Kim found the answer + other problems with FOLD3

REPLY TO QUESTION ABOUT DOWNLOADING MULTIPLE PAGES

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We came across the following email from you and wanted to provide an answer. Currently images can only be downloaded or printed one at a time and there is not an option to mass download or print.

Let me know if you have additional questions.

Thanks again,

Gordon Atkinson

Director of Customer Service and Marketing

Fold3

This makes FOLD3 close to worthless unless you have an unlimited amount of time to waste waiting for your pages to come in one at a time.

There is another problem.  

When you get a hit and open the page there is often a note at the bottom of the page saying "nn (some number) of pages in this document contain matches".  If you're unaware of that you will miss all of the pages beyond the first one in that Vol.

At the bottom of the thumbnail for the first page there will be other thumbnails indicating the other pages available.

Say the PA Archives, Series 5 Vol XI pages 345, 732, 815.  Page 345 will be enclosed in a box, clicking on the box brings that page up.  

Clicking on "LARGER" expands the page to full size and  you can then click "DOWNLOAD".  

When the first page is downloaded you go back ;and click on the second page, 732.  That page comes up and  clicking "LARGER" expands it to full size.  Now click "DOWNLOAD" and the page reverts to  page 345. 

As far as I know there is only one way to get that page to print, you must scroll to it  using the film strip.

When there is a big jump from the first page to the second it is laborious to use that film strip and if you lay on the left or right film strip arrow you will often shoot way past your target page.

My solution, unless the page numbers are close together,  is to make a note of the Series, Volume and Page numbers that you're not able to easily get to and then  go back and pick up the extra pages through the BROWSE feature.  

BROWSE: You enter the 'Revolutionary War' section then select 'Pennsylvania Archives' and then the Series and Volume.  You will be shown several sections in that volume.  Page numbers are not shown so you have to click various sections until you find the section that has the page you want.

Now your extra pages will come up and can be downloaded.

The PA Archives is a wonderful resource so it's worth learning how to use it if you have anybody who ever lived in Pennsylvania.

I give all of the pages I download from the PA the name "Series 5 Vol II Page nnn".  By doing that you will have a folder with all of the pages you have downloaded in their proper order.  When you get another hit you can quickly scroll down the folder (in DETAIL mode) and see whether you've already downloaded that page.

Please let me know of any problems you encounter or anything I have written that turns out to be wrong.  I'm feeling my way with FOLD3 and am not terribly impressed however,  I think the PA Archives alone is worth the trouble.

What do you think?

Jerry

PS  Looking at the film strip, there are little red numbers on some pages. That number is the number of annotations for that page.  I've never found anything useful in them.

Wrestling with FOLD3

I've spent the day wrestling with Fold3.  My conclusion is that it is the hardest web site to use that I've ever encountered.

I started by searching for all of the Shearer surname, all variations.

I have 200 hits from the Pennsylvania Archives that I'm working on.

One of the hits was the Revolutionary War Pension file for Conrad  Goodner, husband of Elizabeth Sherer.  What a find, the record was 65 pages.  I set about looking for a way to download the entire record.  No way!

After struggling with it for a while I put in a phone call to Kim Dolce at the City Island Library.  Kim is conducting lessons on Fold3 but she had no answer.  She promised to find out the answer.

So far, there is no known way to accomplish the objective.

Giving up I set out to download the pages one at a time.  It is a VERY SLOW process.  The site keeps flashing the  WE'RE SORRY IT IS TAKING SO LONG TO PULL UP THE METADATA FOR THIS IMAGE.  It took me about 3 hours to download 65 pages.  I had to restart the site several times to get it to process my requests. The only thing running on my computer was my browser.

On the other hand, when I finally got the record there were some jewels in those pages.  Here's one of the best surprises I've ever found in such records:


September 25, 1934

Mittie L. Prather
Onawa, Iowa [Monona Co.]

Madam;     

 I have to advise you that from the papers in the Revolutionary War pension claim R. 4113 it appears that Conrad Goodner was born Novemer 29, 1756.     

While living in Hillsborough, Orange County, North Carolinan (sic) he enlisted  November 1, 1776 and served nine months  as a private in Captain John Griffy's Company, Colonel Thackston's North Carolina Regiment.     

He was allowed pension on his application executed June 3, 1833 while a resident of Saint Clair County, Illinois. 

