APG-L Archives

Archiver > APG > 2006-03 > 1141401865


From: Rebecca Rector <>
Subject: Re: [APG] Internet and Genealogy
Date: Fri, 3 Mar 2006 08:04:25 -0800 (PST)
In-Reply-To: <F875F4D4-C72C-42A0-88DD-A5A59B737392@bigpond.net.au>


Craig:
I know that Ancestry has some problems with indexing
etc., but that is true of many records, online or not.
They still have an invaluable service, providing
census and other records. Where else can one search
the census for the entire U.S. in the comfort of home?
One feature that I find invaluable is the wildcard
search. None of the other online census vendors have
the wildcard and soundex searching that Ancestry does.
I use it dozens of times a day (some days!), in
searching census for clients and for writing projects.
And, as others have mentioned, it's important to
learn the tips and tricks of searching, utilizing all
of the features, trying to figure out how names would
be spelled, etc. etc.
I am helping to computerize and proofread Catholic
Church records of Troy, NY (through Amer. Canadian
Genealogy Soc.). One set of records I'm working with
has such tiny, scrawled handwriting, in Latin, that
it's very difficult to make out what the names are. We
do the best we can, using 3 sets of eyes: one to type
the records, and 2 proofreaders checking against the
original. But the records are so difficult that people
using them to look for ancestors will really have to
use their imaginations! Errors will be rampant.
However, it's still better than not doing this work at
all, and having the records sit in the church with no
public access (and church staff not having the time to
search them for those who request look-ups). The
bottom line is that we have to work around the errors,
in online and other sources.
Rebecca



Rebecca Rector, MLS
RbInfo Research
Troy, NY
www.rbinforesearch.com

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