[Genealib] SOUNDEX CONFUSION

[Bob Velke]

Gwendolyn said:

>I beg to differ.

It isn't clear to me what part of Karen's response you are disputing.

>There are standardized "rules" for Soundex. However, since there 
>original publication several
>decades (the 1930's) ago by the WPA they have morphed some.

I think that Karen (and everyone else who responded) expressed a 
similar sentiment.  You could say that the Soundex rules were once 
standardized but the fact that they *have* morphed makes that 
argument academic.  Like GEDCOM, a specification isn't a "standard" 
unless it is applied consistently in practice.  If you don't take 
care to structure your Soundex search using the permutation of the 
rules that was employed by the particular database at hand, then you 
risk a lot of false negatives.

Even if you are only talking about the Federal Census (which Janet 
wasn't in her original question), the fact that NARA's documentation 
has been notoriously inconsistent and is *still* misleading suggests 
that it is unwise to rely too literally on any one recitation of "the rules."

Bob Velke
Archive CD Books USA and
Wholly Genes Software


-- 
No virus found in this outgoing message.
Checked by AVG Anti-Virus.
Version: 7.1.394 / Virus Database: 268.10.7/411 - Release Date: 8/7/2006