Organize Your Genealogy will show you how to use tried-and-true methods and the latest tech tools and genealogy software to organize your research plan, workspace, and family-history finds. In this book, you'll learn how to organize your time and resources, including how to set goals and objectives, determine workable research questions, sort paper and digital documents, keep track of physical and online correspondence, prepare for a research trip, and follow a skill-building plan. With this comprehensive guide, you'll make the most of your research time and energy and put yourself on a road to genealogy success.Organize Your Genealogy features:- Secrets to developing organized habits that will maximize your research time and progress - Hints for setting up the right physical and online workspaces - Proven, useful systems for organizing paper and electronic documents - Tips for managing genealogy projects and goals - The best tools for organizing every aspect of your ancestry research - Easy-to-use checklists and worksheets to apply the book's strategiesWhether you're a newbie seeking best practices to get started or a seasoned researcher looking for new and better ways of getting organized, this guide will help you manage every facet of your ancestry research.

    This edition also includes details of the Family History Centres of the Mormon Church, one of the world's richest genealogical archives.

    This comprehensive user guide explains how to organize all kinds of genealogy clues--from notes and e-mails to vital records and audio files--so the information is easily searchable, accessible on any device, and automatically backed up in the cloud. Step-by-step instructions show you how to file research materials, analyze research clues, collaborate with cousins, and share your family history.In this book, you'll findEvernote tips and strategies specifically for genealogy researchers, with real-life examplesStep-by-step instructions for managing different types of genealogy information, from research notes to document images to web clippingsTricks for using Evernote to speed up research tasks, including transcription and research logsSuggestions to search-optimize your Evernote data so your information is easy to findIdeas for enhancing Evernote with external appsTips to protect your data and troubleshoot common issuesWorksheets to help you organize your notebooks and stacksWhether you're an Evernote newbie or dedicated user, How to Use Evernote for Genealogy will change your research life by showing you how this free tool can make you a better, more efficient genealogist.

    Done. Finished. Game over. Have you ever said to yourself, “That’s it! I’ve had it and it just isn’t worth it anymore!” Well, have you? Sort of like the character Howard Beale in the movie Network when he says, live on air, “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore!” By the end of 2014, after more than 25 years of researching my own family history, that is how I felt. My Past Genealogy Research Frustrates Me! While many who read my post thought that I was leaving the genealogy community or closing down my genealogy business, I had to clarify what I meant by “leaving:” Starting in 2015, I planned on setting my 20+ years of genealogy research aside and starting over. From scratch. Seriously. How many times have you thought about doing the same thing? Did you start your research the same way I did, by just collecting names, grabbing stuff from other online trees, or pasting text into your genealogy software? Lately, has the prospect of going back and citing sources or proving facts and evidence brought you down and ruined your genealogy buzz? Do you throw up your hands and say, “I give up!” only to return to the same review and edit process days or weeks later? If you are like me, you need a genealogy makeover. Better yet, a Genealogy Do-Over. That is what I decided to call the journey upon which I embarked in early 2015. Now I want you to come along. Genealogy Do-Over: A New Journey of Genealogical Discovery Here is the short summary of The Genealogy Do-Over: I set aside everything* related to my genealogy research including notebooks, papers, and even digitized files and my genealogy database files and START OVER. I’m hitting the reset button. I’m allowing myself to have a do-over! (* certain items such as vital records ordered and paid for or research gathered on long-distance trips can be retained). Since I started my initial research, much has changed in the areas of genealogy research methodology and education. I now realize the need to collect facts and track them properly, including the use of source citations. I now understand the process of analyzing evidence and proving facts to reach a conclusion. In essence, I know a lot more about the “process” of genealogical research and I want to put it to use. This is not to say that I have not been following proven guidelines when it comes to finding family history. For my research clients (mostly pro bono), I actually employ all the methods advocated by many in the genealogy community. However, when it comes to my own research from years ago, I am not walking the walk . . . I have just been talking the talk. It is not always easy to “walk backwards” and review every bit of information gathered over the years. Instead, I wanted to do more than re-walk a trodden path: I wanted to head out from the same starting point and see where the journey took me. I knew I would have access to better tools, better knowledge and be better equipped for each twist and turn. Now, I encourage you to join me on this journey. The Genealogy Do-Over journey is constructed of 12 mileposts or journey markers that are laid out over one year. You can choose to pace yourself differently. You can even decide to drop some of the less important tasks and add your own. Do whatever it takes to ensure that you are on a firm footing to finding your ancestors.

    Genealogists and adoptees are using them and other DNA tests to identify ancestors, confirm relationships, and measure their ethnicity. Unfortunately, there are many similar sounding tests and some of them have different testing levels. So it’s easy to order the wrong test or pay too much. This Guide to DNA Testing provides an easy-to-understand introduction to the different test types, their strengths and limitations. Author and adoptee, Richard Hill, shared his personal success story in his book, "Finding Family: My Search for Roots and the Secrets in My DNA.” Now he boils down the basics of genetic genealogy into this concise summary. Learn which tests are right for you. Hyperlinks to specific tests and resources are included.

    Diana Elder shares her step-by-step method using real world examples, easily understood by any level of genealogist; written for the researcher ready to take their skills to the next level. Learn how to form an objective, review your research by creating a timeline analysis, construct a locality guide to direct your research, create a plan, style source citations, set up a research log to organize and track your searches, and write a report detailing your findings and ideas for future research. Work samples and templates are included.

