Accentuate the Positive Geneameme 2021

This morning while scrolling through my Twitter feed I saw that Alex Daw had mentioned, in the #ANZAncestryTime chat, the Accentuate the Positive Geneameme that I have been hosting since 2012.

I had marked a 2021 event as a "To do" item for the post Christmas week but, hey, since I've been reminded I thought I'd post a 2021 challenge right now. Here it is.

I invite you to take part in this activity by responding to the following statements/questions, several of which are new, in a blog post. Write as much or as little as you want and complete as many statements as you wish. If you wish to take part and don't have a blog email me your responses and I will post them here on the GeniAus blog.

Once you have done so please share your post's link in a comment on this post or to me via email to jillballau@gmail.com. I will, later in January,  compile a list of links to your contributions here on this blog.

Please share this link far and wide in your social media channels.

Remember to Accentuate the Positive 
(Please delete the items that are not relevant to your situation.)

1. I got the most joy from

2. The Covid situation gave me an opportunity to 

3. I managed to attend a face to face event at

4. My main focus this year was on 

5. A new piece of technology or skill I mastered was

6. A geneasurprise I received was

7.  A Facebook Group that helped me was

8. My 2021 social media post that I was particularly proud of was

9.  A new genealogy/history book I enjoyed was

10. I was impressed by

11.  A great journal or newspaper article I found was

12. I got the most value from this subscription

13. I progressed my DNA research with

14. I taught a genimate how to

15.  A blog post that taught me something new was

16. A DNA discovery I made was

17. A newly found family member shared

18. I finally found ......... six feet under

19. I splashed out and purchased

20. Another positive I would like to share is 

Jottings, Journeys, Joy - A Big Footprint

I run hot and cold with my personal blog jillballau: Jottings, Journeys, Joy. 

This morning I had to enlist the help of that blog's archive on Trove to find out when I had actually written my first post. Over the years, I have added some predated posts to the blog and integrated the posts from another earlier Men at Work blog into it.

After a a bit of digging I found my first post was on 4th July 2012. Here is what I said:

Do I really need another Blog? Am I suffering from Blogarrhoea?

I don't need another blog but ...........my active blogs Geniaus and Android Genealogy are targetted towards my friends in genealogy. Sometimes I'd like to post about my travels, the books I've read, the things that bug me and the performances I've seen. Sometimes I'd just like to share a photo that doesn't fit in with the theme of my Men at Work blog. I don't want to clog up my genimates blog feeds with off topic posts that could be regarded as spam.  

When I am travelling I publish a few photos and updates to Facebook and when something tickles my fancy I write about it there too. Aggregating these Facebook items in one stream is not easy.

Recently I have been following and enjoying Jackie van Bergen's new blog, Jax Trax. As a genealogist I see the value of leaving a personal blog like Jackie's as a resource for future generations. Jackie's blog has been the catalyst for my decision to pollute the blogisphere with yet another blog.

Look out blogisphere here comes jillballau.

The current Covid lockdown has given me time to evaluate  jillballau which is not very popular in the blogisphere. Firstly I thought about my purpose, I have realised that, while the visits and comments from friends and strangers may massage my ego, my purpose was stated succinctly in that first post where I said "I see the value of leaving a personal blog like Jackie's as a resource for future generations".

I have recommitted to that purpose. It is important to me that I leave a big footprint behind for the generations of the future. I am honoured that jillballau is preserved in The Australian Web Archive on Trove so I know what I post will be preserved. 

Back in June I wrote a post Unloved in which I promised to give my neglected blog some attention. I have been plugging away over the past few weeks giving it some much needed attention.

Among the things I have done is modify the static pages on the blog by adding pages for my travel map and books read which had previously been in widgets in the sidebar. I have renamed all the sexist "Men at Work" tags to "Workers". I have changed and added many other tags and selected some popular tags, that reflect the main themes of the blog, for a Topics widget on the home page. I have gone back through my 4 Terabytes of photos and found many of the folders of resized photos previously shared on FaceBook which I am cheekily sharing in predated posts to preserve the chronological nature of the blog. 

The blog is rich in images with many posts having 20+ images and few words, my pictures tell many stories. I have tried various tweaks to get the posts to load faster without success. Hopefully with better internet speeds in the future this will be fixed.

I apologise to the ancestors and DNA matches who I have been ignoring but, as my biological clock is ticking away, I am taking some time to focus on my story. Reliving my jottings and journeys has given me much joy during this lockdown. 

