Legacy LVUG Community

Photo by Joshua Ness on Unsplash There is an old Yiddish proverb "Man plans and God laughs." No matter your belief system (god or gods, fate, karma, luck) yesterday I had the experience of plans going awry and I am sure someone was laughing. But first - a little background. I am a proud list maker . I learned this activity from watching my parents individually and collectively make lists. My father keeps his daily list in a small pocket notebook - he checks the items off as they are accomplished. My mother keeps hers on a clipboard with notebook paper where she keeps track of several things (cards to send, birthday calls to make, grocery shopping to do, bills to pay, social activities to calendar). I keep mine in a "bullet journal. "  My bright red journal has daily and weekly lists as well as my reading list, my ideas and  plans, quotes I find, reminders for projects due, expenses, sketches & room layouts (shopping), and random thoughts. 3 people, 3...

Photo by Hans Peter Gauster on Unsplash Are you a frustrated genealogist? There are some days when I feel like I am spinning my wheels. Perhaps it is that ancestor who refuses to be found (what is with that Peder?). Perhaps it is that  genealogy society I belong to that I only hear from when it is renewal time. Perhaps it is some of my genealogy friends online that take gentle digs at each other or constantly complain about everyone else but seem to think they are perfect. Perhaps it is tech glitch that fails to save the research summary I was working on  or won't let me into the webinar or hangout. Okay - you get the idea! On those days - and we all have them - what do you do? Well I focus on getting a little instant gratification from doing the tried and true things . (1) First take that breath and let that frustration roll off you back! Leave that renewal for another day and give some thought to not only want you get out of the organization but also what ...

Photo by Bruno Nascimento on Unsplash Are you a healthy genealogist? I don't  know if you read the health news, but several articles have been written recently about the hours many of us spend sitting at our desks, working at our computers. Getting exercise every day is a good idea (and a 30 minute walk does wonders to clear your mind or work through a genealogy brick wall). Some additional tips: (1) Pay attention to the set-up of your work station - make sure your monitor and keyboard are at the correct height and viewing angle, and have a comfortable and supportive chair.  (2) Have enough lighting in the room (shades open and lighting that does not reflect at your monitor) and through your monitor  (I use f.lux to adjust my monitor). (3) Get up and MOVE - walk around, stretch, do some jumping jacks, do something else physical (get the mail, sort the laundry, yoga or meditation) - for a few minutes every single hour (take 5 every 55). (4) Give some th...

Are you a "continuing education" type of genealogist? Photo by element5 digital on Unsplash Well then, you will want to take a look at the "improved and revamped" Legacy Family Tree Webinar website .  Debuting today, Geoff Rasmussen has been hard at work re-imagining the website so that it is even more user-friendly and gives a fresh feel to the speakers' section, the topics' section and pretty much everything else. As you know our LVUG Community here on Google+ is an unaffiliated Legacy User Group (not owned or operated by Legacy or its employees). But we love Legacy (most of the time, when all that tech is working right) and we enjoy sharing our tips and tricks, asking and answering questions about how we use Legacy, and just all around sharing the knowledge and news. And the revamped Legacy Webinar website is a very nice improvement indeed . Personally I like seeing the tiles or cards for the speakers and being able to flip them to see what ...

This is the last week of Family History Month here in the USA. So what have you been doing to celebrate in October ? Photo by Chris Gilbert on Unsplash Have you been attending any webinars? Did you attend NARA's virtual genealogy fair last week (if you missed it live, you can watch the recordings at their YouTube Channel)? Have you taken on a project for the month - whether that is cleaning up something in your Legacy family file or volunteering at a genealogy or historical society ? Are you busy working on your personal family history or perhaps a one-name study or a one-place study? Have you been following along here in the LVUG Community this month with the (mostly) daily prompts?  Today it is your turn - share what you have been doing during Family History Month with the rest of us (comment below). We still have a week left so if you haven't done anything special yet, why not close out the month with an activity or two.

Let's give a little love and attention to our grandparents! Photo by Sven Mieke on Unsplash Did you know your grandparents? Are they still living? Did you live near them when you were growing up or was a visit to their home a big deal? Could you see family resemblances from grandparents to parents to either yourself or your siblings? What types of jobs did your grandparents have? Did you learn to cook (or any other life skills) from any of your grandparents? Did you stay overnight or visit during the summer months? What are your parents' memories of your grandparents as parents AND is that different from your memories of them as parents? Have you shared any of that information in your Legacy family file? Why not take 15 minutes today and tomorrow and write up your memories of your grandparents on either side of the family . Do it now before those memories dull because you definitely want the next generation to learn about these VIPs (very important people). ...

