Family Research - Classes - Workshops - Consultation
Hard to notice the difference in the name, isn’t it. Considering that one of the services is selling their test for $69, our eyes seem to glaze over when it comes to the name. AncestryDNA has certainly had its ups and downs, but for the last several months or even a couple of years, they’ve improved…
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Many researchers justify their filing “system” with the defensive, “Oh, I know where everything is!” I know that’s what they say, because I’m saying that (to myself) all the time! I really do know where everything is, of course. It’s somewhere in my office, where else would it be? But if you really and truly…
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In response to an assignment arising from HOA “GenTools Study Group” I have to say that I have very little in the way of hardware to support my research efforts. For online research, it’s my (not so) trusty Lenovo T540p laptop. I thought I had made a wise decision but it has been anything but! It’s…
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It is easily said that I can sometimes be too quick while other times be very slow to adapt to new technologies, hardware, software, peripherals or other genealogical research tools. Tonight, of course, the old workhorse software program that I’ve “grown up with” is going away. Family Tree Maker® is currently in its last iteration…
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When the subject of DNA comes up, I like to give people the simplest answers so that their eyes don’t glaze over: The three types (Y-DNA, mtDNA, and atDNA) what each can do and what each CANNOT do. It’s important to have at least a basic understanding of your reasons to test so that you…
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There’s an interesting DNA case that has been developing in Britain. There is a dispute involving the 13th century Pringle of Stichill, with Stichill being a town and civil parish in the county of Roxburghshire in Scotland. Described in the article as a “bitter dispute,” 2 lines of Pringle men are battling out the true and rightful heir…
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At the November meeting of the Western Massachusetts Genealogical Society (WMGS), we listened to a presentation titled, “CSI Gravestones: Causes of Death.” Although that may sound a bit on the morbid side, one of the details that most genealogists look for is the cause of death. The intriguing nature of this presentation was the highlighting of…
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The Chicopee Public Library at 449 Front Street in Chicopee, Massachusetts has been designated a Family History Center by the Church of Latter Day Saints (LDS). These are the folks who bring us billions of genealogical records to research at their website Family Search and they do it for free! On Thursday, 19 November 2015, representatives…
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Today was the first NERGC delegate meeting in which Western Massachusetts Genealogical Society was officially involved. I’ve been a delegate for NEAPG for quite a while and attended today. But WMGS is now officially a “Participating Society” for the 2017 NERGC conference (New England Regional Genealogical Conference) being held at the MassMutual Conference Center in…
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For the record, I didn’t attend a “grade” school. I attended a “grammar” school where we learned, among a myriad of other subjects, grammar. Anyone who writes anything may be confronted with issues of “grammar.” Since I have been known to write a thing or two, I felt compelled to watch these videos for a…
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