Sign up today for a free Legacy Family Tree webinar

Legacy Family Tree Webinars is offering a free webinar on Wednesday, November 28, 2012 at 2pm Eastern U.S., The Big 4 U.S. Record Sources presented by Mary Hill. Research in the United States depends upon census, vital, land, and probate records, the bread and butter of American research. Get an overview of each type of record. Learn where to find them and how to use them effectively in your research.

Registration is free but space is limited to the first 1,000 people to join that day. When you join, if you receive a message that the webinar is full, you know we've reached the 1,000 limit, so we invite you to view the recording which should be published to the webinar archives within an hour or two of the event's conclusion.

Webinar time

The webinar will be live on Wednesday, November 28, 2012 at:

• 2pm Eastern (U.S.)
• 1pm Central
• 12pm Mountain/Arizona
• 11am Pacific
• 7pm GMT

Here's how to attend:

1. Register at www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/webinars.asp today. It's free!
2. You will receive a confirmation email containing a link to the webinar.
3. You will receive a reminder email during the week prior to the webinar.
4. Calculate your time zone by clicking here.
5. Make sure you have the latest version of Java installed on your computer. Check at www.java.com.
6. Check your GoToWebinar connection here by clicking on the "Test Your GoToWebinar Connection" link.
7. Click on the webinar link (found in confirmation and reminder emails) prior to the start of the webinar. Arrive early as the room size is limited to the first 1,000 arrivals that day.
8. Listen via headset (USB headsets work best), your computer speakers, or by phone.

Posted by Ron Setzer

For Your Calendar

Webinar Title: Digital Preservation: Fundamentals

Thursday, December 8, 2011

Start Time: Pacific - 12 PM, Mountain - 1 PM, Central - 2 PM, Eastern - 3 PM

Presenter: Jacob Nadal

Webinar Link: http://infopeople.org/training/digital-preservation-fundamentals

The uncertainties that go hand in hand with new technologies in digital preservation can make “once and for all” preservation approaches impractical. This first in a series of four webinars will present basic concepts and approaches to dealing with crucial digital preservation issues today and make decisions that will position you for success in the future.

Topics include storing digital objects, choosing and understanding risks in file formats, planning for migration and emulation, and the roles of metadata in digital preservation.

At the end of the first one-hour webinar, participants will:

• Have a framework for making sense of preservation
• Know about the principal methods for storing digital objects
• Understand the benefits and risk associated with standard file formats
• Understand the roles of metadata in digital preservation

Presented by the California State Library and the California Preservation Program, future webinars in the series will provide a deeper introduction to file formats used in digital libraries and the core issues in reliably storing digital content for the long-term:

• Webinar #2: Tuesday, January 10: Text and Image Formats
• Webinar #3: Tuesday, February 7: Storing and Managing Digital Collections
• Webinar #4: Tuesday, March 20: Audio and Video Formats

This webinar will be of interest to library staff and archivists who are involved in developing digital projects. No special technical background required.

Webinars are free of charge and registration is only done on the day of the event on the WebEx server. No passwords are required.

This webinar will be presented with Closed Captioning.

Submitted by Lois Shumaker

Posted by Ron Setzer

Tech Tuesday - Wonderful World of Webinars

Webinars are plentiful.  The genealogy software you use probably conducts webinars on its website.  Numerous websites you visit or follow probably offer webinars.  Good news - many are free.

How do you find webinars?  Check out GeneaWebinars. According to the website,

"Thanks to Ol’ Myrt of DearMYRTLE who created GeneaWebinars, the [genealogy] community not only has a comprehensive directory of upcoming online genealogy education seminars, but also a way in which presenters and providers of these webinars can advertise their offerings."

Are you wondering how to attend a webinar?  Thomas MacEntee has written a helpful article for Archives.com titled "How to Attend a Genealogy Webinar". His topics include:

• How webinars work
• Where to find them
• Preparing your computer
• Getting the most from a webinar
• Using webinars for genealogy society meetings

Have your calendar ready and let the learning begin! Oh, and remember, many of the webinars are available to view for a short period of time after the "live" program.

Posted by Denise Hibsch Richmond

FREE Webinars Starting July 2

The Southern California Genealogical Society Jamboree organizers have had a couple hours of sleep following another sussessful "Jam" and are back at work.  Look at the line-up they have for webinar speakers and topics for July and August:

• DearMyrtle: NSDAR, Resources for your Revolutionary War Ancestors
• Mike Booth: Genealogy on the Go
• Maureen Taylor: The Photo Detective
• Marian Pierre-Louis: Cemetery Research for your New England Ancestors

The Genealogy Jamboree Blog: FREE Webinars Coming Up Starting July 2 has all the info.  Enjoy!


Posted by Denise Hibsch Richmond

May Issue of GeniGram + Calendar

Sandra Gardner Benward, Editor of GeniGram, the Root Cellar newsletter, has posted the May issue on the website under the Members Only link. It's loaded with news and the calendar of events.

Sandra also reminds us of a few events/activities coming up this weekend:

Date: Saturday, April 30
Time: 1:00pm - 2:30pm
Event: Webinar
Topic: “Social Networking for Genealogy Societies”.  Register tonight so you will receive an email  with the link to join the webinar
Sponsor: Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS Voice) (Root Cellar is an FGS member)
Cost: Free

Date: Saturday, April 30
Time: 11:00am - 12:00pm
Event:  Internet Radio show featuring Kathryn Doyle, Communications Director for the California Genealogical Society and Library in Oakland, CA.
Topic: "Genealogy Society Initiatives that Work"
Sponsor: Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS My Society)
Cost: Free

Date: Saturday, April 30 MIDNIGHT
Event: Deadline for online submission; see blog post dated April 21
Topic: Your family story entry for the Family History Writing Contest. Remember, first prize is a years' subscription to Ancestry.com World Edition.

Date: Sunday, May 1
Time: 1:30pm - 3:00pm
Location: 828 I Street, Sacramento, 1st floor West Meeting Room
Event:  Genealogy Class
Topic: "Researching with Newspapers Online" presented by Janice Sellars
Sponsor:  Sacramento Downtown Public Library
Cost: Free
Parking: Street parking near the library is free on Sundays

Date: Sunday, May 1
Time: noon - 6:00pm
Location: McKinley Park near Rose Garden
Event: Maifest  and Family Picnic
Sponsor:  German Language School of the Sacramento Turn Verein
Cost: Free