Bye, Bye PAF, Hello ?

Keene Public Library

Since the announcement that PAF is being retired, there is some confusion as to what to do! There are a number of personal genealogy databases out there! In my opinion, one size does not fit all. Whenever I am asked what is the best program, I give them the websites and tell them to check out the programs for themselves. What works best for my husband definitely doesn't work best for me. Get the picture? I think it all has to do with the way you think and the way the programs feel to you. So... to check out the three database programs and get a feel for them, click here (Ancestral Quest), here (Legacy Family Tree), and here (Roots Magic). As a side note, if you are a little older and have been using PAF forever, Incline Software (Ancestral Quest) wrote the code for the original PAF program and gave it to the church. You can use a PAF file OR an Ancestral Quest file with Ancestral Quest. It looks much like the PAF program, but with more bells and whistles! There are other personal database programs too, but these are the three that are newly certified to work with familysearch.org.

Goodbye Old Friend! Personal Ancestral File (PAF) is Being Officially Retired...

Personal Ancestral File (PAF) is going to be retired on July 15, 2013. It will no longer be available for download or support (it hasn't been supported for quite a while). There are compelling reasons for this retirement. PAF was a very good product for it's day, when the Internet, media files, and file sharing were still in their infancy. Today, it is a whole different ball game. To read more about the reasons for retirement of PAF, go here and here.

More Cool Things from FamilySearch.org

FamilySearch.org continues to introduce new features that make family history come alive. Although I am one of those people who loves names, dates, and places, I can see how those things just don't excite everyone. However, adding photos and stories makes ancestors come alive! For the visual younger generation like my kids, this may be the way to interest them.

The newest feature that has just been introduced in the past few days involves the seeing at a glance the photos that you have added AND the photos that others have contributed that tie into your family line.

I didn't contribute any of the above pictures, but they all tie into families that connect to me. If you click on the tab that says "Find photos of your ancestors," this is what you get.

See the new filter option? There are 49 tagged people. You can use the drop down arrow to select different options. As you can see, I have contributed 7 of the total 49 photos. Thanks to those who contributed! Photos do make a difference! Also notice that you can print out a PDF (top right hand corner) of the thumbnails of the photos. Multiple uses for that!

When you click on the yellow sash on each picture, it takes you to the photos of that particular person PLUS stories about that person. It is so cool to see the photos and stories married together in one click!

Just when I decided to write this post, the stories and photos are a little unstable and aren't showing at the moment. I guess that is to be expected as new features release...I will add the next screenshot photos as soon as things settle down and I can catch the screenshot. Just know that this feature is here!

Live Streaming from the Jamboree in Southern California

This information was posted today on the FamilySearch Blog. 

Watch Genealogy Jamboree Live Sessions Free This Weekend!

June 5, 2013 By Nathan W. Murphy

A dozen sessions from the Jamboree of the Southern California Genealogical Societywill be live streamed this weekend (June 7-June 9). Speakers at this popular event who will be live streamed include Ken Chanine, Lisa Louise Cooke, Alice Fairhurst, Bennett Greenspan, Jean Wilcox Hibden, Cyndi Ingle Howells, Denise Levenick, Thomas MacEntee, Leland Meitzler, Kory L. Meyerink, CeCe Moore, Joanna Mountain, Judy G. Russell, James Ryan, Craig Roberts Scott, and Tom Underhill. Meet the Speakers. Topics range from the War of 1812, navigating Cyndi’s List, DNA, Irish family history, Googling for common surnames, ethics for genealogists, and much more!

Make sure to pre-register for the sessions you wish to watch live. Follow the links at their blog to pre-register.

About the Jamboree

The Southern California Genealogical Society is proud to announce the 44th Annual Southern California Genealogy Jamboree. The popular conference will be held at the home of Jamboree, Los Angeles Marriott Burbank Airport Hotel, 2500 Hollywood Way, Burbank, CA, from Friday through Sunday, June 7-9th. With about 1600 attendees, speakers, exhibitors, and volunteers, Jamboree is among the largest genealogical events in the United States.

Printing Family Group Records and Pedigree Charts on FamilySearch.org

If you have been working on FamilySearch.org for a while, I'm sure that you have noticed that you could look but you couldn't print! No more! You can now print pedigree charts and family group records from the Person page. The print function is on the right side of the page. Thanks FamilySearch.org.