Accentuate the Positive Geneameme 2019

Once again I am asking you to reflect on your geneayear. I ran a version of this meme each year between 2012 and 2017 but somehow forgot to post it last year. 

I am back again asking you to take some time to reflect on the past year and rejoice in your successes.

Accentuate the Positive Geneameme 2019

I invite you to take part in this activity by responding to the following statements/questions in a blog post. Write as much or as little as you want and complete as many statements as you wish. If you wish to take part and don't have a blog email me your responses and I will post them here on the GeniAus blog.

Once you have done so please share your post's link in a comment on this post or to me via email to jillballau@gmail.com. I will, in January, compile a list of links to your contributions here on this blog.

Remember to Accentuate the Positive 
(Please delete the items that are not relevant to your situation.)

1.  An elusive ancestor I found was

2.  A great newspaper article I found was

3.  A geneajourney I took was

4.  I locate an important record

5.  A newly found family member shared

6.  A geneasurprise I received was

7.   My 2019 social media post that I was particularly proud of was

8.   I made a new genimate who

9.  A new piece of technology or skill I mastered was

10. I joined

11. A genealogy education session or event from which I learnt something new was

12. A blog post that taught me something new was

13. A DNA discovery I made was

14. I taught a genimate how to

15. A brick wall I demolished was 

16. A great site I visited was

17. A new genealogy/history book I enjoyed was

18. It was exciting to finally meet

19. I am excited for 2020 because

20. Another positive I would like to share is ...

#GenealogySelfie Day - Reflecting

It took me most of the day to snap my #GenealogySelfie.

Reflecting on #GenealogySelfie Day

As the weather was cool Mr GeniAus spent most of his time out in our neglected garden so I had lots of time to spend on two favourite activities genealogy and thinking/reflecting.

I saw a notice for the SAG Genealogy Certificate and thought about whether I should attempt a formal course of study as family history is for me a hobby/passion. Would studying take the fun element out of it for me?

Elizabeth O'Neal's entry, Finding where we belong, in the Rootstech Video competition had me reflecting on my motivation to do family history.  Like me Elizabeth is an only child so the content of her video resonated. Do take a couple of minutes to watch the video.

Lilian Magill's blog post about some of the books in her genealibrary made me examine my collection for similar titles and evaluate my collection policy.

I thought about my involvement as an Ambassador the Rootstech Conference so I planned an event for people from the (Former) British Commonwealth to meet up prior to Rootstech. As I thought about these dinners that have become a Rootstech tradition I realised that through them I have made some great genimates in other Commonwealth countries.

I accepted a new invitation to speak at a Family History Group that is close to my heart but far from my home. I don't actively seek opportunities to speak but a few invites have come my way this month. I have several speaking gigs lined up but I pondered on whether I should keep up this activity. I love sharing my experiences and enthusiasm with fellow genies but preparing these talks takes such a lot of time that I could devote to chasing up my own ancestors.

On my mind all through the day were dead people in Australia and their final resting places. It took me ages to get around to what I should have been doing .... that was polishing up my webinar presentation for Legacy Family Tree Webinars' Australian series next week. I have heard from Geoff at Legacy that there is a healthy amount of interest in my Six Feet Under Downunder presentation. I am so impressed with the professionalism of the Legacy mob and hope that I can uphold their standards.

After my relaxing day of reflection I need to put my nose to the grindstone and finish off my 4 page handout for the webinar.

Tweaking my Social Media Policy

Way back in 2013 I wrote about my personal social media use after a reading a 2010 post "How Much Social Networking is Too Much?

In the past 4 1/2 years other social media tools have emerged, some have thrived and some withered. I can't keep up with everything so I am reviewing how I use the tools at my disposal. some of these tools are not necessarily social media tools but I am including them because I use them for managing my communication and collaboration.

Below in black font is what I posted in 2013. I will describe my 2018 practices in Red.

Blogger - Essential for my blogging. Still my favourite blogging platform. 

Evernote - My virtual notebook where I store and share all sorts of things. Still my virtual memory/organisation tool.

Facebook - I joined to connect with family and friends and I use it (reluctantly) to connect with the genealogy community. I would rather not use it for genealogy but while others insist on using it I will stay there. Reluctantly I have followed the genealogy crowd to Facebook. I particularly enjoy participating in some Facebook Groups. I also maintain a couple of Facebook Pages.

