Photo Rotation
<---------------Last month: Circa 1977.
This month: January 2005----------------------->
Friday, March 28, 2008
Blogger Kudos
The site ScanMyPhotos.com has presented "The 2008 Artistry of Genealogy Awards." The winners were selected by customers of ScanMyPhotos.com. The "Best Personal Genealogy Blog" appears to be shared by Miriam Robbins Midkiff"s Ancestories: The Stories of My Ancestors and Renee's Genealogy Blog by Renee Zamora. The Best Ongoing Family History Story was Jasia's Creative Gene.
I highly recommend all three! Check out the ScanMyPhotos blog for more great sites of use to genealogists.
And speaking of Jasia, her great work in originating and sponsoring the Carnival of Genealogy is recognized in the current issue of Internet Genealogy. Well-deserved!
Finally, in the blogosphere, Shades of the Departed has debuted. Under the artistic guidance of The Collector (photonym of the footnoteMaven), we view parts of an extensive collection of photographs and learn about analysis, dating, and other things. Highly recommended.
I highly recommend all three! Check out the ScanMyPhotos blog for more great sites of use to genealogists.
And speaking of Jasia, her great work in originating and sponsoring the Carnival of Genealogy is recognized in the current issue of Internet Genealogy. Well-deserved!
Finally, in the blogosphere, Shades of the Departed has debuted. Under the artistic guidance of The Collector (photonym of the footnoteMaven), we view parts of an extensive collection of photographs and learn about analysis, dating, and other things. Highly recommended.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Short Respite
I'm going away for the next few days. I'll be back Saturday and we'll continue the "Sunshine series" then.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Saturday, February 02, 2008
78%
Uh-oh . . . I honestly thought it would be lower!
See Miriam at AnceStories, and Tim at Genealogy Reviews Online. I hope Randy plays this one--I can't wait to see his score!
Uh-oh . . . I honestly thought it would be lower!
See Miriam at AnceStories, and Tim at Genealogy Reviews Online. I hope Randy plays this one--I can't wait to see his score!
Friday, February 01, 2008
Getting Caught Up
I fell behind here the last few weeks and getting caught up has beeen harder than I thought it would be. Among the causes have been starting the new semester at school; our lousy weather; and the effects of a terrible ergonomic situation.
This last issue--ergonomics--is important. For reasons that are too complicated to go into here, I've had to re-locate and re-organize my work space. This is only temporary, but I'm using furniture that's not designed for computer work. So I've had back, neck, and back pain lately. It's taken away from my productivity and dampened my enthusiasm for things that I have to do on the computer [which is just about everything!].
The solutions are not complicated and since the problems are rather common, I've included some links I hope everyone can find useful.
OSHA Computer Workstation Ergonomics Solutions
CDC Computer Workstation Ergonomics
Stanford University Computer Ergonomics Training Course
This last issue--ergonomics--is important. For reasons that are too complicated to go into here, I've had to re-locate and re-organize my work space. This is only temporary, but I'm using furniture that's not designed for computer work. So I've had back, neck, and back pain lately. It's taken away from my productivity and dampened my enthusiasm for things that I have to do on the computer [which is just about everything!].
The solutions are not complicated and since the problems are rather common, I've included some links I hope everyone can find useful.
OSHA Computer Workstation Ergonomics Solutions
CDC Computer Workstation Ergonomics
Stanford University Computer Ergonomics Training Course
Monday, December 31, 2007
2007 In Retrospect
On this last day of the year, I look back and see how our goals and plans for 2007 were met (or not).
Here's how it looks:
1. Plan a Spring Research Trip. Done! A+!
2. Make contact with more cousins to hear their stories. I didn't initiate any contacts with cousins except on the research trip to Missouri. There I met a number of cousins I had not met before. And several cousins contacted me during the year. Very useful and enjoyable! B+.
3. Read more history of localities. I read books on Kansas, Missouri, Kansas City, and St Louis. A.
4. Bring genealogy to more young people. I utterly failed at this. F.
5. Support genealogical and historical non-profit organizations. I did join the Missouri Historical Society. I could do a lot better at this. C+.
6. Be available for mutual assistance, lookups, and acts of genealogical kindness. I did do several things of this nature--but not enough and certainly not to capacity. C-.
7. Insure that there's something valuable in this space at least three times a week. Based on numbers alone, this goal was met. As to whether it was valuable, only the readers can say. A for effort.
8. Knock down at least two longstanding brick walls. This I knew would be tough. I'll take credit for finding Aunt Grace's mother and I'll thank cousin Karen Burney for showing me her information on the Brayboys. On my own, C-.
9. Advocate for the free flow of genealogical information. Didn't really do this, but the spirit was with me! D.
10. Always Learn from others, Share with everyone, Enjoy this endeavor, and Appreciate the efforts of those who also Learn, Share, and Enjoy! A+! Thanks to everyone I learned something from in 2007--the list is long! Thanks to everyone who made this enjoyable--the list is longer! I appreciate you all--fellow bloggers, commenters, the regional FHC folks, my cousins, friends, great folks at the libraries, archives, government offices, and newspapers and many more!
Here's how it looks:
1. Plan a Spring Research Trip. Done! A+!
2. Make contact with more cousins to hear their stories. I didn't initiate any contacts with cousins except on the research trip to Missouri. There I met a number of cousins I had not met before. And several cousins contacted me during the year. Very useful and enjoyable! B+.
3. Read more history of localities. I read books on Kansas, Missouri, Kansas City, and St Louis. A.
4. Bring genealogy to more young people. I utterly failed at this. F.
5. Support genealogical and historical non-profit organizations. I did join the Missouri Historical Society. I could do a lot better at this. C+.
6. Be available for mutual assistance, lookups, and acts of genealogical kindness. I did do several things of this nature--but not enough and certainly not to capacity. C-.
7. Insure that there's something valuable in this space at least three times a week. Based on numbers alone, this goal was met. As to whether it was valuable, only the readers can say. A for effort.
8. Knock down at least two longstanding brick walls. This I knew would be tough. I'll take credit for finding Aunt Grace's mother and I'll thank cousin Karen Burney for showing me her information on the Brayboys. On my own, C-.
9. Advocate for the free flow of genealogical information. Didn't really do this, but the spirit was with me! D.
10. Always Learn from others, Share with everyone, Enjoy this endeavor, and Appreciate the efforts of those who also Learn, Share, and Enjoy! A+! Thanks to everyone I learned something from in 2007--the list is long! Thanks to everyone who made this enjoyable--the list is longer! I appreciate you all--fellow bloggers, commenters, the regional FHC folks, my cousins, friends, great folks at the libraries, archives, government offices, and newspapers and many more!
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Noel Miscellany
Jasia has posted the 38th edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. The topic is "The New Millenium." I didn't go to the Carnival this time because my experience of Y2K was rather boring, frankly. The theme for the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy will be: New Year's Resolutions. As the year winds to a close in the next couple weeks it's a good time to review the progress made in our genealogy research and to make a plan for next year. So what did you accomplish last year and what road blocks did you encounter? What are your research goals for next year and how do you resolve to attain them? Write 'em up and submit your blog articles to the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy using the carnival submission form. The deadline for submissions is January 1, 2008 . . . .
A great gift from the footnote Maven! fM has done an angelic collage of her genea-blogging friends. See it here! . . . .
Chris at The Genealogue has taken our multi-lingual blog caroling one step beyond. Take a look at this.
A great gift from the footnote Maven! fM has done an angelic collage of her genea-blogging friends. See it here! . . . .
Chris at The Genealogue has taken our multi-lingual blog caroling one step beyond. Take a look at this.
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