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Jim M.

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Everything posted by Jim M.

  1. I haven't completely researched this, so correct me if I'm wrong... but it appears to me (see signature line) that some of the methods of publishing websites that use genealogical data (perhaps TMG+Second Site?) generate page names that change over time - not just the basic content. Even if that isn't the case... the content changes over time as researchers make progress - whether a "Second Site" or one of its competitors is used or not... And ditto with respect to the content on familysearch.com, etc. And websites can literally disappear overnight. So how do you document a moving website target? Have any of you considered making a point-in-time copy of "important" websites? There is cheap/free website mirroring software out there... ----- At this point, I *think* my modis operandi will be to make as many digital copies of as many sources as possible (I absolutely *LOATHE* the idea of storing piles of papers - I HATE PAPER! ) - and that I may mirror as much of some websites as is necessary. What do you think? Is this crazy?
  2. I visited my local state library yesterday. I had a lot of fun figuring out how the system works. (see signature line) After reading and signing a good half-dozen forms, showing my driver's license twice (which was copied both times), I finally reach the manuscript area. There are cameras everywhere - what are those for? I had - An 8.5x11 legal pad in a zippered folio, two carefully chosen black ballpoint pens (had to be sure they'd actually work!), and a 1GB thumb drive [Addressing me very slowly, e-nun-ci-a-ting e-ver-y syll-a-ble, she loudly announces to the entire room: "We ask patrons only to use loose paper and pencils in this area. (pointing) That's what the lockers are for." The two "power genealogist" types across the room roll their eyes in unison - how did they do that? Wait - never mind - I know.] No change in hand ["Pa-trons are ad-vised to bring su-ffi-cient funds with them to the li-bra-ry, in-clu-ding loo-oose change for the lock-ers." I don't know how she did it, but she's got the word "loose" with two syllables - I heard them! And - it's a good thing I don't take myself too seriously.] Not much time to do any research after getting set up in and learning the "system" I ask: "Why do you need cameras? People would actually steal this stuff?" [i get "the look", then her eyes drop down and to the right, and she clears her throat, preparing to speak. Then it hits me.] "Uh, wait a minute, I know." [Of course - there's always been a market for historical documents, stolen or otherwise. I wonder if it's possible to get "Rookie" tatooed on my forehead on a Saturday afternoon. ] I'll be much better prepared next time... I saw a number of people using various combinations of the following items. Laptop (some had very expensive Dells - >$4K) - all apparently wireless, no one using Ethernet cables An expensive magnifying glass Loose-leaf notebook paper Pencils out the wazoo Rolls of quarters Some wheeled carry-on luggage rigs, custom designed to carry all of the above Bonafide attitude What's in your toolkit? Would you consider - A small flatbed scanner - USB-attached to a laptop? A camera? One of those portable document photography "frame" gizmos?
  3. TMG 6 seems to be able to import from lots of applications... except for... ITSELF. Or did I miss something? What's the best way to send data from your TMG 6 to someone who also has TMG 6?
  4. Tried that... When I try to restore a file I received, I get "Input file read failure. The error occurs when a file operation is performed on a ZIP file that is locked or restricted by another process." Assuming the file isn't corrupt... is there a fix? I've run Reindex/Optimize/Validate File Integrity...
  5. You make an excellent point. Having given this quite a lot of thought for a bit over a week, at this point I'm still not going to save piles of paper. Perhaps I have a dominant "loses organizational integrity" gene, but I just can't see spending a lot of time filling filing cabinets full of things I may never be able to find again (even with the best of schemes) - not to mention the fact that when I get too old or too feeble, my relatives will probably just cart it all to the landfill... For now - I think I will replicate selected sites and pkzip them... and pray that Windows Explorer and/or its successors will support today's implementation of HTML/etc.
  6. Google Earth, anyone?

    OK... I guess my research re: handheld GPS was incomplete. At the risk of seeming dense, isn't the goal to get a single GPS coordinate for whatever "it" is? Or are you suggesting that the goal is to generate a "track", say, from the cemetery entrance to the specific grave marker? [it's likely that GPS units will always use a lot more battery power, as they have to track multiple signals (satellites); a cell phone only has to beacon, i.e. "any cell towers out there? I'm 212-555-1234", and it gets "handed" a single cell tower to talk to, so to speak...] What caused "yesterday's" handheld GPS units to become obsolete?
  7. Google Earth, anyone?

