Hi, Rod:
There are pros and cons of a move from RootsWeb to another server.
You mentioned "header pointers" in your message, quoted at the end of this one.
I am not sure what you mean by this. In addition to the URL changes, there will also be
"banners" added to all RootsWeb-hosted free sites. This may be what you meant.
You raised other issues, on which I will focus. RootsWeb's Acceptable Use Policy and
the related agreement(s) with USGenWeb are what allow RW to integrate information hosted
on their servers with other information on RW,
Ancestry.com, or any of the other services
provided by the parent company, The Genealogy Network "TGN". It is important to
note that "integrate" in this context means presentation, indexing, and some
kinds of linking, **NOT** ownership or control. If a site is removed by its author from
RW, TGN no longer has the right to "integrate" that site's content into any
of its other services. It will not keep a copy of the site (except on backups that may be
on tape, for example, but that would not give TGN the right to restore and use that copy
without, say, a court order).
RW will not include a moved site in its search engine. Inclusion in searches is part of
the deal for RW's free site hosting, and has been for some time (if not always). It is
probably the biggest benefit of putting a site on RW, as compared to other free hosting
options. Likewise, as part of the "integration" I mentioned, sites hosted by RW
may, at TGN's discretion, be presented to persons logged in to the paid
Ancestry.com
service, as part of that service. This is **an additional option** to the concurrent,
parallel, *FREE* direct access through RootsWeb. Obviously, any site moved off RW will no
longer be presented by
Ancestry.com either. For those who wish their sites to get maximum
exposure, this is a loss; whether enough of a loss to be a deciding factor is up to the
site owner.
USGenWeb seems to believe that establishing and maintaining a separate identity for the
National site, at least, is a good thing. In my opinion that is probably true. Part of the
recent change at RW will put consistent banners on all of the free sites, perhaps leading
to the impression that USGenWeb is "part of RootsWeb". This has never been true.
However, presentation of the free RW sites as part of the parallel, paid service is
sometimes misunderstood as "Ancestry.com is selling my data". This is also not
true. In some cases avoiding that may be the motivation for moving an individual site
elsewhere, and if so it is unfortunate, like any other decision based on bad information.
Disclosures: I do have a Web site of my own. It is not on RootsWeb, for reasons that seem
good to me; I pay for the hosting, and own the domain. It is decidedly Vermont-centric, as
you can see from the home page currently at:
http://www.darrell-martin.net/genealogy2/
I do not currently subscribe to any TGN paid service, although I have been an
Ancestry.com
subscriber in the past and expect to be a subscriber in the future. I have no other
financial interest in TGN or any of its related companies.
Darrell
-----Original Message-----
From: Rod Skinner <rjs5(a)yahoo.com>
Sent: Mar 27, 2008 7:43 PM
To: vtgen(a)rootsweb.com
Subject: Re: [VTGEN] USGenWeb url
Hi Ann,
As I understand it, the domain "www.rootsweb.com" will be translated into the
new Ancestry version and nothing will change except possibly some header
pointers. The header pointers would likely change on either machine.
If I would like to maintain the information on the USGenWeb server and move to
the new
http://usgenweb.org/ site, I have some questions.
1. Will Ancestry forward SEARCH ENGINE matches to the new
usgenweb.org server
site or will they capture the viewers?
2. Will they keep and use a copy of the data currently the websites?
3. Will there be any changes to file types, sizes, .... to either sever?
4. Do you as VT State Coordinator have a recommendation or preference to make
it easier for you?
5. Contact person for account or space instructions?
I am trying to figure out the options.
thanks
rod
Darrell A. Martin
a native Vermonter in exile in Illinois
darrellm(a)sprynet.com