Hi Listers!
Ive been getting lots of mail about researching online so I thought I would
post a little something to that effect.
First I want to say that there is a LOT of free information on the internet.
Often it is a good idea to remember that you get what you pay for--ie, if
its free it may or may not be useful and correct. Online genealogy is
intended to be a way to get clues to where to do the real research. Most
organizations will not accept anything with a source cited as being online
as real references. You need to do your own transcribing from Actual Census
Pages or birth records or whatever to know that it is factual and correct.
Always be wary of lineages you find online. Even from researchers you know
are legitimate and generally correct. Use the information you find to do
your own verification. While I may say on my website that my father was
born in Ravenswood, WV and you need birth information on him, it is always
preferred to actually search the records for that locality yourself to make
sure. Information on websites can be VERY helpful if you need a starting
point, but should NEVER be considered the final fact.
Second, be aware that anything on the internet is open to the public.
Recently there was an issue with GenForum and spam. Some company went to
the genforum (or any other bullitin board for that matter) and cultivated
emails to send spam. If you post your email address here at rootsweb,
anyone can see it. Nearly all companies have policies that 'forbid' people
from gleaning that sort of information for marketing purposes but we all
know there is a huge difference between what is legal and what actually
happens.
Third, places like
genseeker.com and
ancestry.com which offer pay-for
services arent necessarily 'scams'. Yes they may link to other sites which
are normally free, but what you are paying for is the convienience of having
it all right there in one place. That's alot easier than doing a broad
search on Google or other search engine. I personally use
Ancestry.com with
great success. But I also use Cyndi's List and
Rootsweb.com (both are free)
first to get pointed in the right direction, then use my ancestry for a more
specific search. Having the census images online is a great help to me.
I welcome any comments (please send them to me privately) and experiences
you have had online. Good Luck with all your searching!
List Admin
Robin Pyatt Bellamy
www.triedit.net
Member, OGS, NGS, GHRS