FamilySearch FORUMS..... have you used this resource??

I've spent this week in the Family History Library and share with you some wonderful new thing I learned about:  http://www.forums.familysearch.org/

You've likely used GenForum or RootsWeb so you know about posting queries (asking questions online) and checking back for answers. The FS Forum (now in Beta stage) will be just that but bigger and better.

First you will have to have a Family Search account (both LDS and non-LDS folks). This is free and will not obligate you or infringe upon your privacy. How can folks reply to your query/posting if your email is not in the system??

Click to the above address and WAY UP IN THE RIGHT CORNER is sign in. Sign in with your FamilySearch account and scroll down to see the many forums currently availble.

Right near the top of the list was the Locality forum. I clicked on that, then selected Washington, and read about a dozen posted queries/questions about research and/or records in Washington. I even answered one!

THAT is the beauty of the FamilySearch Forums.....anybody with any amount of knowledge can post answers and don't we know that every little bit helps?

Take 30 minutes soon and click around on http://www.forums.familysearch.org/ and see if you don't agree that this might just could become a wonderful new research tool in your genealogy toolbox.

Spokane Area Legacy Users Group to Meet Wednesday, April 20th

If you are a Legacy Family Tree genealogy software user, or are simply curious about this genealogy software program, you may be interested in the Legacy Users Group (LUG), which will meet next Wednesday, April 20th, from 1:30 to 3:30 PM in the meeting room of the Shadle Park Branch of the Spokane Public Library at 2111 W. Wellesley. This meeting is free and open to the public. Regular attendees will take turns in the role of moderator for each meeting.  If you have more questions, please contact Donna Potter Phillips here.

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April 16th and the EWGS Computer Class

Susan Beamer will be the teacher for the April 16th EWGS computer classes (10:15-11:15, repeating 11:30-12:30). Her subject will be Researching the the American SOUTH.  Classes are free to EWGS members but you must register with Miriam Midkiff (kidmiff@gmail.com) for the session you prefer.

And while I have your eyes, don't forget to come hear Dan Lynch teach us about using Google to find our family tree. It is too late to register and get lunch; you may bring your own sack lunch and pay the registration fee of $30 at the door.......... SFCC, Student Union Bldg. He's bringing his books to sell at a discount too!

Want to attend a free webinar????

Thomas MacEntee was our speaker last October and he presented this very talk. If you weren't there or would like to hear it again, here is your chance. If this "register now" link does not work from my cut-and-paste, go to www.legacyfamilytree.com and sign up there. You MUST sign up but it is free. Then come the day, about 15 minutes before 11:00, click the link and sit at your computer and enjoy.......and learn.  

Building a Research Toolbox with Thomas MacEntee

Are you overwhelmed with the number of online resources for genealogical research? Are you constantly working with unorganized bookmarks or favorites? Printing out lists of websites you use most? Learn how to build a research toolbox that is organized, easy-to-use, and can be accessed from almost anywhere.

Join webinar host Geoff Rasmussen and speaker Thomas MacEntee (author of Google for Genealogists and Backing Up Your Genealogy Data) for this 90-minute free webinar, Building a Research Toolbox. Participants will learn not only some of the most important online resources for genealogical research, but also how to organize these resources into an easy-to-access and portable virtual toolbox.
The live webinar is scheduled for Wednesday, April 6, 2011, so register today to reserve your virtual seat. Registration is free.


About the presenter
Thomas MacEntee is a professional genealogist specializing in the use of technology and social media to improve genealogical research and as a means of interacting with others in the family history community. Utilizing over 25 years of experience in the information technology field, Thomas writes and lectures on the many ways in which blogs, Facebook and Twitter can be leveraged to add new dimensions to the genealogy experience. As the creator of GeneaBloggers.com he has organized and engaged a community of over 1,800 bloggers to document their own journeys in the search for ancestors.

Webinar time
The webinar will be live on Wednesday, April 6, 2011 at:

• 2pm Eastern (U.S.)
• 1pm Central
• 12pm Mountain
• 11am Pacific/Arizona
• 6pm GMT

Schrag, Washington......... did you know?

