Genies Monday and More

The monthly Genies zoom meeting is coming up next Monday, August 17 at 1:00.  I will send the zoom invitation on Monday morning.  Can’t wait!

The only time-sensitive offers in this post are MyHeritage photo enhancer/colorizer and the FGS Conference early bird pricing deadline this Saturday.

 It’s a good time to update Zoom.  They have advanced from release  5.1 to 5.2.  This signifies a major update.  The way I update is to open my Zoom app on Windows 10.  I click on my picture in the upper right and then in the dropdown, click on “Check for Updates”.  It’s quick and easy.  It may differ depending on your device. 

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There’s always kerfuffle going on with genealogists.  Kerfuffle, a good word my grandmother used to use.  Not a Croatian word, but a combination from Scots, English, and Irish.  It means commotion or fuss.   There’s plenty of fuss around in the genealogy world recently.

I’m also reminded of an old Commander I used to work for in the Navy.  I’d run into his office with my hair on fire about one thing or another.  He’d always pause, lean back in his chair, and say, “I can’t get too excited about that”.  I learned that it is best to listen to the bloggers and let the dust settle before I pass news on to you.  The current fuss is about Ancestry’s sale to an investment firm.

Linda B says this about the recent purchase of 75% of Ancestry.com by Blackstone.  “Cyndi Ingle just banned any discussions about the Blackstone purchase on the Genealogy Squad Facebook page she helps moderate.

“Her reasoning is that there are already a lot of opinion articles circulating that are not based in fact.  She directed readers to this blog post: 

https://www.legalgenealogist.com/2020/08/07/business-as-usual/

“In her blog post (linked above), Judy Russell reminds us that three private investment firms sold their interest in Ancestry to another one.  Concern about your privacy and data is legitimate, but Ancestry has been in the hands of private equity firms for years.

“I know you often share news from the genealogy world with Genies, which I appreciate!  I thought you might be interested in this perspective.  It doesn’t change the fact that we need to be thoughtful about our data and privacy issues.  It does call into question the sudden panic over this sale, when the sellers were also investment firms.”

From Roberta Estes: “An article this week in Vice quotes both an Ancestry and a Blackstone spokesperson on the topic who say that Blackstone will not have access to user data nor will it be shared with Blackstone’s portfolio companies.”

My take on this:  The people with their hair on fire are saying you should move your data away from  Ancestry.  Personally, I am not changing anything.  The new owners would be ill-advised to anger and aggravate their existing customers.   They might upset us, but what else is new. 

Free Education

With every genealogy business and society heading online, there is no end to the wonderful online resources. 

Judy S passes on:  “check out on Facebook--Family History Library ?  They put on Live Videos.”

And, https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Family_History_Library_Classes_and_Webinars is a robust list of Upcoming Webinars followed by Past Webinars and Handouts.

New England Historic Genealogical Society: I have a guest membership to this 185-year old society in Boston and I receive their email newsletter.  In these COVID times, they have numerous webinars and author events which appear to be free.  Also, they have fee-based online courses.  Check it out here:  https://www.americanancestors.org/education/online-classes

 DNAPainter has a new monthly email newsletter.  There has been one from Genetic Affairs for a while.

Free access to MyHeritage Photo Enhancer and colorizing until September 10.  A full month.  I have had mixed results with the Enhancer.  Sometimes I can’t tell the difference but in one fuzzy picture where I am two years old, it pulled out my face into perfect focus.  Amazing.  https://www.geneamusings.com/2020/08/free-access-to-myheritage-photo.html   Lisa Louise Cooke has a free video with a handout on these new features here: https://lisalouisecooke.com/free-webinar-photo-discoveries/

 

Genealogy Conferences

All the regular conferences are going virtual.  Prices seem to be similar to their onsite registration but not paying for airfare, hotels, or meals makes them real deals.  Some have “right-sized” packages to choose from depending on how many lectures you will have access to and special features.  Many are have Expo rooms.

In order of appearance:

Federation of Genealogical Societies:   Online Live Day on September 2 with top speakers.  Many on-demand recorded lectures available after September 15.  Plus virtual Exhibit Hall also starting September 15.  The Lite version is $130 early bird price before this Saturday, August 15.  Prices go up from there.  https://fgs.org/annual-conference/

Virtual Genealogical Association:  November 13-15  $59 USD for VGA members, $79 USD for non-members.  Annual dues are $20 for one year from the date you register.  Might as well get a membership and break even.  All sessions are recorded and available for six months.  Check it out here. https://virtualgenealogy.org/annual-conference/   Note:  Linda B and I are members

RootsTech:  Mark your calendars for February 2-6, 2021.  They have provided top-class virtual options for years.  Recently I received a survey asking how they could take the most loved features of RootsTech online.  They are really working on a great experience as usual.  Details coming in the fall.