Diana and Nicole discuss the analysis phase of their AI-assisted research into the 18th-century court orders between Samuel Daniel and the Roystons in Colonial Virginia. They explain how AI helps them understand complex legal terms like “imparlance,” “covenant,” “trespass upon the case,” and “replevin bond” within the context of the court cases. Going through a case-by-case analysis, they trace the legal strategy that began after apprentice John Royston ran away from Samuel Daniel in 1770....
In this episode, Transforming Court Records Research with AI: Finding and Logging, Diana and Nicole discuss how artificial intelligence is revolutionizing the challenging process of working with historical court records. Diana introduces the topic by explaining that while court records are treasure troves of genealogical information, they are often unindexed and difficult to read, featuring archaic legal terminology. She presents a case study of her research to identify Samuel Daniel of Middlesex County, Virginia. She...
In this episode of Research Like a Pro, Diana and Nicole discuss the all-new Version 4.2 (2026) of the Research Like a Pro with DNA Airtable Research Log. The updates are designed to streamline the genetic genealogy workflow, making DNA research more flexible and reducing duplicate data entry. Diana details the biggest change: the “Test-taker” and “DNA Match” fields in the DNA Match Details table are renamed to “Person 1 (P1)” and “Person 2 (P2).”...
In this celebratory episode of the Research Like a Pro podcast, Diana and Nicole highlight the incredible impact the RLP process has had on their listeners by sharing several inspiring success stories. They read comments from researchers, one of whom explains how the RLP workflows help them conquer imposter syndrome, and another who shares a journey from feeling overwhelmed as a beginner to pursuing accreditation. Multiple individuals note that the RLP method turned them from...
Diana and Nicole speak with Jan Joyce, AG, CG, CGL, who developed and coordinates the new virtual institute course, “Merging & Separating Identities: Strategies and Tactics to Solve.” Jan explains that the most common mistake genealogists make is failing to recognize they have a “same-name problem” and assuming multiple records belong to a single person. She notes that the challenge of merging and separating identity cases (M/S) is accelerating because of more digitized records, the...
This episode features Virginia Pratt, who brings decades of expertise to the discussion, including five years on the FamilySearch Research Wiki Team and a bachelor’s degree in Family History from BYU. Virginia joins Nicole and Diana to discuss the essential, free online genealogical resource: the FamilySearch Research Wiki. Nicole asks Virginia to explain the Wiki’s purpose, access methods, and how to navigate the main page, noting that it should be used for finding information on...
The episode opens with Diana and Nicole catching up on their latest work, focusing on testing AI models for accuracy in handwritten-text transcription tasks. The hosts then discuss the novel TransAtlantic by Irish author Colum McCann and what family historians can learn from its structure to write better family narratives. Diana explains that the novel views the immigration story from the Irish perspective, following the fictional character Lily Duggan and three subsequent generations, with the...
In this episode, hosts Diana and Nicole share a personal and informative journey as they visit their Love County, Oklahoma, roots to walk in the footsteps of Diana’s ancestors, Richard and Nancy (Briscoe) Frazier. Diana recounts the lives of her 2nd great-grandparents, discussing their survival through the Civil War in the Ozarks, Richard’s service as a teamster for the Confederacy, and their eventual migration from Missouri to Texas and then across the Red River into...
This episode focuses on the exciting custom clustering feature now available in Ancestry’s Pro Tools. Diana introduces the tool, explaining how it allows for the strategic targeting of specific ancestral lines, offering more flexibility than the original clustering tool. She describes Ancestry’s process, which looks for matches sharing 65 cM to 1,300 cM with the user, and then finds those matches that also share at least 20 cM with each other. Nicole discusses the key...
Nicole and Diana open the episode by discussing what they are currently working on, including their projects for the 14-day challenge. They then turn to the challenge of family history research when conflicting dates appear for an ancestor. Diana explains that because original records may not exist, genealogists must rely on sources created later in a person’s life, which often do not agree. Diana uses a case study of her relative, Mary Elizabeth (Royston) Slagle,...
