Media Release: Where to find genealogy software reviews

10 May 2010 by Libbi.

GenSoftReviews, the website where genealogists and family tree researchers review and rate their software, now lists over 500 different programs  GenSoftReviews is a website that allows users of genealogy software to rate and review the programs they’ve used or tried. This allows others who are looking for programs to better compare and select software that will help them. The site is located at: www.gensoftreviews.com  Now there are more than 500 programs for genealogists listed at the site. Those who are unhappy with their current software can use the listings to find a program they may find more suitable for the way they work. The site includes 244 full featured programs that allow full recording of your family data and more. There are 170 utility programs that do something useful by reading the data produced by a full featured program. And there are more than 80 programs that do not work directly with your genealogy data, but perform useful functions for family researchers.Over 300 of the programs are for Windows. There are 44 for the Mac, 36 for Unix and 26 for handheld devices. In addition there are over a hundred online programs listed, many of which are full featured and allow you to store and share your data online.Almost half of the programs listed are free. In January, GenSoftReviews awarded its first User Choice Awards based on user ratings of their programs. The top program was Roots Magic with an average rating of 4.94 out of 5. Other top programs included Legacy, The Next Generation, Brother’s Keeper, Personal Ancestral File, Reunion, Family Tree Builder and GRAMPS.”Most genealogists are unaware of how many different software packages they have to choose from. Each have different capabilities and benefits, and there is no reason why anyone should be stuck using a program they don’t like” says Louis Kessler who developed and maintains the site. The Genealogy Software Reviews site is free to use and does not require registration About Louis KesslerLouis Kessler has been a genealogist and programmer for over 30 years. He has published newspaper articles on genealogy, given presentations on genealogy, and is Past President of a regional Heritage Center. He is the developer of the genealogy program known as Behold that can be found at www.beholdgenealogy.com. Contact InfoLouis Kessler  111 Wallingford Cres.,Winnipeg, MB, Canada R3P 1L5   Phone: (204) 488-2858  Website: http://www.lkessler.com

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A census thought for the day…

4 May 2010 by Libbi.

Talking about Census Bureau News - Facts for Features Special Edition - 2010 Census by the Numbers:… — WASHINGT

Quote “72 The number of years census records are kept confidential before being released for genealogical research.  ”

So many times, I hear pundits questioning the use of the questions on race in the census: It’s very simple. 72 years from now, when your grandchildren are doing their genealogy, that race question will help them differentiate you from someone else with the same name….I cannot tell you how many times that has helped me in my research…

Census Bureau News - Facts for Features Special Edition - 2010 Census by the Numbers:… — WASHINGT

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DNA Genealogy News Roundup

14 April 2010 by Libbi.

1. Roots & Branches: Shay or Harper? DNA holds the answer ‎Lebanon Daily News - James M. Beidler - 2 days agoOnly in the brave new world of DNA genealogy can you start out looking for Shays and end up finding that you’re a Harper. …

2. Ask a genealogist ‎South West Review - 1 day agoQ. What answers can genealogy research provide that DNA tests won’t? A. The two actually go hand in hand. DNA will tell you in general terms what part of …

3. 2 elderly Fla. men discover they are half brothers ‎MiamiHerald.com - 5 days agoNichols’ granddaughter helped him get on the genealogy Web site Ancestry.com, and eventually … A DNA test later confirmed they have the same father. …From strangers to siblings: Brothers, both in their 70s, meet for …‎ - Ocalaall 15 news articles »

4. San Antonio Current

   Uprooting the ancestors ‎San Antonio Current - Callie Enlow - 9 hours agoSpurred on by his Uncle Lico’s previous genealogical work, Santos feels … but, thanks to a detailed DNA test, many scattered and surprising origins. …

5. DNA: The Future of Jewish Genealogy ‎Shalom Life - Dan Verbin - Apr 3, 2010Today, Jewish genealogy is more popular than ever thanks to a plethora of … Jewishgenealogy’s ongoing popularity in Israel and using DNA to trace your …

6. World News

   Eva Longoria shocked by DNA test ‎NDTV.com - Apr 4, 2010… star Eva Longoria was left stunned by recent genealogy results because she’s …when the results of an indepth DNA test came back because her ancestors …Eva was an “Aztec princess”!‎ - Times of IndiaEva Longoria Launches Easter Tent Crusade‎ - Actress Archivesall 25 news articles »

