Thursday, November 30, 2017

FamilySearch Free Sign-in Offers Greater Subscriber Experiences and Benefits

From the FamilySearch blog

Beginning December 13, 2017, patrons visiting FamilySearch.org will see a prompt to register for a free FamilySearch account or to sign in to their existing account to continue enjoying all the free expanded benefits FamilySearch has to offer.  Since its launch in 1999, FamilySearch has added millions of users, billions of various historical records, and many fun, new features like Family Tree, Memories, mobile apps, digital books, and dynamic help. In order to accommodate continued growth of these and future free services, FamilySearch must assure all its partners that its content is offered in a safe and secure online environment.  Patrons creating a free account and signing in fulfills that need.

Patron sign in will also enable FamilySearch to satisfy the ongoing need for user authentication. This authentication can deliver rich, personalized discovery, collaboration, and help experiences. Simply put, signed-in visitors can access more searchable content and enjoy more personalized services.
“A large percentage of our current site visitors are not benefiting from much of what FamilySearch has to offer because they don’t realize the need to simply sign in with their free account to do so,” said Steve Rockwood, FamilySearch CEO. “They are basically arriving in the parking lot but not coming inside for the main event,” he said about website visitors who do not sign in.

FamilySearch is committed to patron privacy and does not share personal account information with any third party without a patron’s consent.

Thursday, November 16, 2017

Tri County Community College Peachtree Spring 2018 Genealogy Classes

Here is a list of the genealogy classes that I will be teaching this spring on the TCCC Peachtree campus (Indigo building classroom).

The Tuesday night class will be a pure genealogy research class track. The Thursday night classes will emphasize genetic genealogy and DNA testing. Prices for these classes are "very: inexpensive $10-$30 each. So I hope to see a lot of folks signing up for classes.

You are welcome to get on the class interest list right now. Call Lisa Long at (828) 835-4241. Seating for these classes are limited to seats available in the Indigo classroom so get on the list before we max out or you will miss out. We had to limit one of our classes during the fall semester due to the class being at max capacity.

Tuesday Night Classes

New-The Secret Lives of Women - Researching Female Ancestors
How do you research the women in your family tree? In some respects, the same way you research men. To discover their lives, you also must consider what documents and items were left behind by women. Women historically have not produced as many records as their husbands, since women's suffrage largely did not exist until the twentieth century. In this course we look at the specific record trail women left for us to help uncover our hidden female ancestors. 5 hrs.
January 23-30  Tuesday    6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.   $15

New-Researching in Libraries and Archives/Onsite Research
Researching in federal and state archives, libraries, historical/genealogical societies, courthouses and other repositories can be intimidating to the genealogist. In this course you will discover unique records that await you in archives that may add to your ancestor's story and your genealogical research. 5 hrs.
February 6-13  Tuesday  6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.   $15

Google for the Genealogist
Google is the world's leading search engine. If you own a computer, you probably use Google multiple times a day in a variety of ways. If you are a genealogist you may not have realized that genealogy and Google go hand in hand, and it’s not just for ancestor searches. Google can be an incredibly important tool in your family history research toolbox. In this course we will explore the world of Google and what it has to offer the family historian. 10 hrs.
February 20 – March 13   Tuesday   6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.   $30

New-Using FANs and Other Techniques to Knock Down Genealogy Brick Walls
Chances are, if you have spent any time at all working to compile your family history, you have run into difficulty finding at least one elusive relative and maybe even several of them. Within the genealogy community this problem is commonly referred to as a "brick wall." Some of brick walls may seem impossible to solve so everyone needs a little help and encouragement from time to time to jump-start the research. This course will bring you the momentum you need to get your family history research back on track. 10 hrs.
March 20 – April 10   Tuesday   6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.    $30

New-Researching Your Georgia Ancestors
The Peach State has a long and colorful history, making it an ideal state in which to conduct genealogy research. There are many historical and genealogical records available for Georgia, but you need to know where to look to find them. In this class you will learn where to find the records, repositories and the resources that will help you document that elusive Georgia ancestor. 2.5 hrs.
April 17   Tuesday   6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.   $10

New-Researching Your North Carolina Ancestors
Need help in finding your elusive North Carolina ancestors? In this class you will learn about research strategies you can use to document your NC colonial and state family history. Discover where to find the records, repositories and the resources you need to find that elusive Tar Heel family. 2.5 hrs.
April 24   Tuesday   6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.   $10


Thursday Night Classes


New - DNA 101 – The Foundations of Genetic Genealogy
A basic introduction to genetic genealogy and how it can be used in combination with traditional genealogical research. Course includes introductions to Y-DNA, mitochondrial DNA, and autosomal DNA testing, how each of these types of DNA are inherited, who you should have tested, where you should purchase these tests, and how these tests can be used for genealogical research. This course is a prerequisite for advanced genetic genealogy classes. 10 hrs.
January 25 – February 15   Thursday   6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.    $30

New- AncestryDNA
You’ve seen the ads on television. You may have even purchased a kit from them. Learn more about the test you took and the results you received from the most popular DNA testing company in the world? Then this genetic genealogy course is a must. 10 hrs.
February 22 – March 15   Thursday   6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.   $30

New - Researching Your DNA on the GEDmatch/FTDNA websites
What is the next step in your genetic genealogy research after you have finished your work at AncestryDNA? Next logical steps are uploading your results to GEDmatch and FTDNA, and both DNA websites can be intimidating. In this course we will start at the beginning and look at some of its basic, but very important tools that genealogists can utilize in their research. 7.5 hrs.
March 22 – April 5   Thursday   6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.   $25

New - Advanced DNA Analysis
This course will introduce some advanced techniques used by genetic genealogists including the use of triangulated groups, chromosome mapping, visual phasing, and phasing. Will introduce third party tools and examine how to analyze complex questions with DNA. 7.5 hrs.
April 12 – April 26   Thursday   6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.    $25