Guest Post: Accentuate the Positive Geneameme 2022

Thanks to Lynn who, although she doesn't have a genealogy blog, sent me a contribution for the 2022 Accentuate the Positive Geneameme. 

I was delighted to be able to host Lynn's contribution on the GeniAus blog. I found several items I need to chase up in this post.

Accentuate the Positive Geneameme 2022 from Lynn McAlister UE (Lynn.McAlister@lmgenealogy.com)

A new software package or web application I embraced was ... I joined Mastodon, where I’ve made new connections with genealogists all over the world (and some of those I knew from elsewhere on line).

A new genealogy/history book that sparked my interest was ... Sarah Abrevaya Stein, Family Papers: A Sephardic Journey through the Twentieth Century.

In 2022 I finally met ... my tribe! I now have a word for what I do: “Genohistory” (described by Donna Cox Baker as “that spot in the road where genealogy and history meet”).

I progressed my DNA research by ... finally testing my husband’s parents! We’ve been trying to sort out my father-in-law’s paternity for years!

An informative journal or newspaper article I found was ... Jürgen Eichhoff, “Types of German Surname Changes in America”, in The Report 43: A Journal of German-American History, vol. XLIII (1996), pp. 23-35 (https://loyolanotredamelib.org › php › report05 › articles › pdfs ›report43.pdf).

The best value I got for my genealogy dollars was ... the 15-week Boston University certificate course. It gave me a chance to test my skills against advanced methodology and be assessed by professionals, and I have a new confidence that I actually do know what I’m doing.

A DNA discovery I made was ... the identity of my husband’s previously unidentified grandfather.

A fabulous event I attended was ... APG’s 2022 Conference. Not only were there numerous useful and interesting sessions, but the networking was surprisingly good for an online conference, and I also won a doorprize of four classes from the NIGS.

I'm happy I splashed out and purchased ... Patrick Hanks, ed., Dictionary of American Family Names (3 vols.) and Henry Z Jones, Palatine Families of New York (2 vols.). Also several volumes of Kevan Hansen’s Map Guides to German Parish Records. All three excellent and useful resources.

I got the most joy from ... interacting with genealogy colleagues at online conferences, in the Boston University groups, and especially in the Ontario APG group.

Accentuate the Positive Geneameme 2022

 One of the great supporters of my annual challenge, Bobbie Edes from Queensland, gently reminded me a few weeks about this challenge. I assured her that I would be issuing it shortly but, in the pre-Christmas busyness, I forgot. A gentle reminder from a genimate encouraged me to make it my first task this morning. 

Although my rate of blogging has slowed down this year I couldn't let a year pass without continuing this tradition. 

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 please 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, when I return from a family holiday in mid-January, share a list of links to your responses right here on the GeniAus blog.

Remember to Accentuate the Positive 

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

1. I was happy to go back to ... after a Covid absence

2. In 2022 I was particularly proud of writing ...

3. A new software package or web application I embraced was ...

4.  My sledge hammer did great work on this brick wall ...

5. A new genealogy/history book that sparked my interest was ...

6. A geneasurprise I received was ....

7.  In 2022 I finally met ...

8.  Locating ... gave me great joy

9.  I am pleased the Covid situation caused me to change ...

10. I progressed my DNA research by ...

11.  An informative  journal or newspaper article I found was ...

12. I was pleased I could contribute to ...

13.  ... taught me how to ...

14. I got a thrill from opening someone's eyes to the joy of genealogy ...

15. The best value I got for my genealogy dollars was ... 

16. A DNA discovery I made was ...

17. I enjoyed my first post Covid face to face event because ...

18. A fabulous event I attended was ...

19. I'm happy I splashed out and purchased ...

 19. I got the most joy from ...

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

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

Strengthening the Tree

Lately I have moved my focus from attending genealogy events to working on my tree. While I love learning from and connecting with fellow genies I realise that my research has suffered. I want to leave behind a full and well-sourced tree for future generations so I am concentrating on my research.

 
Since the advent of DNA I have recognised the value of building trees that not only go back in time but trees that go sideways and down to current generations. To assist in identifying matches one needs a robust DNA friendly tree. My hope is that I will eventually be able to solve many mysteries from my treeless DNA matches.

While I had a lot of distant cousins in my tree I had little information apart from their names. Recently I've been killing off and burying relatives and concentrating on finding sources for these events. In the past week I have found death and burial details from a range of sources for over 300 relatives. Of course there are some pesky people that just don't want to die. If I can't kill them off I make notes on their profiles indicating where I have searched. 

My main database is housed on an instance of Family Historian software on my laptop. From time to time, but not as often as I should, I export a gedcom to my website that uses TNG software and is hosted by Simply Hosting . I was shocked to find this evening that it is a year since I uploaded an update potentially missing out on being found by distant cousins.

Earlier today I tried to do the update and found that I was unable to log in to my web host. In a very short time Simply Hosting came to my rescue and I now my website is up to date. 

I realise that it needs a design overhaul but, as it is a workhorse not a show pony, I would rather concentrate on content. 

You can visit my website here: https://www.geniaus.net/

Exodus and Emigration

As soon as Twitter changed hands I noticed an exodus of genealogists from Twitter. While I haven't left Twitter yet I set up an insurance policy two weeks ago. 

When I joined Mastodon I joined the @mastodon.scot instance (server) as a handful of genealogists were there and the @toot.community where most of the genies were hanging was closed to new members. After a few days @toot.community opened up to more members so I emigrated there to be with the bulk of my genealogy contacts. 

Things have been moving quickly on Mastodon as many Tweeps are joining the exodus from Twitter and emigrating to various Mastodon instances (servers). Several genealogists recognised the need for an instance just for genealogists and last week, About 10 days ago David set up @genealysis.social, "for anyone who is interested in Genealogy." see https://genealysis.social/about. I was interested but didn't emigrate immediately.

@genealysis.social

I watched and waited and observed as quite a number of  genies or Geneadons (as they are called on Mastodon) emigrated to this new server.  While there is still a reasonable number of genealogists on the @toot.community server they are just a small percentage of the total membership. Genies are to be found on many other servers as well. While genealogists can connect from many of the instances (servers) at Mastodon I like the idea of hanging out with my tribe.

This morning, as I had time on my hands and realised that I mostly post about family history matters I noted that the membership @genealysis.social was approaching 500. I decided that it was time to emigrate once again so I made the move (a painless process). I don't plan on emigrating again any time soon. I am pleased that I have found an instance for my tribe and look forward to the fellowship I enjoy with the genealogy community on other social media platforms.  

How about joining me on @genealysis.social ?

Meanwhile I am still active as @GeniAus on Twitter - it's all about insurance.