7. History buffs head to Salt Lake City for genealogy events ‎USA Today - Jennifer Dobner - Mar 20, 2010… understanding DNA testing and writing and editing family narratives. … The week also includes several special events, including a genealogy ”kids …

8. KISSIN KUZZINS: A glossary of terms one may encounter in genealogy … ‎Lufkin Daily News - Carolyn Ericson - Mar 31, 2010Perhaps FamilyTree DNA holds the answer to your problems. FamilyTree DNA providesDNA testing for genealogists and is the pioneer in the new field of …

9. Legislature passes limits on vital records access ‎Bangor Daily News - Roxanne Moore Saucier - 2 days agoWith DNA testing, exciting new doors have opened as tools to discovering one’s …Another session of Genealogy for Kids Day, GEN4KIDS, will be held 11 …

10. OnMilwaukee.com

    OnMedia: NBC turns genealogy into TV drama ‎OnMilwaukee.com - Tim Cuprisin - Mar 26, 2010… news to former NFL running back Emmitt Smith that DNA evidence showed his roots …Smolenyak runs her own “reality” channel, an online genealogy outlet …

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Planning ahead: Wholly Genes Cruise in September

16 March 2010 by Libbi.

What’s a genealogist’s dream vacation? How about cruise the Carribbean while listening to professional genealogists? The 6th Annual Wholly Genes cruise will be September 18-25, 2010 and include speakers such as:

Lloyd Bockstruck, 30-year veteran Supervisor of the Dallas Public Library, who has been described as “easily the most sought after lecturer for annual seminars of local and state genealogical societies.”

Dr. Stephen P. Morse, whose long resume includes the development of the “One-Step” web portal, the extremely popular search engine for the Ellis Island databases and dozens of other on-line resources.

Hank Jones, Megan Smolenyak, and Craig Scott come back for return engagements.

You can find more information here: http://www.whollygenes.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?screen=CRUISE#cost . Everyone I know who has gone on one of these cruises raves about how much they learned and how much fun they had!

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Yay for RootsTV!

15 March 2010 by Libbi.

The news was stunning.  Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak was going to stop doing  RootsTelevision.com! But her loyal fans (and I am one!!) inundated Megan and Og  with emails, tweets, and Facebook postings and messages saying how much the site meant to us.

“I honestly had no clue how valued it was by the genealogical community,” Megan wrote in an email to her fans. “And I agree with the many of you who pointed out that it serves a somewhat different purpose than the prime time programming that’s on TV at present (much as I’ve been enjoying that!). At the same time, I think many had not realized that RTV is a one-person company, but one that’s not inexpensive to provide. “

So, Megan  surveyed genealogists on Twitter and Facebook, asking whether any would be willing to tolerate commercials if it would help preserve RootsTelevision.com. The response was encouraging, so RootsTelevision will continue with ads. Among the new sponsors are Boston University and Family Tree DNA.

“Og and I are going to do a little tinkering under the hood at RTV, so you’ll see fewer new videos for a while, but please use that time to explore the hundreds of videos that are already there,” Megan wrote.

 You can also upload your own videos (podcasters welcome!) through RootsTube (http://rootstelevision.com/submit_rootstube.php)or   bookmark your favorite genealogy videos by others. So participate and help keep this wonderful resource on the Web!

You can follow Megan for the latest news here:

Megan on Twitter - http://twitter.com/megansmolenyak

Megan on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/megansmolenyak

RTV on Twitter - http://twitter.com/rootstelevision

RTV on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/rootstv

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Fab Forty - Family Tree Magazine

23 February 2010 by Libbi.

Fab Forty - Family Tree MagazineOutstanding article about outstanding writers! A must read!

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DNA Genealogy News Roundup

18 February 2010 by Libbi.

A collection of links to recent news articles about DNA and Genealogy. HI MATT!