Google+ - My social media communication and collaboration tool of choice. Sadly other genies haven't shared my enthusiasm for Google+ so although I still announce my blogger posts there I do not share news regularly on Google+ any longer.

Inoreader - The RSS Feed Reader I now use.

Instagram - I have an account but do not use it regularly.

Librarything - I love this tool for managing my reading life and remembering for me what I have read. I remain faithful to Librarything.

LinkedIn - I'll maintain my presence here as it is good to keep in contact with former business contacts. I still have a presence there but I am not an active user.

Pinterest - I have several genealogy boards on Pinterest but I am still just dabbling.

The Old Reader - My new (to me) RSS feed reader. The Old Reader is no longer.

Trello - I came to Trello recently because it is used as a planning/collaboration tool in a group to which I belong.  

Twitter - I have quietened down on Twitter but it is the tool I turn to when at an event and I have something to share. I'm quiet on Twitter but still tweet from events using appropriate hashtags.

Wordpress - I also blog from Wordpress as I thought it useful to be competent in using this platform.

Youtube - A home for the few videos I have made. I have added quite a few videos to my Channel during the past few years.

What do you use? I wonder what we'll be using in 2022?

Accentuate the Positive Geneameme 2017 according to Geniaus.

2017 was a bit of a roller-coaster year in the GeniAus household and I was unable to devote as much time as I would have liked to my geneapursuits. 

1.  An elusive ancestor I found was ... they are all still in hiding but thanks to DNA I found some new and reconnected with a few old cousins. Sharing has helped us build up better pictures of  our ancestors.

2.  A great newspaper article I found was in the Limerick City Library Local Studies Collection. From the Limerick Chronicle that is not available online I found a short report on the crime of Grand Larceny that sent my 3x Great-Grandmother, Ellen Moore, in 1825 on the ship Mariner to the penal colony in New South Wales.

3.  A geneajourney I took was my annual pilgrimage to the geneamecca, Salt Lake City, for the Rootstech Conference. I also took time out from a holiday in Ireland (See #2) to do a bit of ancestor hunting. 

4.  An important record I found was when I was tidying my downloads folder I found a few digital records I had downloaded when visiting various repositories (I won't say how long ago). I am pleased to report that these are now safely housed in their correct places and the details from them entered in my Family Historian database.

5.  A Several newly found family members (Via DNA) shared documents, certificates etc from their branches of family trees.

6.  A geneasurprise I received was that several family members graciously volunteered to spit and scrape for me and another grandchild asked to be tested so that she can find out about her paternal side.

7.   My 2017 blog post that I was particularly proud of was all of the posts in the Geneadictionary, because it's fun doing something a bit quirky.

8.  I made a new genimate who shares one of my more colourful ancestors. We have been collaborating with other descendants via a small closed Facebook Group, slowly going over the research we did years ago and trying to build up a clearer picture of the life of this ancestor.

9.  A new piece of technology I have nearly mastered was  my new Galaxy Note 8 smartphone. After having to replace my explosive Note 7 with a phone without a stylus I was at the top of the queue when the new Note 8 was released. I am loving this new device.

10. I joined The Lake Macquarie Family History Group which is near our new home north of Sydney. I also joined several genealogy groups on Facebook. I mu give a shoutout to Using DNA for Genealogy - Australia & NZ Group.
11. A genealogy event from which I learnt something new was I always learn something new but I learn more at some events than at others. I found that something just clicked when I heard a DNA webinar presentation from Louise Coakley. 

12. A blog post that taught me something new was from Jenny' Joyce's Jennyalogy blog. As I have a particular interest in words I was pleased to learn about the role of a Reeve. 

13. A DNA discovery I made was that DNA has confirmed that I am on the right track with most of my traditional research. It is pleasing to know that those close to me who have tested are also biologically related.

14. I taught a genimate how to ...  hopefully some of the attendees at my presentations learnt something new. I think that I enthused a few people to blog and believe that I taught Trove tricks to quite a few.

15. A brick wall was not demolished but I am still chipping away.

16. A great site I visited was Hornsby Library's Hornsby Shire Recollects which promises to be a valuable resource for local historians now and in the future.

17. A new genealogy/history book I enjoyed was The Missing Man: A Morton Farrier novella by Nathan Dylan Goodwin. While I read several interesting books that taught me something this work of fiction was one I read for pure enjoyment and I couldn't put it down.

18. It was exciting to finally meet  The Property Brothers at Rootstech and hear the keynote about their family.

19. I am excited for 2018 because Rootstech and Congress 2018 are coming. I know I will learn much from these events and be invigorated for geneactivities through 2018.