    I'm at work right now, and thus no Google Earth... but doesn't GE give the GPS coordinates? Now - if one were to know those coordinates, you could just about plan how you would get to those other two structures - as in feet/yards and direction, etc. A GPS receiver with an integrated compass could put you on the front doorstep in no time... IMHO, it seems to me that genealogists (including unrepentant TMG rookies) should (always?) relate the locations of graves, "interesting" structures, and other locations in terms of GPS coordinates - because we can, and because it's damn precise. That would necessitate some changes to a lot of websites and databases, and perhaps TMG? (Hello Bob... [knocking on screen] ...are you preparing for this?) Just thinking out loud...
  8. Just something from my days as a Scoutmaster - by all means, always keep a couple of rolls of TP in the car... but whatever you do, folks - put them in Zip-Loc bags! There's absolutely nothing more discouraging than finding that you somehow left the TP out in the rain. (MacArthur Park as background music here) "And I'll never know any modesty again..... OOOHHHH NOOOOOOOOOOOO...." In troop meetings where we were planning for a campout, I would always ask the group "What's a Scout's best friend?" - to which the enthusiastic response would be (from 60-80 boys) - "TP in a Zip-Loc!!!" The older kids would be muttering something about Girl Scouts, of course, but that wasn't part of the official Boy Scout program... Speaking of Girl Scouts, my wife's been a Girl Scout leader for over ten years, and I think she could support a small town for a week with all the stuff in the trunk of her car.
  9. I guess I would start my reply with 'I'm think, ultimately, I'm not a lumper'. I have been a database administrator in the IT world in a previous life, and, with data quality/integrity being the primary objective of someone in that capacity, I'm leaning toward creating my own mirrors of websites that are "important" - if "File, Save" doesn't suffice. Heck - I saw a 500GB USB-enabled hard drive at Best Buy the other day. And I definitely wouldn't ask for permission - so I wouldn't share that data with anyone else - only the reference to the site and date. When it comes down to the validity of the data, though, I think the sites I visit most often are going to get a surety of 0, or maybe 1, as they rarely include sources. As far as validity goes - they're often effectively useless - but they provide a starting point for other searches. (Having a "suspected" name of a sibling/parent is often enough to uncover a half dozen generations that are "verified" with more credible sources.)
  10. Citing Email

    How do you store and cite the data contained in emails? Over time, I suppose, in many circumstances, other sources would be found that are better evidence... Do you save emails as text files, and point to those files, making each one a standalone source? Or do you copy the relevant text to internal text?
  11. OK - COME ON, GUYS. There's a lot of you pros out there that have completely dissed this thread. So - what do you bring to a state archives? A new twist on the same train of thougt-- How do you prepare for a cemetery visit? What do you take? It would seem to me that if there's not enough response here - there will be some of you (in my area, at least) that will be interrupted to have these questions posed to you... but nobody wants that, right? Reply to this thread! Sincerely - Jim "Rookie with questions" M. (see below)
  12. When adding the data for a new Person, the "Date" surety is permitted for the Name-Var. (I'm speaking of the pop-up that allows you to add a primary Name-Var, Birth, Death (and Marriage for a Wife/Husband) for a new person, all with sureties for a single Source citation.) What value is there for a Date surety in this case that a Birth tag wouldn't give you? Does this figure into any of the reports?
  13. Accent Definition screen

    Has this been acknowledged by WGS as a real problem? (I'm getting it, too.)
  14. Date surety for Name-Var tag

    Does it make sense to enter a surety for the primary (12DPM) - for any of the Name tags? Ex: Name-Var, Name-Marr, Name-Nick, Name-Baptm, Name-Chg Doesn't the association with the Person (i.e. because the tag exists at all) more than just imply the TMG user's intent to mean that "this is this person in this context"? If you're (1) an expert or (2) a purist or (3) just damn manic about data consistency - what do you do with this surety value, and why? How does your choice impact anything else TMG-wise?
  15. TMG's prompting me concerning Name-Marr tags whenever I add a new Wife person. What's the concensus as to when these tags should be used? Every marriage? Or only those marriages when it's known that "wifey" continues to use her maiden name or she's using the oh-so-stylish hyphenated surname? I'd guess this is probably a modern phenomenon - but I'd be curious to know if anyone out there has seen any records where wives did this before the 1960's.
  16. Name-Marr tag

    In my area, the yuppies and social climbers do the hyphenated thing to increase the perceived level of prestige/social position - something like a nominal tatoo. There was no intention to imply anything re: "wifey"... what does it mean to you? Regards... Jim M-S-B-M ("hubby")
  17. Filing Cabinets and TMG

    So I'd guess that you would NEVER EVER renumber your sources, nor perhaps even your Peeps - right? Can those two TMG functions be disabled? It sounds like there's a major league opportunity for shooting oneself in the both feet if those "handguns" were left lying around in plain view.
  18. Help with sources

    As a follow on - Is TMG's Source Categories/Custom a hybrid of Mills, a hybrid of Lackey, or a hybrid of Mills+Lackey? Is it better, in your view, to use Custom vs. the two published standards? I presume that "Evidence!" by Elizabeth Shown Mills is a Mills-fest, so to speak, but is there a good text based on the Custom source definitions? Or should I care? A quote from "The Matrix" comes to mind: "You take the red pill - you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes." Jim
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