 He died August 27, 1837     

Soldier married in 1782 in Guilford County, North Carolina, Elizabeth ________* who died April 12, 1839 leaving the following children:

John Goodner
Sally Browning.
David Goodner born in 1786.
Jacob Goodner born July 3, 1790.
James Goodner born February 8, 1792.
Jane Ann or Jeanan Goodner born January 9, 1794
Benjamin Goodner born June 4, 1795
Godfrey Goodner born in February 1798.
Francis A. Goodner.
Elijah Goodner.
Elisabeth Holcomb.

            Respectfully,

           Acting Commissioner

* From another source: Sherrer/Scherer

Thumb Drive Recovery

I had all of my R&B files on an 8GB thumb drive.  I've backed it up but not for a long time.  Unfortunately Carbonite doesn't back up thumb drives.

Yesterday, for the second time, the drive was suddenly totally blank and when I tried to access it I was told that it was not formatted and should formatting begin.  NO

I had previously bought a program specifically for this situation, it is called "BadCopy Pro", it cost $40.

I ran BadCopy and it recovered most of my files, 2,398 of them!  Unfortunately it doesn't recover the file names so now I have "File1.aaa through File 2398.aaa"  the recovered file does include the aaa  file extension which included DOC, JPG, GIF, and mostly PDF.

After recovering all the files I threw that thumb drive in the trash and ordered a replacement at NEWEGG for $6, shipping included.  Wish I had done that after the first crash.

Now I'm looking for the January board and general meeting minutes which I completed yesterday at the library and was getting ready to post.

The moral of the story is that, no matter how carefully you back things up a crash can always catch you napping.

1) BACK UP EARLY AND OFTEN.
2) IF A DRIVE FAILS ONCE THROW IT AWAY BECAUSE IT WILL FAIL AGAIN.

Jerry

Kobo eReaders overlooked in review

     I no more than published the article on eReader/Tablet Computer selection than I received a request for information on the Kobo. I had never heard of it but have learned a lot in a short time. There is an article in The Beacon (3-5 Dec 2012 pg 2A) about the Kobo being the savior of local book shops. I'm not sure how that applies when all of the usual sources are selling the Kobo.

NOTE - YOU CAN USE THE KOBO STORE BY INSTALLING THE KOBO APP ON OTHER DEVICES 

NOTE:  DRM is "Digital Rights Management" which requires a license to use content.  Adobe DRM provides, free,  a program for your computer that manages your DRM files. Example: eBooks you borrow from the public library.

Ref:

"Family Book Shop" DeLand

1301 N Woodland Blvd

Deland, FL 32720

(386) 736-6501

Book store site

Kobo is a Canadian Company.  Learn more about them and their products:  Kobo - about us

Presently there are four models of the Kobo, Mini, Glo, Touch and Arc. Kobo eReaders Here are the specs for those and for the original models as well, with links to the reviews of each model:

Mini 5" e-Ink (b/w) 2GB memory, micro SD slot (32gb max); WiFi 802.11 b/g/n; wt 4.7oz White, USB Cable, WiFi 2GB Battery life over 2 weeks w/wi-fi off; $80 @ Best Buy

Mini Review

Glo 6" e-Ink, Card slot, ePub and all Adobe DRM; WiFi; USB; no headphone jack (no audio capability) wt: 6.52 oz $130 @ Best Buy, $120 @ Amazon

Glo Review

Touch , 6" e-Ink (b/w); 600x800 dpi max, USB & Card Slot, Browser, WiFi wt: 200gr supports ePub, PNG CBZ PDF JPEG HTML GIF CBR; 2GB built in memory;  $113 @ Amazon

Touch Review

Arc Android 4.0 ICS (UPGRADE TO JELLY BEAN WHEN AVAILABLE), 1GB RAM, 7" color, wt 364g; available in 8 or 16GB  [Kobo just announced that it will now be available in 16, 32 and 64 GB]; Micro USB connection, "Wi-Fi Direct"; 1.3 mp forward looking camera; 10hr reading w/WiFi off; Black or white w/ available blue or purple back. NO MICRO SD CARD SLOT; 

Arc Review

------------------------------------

ORIGINAL MODELS

N647-KBU-B  6" b/w 1GB expandable to 32GB in card slot wt: 8oz (1st gen Kobo) Supports ePub & pdf  $70 @ Target

