Imagine reading a genealogical article and discovering that your name has been published along with your DNA information and conclusions about your ancestors. How would you feel? How would you react?Some people may not mind if their private information is published. In contrast, others – probably a majority – don’t appreciate their names, parents’ names, grandparents’ names, etc., published for anyone to see. It is about privacy and ethics.Privacy and EthicsWe value privacy in our...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about the FamilySearch Family Tree and how to add your conclusions in a way that meets the Genealogical Proof Standard (GPS). We go through each of the 5 elements of the GPS and discuss the opportunities in the tree to provide source citations, reason statements, and written conclusions. Links How to Improve the FamilySearch Family Tree by Applying the Genealogical Proof Standard BCG Ethics and Standards –...
Do you have African American ancestry and wondered how to begin researching those lines? Perhaps you have an ancestor who enslaved African Americans and you have discovered documents mentioning their names. If you help others with their family history research you may eventually come across either of those scenarios. Many resources are available to aid in African American research and this series will outline those created by the United States Federal Government. I recently attended...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about the second portfolio element for certification: development activities. In this element, you list the genealogy-related activities that helped you prepare for certification and share how they helped you. We discuss several educational opportunities and how they help you learn more about genealogy standards, records, and methodology. Links Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG) – website Educational Activities – Board for Certification of Genealogists website with list...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about copyright and plagiarism for genealogists. Have you ever wondered what the rules are for using others’ work? When is it ok to use works whose copyright may have expired? How can you know if sharing something in your family history book or blog is fair use or not? Come listen to our discussion of these important topics. Links Plagiarism and Copyright for Genealogists by Diana...
Are you a Microsoft Office user? Do you need a way to organize the plethora of documents, photos, emails, and more that come with research? The Microsoft Office suite includes OneNote which has many applications for organizing our genealogy. It may be just the tool you have been missing in your genealogy toolkit.Today we have a blog post from a guest blogger, Nancy Avis, who shares the way she uses OneNote. Using OneNote for Genealogy...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about how to find clients as a professional genealogist. We share all our marketing tips, from content marketing to networking with other genealogists. Listen in as we discuss our experience in finding clients. If you would like to see all our tips in written form, be sure to download our handout below. Links 10 Ways to Get Clients – Marketing Tips for Professional Genealogists – link to...
How do you learn history? Watching a movie? Taking a course? Reading a historical novel? Discovering the nuances of time and place can make all the difference in our ability to make connections in our family history. Personally, I have found the historical novel, based on research, to be my favorite learning vehicle. A memorable story engages our brain and helps to absorb more information. The Family Locket Book Club on Goodreads is featuring Isle...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about how to deal with the documents you acquire in your research. For client projects, we typically arrange the documents that correspond with a research report into a PDF file with each image copy labelled and a citation attached. We discuss how to do this with Canva and Word. We also discuss downloading images, naming protocol, organization, copyright, and workflow. Links How to Create a Digital Document...
When you are writing a family history article or book, have you wondered if you could use a photograph, quote, or record image legally? That town map you found might be perfect to illustrate your point in a research report or presentation, but can you use it? With the proliferation of images and information across the internet, plagiarism and copyright issues need to be addressed. As family historians and genealogists we want to be ethical...
