TX-CEMETERIES-L Archives

Archiver > TX-CEMETERIES > 2004-11 > 1101052515


From: "Tammy Blandino" <>
Subject: RE: TX-CEMETERIES-D Digest V04 #81
Date: Sun, 21 Nov 2004 09:55:15 -0600
In-Reply-To: <000e01c4ce52$e9b12f80$be23140a@weldonpc>


> I have a few concerns about your idea.

Good! We need people to point out these things. Thank you for doing so.

> If you all plan on taking Cemetery information from the TXGenWeb
> Project Archives or Pages and end up charging fees, I for one would
> be very upset, also I am not sure if I would want you to take whatever
data you
> want, without linking to the page itself and giving credit to the persons
> who actually did the work in the first place, or the TXGenWeb Project.

First of all, I don't want to charge a fee at all. However, if we run into
financing problems that may be something we have to investigate. I prefer
to keep genealogical access free.

Second, I'm hoping to get the TXGenWeb project to be a part of this. I
haven't approached anyone yet because we haven't even gotten out of the
basement on this project yet, much less have an idea if it is going to fly.
I would prefer to have something a little more concrete when I (or someone
else) talk to them.

> I have hundreds if not over a thousand headstone pictures but I am
> leery about the posting of them now, I hate to plaster txt on them
> "Free For the TXGenWeb Project, if you paid you were took" or
> something simular, but guess I would have to since no one believes in
giving credit to where > they got the photos anymore ( and photo's belong to
the photographer, per > copyright laws).

Allow me to explain. I worked as a Information Specialist in a research
library for several years. I am quite familiar with copyright and all it
implies. No one is trying to take anyone's work without permission and
without credit. It is my intention to get permissions and give credit where
it is rightfully due.

All I'm trying to do is create a centralized place to search for
information, preferably a FREE location. I would very much like for you and
others like to be a part of it. You deserve to have your work make
available and deserve all the credit for it.

What I'm trying to do is to make it easier for people to search the
cemeteries of Texas.

> If it was just a person's name and a link to the site or cemetery page
> or > just the the county and cemetery that might work, but right now
reading these threads, it sounds more like another money making non profit
Idea, > Grants, fees, etc.

1. I do not want to charge fees.

2. I want to get a grant (public or private) to help cover the costs
involved, not to make money. I know of no rich people. I'm certainly not
rich.

> I am not sure if I would be for this idea, I have put some the
> cemeteries > from our county online for Free Access for the TXGenWeb
> Project and already had problems with an person, copying ver batim my
> complete survey's and photograghs and even my personal thoughts and
> notes and posting on their "Cemeteries of TX " Websites. Several TXGenWeb
coordinator's will know whom I am speaking of or lest the site .

I sorry that you had that experience. Unfortunately there is always going
to be someone who is willing to take credit for someone else's work. It is
a sad thing to see and hear.

I can understand that you are leary given your experiences. There is
nothing that I will be able to say that will alleviate that. Only my
actions or in-actions will do that.

I would very much like you to be a part of this project, if for no other
reason than to help keep us on the straight and narrow. :)


> Now I know names and dates are public information and not
> copyrightable but format, photographs, hand drawings and if I happen to
write my view
> of what something is or how it fits is Copyrightable. Yea I complained
> to the website and she took all my notes, photos that I edited and
> texted > into a format, She has removed my notes, and from her page.
> this person > hides behind unsuspecting person who share links with her
and she takes that as permission from the website creator to use the
information, no links to the page, they just out right copy the format and
information
> and pretend it is a real honest to good separate survey and not a copy.

> The only consulation I have about it, is she was not very careful with
> the > data and has not updated the information and lest for the county
> I coordinate, most the information she has posted will not help anyone as
it is outdated.

Every domain name (web address) is listed on the international Whois
database (www.whois.com). This is considered public information. You can
find out who owns that domain name and take them to court for copyright
infringement. They are the responsible part for the domain. Take the last
two sections of the url (for example: rootsweb.com, yahoo.com,
Microsoft.com, ebay.com). Ignore the www's in front or anything else in
front. Those last two pieces in the URL is the domain name.

If ever you come across someone doing something shady on the internet you
can find the owner of the domain through the domain name registration. The
owner is legally responsible for any activity on their domain.

> Here are some questions I am interested in, rather than who can get a
> grant, how will it get paid for, charges etc.

I'm not exactly sure which part you are asking about. First of all, grants
are "gifts" of money from either the government or some private organization
to help a particular person or organization. Most grants are non-profit,
meaning that only non-profit organizations can apply for them.

Becoming a non-profit organization is very difficult and time consuming. At
best it takes a year to get that status. It is usually easier and better to
come under an already existing non-profit. This is one of the reasons why I
was thinking to asking for assistance from the TXGenWeb. I also want to see
this continue beyond us. The best way for that to happen is to have a large
non-profit sponsor it.

> Will you contact the webmasters or the persons who did the actual surveys
> and let them know you are taking their work?

I honestly didn't think about it, but you are right. My intent was to use
it as a jumping off place. Like I said earlier, the lists need to be
re-inventoried for accuracy. I've see too much inaccuracy on the net in
regards to genealogical information to take any of it at face value.

However, we will need to contact any list owner and verify whether or not
they would be willing to let us use their list.

> will you be able to give source information or links or are you going
> to claim all compilations as your own work?

Since you don't know me this is a very valid question (as distasteful as I
find it being insinuated). I hope that by this point in my email you will
understand how adamant I am about people getting credit for what they do.
But if you'd like I can give you references of people that I have worked
with on projects in the past. They will tell you how strongly I feel about
giving recognition where it is due.

> Ther are so many sources out there for cemeteries, it is hard to think
> that if something is already available on the internet, that one
> could not find it.

Oh, how you must not understand search engines (I am guessing). Besides,
this isn't about it being or not being available. This is about
centralizing the information. The biggest problem in genealogy today is the
decentralization of information. Well, the second biggest. The BIGGEST
problem is people failing to cite their sources and making assumptions and
publishing them on websites as facts. THAT'S the biggest problem. But a
close second would be the de-centralization of all this information.

To give you an example: My mother's family all come from Colorado County,
Texas. They've been there since the Texas Revolution and before. One of my
ancestors married his wife sometime between 1860 and 1872, but I could never
find the marriage. Just recently I got a bead on that marriage in Goliad
County, which is three counties away and not at all in the family migration
patters. Had that information been centralized I wouldn't have spent 25
years trying to find that marriage.

> it is the stuff that is not on line already, that will remain off line if
> someone doesn't physically add it. A Databases will not change that.

You are correct and I do intend for that to get addressed. By putting
together a centralized site, we can get an list of each cemetery in each
county. We can then get volunteers to go and inventory the missing
cemeteries. The idea is to coordinate the effort.

> Just my thoughts

And very much appreciated. Thank you!

Tammy

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