Orig Kobo Review

WiFi eReader 6" eInk (16 levels of grey)  6" 1GB (as N647 w/Wi-Fi to Kobo store) supports ePub, PDF (Adobe DRM and non DRM) and TXT $85 @ Amazon

Kobo Wi-Fi Review

Vox (K080-Kbo-B) 7" Color 1024x600 7" Vivid Color, 8GB internal memory, Mini SD card, slot 32GB max, not included; micro USB port 802.11b/g/n; wireless; wt:14.2oz; up to 7 hrs battery life. Now Google certified with access to the Google Play Store apps. Headphone jack, no camera. $180 @ Amazon 

Vox Review

Ancestry launches "Newspapers.com"

Ancestry has launched a new newspaper site.  It is just getting started but expect them to add papers quickly in the next 2 or 3 months.  Some of the content overlaps with what Ancestry has available through their regular subscription site.

Kimberly Powell has written a great review of what is available and what is planned.

Find it here
http://tinyurl.com/a5jhm3h

Jerry

SELECTING A TABLET  COMPUTER / eREADER  

by Jerry Hale

December 3, 2012

First, let me say that I am NOT an expert. My experience has been with the Nook Color and a little with the Kindle. I've only read about the others. For my money the Apples are not a consideration. Although they are very popular everything Apple does is especially proprietary and expensive. Except for the Apples the whole world is using the Android system so there are plenty of free apps (applications) and third party accessories for the Android devices, you don't have to go to the Apple Store to get them.  Android is the most popular operating system (OS), it is being used in everything from eReaders to autos. Ford announced it was putting the Android OS into it's new cars.

When people see me using my tablet computer they often want to know more about the choices they have when considering acquiring one.

It depends upon what you want to do with the device, use it as an eReader only or use it as a full blown tablet computer?

Do you want to pay the extra money to get one of the top of the line tablets, Apple or Samsung Galaxy, with a camera (or even two) or can you buy an eReader (Nook or Kindle) and convert it to a tablet computer as I have?

Other considerations are memory size, battery life, whether or not the battery is replaceable? On the Nook Color the battery is not made to be replaced by the user but many who are technically oriented have opened it up and replaced the battery themselves. I haven't heard whether Barnes and Noble will replace the battery if you send it back. One thing I know about the Nook is that the power cable is fragile. I've broken two of them even while being careful. Fortunately Barnes and Noble seems to be aware that they have a problem and have sent replacement cables for no charge. One disadvantage of hacking a Nook is that there is no camera on it.

Battery life varies quite a bit, the iPad claims "up to 10 hours", hmmm the problem is that 4 hours qualifies in that statement. Manufacturers of notebook computers are notorious for claiming longer battery life that they ever produce. The other ads do not specify battery life.

From the web site Squidoo http://www.squidoo.com/tablet-vs-ereader

"The battery life of e-readers is significantly better than that of tablet computers. e-Readers can typically go for a month or more of regular use without having to be charged. Tablets run out of battery life within a few hours or so. This is mostly due to the screen type (discussed above) and the fact that they do a lot more internal processing."

I maximize the battery life between recharges by turning off the screen of my Nook and my Droid X smart phone whenever I'm not using them.

Purusing the ads in this Sunday's newspaper I find that there are 17 choices. The Samsung "Transformer" is the most expensive at $750. Transformer means it has a keyboard that the tablet fits into and it then becomes a notebook computer.

On the other end of the spectrum, at $70 is the Kindle eReader (black and white) only for reading electronic books. See the lists at the end of this article.

Other considerations are screen size, memory and operating system. Except for the iPads the operating system is some version of the Android. Android (Google) gives their operating systems colorfull names to distinguish them apart. Version 3.2 was called "Gingerbread," version 4.0 is called Ice Cream Sandwich (or ICS) and version 4.2 is called "Jelly Bean".

The Nook and the Kindle use a proprietary version of the Android operating system but can be "hacked" and turned into a full tablet computer. The SD memory card is replaceable, I use a 16gb card but have a 32gb card I can use if 16gb ever proves to be inadequate.