    You will learn how to create notes, how to create stacks, how to set up a hierarchical structure for tags, how to create virtual genealogy binders, easy ways to transfer your computer files into an Evernote Note, and more. You will be able to follow each step to create your own Genealogy Binders full of your research (documents, photos, audio files, and more) on all your ancestors. Your Genealogy files will be organized, easily accessible and readily available to share with others if desired.

    Rather than hop in the car and hope you can find the courthouse of the county where your great-grandmother grew up before it closes, you can relax and research in the comfort of your own home, at your convenience. The only problem is where--and how--do you start? Genealogy Online For Dummies, 4th Edition is a great starting point. Written by genealogists who manage and maintain several online genealogy services, this guide helps you make sense of the vast array of resources on the Web. It shows you how toSearch online databases Explore genealogical societies Use geographic tools Research ethnic roots Validate your findings Share your research So you don't waste time and effort wandering all over the Web, Genealogy Online For Dummies, 4th Edition shows you how to set up your own personal database first, using information you already have from family members. Then it helps you make your search productive byChoosing the right government resources to help locate your ancestors Fleshing out the statistics with personal information from geographical, ethnic, and religious sources Cooperating with other researchers, sharing information, and coordinating efforts with societies and research groups Providing proven tips, reminders, suggestions, and lists of online databases Offering suggestions for developing your own genealogical Web site, and more To get you started in style, the bonus CD-ROM includes the full version of Family TreeMaker and Legacy Family Tree freeware, a tryout version of Adobe(R) Photoshop(R) Elements 2.0 for preserving treasured family photos, and lots of other valuable techno-tools. And it all comes with a warning: genealogical research can become addictive!

    Here is the place to keep them.First there was To Our Children's Children: Preserving Family Histories for Generations to Come. A collection of over one thousand evocative questions, the book offered a very personal, human approach to genealogy, awakening readers to the possibility of creating a family history through the simple act of remembering. From this book, hundreds of thousands of individuals have learned the value of passing on family treasures made of words. However, readers kept asking Bob Greene and D.G. Fulford for a version of the book with room to record the answers. The To Our Children's Children Journal is just that: a handy and beautiful journal posing 365 questions (one for each day of the year), with ample space for families to write their own answers. Approachable, enjoyable, and thought-provoking, the Journal is a pleasure to read and to ponder--something that, once completed, will become a lasting part of any family's history, to be put on the bookshelf and treasured for generations to come.

    With a name like Jackson (the twentieth most common American surname), she knew she must have more relatives and more family history out there, somewhere. Her first visit to the Boulder Genealogy Society brought her more questions than answers . . . but it also gave her a tantalizing peek into the fascinating (and enormous) community of family-tree huggers and after-hours Alex Haleys. In Shaking the Family Tree, Jackson dives headfirst into her family gene pool: flying cross-country to locate an ancient family graveyard, embarking on a weeklong genealogy Caribbean cruise, and even submitting her DNA for testing to try to find her Jacksons. And in the process of researching her own family lore (Who was Bullwhip Jackson?) she meets legions of other genealogy buffs who are as interesting as they are driven—from the boy who saved his allowance so he could order his great-grandfather’s death certificate to the woman who spends her free time documenting the cemeteries of Colorado ghost towns. Through Jackson’s research she connects with distant relatives, traces her roots back more than 250 years and in the process comes to discover—genetically, historically, and emotionally—the true meaning of “family” for herself.

    You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

    Rather, look backward. Based on the popular blog, Ask the Past is full of the wisdom of the ages--as well as the fad diets, zany pickup lines, and bacon Band-Aids of the ages. Drawn from centuries of antique texts by historian and bibliophile Elizabeth P. Archibald, Ask the Past offers a delightful array of advice both wise and weird. Whether it's eighteenth-century bedbug advice (sprinkle bed with gunpowder and let smolder), budget fashion tips of the Middle Ages (save on the clothes, splurge on the purse) or a sixteenth-century primer on seduction (hint: do no pass gas), Ask the Past is a wildly entertaining guide to life from the people who lived it first.

    Heralded by Publishers Weekly as one of the best science books of the year, it is a provocative and deeply engaging book that elucidates the ties between a woman's experience of her vagina and her sense of self; her impulses, dreams, and courage; and her role in love and in society in completely new and revelatory ways sure to provoke impassioned conversation.A brilliant and nuanced synthesis of physiology, history, and cultural criticism, Vagina: A New Biography explores the physical, political, and spiritual implications of this startling series of new scientific breakthroughs for women and for society as a whole, from a writer whose conviction and keen intelligence have propelled her works to the tops of bestseller lists, and firmly into the realms of modern classics.

    Well-chosen, well-cared-for houseplants bring life to a room, both literally and figuratively. They add color, texture, motion, uniqueness, beauty—and they even improve air quality. They also fulfill our need to nurture and care for other living things. In Houseplants, expert grower Lisa Eldred Steinkopf gives you the advice and information you need to confidently bring a plant (or two, or more!) home and find joy in keeping it lush and healthy. Achieve success with your houseplants by:Making smart selections: Choose plants that are suited for your space and conditions.Savvy siting: Where the plant is placed is as important as what it is.Taking care: Proper maintenance goes far beyond watering; learn how to fertilize, groom, troubleshoot, propagate, and more.Becoming an educated owner: The book includes 125+ profiles of the most popular, cutting-edge plant species.Organized by relative ease of care, the plant profiles offer the common and botanical names, light preference, watering guidelines, whether and under what conditions it flowers, its size and growth potential, propagation tips, and available cultivars. Featuring stunning photography and a modern design, Houseplants is a must-have resource for every houseplant parent.

    As he takes us on his journey, we learn about choices made by his ancestors, parents, and others, and we see Bill measure and weigh his own difficult choices as he confronts the past.