We have all heard that slang saying " Who's Your Daddy ? " It was a song by Toby Keith, it is a meme with the Star Wars films, and for genealogists and family historians, it is a question we ask and answer about everyone in our Legacy family file ! Since we discussed moms yesterday, it seems only fair that we give equal time to the dads, daddys, fathers, papas, or whatever we call our fathers. Yet again I am trying to open your Legacy family file and click through to your father's entry - the family view and the individual view (oh if wishing made it so). What would I find? Since I can't see your Legacy family file, I took a look at my own father's entries in my Legacy file. I have his birth, baptism, surname meaning, education, occupation, employment, military service, marriage, children, religious affiliation, and memberships in church and professional organizations. What am I missing ? Photo by Juliane Liebermann on Unsplash Well for starter...

Today is all about mothers! Photo by Dakota Corbin on Unsplash Whether you call her mom, momma, mother, or mum - let's focus our 15 minutes on our mothers . If I were to open your Legacy family file and click through to your mother's individual or family view, what would I find? Would I be able to see your mother (have you included images)? Would I be able to follow the timeline that is her life (have you added events large and small)? Would I walk away from the exercise with some sense of who she was, where and how she lived, her background, education, interests and hobbies, strongly held beliefs, her remembrances of her parents and grandparents, and/or her thoughts on her life at various stages? Of course (or at least I hope so) when we enter information about anyone in our Legacy family file, we include "the facts." You have (I hope) your mother's full name and the basic information. If your mother is still living, you have the opportunity to in...

Are you an educated genealogist? Whether it is a seminar, a community college or university course, a conference, a podcast, an online course, a webinar, a hangout, an online or offline study group, a book, a journal, a worksheet or a handout - we genealogists have so many opportunities to learn and improve our skills . And in case you missed the news, we have a great opportunity to learn from our National Archives .  Over the next two days, our National Archives is hosting a virtual genealogy fair and you can join in and be part of the learning! Be sure to check out the sessions (streaming live and recorded for later viewing) and download the handouts . You can pick and choose what sessions work for you. It got started with an introduction to the two day event just over 45 minutes ago, so why not spend some quality time with our National Archives from the comfort of your home (or office or classroom)."  And be sure to check out our National Archives' website for a...

Photo by Pete Pedroza on Unsplash Are you a self-centered genealogist? Now I do recall that back on October 2nd I told you that it was all about you - but what I meant was that you need  to make sure to add all the pertinent information about yourself into your Legacy family file . Then the idea is to expand those rings of influence - to your parents, your siblings, your grandparents, your aunts and uncles, your cousins, and so on and so on! That should be enough to keep us all busy with our family history and our Legacy family file! And the same idea is true in the online genealogy community. Do you have a blog? Do you read others' blogs? Do you join Google+ communities, Facebook groups, Tweet about new finds, interesting activities, or great learning experiences? Do you attend webinars, on-line study groups, hangouts and the like? Are your activities online all about the genealogy community or are they all about you? I really enjoy reading about new tools and techno...

Are you an up-to-date genealogist? I know, I know - we are all busy. Sometimes that means we forget to update our browsers, our operating systems, our software or hardware, our apps, and our our calendars (just to name a few items). When we fail to update, we are often leaving ourselves open to security issues, or foregoing improvements or corrections.  In Legacy - it is a simple matter of going to the Home view and taking a look at Updates - you will quickly see if you are using the most recent version (or update to that version). The reasons for an update are varied - sometimes something has been fixed (yeah!), sometimes more research guidance has been added (double yeah!), and sometimes those Legacy folks sneak in something new! You can always find out why an update has been made and what is included by going to the Legacy website. For other software - check the About section, there is usually a "check for updates" tab. Microsoft puts out updates (you determine w...

Are you a safe genealogist? This is a follow-up to my post yesterday on people who join communities on Google+ or groups on Facebook.  We are all online sharing information with people that we know (sometimes we have met in "real" life and other times we know them from their blogs, vlogs, videos, meet-ups, hangouts and online courses). As always, we should exercise caution about who we chose to be friends with (or follow, or fan or what-have-you). Social media provides a way to get to know each other a bit better. Usually that is in the About section of your profile. Be sure to share your interests and research areas and perhaps some of the software you use. This is usually enough to help any of us determine that you are a genealogist or family historian. As to the folks I removed, I noticed that none of these people did anything but join and at some point post an advertisement or link. EVERYONE - make sure here in the LVUG Community and EVERYWHERE that you do not ...

Are you a participating genealogist? Today FindAGrave and Ancestry have teamed up for Community Day . Lots of genealogists will be out and about at cemeteries today - on their own, through meet-ups, as part of a planed genealogy or historical society event, or as part of a school or civic organization. What are we doing? We are gathering more photos and entries for FindAGrave's website . Last year on Community Day over 250,000 photos were added. Perhaps one of those photos helped you find an extended family member.  Whether you work on your own or as part of a group, why not "pay it forward" and add some photos to FindAGrave (or BillionGraves, or any other tombstone or cemetery website). We all benefit when we join together to add to these online databases. Today I am returning to my local cemetery to gather photos in the Guardian Angels section (all those infants). And I have certainly benefited from FindAGrave as I have 579 entries in my Legacy family file cou...