 

Tutankhamun: Research continues on his genealogy

News Trends (blog) - ‎12 hours ago‎

 

The DNA testing program also addresses another major figure of ancient Egypt, Queen Nefertiti, wife of Akhenaten to the legendary beauty, but whose mummy …

 

Video: Mystery of King Tut’s short life and death reveale ITN NEWS

 

ARCHAEOLOGY: ZAHI HAWASS, MYSTERIES OF TUTANKHAMUN GENEALOGYANSAmed

 

Study Examines Family Lineage of King Tut, His Possible Cause of Death Science Daily (press release)

Ennahar - Daily Mail

all 1,277 news articles »

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Interest in exploring black heritage grows

The Tennessean - Janell Ross - ‎5 hours ago‎

 

… an African-American professor at Harvard, has long explored genealogy through DNA and public records but came to the attention of many Americans last …

 

New York Daily News

Genealogy for a Nation of Immigrants

New York Times - Alessandra Stanley - ‎Feb 9, 2010‎

 

He is not shocked to learn that he has no African or Asian traces in his DNA, and is of 100 percent European ancestry: “I am the inescapable black hole of …

 

‘Faces of America’ reveals family ties Los Angeles Times

 

‘Faces of America’: Personal stories and national history South Coast Today

 

Eva Longoria and Yo-Yo Ma cousins? Genetics researcher’s PBS special looks at …NOLA.com

Columbus Dispatch

all 40 news articles »

Email this story ‘Faces of America’ Traces Famous Genealogy

ABC News - Lee Ferran - ‎Jan 29, 2010‎

 

Stephanopoulos, who submitted to DNA testing, learned that there is a relatively rare trait in his genetic code known as Group X; a trait that genealogists …

 

ABC Guest Reveals: George Stephanopoulos and Hillary Clinton Related? NewsBusters (blog)

 

Entertainment Briefs Arizona Daily Star

 

George Stephanopoulos learns of likely genetic link to Hillary Rodham Clinton The Canadian Press

all 305 news articles »

Email this story

 

Southside Briefs

Savannah Morning News - ‎1 hour ago‎

 

8:30 am-4:30 pm Saturday, The Armstrong Center, 13040 Abercorn St. One-day conference ofgenealogy and family history classes, DNA testing, and door prizes. …

 

New York Times

After the Beer Summit

New York Times - Deborah Solomon - ‎Feb 12, 2010‎

 

… new series reduces history to a game of celebrity DNA. I use celebrities to attract an audience so we can teach people about genetics and genealogy. …

 

Book of Odds

GENGHIS KHAN AND HIS BROOD: TRACING YOUR FAMILY HISTORY

Book of Odds - Jennifer Berglund - ‎Feb 15, 2010‎

 

Ancestry.com, along with literally hundreds of websites, genealogy clubs across America, and DNA databases, can, within a few hours tops, tell you that …

 

The Hindu

Genealogy Project tracks ancestry of Charles Darwin

Vancouver Sun - Bonnie Malkin - ‎Feb 5, 2010‎

 

The Genealogy Project, a five-year initiative backed by National Geographic and IBM, uses new technology to examine DNA, allowing scientists to map how and …

 

Darwin’s genetic history suggests he came from a long line of adventurers Oneindia

all 44 news articles »

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Q&A: Knome’s Jorge Conde Discusses Personal Genomics, Today and Tomorrow

GenomeWeb Daily News - ‎Feb 16, 2010‎

 

DNA sequencing technologies have developed a lot since personal genome company Knome first launched its whole-genome sequencing and analysis service in late …

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PRESS RELEASE: Nova Development Signs Agreement With Ancestry.com to Publish Top-Selling Genealogy Software

17 February 2010 by Libbi.

SOURCE: Avanquest  

Feb 17, 2010 10:00 ET

Avanquest Software’s Nova Development Signs Agreement With Ancestry.com to Publish Top-Selling Genealogy Software

Highlighted Links

 

Avanquest Software

 

Ancestry.com

CALABASAS, CA–(Marketwire - February 17, 2010) - Nova Development, a consumer software unit of leading global software developer and publisher Avanquest Software (EPA: AVQ), today announced an agreement with Ancestry.com, making Nova the exclusive North American publisher for retail editions of the Family Tree Maker® 2010 line of genealogy titles.

“For more than 20 years, Family Tree Maker has been synonymous with the discovery of family history and the fun of genealogy research,” said Todd Helfstein, president, Nova Development. “We are especially proud and excited to have been named the publisher for this gold-standard product line.”

“A robust Family Tree Maker software offering is consistent with our mission of helping everyone discover, preserve and share their family history,” said Eric Shoup, Vice President of Product, Ancestry.com. “To that end we are delighted to be partnering with Nova Development, whose development and marketing expertise will serve to further enhance Family Tree Maker and expand its footprint at retail.”

