Greg,
The recent transition you allude to has come in stages. National
(USGenWeb Project) has suddenly been faced with critical decisions,
accompanied by a mountain of tasks. The fact that they have
accomplished this recent move to a new server and the provision for
housing the USGWP Archives is nothing short of a miracle. All of this
has been accomplished without recriminations that might have been
present had our relationship with
Ancestry.com not been as amicable
as it has been.
Each stage in the transition from RootsWeb page housing, from
national to state level, has been not been without complications.
This issue took most of us by surprise. The fact that our elected
officials have been able to exercise good judgement indicates that
the USGWP is here to stay-- and will continue to provide FREE
GENEALOGY to those who have relied on us over the past decade.
I was with you in the old Maiser days and share your concerns. My
lists go back to the mid 1990's and continue to prosper under
RootsWeb sponsorship. We have reached the next stage where the
housing of existing lists has become a serious issue of concern.
Based on recent actions taken by our Advisory Board, I am confidant
that they will find a solution regarding our lists in this, the
latest stage of the USGenWeb evolution.
The concerns you have expressed mirror mine. I am also concerned that
this rich source of genealogical material has the potential to appear
on a subscription site.
Without reservation, I expect these concerns are being addressed by
National as we speak. Not being a member of the USGWP Advisory Board
or a current state officer, I can't provide any concrete assurances
but have every confidence that avenues will be provided to assuage
your concerns.
Cordially,
Derick S. Hartshorn
former NC State Coordinator, NCGenWeb Project
current USGenWeb Project-County Coordinator
Catawba/Burke/Lincoln/Gaston/Cleveland, NC
http://www.ncgenweb.us/catawba/
http://www.ncgenweb.usncburke/
http://www.ncgenweb.us/clincoln/
http://www.ncgenweb.us/gaston/
http://www.ncgenweb.us/cleveland/
http://www.ncgenweb.us/conover/
http://www.ncgenweb.us/white/
At 03:15 PM 4/11/2008, you wrote:
Hi, Derick
First off, many thanks for the work you do for NC genealogy. I am list
admin of the Lovelace mailing list on Rootsweb, where we migrated after the
downfall of the old MAISER server at Indiana University many moons ago. I
was wondering if there are any rumblings about the ability to find another
host for the mailing lists. The corporate outlook for Rootsweb is
discouraging for many of my list members, and for me as well. There are
several of us on a few lists who are coming under fire because of the loose
way we run our lists... we allow a lot of discussion, most of it based in
family history, but not all. We try to engender a familial feeling on our
lists which we believe nurtures a feeling of belonging and a willingness to
share information.
At least one of us has been threatened by the Rootsweb listmaster, and I was
threatened by a disgruntled list member who, off his medication for some
disorder, was upset that we were not talking solely about genealogy.
At any rate, having done this for nearly two decades now, I can see the
writing on the wall. I feel that either Ancestry will assert it's corporate
muscle over Rootsweb or that Rootsweb might just eventually cease to exist.
I was just wondering what you might be hearing. Might it be possible to
house mailing lists on the servers that the Genweb folks have found?
Thanks for any insight....
Peace,
Part of the Tree,
Greg Lovelace