[Genealib] Re: GEDCOM in the Library

[Sharon Centanne]

Hi Folks,

Any computer with internet and a browser has access to millions of 
GEDCOMs at http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com.
Ancestry bought up Rootsweb years ago. The World Connect project allows 
uploads of GEDCOMs, plus the ability
to print out all kinds of information from them. Each family goes on one 
screen and links to family members on other screens
with hyperlinks.

I have found hundreds of relatives this way. I copy and paste the screen 
info to the Notes section of my
Family Tree Maker software. I still use the old Version 7.0 and this 
works fine.

Rootsweb.com offers email addresses too, so you can contact the 
submitter. The submitter can update their gedcoms and family trees at 
anytime, and the date is recorded on each page, along with the number of 
entries in the submitter's database. I particularly
like to find trees submitted by known cousins of reputable research. But 
I learn things from other cousins who have inadequate
information - like who did they copy! Some cousins may have dates and 
the others have notes. So comparison of databases
for similar families is fun too.

I haven't uploaded my gedcoms yet, but I understand there is a feature 
that allows you to exclude all names before a certain
date, perhaps 1920. Those names are changed to LIVING unless a death 
date is also present.

I did try a new site this weekend at http://www.geni.com. I uploaded 
only a small portion of my data, as their limit is 5000
and my database in FTW is approaching 5700. I found it slow and 
cumbersome to upload pictures and their description tho,
as the pictures in my FTW database did not go into the gedcom...which is 
just as well, as my total database is almost 73 meg
with pictures and copious notes<g>. Geni.com seems like a nice program, 
but it is slow, and seems geared more to social networking among family 
members. I did like the "Forest" feature that puts families related by 
marriage into differnet trees.
My data certainly is starting to look like a forest<g>.

I have not yet learned how to see data from other cousins with this 
site. I think you have to have the submitters permission,
which is not the case on Rootsweb.com.

Sharon Centanne
Genealogical Resarch Instructor
Celebrating 29 years as a genealogist 1979-2008!











Libby Feil wrote:

> Hi, Jane and all--
>     Because of our limited funding and space, we don't accept CD 
> donations such as family histories on CD either.  Some of the smaller 
> problems we've had with CDs include theft, scratches, and warping (and 
> this is a noncirculating collection!).  But the biggest issues are the 
> problems with accessing the files.  Most of the time, CDs produced by 
> "amateurs" are created on non-standard or outdated software that we do 
> not have.
>     If you are going to accept these types of materials, though, 
> GEDCOM is a good file type.  It is to genealogy programs as .TXT files 
> are to word-processing programs:  they can be opened by most software 
> of that genre.  I don't know if GEDCOM has gone through different 
> versions, like Microsoft Word etc. has, but GEDCOM files are the 
> closest thing the genealogy world has to a universally compatible file 
> type.
>     We purchased FamilyTreeMaker for our patrons to use on our 
> computers, and it will open GEDCOM files and save things in this 
> format if asked.  FamilyTreeMaker is now put out by Ancestry, and it 
> has generally been well supported and liked.  It's the program I've 
> been using at home for more than 10 years (every couple of years I buy 
> a newer edition), and I've found it to be an excellent program. There 
> are others out there, though.  Do keep your computer operating system 
> in mind, too--FTM won't work on Macs, e.g.
> Best wishes,
> Libby Feil
>
>> Date: Tue, 10 Jun 2008 10:53:42 -0400
>> From: Jane <jdouma at gmail.com>
>> Subject: [Genealib] GEDCOM in the Library
>>
>> We recently received a manuscript collection (handed over across the
>> reference desk) including a cd with a GEDCOM file. Does anyone have 
>> similar
>> disks and how do you handle reading and maintaining them?  As it 
>> stands, we
>> do not have any genealogy programs on the Library computers.  If we 
>> add a
>> program somewhere and transfer the file, which would be best (easiest 
>> to use
>> and update as time goes by)?
>> On a related note -- has the GEDCOM file type changed over the 
>> years?  Or
>> are we ok keeping the data as a gedcom??
>>
>> Thanks for any ideas.
>>
>> Jane Pearson
>
>
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