Are you a prepared genealogist? This morning was another lovely crisp Autumn day in the Pacific Northwest and so I decided to visit the cemetery where my grandparents' graves are located. Today's visit was a bit different because I was hoping to speak with someone in the office and learn a bit more about the cemetery and what they might have available to visitors . Last week I went on their website and did a search for anyone with the surname Keough (with my spelling or Kehoe, Keogh or Kough). My search returned 27 hits. Thankfully the cemetery has a database with the names, burial dates, section, lot, and site. I entered the information in an Excel worksheet (I have mentioned how much I love Excel right?!) and then was able to group the burials by the named sections and lots. When you do that family connections just pop out. I jotted down a dozen questions on the back of the worksheet, brought a pen and my smarter-than-me phone and  set off on my morning walk (killing two...

Do you take advantage of the quality control built into Legacy? If you click on the Reports tab you can then click on Potential Problems Report . Whether you view the report on your screen or print it out to work with - you have a "fact checker" in Legacy. But as with any good automated fact checker, the user needs to provide the parameters before the fact checker can do its work . Legacy comes with some defaults built in but the user (that is YOU) can always change things up. You can work your way across the tabs in Potential Problems and choose what fits your situation AND choose the ages or numbers that work with your family. That is what I did (we have more than a few couples that started their families before they were married so that is one item I unchecked; we also have long-lived people so I bumped up the age for death to be a potential problem). Be sure to check out the various items and then run the report. I always run the report to my screen and then wor...

Photo by 2photo pots on Unsplash Are you having fun with your genealogy? For many of us our family history is a passion - it is the thing we turn to learn more about our families and extended families, it is an opportunity to figure out a puzzle, help someone else with their research, teach someone how to use a record set or research tool, or perhaps take a break from a demanding job or family! Hopefully we learn to pace ourselves so that we don't feel burdened or burn out on our research efforts. Are you enjoying yourself ? Great - keep at it! Are you beginning to feel overwhelmed or like what you are doing is a chore ? Then take a break! Guess what - those ancestors will still be there waiting for you after you have relaxed, recharged and are ready to reignite that fire. Personally I find that having a few different projects to work on keeps me from getting tunnel vision or getting burned out . I work on a one-name study (so if you have any Keoughs in your database...

Are you a contextual genealogist? Today is Columbus Day in the USA and for many generations it has been a holiday honoring Christopher Columbus for "discovering North America." It was always a big deal in the Italian-American community in the city where I grew up. In the more recent past, many have questioned how Columbus could have discovered something (a rather large continent) that had hundreds of different cultures thriving without the assistance of Europeans and had been visited by other explorers centuries before. Many native American cultures suffered greatly or were wiped out as a result of his "discovery." Whether you consider Columbus a mariner, an explorer, a national hero, or an imperialist depends on context (and perhaps your own background). As genealogists, we need to read and analyze the information we gather AND always keep in mind context . This includes peoples' beliefs and social structures, the laws and norms of the time, education, sci...

Photo by Joshua Clay on Unsplash Got siblings? Today is my brother's birthday. So I went into my Legacy family file and noticed that I don't have a whole lot of entries for him. Hmm, probably because I think "I can get Michael's information in a phone conversation, or when I see him at Thanksgiving or next year's family reunion." But as we have all learned, anything can happen in life and we should never put off those opportunities to learn more about family . And our siblings are a great opportunity to practice our skills as interviewers (we know where to find our close family members, so they should be "low hanging fruit" on our trees). Today, let's spend 15 minutes (or more if you have the time) putting together some interview questions for your siblings . Whether you have one or seven siblings (yes, I have more than a few siblings to interview!), take a look at the interview questions in Legacy and do a bit of picking and choos...

Photo by Jonas Jacobsson on Unsplash Are you a generous genealogist? Are you willing to help others who might not know as much as you do - whether that is helping with a record set, a gadget, a technology, or a difficult question? Are you willing to share information you have found with other family members and/or strangers (who might become friends) online ? Do you share any portion of your family tree online, not only in hopes of finding those elusive cousins but also to help someone who might be stuck?  It is pretty easy to share only what you want with Legacy - using focus groups and placing those abbreviated trees online OR printing out family group sheets and providing them to family and, even better, sharing them with local genealogical societies where those family members lived. Legacy has lots of great options for sharing - including group sheets, pedigree charts and narratives (those ancestor or descendent books) . Why not give some thought to sharing - you cou...

Photo by Youssef Naddam on Unsplash Are you a supportive and sharing genealogist? Do you belong to a local or regional genealogy or historical society? Do you volunteer to help out with meetings, events and/or administrative aspects? Do you share your knowledge with other members and/or the general public? The online genealogy community is great but something I recently learned is just how few of the world's genealogists and family historians are online . And if these genealogists are online, they are spending their time researching records - not actively engaged in social media ! Sometimes we need to understand that our online world is a very small (but incredibly useful and fun) part of the genealogy landscape and we need to open our eyes and our minds to the bigger picture! Today - why not check out what in person meetings or events are scheduled in October at your local library, genealogical society, historical society, family history centers, or schools and unive...