20. Another positive I would like to share is ... I have a small role on the GeneabloggersTRIBE team. I am so proud to be involved with this global group of  geneabloggers who are sharing theri time and expertise to promote geneablogging.

Accentuate the Positive Geneameme 2017 - The Posts

I am grateful to my genimates new and old who rose to my "Accentuate the Positive 2017" challenge at a hectic time of year. 

I firmly believe that reflection and evaluation are important elements of any process but sometimes feel that we are a little brutal when it comes to self evaluation. It was rewarding to read the posts below in which many genies came to the realisation that 2017 was indeed a very good year.

I apologise that it has taken me some time to publish this compilation. I have spent the past two weeks on King Island in Bass Strait where I had limited access.  Please peruse the posts from several corners of the world - you may meet some new bloggers like I did.

If I have missed any posts please let me know and I will add them to the list. If you would still like to participate please let me know and I will add your post to the list.

Alex Daw  https://familytreefrog.blogspot.com.au/2017/12/accentuate-positive-geneameme-2017.html
Alona Tester  https://www.lonetester.com/2017/12/accentuate-the-positive-geneameme-2017/
Ann Marie Bryant  https://talesofafamily.blog/2018/01/05/12637/#more-12637
Anne Young  https://ayfamilyhistory.com/2018/01/02/start-2018-by-accentuating-the-positive/
Elizabeth Handler  https://frommainetokentucky.blogspot.com/2017/12/accentuate-positive-geneameme-for-2017.html
Jane Taubman http://www.taubman.org.uk/family/wp/2017/12/27/accentuate-the-positive-geneameme-2017/ 
Jeanne Bryan Insalaco https://everyonehasafamilystorytotell.wordpress.com/2018/01/04/accentuate-the-positive-geneameme-2017/
Jill Ball  http://geniaus.blogspot.com.au/2018/01/accentuate-positive-geneameme-2017.html
Julie Goucher https://anglersrestblog.wordpress.com/2018/01/02/accentuate-the-positive-geneameme-2017/
Kayplik  https://pastlinks.blogspot.com.au/2018/01/accentuate-positive-geneameme-2017.html
Laura Mattingly  https://oldtrunkintheattic.blogspot.com/2017/12/2017-year-in-review-accentuate-positive.html
Lilian Magill http://researchbylily.blogspot.com.au/2017/12/accentuate-positive.html
Linda Stufflebean https://emptybranchesonthefamilytree.com/2017/12/accentuate-the-positive-geneameme-2017 
Patsy Daly  https://www.patsyspaddocks.com/accentuate-the-positive-geneameme-2017/
Pauleen Cass  https://cassmob.wordpress.com/2018/01/02/accentuate-the-positive-2017/
Shauna Hicks  http://www.shaunahicks.com.au/accentuate-the-positive-geneameme-2017/
Vera Marie Badertscher  http://ancestorsinaprons.com/tag/2017-2018/

Accentuate the Positive Geneameme 2017

For the sixth consecutive year I am asking you to reflect on your geneayear - does that make this a tradition?

Once you have enjoyed your seasonal festivities take some time to reflect on the past year and rejoice in your successes.
 
Accentuate the Positive Geneameme 2016

I invite you to take part in this activity by responding to the following statements/questions in a blog post. Write as much or as little as you want or answer just a few questions.

Once you have done so please share your post's link in a comment on this post or to me via email to Jillballau@gmail.com. I will, in January, compile a list of links to your contributions here on this blog.

Remember to Accentuate the Positive 
(Please delete the items that are not relevant to your situation.)

1.  An elusive ancestor I found was

2.  A great newspaper article I found was

3.  A geneajourney I took was

4.  An important record I found was

5.  A newly found family member shared

6.  A geneasurprise I received was

7.   My 2017 blog post that I was particularly proud of was

8.   I made a new genimate who

9.  A new piece of technology I mastered was

10. I joined

11. A genealogy event from which I learnt something new was

12. A blog post that taught me something new was

13. A DNA discovery I made was

14. I taught a genimate how to

15. A brick wall I demolished was 

16. A great site I visited was

17. A new genealogy/history book I enjoyed was

18. It was exciting to finally meet

19. I am excited for 2018 because

20. Another positive I would like to share is ...

Keynotes at Rootstech

Back in 2012 after attending another conference I reflected on what I expected from a Keynote presentation. I wrote:

Am I being harsh in expecting a keynote presenter to display passion for his/her subject, to tailor the talk for the particular audience, to have sufficient slides and content to fill the allotted time and to have a coherently organised presentation?  Keynote presenters should also know their subject and not have to read from a prepared speech.