I "liberated" my Nook Color and it is now running a hacked version of Android called "Cyanogen 7". Hacking or "jail breaking" the Nook is very easy, I have no experience with the Kindle. A step by step procedure can be found on the www with video tutorials on YouTube to help you through the job. I missed something the first and second time I tried and turned my Nook into a "glass brick." After I realized I wasn't going to have a heart attack I went back to the www and Googled "Nook glass brick" and learned how to rescue the device. The third time worked as advertised and I've been very pleased with the result. I bought the Color Nook reconditioned, from Barnes & Noble, for $150. I'm sure it doesn't work as well as an iPad or a Galaxy but it is adequate to my needs for now. I will help anyone who wants to go that route, it is easy once you know how ;-)

The nurse at my podiatrist's office said she had the iPad with a 10" screen and found it too large and too heavy to hold comfortably. It was especially difficult if she tried to read in bed. She was going to buy a 7" model instead.

The best part of these new devices is the world of books it opens up. I have purchased one book but have downloaded a couple of hundred from the free sites like The Gutenburg Project. At present I'm reading "The History of the Inquisition" in three volumes. It is more interesting than any modern book I've read. My next assignment is "The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire". All free.

Screen sizes vary, here are the sizes:

5" [Intuos5],

7" [Kindle, Kindle Fire, Kindle Fire HD, Nook Color HD, ASUS Nexus 7, Samsung Galaxy Tab 2, & Polaroid],

7.9/8" [Apple iPad Mini & Coby],

9" [Nook Color HD, Galaxy S III, Leap Pad 2 Explorer, Nabi 2 Kid's Tablet & Lenovo Idea tab]

9.7" iPad ith Retina display

10/10.1" Samsung Galaxy 2, ASUS TF700 Infinity and TF300T Transformer

11.6" Samsung Series 5 Slate (transformer)

Here's how the choices line up by price:

$ 70 Kindle B&W ??GB ??" (Kindle modified Android)

$100 LeapPad 2 ??GB??" ??OS

$100 Polaroid Tablet 4GB 7" (Android ICS)

$120 COBY 4GB 8" (Android ICS)

$160 Kindle Fire 16GB 7" (Kindle modified Android)

$200 Nook HD 8GB 7" (Barnes & Noble modified Android)

$200 Kindle Fire HD16 GB 7" (Kindle modified Android)

$200 Galaxy Tab 2 8GB 7" (Android ICS)

$200 nabi Kids Tablet (Android ___)

$230 Lenovo Idea Tab 16GB 9" (Android ICS)

$230 Intuos5 Small ??GB ??OS

$250 ASUS Nexus 32GB 7"(Android Jelly Bean)

$270 Nook HD+ 16 GB 9" (Barnes & Noble modified Android)

$330 iPad mini 16GB 7.9"

$350 Galaxy Tab 2 16 GB 10.1" (Android ICS)

$430 iPad mini 32GB 7.9"

$450 Galaxy Tablet 16GB 10.1" (Android ICS)

$500 iPad Retina16GB 9.7"

$500 ASUS Transformer 32GB10.1" (Android ICS)

$600 iPad Retina 32GB 9.7"

$750 Samsung Series 5 Slate 64GB SSD & dock (Android ___)

Here are this Sunday's ads:

Here are some web sites that will help you decide or confuse you further.

http://www.squidoo.com/tablet-vs-ereader

http://ebookliterature.wordpress.com/2011/03/21/tabets-vs-ereaders-which-is-better-for-you/

http://www.qvc.com/tabletblog0103.content.html

http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/gadgets/high-tech-gadgets/tablet-or-e-reader.htm

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/reviews/9696510/Best-e-readers-for-Christmas.html

http://www.tabletpc-zone.com/tabletpc_vs_ereaders.html

http://goodereader.com/blog/

Hello all,

Last Thursday I was working in the Genealogy Room and an old man came in. He wanted a history of Volusia County. I guided him to the shelf where he found the book he wanted. He sat down at a table and took out a magnifying glass. After a while he called me over and asked whether that book was available in large print. I said that I was sorry but it wasn't.

I sat back down at the desk and looked over to the old card catalog file. On top is the old magnifying glass which is lighted. I drew his attention to it. He went over and used the glass but I could see he was uncomfortable standing up for very long.

Suddenly I remembered what I call the "Big Eye". It is a home made device that we used to have on a desk over by the off-line computer. When Louise donated the microfiche reader we decided that there had been little or no use of the "Big Eye" and so removed it and put in the microfiche reader.

