Category: Research

New Practice Exercises for The Family History Guide

We have been working hard on adding new Record Search Practice Exercises to the website. We now have over 540 of them, with more to come. Using Practice Exercises is a great way to sharpen your skills with using record collections from around the world. You can easily locate the Practice Exercises using this spreadsheet: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1G8YRrJXc1ofmzF2YGu1FL1plt0qzTG4o-rW4RBvS5lc Countries and Territories with...

Sounds Good to Me!

Have you ever noticed your attention starting to wander a bit when you are watching a lengthy webinar or other research video, or even studying family history articles? A bit of background music may be just what you need. Playing your favorite tunes might work, but because they are your favorites, your attention might actually wander towards the music. Here’s...

Live & Unrehearsed Video Series: Episodes 41 and 42

Here are more videos from the “Live and Unrehearsed” series. These videos will give you insight into how to do research online. They are released on the Goldie May YouTube Channel. Below are the links to Episodes 39 and 40: Episode 41 shows to to separate families that were accidentally merged, while cleaning up the facts, sources, and memories. Episode...

Introducing FamilySearch Labs

At RootsTech 2024, FamilySearch spread the word about an exciting new venture on its website: the FamilySearch Labs. At the current time, there are five experiments you can try, after signing in to FamilySearch: Expand Your Search with Full Text – There are a few collections that can now be searched with full-text capabilities and keyword searches. A video is...

New: Links to RootsTech 2024 Videos

RootsTech 2024 wrapped up just over a week ago, but there are plenty of videos in the RootsTech On Demand Library to enjoy. We recently completed the addition of over 100 links in The Family History Guide to some of the best RootsTech videos that are currently online (we’ve been busy!) Here are some of the pages on the website...

Introducing the FamilySearch Profile Quality Score

Note: This article was published previously on the Genealogy’s Star blog site. RootsTech 2024 was the forum for announcing a valuable feature that helps with the FamilySearch.org Family Tree accuracy. FamilySearch announced the Profile Quality Score which is featured in the FamilySearch.org/Labs website. When this feature is activated by turning it on, it appears on Profile Page of entries in the Family Tree...

Update on The Family History Guide Practice Exercises

The Practice Exercises for The Family History Guide country pages continue to roll along. We now have almost 450 exercises for a variety of records, with problem statements, hints, and answers. As of this writing, the exercises cover 39 countries, 50 U.S. states, and 39 England counties. The Practice Exercises page in the Trainers menu explains how to use the...

Live and Unrehearsed Video Series: Episodes 39-40

Here are some recent videos from the “Live and Unrehearsed” series. These videos will give you insight into how to do research online. They are released on the Goldie May YouTube Channel. Below are the links to Episodes 39 and 40: Episode 39 explores DNA matches, how to use Ancestry ThruLines, and building your family tree with DNA results. Episode...

Live and Unrehearsed Video Series: Episodes 36-38

Here are some recent videos from the “Live and Unrehearsed” series. These video will give you insight into how to do research online. They are released on the Goldie May YouTube Channel. Below are the links to Episodes 36, 37, and 38: Episode 36 explore FAN-club (Friends, Associates, and Neighbors) research in Iowa. Episode 37 uses books and cemetery information...

New QRB Video: Starting Research in Austria

We have added a new video to our QRB (Quick Research Basics) playlist: Starting Your Genealogical Research in Austria, by James Tanner. It covers history, geography, research tips and more, to help you find your Austrian ancestors. There are now 88 videos in the QRB playlist, covering many countries around the world as well as providing basic tips for successful research...