I expect a keynote to do more than one of these things: Inspire, Challenge, Educate, Engage, Entertain and Inform. It is a privilege and an honour to be invited to present a keynote; a sense of responsibility and ethical behaviour should be demonstrated by those given this honour.

Julie Arduini says "Keynote presentations are motivational speeches designed to excite the audience for the rest of the event. When keynote presenters deliver a speech, they know what aids to bring and implement to supplement their speech. Keynote speakers have public speaking experience and are known for their ability to educate, inform and entertain."

Over the next few days we will hear from several keynotes at Rootstech 2017. What criteria will you use to evaluate the performance of the keynote presenters?

102 Audience Members.....

.... and I couldn't see one of them.

I started to write this post many moons ago and it has languised in my drafts folder. Rather than delete it I am posting it as a record for myself which you are welcome to read.

Thanks to The Society of Australian Genealogists (SAG) for giving me an opportunity to present as part of  a panel session in their first online "Lost in" conference.

While I have been in the audience for several webinars I have never taken on the role of the presenter. I'll use a favourite method, PMI, to evaluate my experience.

Plus
I was thrilled to be taking part in this first SAG online conference.
I was able to present from home.
The interface caused no problems.
My connection held.
I learnt a few tips.
I was able to reach a new audience in distant locations.
My performance must have been ok as I have received subsequent invitations to present for SAG.

Minus
I could not see the audience and felt very alone while presenting.
I missed the interaction one has with a live audience.
I had to talk too fast.
One of my co-presenters went way over her allocated time and ate into our discussion time.

Interesting
I managed to keep to time.
It was good to see the unique ways co-presenters used Excel and Powerpoint.
Although it was an online event there was practically no discussion on social media channels.

347 improvements

Last night I uploaded an updated gedcom file to my family databaase at www.geniaus.net.

Since I reported on my last upload  I have made changes to 347 records in my database. I have been slowly revisiting the oldest records in my Family Historian database as it is easy to sort by "Last updated". There were many that were last updated on 14/8/2010 when I imported my gedcom into Family Historian. I am pleased to report that I have dealt with most of those that were direct relations of miine. I haven't bothered with husbands and wives of  distant cousins. I am happy to just have marriage records for them.

I am the Root Person in my database. The diagram below  (a sample from the Family Historian spreadhseet like view) shows that most of the people last updated on 14/8/2010 are either not related to me (blank) or are the spouses of our cousins. 

I'm rather proud of my cleanup efforts so far. Once I have covered some later dates in the "Last updated" column I will move on to seeking more information on my direct line.  It is taking quite some effort to stick to my Revisiting, Reviewing and Revising as I am fond of tangential genealogy.

Reflections Hangout

Although I have hung up my Official Congress Blogger hat I couldn't resist asking some of my genimates to share their thoughts on Congress 2015 in a Google Hangout on Air last night.

As well as hearing about their favourite speakers and what inspired them the panelists last night shared some ideas to make Congress 2018 even better than 2015 and then put forward some compelling reasons as to why a genie shoould attend a Congress.

During the Hangout Fran talked about connecting with young people. At the moment I have a 14 year old granddaughter staying with me. She saw me preparing for the hangout and asked what it was, I tried to explain. This morning as we were having breakfast in bed she asked how the hangout went. As I had my phone beside me I connected to Youtube and played some of the hangout for her. Her reaction "That's cool". Made me think about the way we share family stories, perhaps geneavlogging is the way to go.

Those who joined me and shared their opinions made this Hangout rather beaut. Thanks for your generosity. Please watch the Hangout right here.

520 Updates

On New Year's Eve I talked about the Genealogy Do-over and my reasons for not taking part. I said " So for my do-over I am going to keep puddling along reviewing work from years ago, revisiting and scanning some of the records I have stored away in folders (Mr Geniaus found some gems today that I had completely forgotten about), recording what I see with a pair of more experienced eyes and revising what I have already recorded".

I have been slowly revisiting the oldest records in my Family Historian database as it is easy to sort by "Last updated" and I have been working through those, I have looked at all that have not changed since my import from The Master Genealogist! I have fixed typos, added some sources and moved sources from the "Notes" field into the "Sources" field. 

