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From: "Susan Williams" <>
Subject: Free Genealogy vs ETHICAL Genealogy
Date: Mon, 30 Jul 2001 18:21:24 -0700
References: <010301c11910$056598c0$150203d0@computer>


Snipped from an email: Subject: Free Genealogy
"...new to genealogy and thought these lists would ..quickly get in contact with people ..ask for lookups. Not all ..have the time or resources to spend hundreds of dollars.. searching for the information.. but that shouldn't mean that us newcomers should be denied a chance of nowing our families history....
.... I have great respect for the oldtimers who have had to search high and low for their information, but the attitude of "I found my information, now you go find yours!" is quite appalling......"
end of snip

To all Newcomers to Genealogy:
As an "old timer" ( 30+ yrs ) may I share the background of what you have entered into?
Over the years, serious researchers spent time working with local groups (Genie & Historical), to help further the cause of ACCURATE research.
This avocation....hobby or otherwise is NOT a free lunch ! It costs money for records, copies, publications (all media), memberships, travel etc. If someone is not able expend energy & money, they need to get themselves something else to occupy their time.
Regardless of what Commercial groups are touting, it is NOT all on the Net, never will be and if/when a piece of information you need DOES appear on the Commerical sites, I can quarantee you it will probably cost you money to join them to get it. (Ex: Net or CD Census films)
We (myself included) might live far from an ancestral County or State, but we helped where we could. Many of us sent our Annual Dues and in return received Newsletters, and learned as much as we could about our geographic area of interest. We bought County Books, attended Seminars and Meetings and took on projects to HELP the locals. When we discovered something of value, we tried to share it with others, maybe even publishing articles in Genealogy Journals.
In other words...we WORKED for our data.
The locals saved documents from destruction and built the Archives, the body of material for us to use. They spend countless hours getting scarce and valuable data onto ROOTSWEB - A FREE site comprised of Genealogy Societies all over the USA. They got those books on local items published, and SOLD them to help with new projects. They are NON PROFIT. This work was VOLUNTEER work. They help others constantly, but based on their time allowed.
In addition, "Old Timers" actually went to Libraries, Seminars and took classes. We spent time & money to bring our family lines into some semblence of order. We bought & read the books, Journals and Court records, tramped old Cemeteries and fought for and with local groups to restore and maintain the records of our past. We paid for copies of Records, sometimes waiting months to receive something we needed so badly.
Saying all this, what most of us have accomplished is a considerable body of work based on personal RESEARCH & lots of self-discipline. We also learned a standard of ethics about WHAT to cite and how to CITE it. Attributions for sources is not an option...it is REQUIRED.
What I obtain from you MUST contain your verifiable sources, with credit given to ALL those contributing to what you produce. You have every right to expect the same standards from me. We have the right to expect OUR work to be attributed to US...and not stuck inside someone's ego-driven Web Page, as their own efforts.
If you & I speculate on an issue - privately, it is UNETHICAL to send it out as gospel to appear on someone's webpage on submitted in a Gedcom to a Commerical group.
If EITHER of us falls short of these standards, then it is not 'sharing'..it is 'theft' & 'deception'.
Today, with electronic instant Genealogy, we find our work stolen by others, placed on websites & CD's without our permission (and without attribution). Like the ego-based books of the past, it is now part of an ever-growing maze of Genie-Junk.
People (old & new) with no common sense or personal ethics, think nothing of submitting ALL data (theirs, mine & yours) to Commerical Genealogy outfits.
WARNING - read the fine print : When you submit Gedcom files to a Commercial group, you LEGALLY turn over all that information to them, to use as they see fit.
In turn, these Commercial houses cull the data, have NO regard or responsibility for the accuracy of the submissions, and spew CD's out for the unwary, gullible public.
It is McGenie for for masses.
We have always had the Junk...it is just spreading at an alarming rate with no end in sight.
So, when someone hesitates to "share ALL their data" with someone, it is ethics, caution & experience - NOT selfishness.
Think of what YOU offer back to them. New information? The desire to WORK to get a line straightened out? Joint publication to a reputable Genealogy publication or a Copyright-protected Family Association? What credentials do YOU bring to the equation?
Most of us "old timers" are tired of being burned, and it is up to a newcomer to prove themself ethical and serious enough to handle what they ask for.
It is one thing to ask someone to "lookup" an item in a book, but DO NOT expect someone to copy massive pages from a book for you. BUY the book yourself, and pay the author for their time and effort. That is ETHICS and respect for Copyrights.
Many of us have built a body of work based on independent evaluation of evidence and thought and now preface our work with a Warning. Our works are covered under Copyright laws and ANY use of them on a Personal website or to/by Commerical group is forbidden.
Harsh? Perhaps, but it is the way Ethical Genealogy is going to evolve.
The Instant McGenie's can cull from CD's and Gedcoms until they turn blue - and become the Halberts of the electronic age. People who are "into Genealogy" to amass huge Gedcom data bases are now called "Body Snatchers" and have no credibility. They can do without MY data.
Regards,
Susan Bidwell Williams
Past President AZ Chapter, OGS
Permission to reprint in NON-PROFIT media is granted.


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