My RootsTech 2018 Experience from Home

When RootsTech published the live stream sessions offered for 2018 it seemed packed with presentations.  When I looked more closely on the days RootsTech was presented, I realized that many of the sessions were rebroadcasts of previous years' keynote speakers.  How disappointing.  Now that I go back to the RootsTech website and look at the live stream videos, it once again seems packed with presentations.  Did they not stream all the presentations as announced before the event?  Whether they did or not, at least they are currently available in video format.  I have lots of presentations to watch now!

I watched the presentations below and also all of the keynote speakers.  (Clicking the title of the presentation will take you to the online video.)

Organizing and Preserving Photograph Collections by Ari Wilkins
It's always interesting to see how others organize photo collections.  I liked Ari's methods and appreciated her hints for organizing as well as preserving photos.  Handout here.

Google Photos: Collect, Organize, Preserve and Share by Michelle Goodrum
I use Google's old Picasa on my desktop to organize my photos but I don't store them online in Google Photos.  I appreciate the fact that it can be one more place to back up photos but I don't know that I will use it.  Handout here.

Findmypast's British & Irish Hidden Gems by Myko Clelland of Findmypast
Myko talks fast so the presentation was filled with information about collections available at findmypast and he included some interesting stories.  Toward the end of the presentation there were technology problems and there was no video.  Myko was so calm and collected and carried on as if things were normal.  I have only a limited subscription to findmypast so it's not as useful a website as it could be if I had a full subscription.  Handout here.

Elusive Records at FamilySearch by Robert Kehrer of FamilySearch International
This was my favorite presentation.  It was excellent.  I knew some of the information Robert presented but some was new and I learned several new ways to search the unindexed records available at FamilySearch.  Handout here.

Civil Registration Indexes of England and Wales by Audrey Collins of The National Archives
Audrey explained the background to the indexes and the process by which they were compiled, then the progression of steps from initial registration to collection and processing of the information to the indexes.  It seems that the indexes and the information included in them have been gently evolving and include more information now than in earlier years.  Throughout the presentation Audrey quipped about some of her findings and sometimes about her obsession with genealogy.  ("Obsessed is such an ugly word," she said.)  Handout here.

Next RootsTech 2018 streamed videos to watch:

• Reconstruct Your Ancestor's World with Google 
• Source Citations: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly 
• Hidden Treasures in the Library of Congress 
• Pain in the Access: More Web for Your Genealogy 
• Family History in 5 Minutes a Day 
• Choosing Details: The Secret to Compelling Stories

And then there are the handouts to read:

• An introduction:  British geographic resources 
• Beyond Subscriptions: 25+ Free Genealogy Websites 
• Making the most of English & Welsh Parish records 
• ‘Deed’ You Hear About These Underutilized Records? 
• Beating OCR Bugs to Bag More From Old Newspapers 
• And so  many more!  Find handouts here.

If you watched RootsTech from home, which presentations did you watch?  Were any especially interesting or helpful?

--Nancy.

Copyright ©2018, Nancy Messier. All Rights Reserved.

Friday RootsTech 2018 Keynote Speaker - Scott Hamilton

If I had to describe Scott Hamilton, RootsTech's Friday Keynote speaker, this is what I would say:  joyful, insightful, with a great sense of humor.  I love his attitude when faced with problems:  Get to work:  pray.  And, Get busy.

He said, "We honor our past, we honor those that came before us, and we honor them in a way of gratitude by remembering them, by celebrating them, by finding out who they are...."  I call that family history.

You can watch his presentation here.

--Nancy.

On Brandon Stanton, Thursday's Keynote Speaker, RootsTeach 2018

Humans of New York was at the edge of my radar.  I'd heard of it but really knew nothing about the blog, the blog owner, the project, or the Facebook page, so hearing Brandon Stanton speak was a great introduction to both him and his work.  His focus is not family history but connecting with others, asking questions, and listening to answers.  (If only we could do that with our ancestors!)

He shared several ideas that I thought were worth noting and remembering. 

• On time:  "Time itself is the most valuable resource."  We spend our time on activities that aren't necessarily satisfying, in accumulating resources, and doing things that will make us important in the eyes of others but "we don't view our time as a resource itself....  All the cars, all the houses, all the money, all the importance in the world put together cannot buy a minute of that time back."
• On time and thoughts when doing unfulfilling work:  "It wasn't only the minutes that passed me by, it was all the thoughts that I could have been directing towards people that I love, that I could have been directing towards things that I want to do, things that I want to create, were instead directed and funneled into trying to maintain that sense of importance."
• On following your dream:  He talked about people following their dreams -- as musician, writer, whatever professions -- and spending a little time each day working at their music or writing, then spending the rest of the day in the coffee shop.  "People use following their dreams as an excuse not to work....  Following your dreams correctly is nothing but hard work....  The goal, I don't think, is get to the place where you don't have to work.  The goal is get to the place where you choose your work...." 

Thank you, RootsTech organizers, for inviting Brandon to speak.  And thank you, Brandon, for sharing your story and insights.

If you didn't see the presentation you can see it here, at the RootsTech website.  I thought it was well worth my hour.  I hope the video will be available on youtube soon, in which case I'll switch out the image above and include the video.

--Nancy.

P.S.  I was #NotAtRootsTech.

The Essential RootsTech 2018 Websites (if you're not in SLC)

There are a few essential websites for RootsTech if you want to partake of all that's offered, or even if you want to pick and choose from the offerings.  I think these are especially important when you're viewing RootsTech from home.