Today, when I uploaded a new gedcom to my GeniAus website, I calculated that since my last update at the end of January I had made changes to 520 records. Considering that I have had an overseas trip in the interim and have attended two major Conferences I'm rather pleased with my progress.

Concurrently I have been pulling old vital records out of my folders, examining them for further clues, scanning them and getting ready to store the hard copies in archival quality folders and sheets. I have ordered a few missing vital records for direct lines ($$$=ouch).

There is still a long way to go but I am happy with my decision to Revisit, Review and Revise.

Congress - So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, good night

Before I resign from my position as an Official Blogger for AFFHO Congress 2015 I must write my last post. It seems apt to use the title of the song that the organising committee farewelled us with on the final day of Congress as the title of this post.

Farewell from the Organising Team

As has been my practice after some events I attend I will use Edward De Bono's PMI scaffold to sort out the random thoughts I have about the event.

My thoughts follow in no particular order (and I may come back and add more as I think of them)

PLUS

• Kerrie Gray
• The organisation was superb - what an energetic and friendly team.
• Registration went smoothly.
• The venue was convenient to a range of accommodation.
• The food was tasty and plentiful (except at the War Memorial)
• Lunchtime sessions were a great idea.
• The tiered theatres ensured that all had an opportunity to see the presenters.
• Having Official Bloggers was a good idea - thanks for the invitation
• Having a Congress App. (Even better would be a hybrid combining best features of the Rootstech and Congress Apps.)
• Speakers' Corner.
• Papers available in soft copy.
• The Purple Patch People and the Greenshirts.
• Technology support.
• Being able to attend sessions for which I didn't register.
• Having a forum to meet and mingle with fellow enthusiasts.
• The coffee stand in the foyer.
• Wifi availability.
• Your @AFFHO2015 tweeter.
• Feedback from many that the pre-Congress Hangout on Air was helpful.

MINUS

• Sessions on Society Management were absent from the program. As this is a conference for a Federation of Societies this should be a stream in the program.
• Societies were generally absent from the exhibition space. It would have been nice to have a spot where smaller societies could leave promotional material for interested parties.
• The notice board was not announced - I found it in a corner on the last day.
• Two overseas speakers repeated talks from Congress 2015, I was caught.
• Too many speakers read their papers. (They should have attended Paul Milner's lunchtime session on presentations).
• Sessions weren't recorded.
• Several speakers didn't submit papers or offer links where their presentations/papers could be downloaded.
• Recycled overseas speakers. There are plenty of fish in the ocean, it would be nice to see fresh faces visiting our shores.
• Too many 'chalk and talk" lecture style session.

INTERESTING

• There was no function in the Exhbition area to force encourage attendees to linger longer. Perhaps the lunchtime sessions drew people away from exhibitors.
• Wonder if the Interests Register was a success and worth the effort. I had no contacts.
• Do we really need a conference bag?
• I disposed of all the advertising material in my Conference Bag. Is there some other way to distribute sponsor bumph?
• Technology in Royal Theatre wasn't set up to deal with presentations containing hyperlinks.
• The opening function was at dinner time. As it's a reception with minimal food perhaps it should be scheduled at the cocktail hour.
• There were no hands-on computer lab sessions.

Thanks to everyone who read my Congress blog posts and to my co-bloggers Shauna and Pauleen. 

Plugging Away

I have previously blogged about I am decrapifying my life, this also applies to my family history files and tree.

In a recent GeniAus Hangout on Air someone suggested writing down the steps one is taking while Revisiting Recording and Revising one's research.

I have previously mentioned that I think this is an ongoing evaluative process that never stops but I realise that, although I am continually  Revisiting Recording and Revising some of the people in my database may have been missed.

These are the actions I am taking to ensure that I eventually cover all people in my database, it may take some time!

Common errors I have found so far are many hundreds of instances of sources recorded as notes, many unsourced assertions, some wrong genders or no gender and quite a few typos. There are a few duplicate people but not as many as I thought I might have. Until the new version 6 I could not add witnesses to events into Family Historian so Witness Recording is an important part of the Revision.

I am forcing myself to be consistent, I am recording the same type of information for the indivisuals in my database in the same format  in the same fields. Over the years I have used several genealogy databases and just transferred my gedcoms from one to another. Inconsistency has been a result of both this and my past practices.

The Jobs

* Revisit and Revise my Place List in FH that was a bit of a mess. I feel pleased that I sorted this before attacking the people in my database.

