Hi Tim,
l don't remember exactly what each county was doing. I think one had their own query
system set up. I think one was just linking to the ancestry message board for that county
which I don't know if that method passes the bylaw but it seems to be ok when one
reads the usgw website for volunteers. Same with those that just link to the rootsweb
county mailing list which seems to be the most popular method nowadays but in my
experience the old rootsweb county boards are hardly used anymore. If memory serves,
someone had written a query system for usgenweb coordinators many years ago. I remember it
as being cumbersome and requiring html being embedded.
Today I use a free message board system put out by
minuteboard.com. One of mine is here
for an example - http://emmonsnd.minuteboard.com/m/b/a/index.html - you'll notice
large view numbers but I believe that is mostly robots. Setting it up was very easy but
most work was in converting old queries to it.
Personally, if leadership does not have a problem with just linking to another system to
satisfy the bylaw, then it would be much more easier for the coordinators to do it that
way. They don't need to spend their volunteer time trying to manage queries.
We are talking about a process that seems to be going away because of little use by
researchers.
I've seen some excellent ideas on how to post the old queries. Just need to pick what
pleases you.
Thanks for bringing the question up. Good discussion going on.
Sincerely,
Mike
On 7/11/2016 8:17:23 AM, Timothy Stowell via <usgenweb-discuss(a)rootsweb.com> wrote:
Mike,
Curious when you say you converted queries from an old system - what the
old system was and what the new one is?
Tim
On Sun, Jul 10, 2016 at 7:48 AM, Mike Peterson via <>
usgenweb-discuss(a)rootsweb.com> wrote:
Periodically I send a test email to all in my query, surnames, and
volunteer lookups addees. If it bounces, I remove it all together. In my
mind, it doesn't serve to frustrate a visiting researcher with bad links or
bad email addresses.
Speaking to the query requirement as a whole: While it may certainly be a
very active process in some counties, it has crawled to nothing in my four
counties.
1 - about 80 queries I converted from an old system in 2009. Latest add or
comment - September 2014.
2 - about 50 queries I converted from an old system in 2009. Latest add or
comment - October 2015.
3 - took over county in February 2016. Converted about 10 queries from old
system. No activity.
4 - took over deserted county in 2014. Query system was very old but
recall there was no activity. Before I could convert to new system,
previous queries lost by rootsweb. After several tries of recovering,
established new system in March 2016. No activity.
I remember in it's day, it was a very good source and I used it a lot in
my research. Current technology has pretty much made it archaic. If it
wasn't a bylaw requirement [Section XI.C.], I would have discontinued mine.
I've tried to make it look current, look active and a good resource to no
avail.
Again, my experience only and it may be a very active and good tool in
other counties.
Along the same intent of the bylaw, I've established facebook groups for
each of my four counties. Except for one county, actual activity is not
much better than the query systems although the lookie-loo is evident. I do
have a lady in one county who does a lot of research in a community in that
county and has provided a lot of good information. We have a standing
agreement that I may take what she offers on facebook and place it in my
county site which I do and I give her credit on my site for it.
Mike Peterson
On 7/9/2016 5:42:06 PM, Timothy Stowell via
wrote:
Working on an old site, it shows 215 broken links of which a vast majority
are from email addresses where the return says 'no such host'. I realize
many are from ISPs that went belly up or were absorbed by another entity.
Thus the question - does the Project, states or counties or you have any
rule on how long one retains queries on-line? Do you just comment out the
email address, note it as dead but leave the query or dispose of them after
so many months or years?
I have queries back to 1996 on some sites.
Tim S.
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