Complete schedule
https://www.rootstech.org/schedule

Live stream schedule
https://www.rootstech.org/live-stream-schedule

Session handouts
http://app.core-apps.com/rootstech2018/events/view_by_day?day=Feb+28


--Nancy.
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RootsTech 2018: The Free Version

I'm not one of those lucky souls who will be in Salt Lake City this week to enjoy RootsTech live.  I'll be at home watching the free version.

It occurred to me that some of my readers may not know about RootsTech, arguably the largest family history conference in the world.  Despite "tech" at the end of its name, it's really more about roots, family history, and genealogy than it is technology.  There are several hundred sessions offered at the live conference over the four days of the event this year, from Wednesday, February 28 through Saturday, March 3, and the presentations cover a broad range of topics and levels of experience.

Since I can't attend in person I'm grateful that RootsTech will live-stream presentations during every session which can be viewed from the main website. 

Below is a list of the free sessions you can watch online.  The times stated are Mountain Standard Time so you'll need to calculate the time based on your time zone.

Wednesday, February 28
9:30 A.M.  
Family History in 5 Minutes a Day - Deborah Gamble
Explore 20 ways to effectively do your family history in as little as 5 minutes a day.

11:00 A.M.
DNA—One Family, One World - David Nicholson
This presentation explores a new project by Living DNA that is mapping the worlds DNA, building one world family tree through our genetics. Gain insight into how this will impact your family history.

1:30 P.M.
Organizing and Preserving Photograph Collections - Ari Wilkins
Step-by-step direction in organizing, preserving, and cataloging photo collections for future generations and identifying, digitizing, and sharing collections using family trees and social media.

3:00 P.M.
Finding the Answers: The Basics of WWII Research - Jennifer Holik
Fire destroyed many military and civilian service records. Alternative record sources exist to reconstruct service history. Learn how to research World War I and II records.

4:30 P.M.
Wednesday General Session and Innovation Showcase - Steve Rockwood, CEO of FamilySearch International
Stephen T. Rockwood, CEO of FamilySearch International, will explore where we have been and where we are going and introduce the all-new Innovation Showcase.

Thursday, March 1
8:30 A.M.
Thursday General Session - Brandon Santon, founder of Humans of New York
Brandon Stanton started Humans of New York, a photography and storytelling blog. HONY has built a devoted following of over 20 million fans across several social media platforms.

11:00 A.M.
MyHeritage DNA 101: From Test to Results - Yaniv Erlich
Learn about taking a MyHeritage DNA test and how the process works, from taking the test to the lab analysis.  Learn about MyHeritage DNA's over 40 ethnicities and how to optimize your DNA matches.

1:30 P.M.
Google Photos: Collect, Organize, Preserve, and Share - Michelle Goodrum
Google Photos is a powerful, free app for storing, organizing, and sharing.  Users can also edit and create photo projects and automatically add their photos to the app from their digital devices.

3:00 P.M.
Unlocking Roman Catholic Records - Brian Donovan
The Catholic Church is essential for uncovering the lives of millions of immigrants covering many nationalities. findmypast and the Catholic Church are working to make these records easily accessible.

4:30 P.M.
A Gift of Life:  Who's Writing Your Story? - Deborah Abbott
Only you can tell the real stories of love, loss, forgiveness, and change. Don’t leave the task of finding the answers of your life’s history to someone else—take the time to write your life story.

Friday, March 2
8:30 A.M.
Friday General Session - Scott Hamilton
Scott Hamilton is the living example that good guys CAN finish first! He is an Olympic champion, cancer survivor, television broadcaster, speaker, author, husband and father, and eternal optimist!

11:00 A.M.
Findmypast's British and Irish Hidden Gems - Myko Clelland
Myko Clelland explores some of the wonderful collections that can help you to break down those British brick walls, go back further, and add untold color and detail to your family story.

1:30 P.M.
Finding the Right DNA Test for You - Jim Brewster
DNA testing is becoming an integral tool, but what is it and what does it do? How can DNA actually help your genealogy? If you are brand new to Genetic genealogy, this is the class for you!

3:00 P.M.
How Not to Leave Your Genealogy Behind - Amy Johnson Crow and Curt Witcher
Nobody wants their genealogy research to end up in a landfill. Hear a few horror stories of genealogy materials destroyed and how you can avoid those mistakes!

4:30 P.M.
Finding Elusive Records at FamilySearch - Robert Kehrer
Robert Kehrer will demonstrate skills and techniques used by the experts and will expose hidden record identification tools and features of the FamilySearch website.

Saturday, March 3
8:30 A.M.
Saturday General Session - Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr., and Natalia Lafourcade
Henry Louis Gates, Jr. is the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and Director of the Hutchins Center at Harvard University. Natalia Lafourcade is a Mexican pop-rock singer and songwriter.

11:00 A.M.
Civil Registration Indexes of England and Wales - Audrey Collins
England and Wales national indexes and recent innovations at the General Register Office have opened up some new possibilities as well as some completely new indexes not available anywhere else.

1:30 P.M.
Advancing Your Genealogy Research with DNA - Anna Swayne
Learn what new tools AncestryDNA has to advance your research and get more out of your DNA results.

3:00 P.M.
Pain in the Access:  More Web for Your Genealogy - Curt Witcher
Library, archive, government, and specialized websites have much to offer. This presentation will demonstrate sites and strategies for getting more online data while using the internet.

I can see that I'll have a relatively full schedule.  The only sessions I probably won't watch are the ones about DNA and Catholic records.

Enjoy!

--Nancy.

Copyright ©2018, Nancy Messier. All Rights Reserved. .