I thought that the "Big Eye" had been disposed of but when I looked in the back corner there it was. I didn't know whether it still worked, as a matter of fact I have never seen it work. Nonetheless I decided that it would fit nicely on the book cart. I rolled the cart to the back of the room and picked up the TV and it did fit on the cart. I wheeled it to the front of the room then realized that all of the device had not come with the TV. The "Big Eye" is actually two separate devices, the TV and the projector. I brought the projector up and slid it in place under the TV then plugged both units into the power block.

There was one cable coming from the projector that obviously should plug into the TV. It turns out the yellow, video, input on the TV is where the projector connects. I plugged it in and turned everything on and sure enough, when I placed a book on the tray under the projector the TV showed the page in very large and easy to read form on the screen.. The tray moves right and left and in and out. The only problem is that the magnification does not allow a small enough setting to show the whole page without scrolling.

I drew up a chair in front of the TV and showed the man how to use “Big Eye.” He sat down and began to use it to easily read the Volusia History he was interested in. He seemed to like it although he didn't say anything at all.

I went about my business and was at the off-line computer when I saw him walk by the window on his way out! No thanks, no goodbye, nothing ;-) Such is the life of a public servant I guess, he probably had a back ache.

Anyway I thought I'd write up what I learned in case anyone else is asked for help with a visually impaired customer. I don't know who built and donated the "Big Eye", probably someone like one of our departed members, Herbert Price.

I worked with Herb near the end of his life. He was nearly blind from macro degeneration and had torticollis which caused his neck to be bent forward to where he had a hard time raising his head to look at the computer screen. He had a braille-like overlay for his keyboard. I was impressed with his tenacity in pursuing his genealogy although he was suffering greatly and kept messing up his FTW database.

Herb could have used this device.

Jerry

State of the Society

In going over the web site and reviewing the list of officers I am reminded that we have vacancies our ranks. I am filling the position of Recording Secretary for the time being, won't someone step up and take that position please?

I would be happy to relinquish the Web Master position, I'm not very good at it and struggle to keep the site working at all.

Newsletter Editor is another spot that is ripe for a change.  I'm doing the job for now but would like to be rid of it.  I would still contribute but would as soon not be the editor.  It really isn't very difficult, you have three months to prepare each newsletter.  I begin the next issue as soon as the present one has been distributed.  You don't need any special software, I use Open Office Writer, a free text processor.  I'll be glad to show you how I do it.  

We could use a person to arrange trips to various other libraries or archives in surrounding states. The St Augustine Society does it and we can piggy back on their trips by signing up for a trip and driving to St Augustine to join them.

Bob Weaver did a great job of "outreach" to the people at Victoria Gardens who were interested in genealogy.  It would be great if we had a person who could arrange to teach people in other communities or the Girl and Boy Scout troops.  Many of our members would pitch in if asked.

Our Cemetery Project was never completed.  Is there someone out there interested in cemeteries?  Bill Morgan sent a link to a very interesting article at LegalGenealogist.com read the article at  http://tinyurl.com/ajr5664 it discusses the legal ramifications of taking pictures of headstones.  Read this article if you submit photos to Find A Grave or post them on your online genealogy site.  In this litigious society you should know where you stand with the law.  

[I don't know why the background turned from tan to white on that last paragraph and can't seem to correct it. /H/]

What other projects could we consider?  Jump in.

Please respond with comments.

Jerry

I've been working on the web site.  What's new?

The volunteer calendar is now on the site under "HANDOUTS", toward the bottom of the page under a green banner.  You can check to see where we need help. Check out the vacancies and see where you can lend a hand.  Send an email to us at  Roots.Branches.Volusia@gmail.com and let us know that you are interested.

Bob Weaver is leading a new project we call THE BRICK WALL PROJECT.  Check out the request forms which you will find the forms on the HANDOUTS page of the web site, just above the green banner toward the bottom. Fill one out and send it in if there is anything you think we can help you with.

I'm working on posting board and general meeting minutes, beginning from this month's minutes and working back to the beginning of the Society.   It is interesting to read those minutes to see some of the projects and problems the Society has had through the years.

