Wednesday, May 9, 2018

May 9 DIRT Meeting

We had a great time with everyone using their computers to use USGS maps on Google Earth Pro and then overlaying their own images (jpg file) of a map/chart/plat onto Google Earth Pro.  It was an interesting new way to be able to find where our ancestors lived. 

For a copy of the presentation: Click here, and the handout: Click here.

We heard some great success stories of members using Worldcat to find a book, then ordering it through Inter library loan and also using Facebook groups to reach out to others, (example given was the use of the Irish DNA registry).  Lets keep sharing and having fun.

Denise Doyon brought to my attention a new "Virtual Genealogical Society" which just started.  They do not have any content yet, however they do have a full list of programs becoming available starting in June 2018.  It is a minimum dues of $20 for 1 year.  Their website is: http://virtualgensoc.com/.
I have joined and will let you know how it goes.

Thursday, May 3, 2018

May 2, 2018 Meeting

Great participation and hands-on using Family Tree Maker.  During this session we focused on three areas of Family Tree Maker:

(1) Creating Custom Reports
(2) Using Filters for indexing and reports
(3) Media

During the session everyone used their own computers and FTM to create a custom fact and then to use the Filtering feature of FTM to customize their index view. 

The power of using FTM is awesome and most of us are not aware of all the features available to us after we have inputted our data, merged data from Ancestry or FamilySearch, or copied someone else's family tree chart.  No matter how the data was entered, FTM has many ways in which you can now use it for (1) Location based research, (3) Event based research or (3) Descendant research.