* Revisit all of our direct ancestors in my FH database and revise their entries.

* Sort the entries in my FH database by "Last Updated" and revisit and review these systematically (in Alphabetical order) . The earliest are 14/8/2010. Once I revisit and review these I will then work through other dates systematically. I will examine each of these entries putting more effort into those who are direct ancestors of Mr GeniAus and I. Once I catch up with the backlog I can continue this process.

* Go through all of my physical family history folders and extract the BDM certificate copies and transcriptions I hold. After going through these with a fine tooth comb (reviewing) and extracting and recording as much information as I can into my FH database I will scan them then file them all by individual's Surname/Given Names in archival quality sleeves in an archival quality binder.

* Examine all of the papers in my physical family history folders, scan them and file into my digital folders, extract and record as much information as I can into my FH database.

* Periodically update my website to reflect the changes I have made in Family Historian. (There have been at least half a dozen updates so far this month.)

Accentuate the Positive 2014 - Geneameme Responses

Thanks to my busy genimates who have got behind me and posted responses to the Accentuate the Positive 2014 Geneameme. I left it a bit late to post but will try to do better next year (and I may even find some new questions).

Because I got responses from all around the world I decided to post the collation of responses as my monthly poston the Worldwide Genealogy Blog.

Just one click from here will take you to the report of some Glorious Geneayears. 

Am I ready for a Do-Over?

I'm not sure that I am.

So many of my genimates have enthusiastically embraced Thomas MacEntee's Genealogy Do-Over activity that I feel a bit odd not rushing to join in. 

Of course with my voyeuristic tendencies I will tune in each week to see what is being suggested and I will no doubt take some of the suggestions on board. I think I will be like Jackie who in her blog post today when asking herself if she "can do it" has said "I'm not sure I can. Or if I want to do so. I may adapt and 'just' revisit my tree, One person at a time,"

I am going to keep all my precious stuff in my newly updated Family Historian Version 6 database

My policy from days gone by has been to continually evaluate my practices for whatever I do. Pauleen Cass described someting similar in her wonderful post My Three Rs of Genealogy Research: Review, Record, Revise.

So for my do-over I am going to keep puddling along reviewing work from years ago, revisiting and scanning some of the records I have stored away in folders (Mr Geniaus found some gems today that I had completely forgotten about), recording what I see with a pair of more experienced eyes and revising what I have already recorded. There are lots of Rs there!

Thanks to Pauleen Cass for permission to usse her 3R's graphic

I know my main enemies are lack of time, my inclination to practise tangential genealogy and leap into new projects without thinking things through but I'm enjoying myself.

I commend all those brave people who are lining up for the do-over - I will be following your progress on your social media.

National Family History Month 2014 Geneameme

My blogging mate Pauleen from Family History across the Seas has issued this challenge for National Family History Month. Being a bit of a meme fan I just couldn't resist it.  

Thanks also to Pauleen for giving me this opportunity to reflect on my genealogy practices. As I am committed to reflection and evaluation this activity provides me with an interesting instrument for that purpose. 

As a geneablogger it is pleasing to see a #NFHM2014 activity just for us. I hope that many of my geneablogging mates complete this activity.. You can find details here on Pauleen's blog.