If we were asked to identify Schrag, Washington, we would think of it as a rest stop on I-90. But did you know that in 1911 Schrag had a post office and a general store stocked with merchandise for surrounding farms. The Northern Pacific Railroad line built a spur to connect with the huge Schrag grain elevators. The little town finally passed into dust in 1934. But as you zoom through the middle of Washington on I-90 and see the Schrag sign, pause to remember that there once was a town and no doubt a family named Schrag.

Miriam has a birthday party!

Miriam Robbins Midkiff is the 1st VP of EWGS and a hard-working gal, teacher, mother and EWGS member. She richly deserved the surprise 44th birthday party given for her at the Cathay Inn and attended by some of her school co-workers and 15 or so EWGS member-friends. If you see her soon, feel free to give her a Big Birthday hug.......... but don't ask for any cake; we ate most of it and her Matt surely polished it off.

Roots Tech 2012

Relive RootsTech 2011

Popular Conference Makes Select Presentations Available for Free Online

11 March 2011

SALT LAKE CITY—If you missed the popular inaugural RootsTech 2011 conference, you can now at least get a sampling of what all the excitement was about. The wildly popular new technology and family history conference held last month in Salt Lake City, Utah, made its keynote addresses and a few other popular presentations available online today free of charge. The six free presentations can be viewed at RootsTech.org.

“The scope of the RootsTech conference was unique. We wanted to try to fulfill a need to bring technology users (family history buffs and anyone interested in genealogy) and technology creators (developers, programmers, engineers) together in a unique, fun environment to collaborate and move the genealogy industry forward through technology,” said Anne Roach, RootsTech conference chair. And bring them together it did.

The inaugural conference, hosted by FamilySearch, was a runaway success. With over 3,000 in-person attendees and another 4,500 attending remotely over the Internet, it was arguably one of the largest genealogy-related conferences ever held in the country. In-person attendees hailed from 42 states and 15 countries. Some came from as far away as China, New Zealand, Australia, Namibia, and Israel.

Paul Nauta, RootsTech public relations chair, reported that there were over 40 bloggers in attendance. “Between online articles, blog posts, and nonstop tweets, the online community was buzzing 24 hours a day during the conference and for weeks following—and amazingly, articles and tweets are still going strong,” noted Nauta.

The new conference was pulled together quickly by industry standards—in about 6 months. “The fact that we were able to attract as many conference goers as we did in such a short amount of time testifies to the interest there is in technology and family history,” said Roach. “And we’ve put the videos of the keynotes and other presentations online for free to give others a chance to share in the RootsTech experience; to give them a taste of what they can expect for 2012,” added Roach.

A highlight of the conference was the extensive community networking—community zone (exhibit hall), collaboration stations, and unconferencing sessions. These integrated features produced an open conference atmosphere that seemed to be ideal to introduce technology creators to genealogy technology users and to foster discussions, learning, collaboration, and future industry developments.

Unconferencing sessions—impromptu, participant-driven discussion forums that promote brainstorming, the sharing of ideas, and innovation—were totally new to genealogy attendees, but were more familiar to the technologists. Attendees took advantage of unconferencing sessions to discuss user needs with technology developers and to brainstorm new ideas and solutions. “People emerged from these [unconferencing sessions] with eyes sparkling, and I overheard several people describing conversations between developers and genealogists that left both feeling validated and motivated,” said Polly FitzGerald Kimitt, an attendee and author of Pollyblog.

The RootsTech 2012 conference is scheduled for February 2–4 in Salt Lake City, Utah.

In addition to the six video presentations mentioned above, video interviews of other conference speakers and developers can be watched at Genealogy Gems YouTube.

About RootsTech

RootsTech is a new conference designed to bring technologists together with genealogists to learn from each other and find solutions to the challenges faced in family history research today. The conference’s activities and offerings are focused on content that will help genealogists and family historians discover exciting new research tools while enabling technology creators to learn the latest development techniques from industry leaders and pioneers.