Also posted is the flyer for the Florida Historical Society, 2013 Annual Meeting and Symposium.  This year they will cruise on the Carnival Sensation.  The cruise is called "500 Years of La Florida:Sailing in the path of Discovery!" The cost is relatively cheap, $500 per person, double occupancy, includes cruise, food, featured tours and symposium registration, no taxes, fees or port charges. The Symposium will consist of Paper Presentations, Round Table Discussions, Historic Tours in Nassau, FHS Awards Luncheon and more.  The return from the Bahamas will follow the path taken by Ponce de Leon to Florida.
http://www.floridahistory.org

CamScan of microfilm articles

Today I had an opportunity to use the CamSpan app on my Droid X to copy directly from the microfilm reader screen.  Once captured the app takes over, enhances the scan.  You can same the scan in jpg or pdf  and immediately attach it to an email and deliver it to the person who requested it.

Here are some samples of the output quality:

 This scanner app makes the camera a good scanner just what a good genealogist needs.

Jerry

Web Master Problems

Are there any accomplished Web Masters out there?  Here's an example of why our web site is a mess with various browsers.  I need help.    Jerry

Historical Newspapers

Has anyone else been using the VCPL Historical Newspapers database.  I have found it to be a gold mine.

Looking for my Tolles/Toles family in CT I selected all the CT newspapers and searched on TOLLES OR TOLLS.  This morning I just downloaded article # 114.  I have found obits and/or estate settlement notices beginning in January 1775.

There are a few tricks that might be of interest.

If you don't find your search term highlighted in the article that comes up notice that at the top right is a message .  Click the arrow at the right side of that message and the second page will appear.

The news print from the 1700s and 1800s is seldom crisp and so there are many false returns. For the most part the "hits" can be examined in the small box that is displayed for the hit but sometimes you have to open the article and look for the yellow highlighted word that was hit upon.  For TOLLES OR TOLES there were hits on 'boxes', 'tolerate' etc.  Remember, the character that looks like an 'f' is actually an 's'.

There are several ways to capture the article you have found.  The method that works for me is to first open a MS Notepad screen, type the information that identifies the clipping, highlight and copy it (CTRL-C).  Go back to the article, hoover your mouse over the PDF icon at the top right of the screen.  Wait for the very long URL Newsbank identifier for the article to appear at the bottom of the screen.  Now click the PDF icon.  The article appears my itself, right click and save it.  Before you actually save the file paste (CTRL-V) the identifying information you copied from Notepad in front of the Newsbank file name.  Save the file with the very long but necessary file name.

If you click the PDF icon before the Newsbank URL is finished coming in you will get an error message saying "no data received."

Here is an example of the file name that results:
1775 Jan 18 CT Journal New Haven Thomas Tolles drowned pl_009242012_0826_16011_553.pdf

Here is a screen shot that explains it better:

Jerry

Use your camera as a scanner

     I just downloaded a great new app (Android) which turns the smart phone into a scanner!  I've been testing it and WOW, it works GREAT!!  It is a free app named "CamScanner".

     Once downloaded and installed you tap the icon for CamScan the app comes up with a row of icons at the bottom and a list of folders on the left.

     To begin tap the camera icon at the bottom left.  The phone's camera turns on with a row of icons on the bottom, SETTINGS, SHUTTER, GALLERY, SINGLE SCAN  point the camera to the page of writing and press the shutter control.  The scan is made and the photo presented.   Touch the CHECK MARK at the bottom right to move to the next step or click the 'X' to discard or the CURVED ARROW to take you back a step.

     Now the text photo is presented with a frame that has buttons on the corners and in the middle of each side.  It is a simple matter to adjust the frame to correctly encompass the text you wish to capture.

     When you have it correctly framed touch the CHECK MARK.  The image is automatically trimmed and you are given controls to adjust the image.  CONTRAST, BRIGHTNESS and GAMMA can be adjusted.

     Again touch the CHECK MARK.  The Image is saved into the folder of your choice.  Click the SHARE button and a pdf file is created and you are presented with an array of choices (ten locations on my phone; Upload, FAX, Print, Bluetooth, Dropbox, Email, Picassa, Gmail, Bump, Google Drive) where you would like to send the finished pdf.

     OCR (optical character reader) is performed on the file so when you open it with Acrobat it is searchable.