1. What are you doing for NFHM?
   I am attempting to respond to this geneameme.
   I am trying to work through those of the 31 Activities for researchers that I haven't previously attempted.I hosted a Geniaus Google Hangout on Air that you can view here and have planned another for the final day of #NFHM2014 that you can watch here. To hear about future Hangouts how about joining my Google+ Geniaus Community?
   I attended a talk at Hornsby Library.I am attending a talk at Hawkesbury Library
   I have signed up for a SAG Webinar about Evernote with Cyndi Ingle.
   I will be listening to Shauna Hick's webinar with MyHeritage
   I am writing blog posts.
   I am tweeting about #NFHM2014 events and activities sousing the appropriate hashtag so that those with an interest can easily find info and stories related to the event.
   Paying it forward by doing some Familysearch Indexing.Perhaps i'll find some time for some research!
2. What do you hope to learn in NFHM?
   I am hoping to be surprised. I have a commitment to CGD - Continuing genealogical Development  and know that I will learn smething from all the activities in which I participate. From Cyndi I hope to learn more ways to use Evernote in my genealogy day.
3. Do you research at a family or local history library?
   Sure do. I love the State Library of NSW and National Library of Australia and The Family History Library in Salt Lake City which I will visit again in 2015. I'll be visiting the SoG Library in London later this month. I have a research log in my Family Historian database into which I save tasks for these libraries and archives as well so that when I visit I can get straight to work.
4. Do you do all your research online?
   No way. I do lots of online research but most of this leads me to repositories here and overseas where I continue my sleuthing.
5. What’s your favourite place to store your family tree?
   In my Family Historian database which is synced via Dropbox between my big (home) laptop and my little hot pink (travel) laptop. I also have my tree online at www.geniaus.net, I use the brilliant program TNG to share my data.
6. If offline, which genealogy program do you use? (do tell us its strengths/weaknesses if you like).
   In my Family Historian database. I like this program because it is so customisable and flexible, it comes out of the UK (where my ancestors came from), it uses a native gedcom format and it has super multimedia capabilities. A band of committed and experienced users have written and shared lots of widgets and addons that extend its usefulness even more. How long is a piece of string - I could go on and on about this software package.
7. How do you preserve your family stories for future generations?
   In my Family Historian database with related pictures, documents and clippings on an external hard drive (x2) and in blog posts on the Geniaus Blog.
8. Have you any special research projects on the go?
   I am so caught up trying to sort out myown family history that I haven't started any other projects. I am considering a One-Na,e study for my grandmother's maiden name Pusell but fear that I may not be able to give it the time it deserves. I am wrestling with whether I should just jump in and perhaps do a poor job or leave it. But I guess that a poor attempt is better than no attempt al all.
9. What is your favourite family history research activity?
   It's not research as such. The old adage  "once a teacher ...always a teacher" describes me. I love sharing my knowledge and passion for technology and genealogy via social media and by giving presentations online and in person. I like to talk to the living as well as the dead.
10. What is your favourite family history research place/library etc?
    There's no place like home. I love sitting in my geneacave researching, thinking, writing and sharing.
11. What is your favourite website for genealogy research?
    It's a tie for first place. I love Trove for the wealth of treasure it adds to my tree and good old Google search for the odd things it leads me to. A well-crafted search and persistence with Google will reap rewards.
12. Are you part of a Facebook genealogy group? If so which one?
    I am not a fan of Facebook but because it has such a huge user base I use it reluctantly. I belong to around a dozen Facebook Genealogy Groups that are useful but I fear for some of the advice given in  as some of the generous souls offering assistance are sometimes lacking in appropriate expertise or knowledge. 
13. Do you use webinars or podcasts for genealogy? Any tips?
    I am both a participant and host. I love being able to learn and share from the comfort of my geneacave and in my own time. My advice is give it a go - you won't break anything.
14. Do you use social media? eg Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn
    Do I use social media? I am obsessed but realise that I need a personal socila media policy so that I am not overwhelmed.I have many accounts but I use Google+ as my main social media vehicle for genealogy, I prefer to use Facebook for personal stuff but have been swept up by the hordes of genies who use it. I use Twitter to share news of events and I don't quite get Pinterest although I am trying to get a handle on it once more.
15. What genealogy topic/class have you learnt the most from this year at a webinar/conference/seminar?
    It has to be on the Unlock the Past Genealogy Cruise in February where we were exposed to a range of top international and Australian presenters. The informal learning opportunities afforded by being locked up on a ship in the middle of the ocean make this an incredible learning experience.
16. Do you have a favourite research strategy to knock down your brick walls?
    The PIP Process. Persistence, Inventiveness and Patience. Persistence - keep at it, try, try and try again. Inventiveness - harness your creative powers, think laterally to find your way around a problem. Patience - just like Snow White believed that "one day my prince will come" believe that some day you will find your answer, it make take two, ten or twenty years to find that magic sledgehammer. Hey - I just invented the PIP process - my bit of creativity for National Family History Month.
17. Have you used DNA testing for your genealogy?
    The test kits are sitting on my dressing table - must get around to it sometime. 
18. Have you made cousin connections through your DNA tests?
    Not yet!
19. Do you have a wish list of topics for NFHM 2015? 
    More online events.
    I am thinking of hosting a 12 hour GeniAus Hangout on Air event - if I can get a few genies to help out. I envisage drawing up a roster of group of genies who will talk about various topics close to their hearts with a panel who will ask questions and contribute questions just like Dear Myrtle did in her recent 24 hour Geneasleepover. Who's up for the challenge?
20. What do you most love about your family history research?
    The ancestor stories that emerge after years of personal sleuthing and collaborating with new found cousins.

My Geneacave