     This app works smoothly and, although I've only had it for a short while, I think it promises to be a great help to researchers, especially in libraries where copies are 25 or 50 cents or it is not possible to make copies at all.

     I am anxious to try this app on the microfilm reader in the library.  When I get a request for an obituary and find it on the microfilm I usually photograph the screen with my digital camera but that then requires several editing steps before the obit is ready to send to the person requesting it.  This app promises to make that procedure very much easier, allowing me to immediately send the document by email.

     I don't know whether Apple has a similar app for the iPhone, they probably do.

     Give it a try and let us know what you think.

  Jerry

How to Track Down Living People Online

About Genealogy: Newsletter by Kimberly Powell

Tracing living people online presents a unique challenge as privacy laws often protect the records genealogists generally use the most. However, current public records, newspapers, yearbooks, and other resources offer their own assistance with tracking down living cousins, classmates, or birth parents -- even for those tough cases where you may not have a name!

See More About:  people search  finding living people  phone directories

SIGN UP FOR KIMBERLY'S NEWS LETTER, SHE ALWAYS HAS INTERESTING INFORMATION THAT MAY HELP YOU IN YOUR SEARCH.


POPULAR THIS WEEK

- How to Research Methodist Ancestors
http://genealogy.about.com/od/church_records/a/How-To-Research-Methodist-Ancestors.htm?nl=1

- Historical Methodist Church Records & Archives Online
http://genealogy.about.com/od/church_records/tp/Historical-Methodist-Church-Records-And-Archives.htm?nl=1

iArchives, FGS & NARA collaborate to digitize 1812 Pension Applications

iArchives to Collaborate with FGS to Digitize War of 1812 Pension Applications

The following announcement was written by iArchives, a subsidiary of Ancestry.com. It is the division that operates Fold3.com (formerly Footnote.com): Fold3 will be the first online home of the digital pension applications

Lindon, UT – iArchives today announced a collaboration with the Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) to digitize 180,000 pension applications, or an estimated 7.2 million pages of War of 1812 Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files. The collection will be available on iArchives’ military records website, Fold3.com, home of more than 94 million historical records.

The multi-year project will consist of scanning the pension files at the National Archives in Washington D.C. and creating a searchable index to the digital images. FGS has targeted the War of 1812 Pension Applications as a high priority project based on the value of the content for genealogists as well as the importance of preserving the fragile records.

“Our goal with any collaboration is to honor our nation’s heritage by preserving the records of our past,” said Patricia Oxley, President of FGS. “In the specific case of the War of 1812 pension records, there is an added priority due to their frail state where not acting may mean sacrificing these for future generations.”

With the burden of proof on the applicant to qualify for a pension, those applying proved participation in the war by including dozens of vividly descriptive pages. Details recorded include military battle stories, service dates, mentions of fellow soldiers, family relations, marriages, widows’ maiden names and many other clues significant to researchers. The breadth of information allows the pension files to tell the richest story of that time period.

“The most popular database on Fold3 today is the Revolutionary War Pensions which is very similar content,” said Brian Hansen, General Manager at Fold3. “Our users have been asking for the War of 1812 pension records for some time, and I expect this collection to be very popular based on the rich war time detail it contains. We are pleased to make these records available for free on Fold3 as a result of FGS fundraising efforts to subsidize the production cost.”

FGS is proud to be leading the national fundraising to support this project and is actively seeking donations from genealogical and historical societies, patriotic and military heritage societies, as well as interested corporations and individuals. iArchives is providing a dollar-for-dollar match of each donation through a provision of services. To learn more and contribute to the Preserve the Pensions project, visit www.fgs.org/1812.

About iArchives

iArchives is a leading digitization service provider and subsidiary of Ancestry.com (NASDAQ: ACOM). The company operates Fold3, the leading U.S. military record resource on the web with more than 94 million records online. The site provides searchable original documents, providing subscribers with a view of the events, places and people in the conflicts that shaped the American nation and the world. For more information, visit www.fold3.com.

About FGS

The Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS), founded in 1976, links the genealogical community by serving the needs of its member societies, providing products and services needed by member societies, and marshaling the resources of its member organizations. FGS represents the members of hundreds of genealogical societies and engages in projects that help genealogical societies strengthen and grow as well as call attention to records preservation and access issues. FGS can be found on the web at www.FGS.org.

Created by fold3_catalog 30 Apr 2011

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