For 2010, the Family Tree Maker products offer dozens of new features that make creating a multimedia family tree faster, easier and better than ever before, including enhanced integration with Ancestry.com, the largest online resource for family history. Other new features include:

 

--  Improved organization - Enjoy new ways to organize photos and other     media. --  Slideshows - Create slideshows from photos in your tree. --  Family books - Publish beautiful keepsakes and books to share with     friends and family. --  Standard source templates - Cite the right information every time. --  A new person view - View relationships within the context of your     entire family tree. --  Scanner support - Add photos directly from your scanner. --  Family migration paths - View timelines and interactive maps     highlighting events and places in your ancestors' lives. --  Better Performance - Experience faster load times and navigation.

Family Tree Maker, the number one selling product in the genealogy software category, has three editions: Essentials, Deluxe and Platinum.

All three versions allow users to easily add records and images from the billions of available historical records at Ancestry.com and import data from other genealogy programs, including Personal Ancestral File, The Master Genealogist and Legacy Family Tree.

The Deluxe and Platinum editions include, respectively, the Standard Ancestry.com Reference Library DVD and the Deluxe Ancestry.com Reference Library DVD.

About Nova Development

Based in Southern California and founded in 1984, Nova Development is a market leader in consumer software for both Windows and Macintosh platforms. Nova Development is the retail publisher of best-selling software for desktop publishing, print creativity and many other purposes, as well as educational titles both for both children and adults. Nova Development was acquired by Avanquest Software in 2007. For more information, please visithttp://www.novadevelopment.com/ and http://www.avanquest.com.

About Avanquest Software

Avanquest Software (EPA: AVQ) is one of the world’s leading software developers and publishers, with operations on three continents and marketing through Retail, Corporate, OEM and Direct-to-Consumer channels. Avanquest’s presence in North America, consisting of Avanquest Software USA and Avanquest North America (which includes the Nova Development division), places it among the top ten retail software publishers in the United States. With more than 100 software titles, the combined companies offer one of the largest and most diversified product portfolios in the software industry, available at more than 10,000 North American retail locations, on the Web, and through OEM partnerships. Additional information is at http://about.avanquest.com.

About Ancestry.com

Ancestry.com Inc. (NASDAQ: ACOM), the world’s largest online family history resource, has digitized and put online over four billion records over the past twelve years. Ancestry users have created over twelve million family trees containing over 1.25 billion profiles. Ancestry.com has local Web sites directed at nine countries, including its flagship website at http://www.ancestry.com/.

Forward-looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements relate to future events or to future financial performance and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause our actual results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements to be materially different from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by the use of words such as “may,” “could,” “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “seek,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “predict,” “potential,” or “continue” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements because they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that are, in some cases, beyond our control and that could materially affect actual results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements.

Factors that could materially affect actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements, and our ability to execute on our business strategy include those listed under the caption “Risk Factors” of Ancestry.com’s Prospectus dated November 5, 2009.

We assume no obligation to publicly update or revise these forward-looking statements for any reason, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise

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News from NGS

16 February 2010 by Libbi.

2010 NGS Family History Conference – Early Bird Registration Ends 8 March

 

This year the annual NGS Family History Conference will be held in Salt Lake City, Utah, 28 April─1 May 2010. Whether your family helped settle the nation, migrated across the country, stayed in the same place, or recently arrived in America, this conference has much to offer. The family history resources in Salt Lake City, Utah, will provide a depth and breadth to your research.

 

The event features, 200 educational sessions taught by the nation’s leading lecturers, a vendor hall with over 150 exhibitors, Ask an Expert Consultations, International Workshops, Open Houses, and more. Click here to read more.

 

The full conference event registration will include a ticket to “An Evening Celebration of Family History.” The evening will include a multi-media tribute to family history, special guest speaker, and mini-concert by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Also featured during the week, will be free scanning of documents and photos by Ancestry.com. Click here to read more.

 

Registration details and the conference program can be found online at http://www.ngsgenealogy.org/cs/conference_info . Early bird pricing for this event ends 8 March 2010. So register today, and miss out on the last minute rush to receive the discounted pricing.

 

2011 NGS Family History Conference-Call for Papers

 

Proposals will be accepted starting 1 January 2010 for the 2011 NGS Family History Conference, to be held in Charleston, South Carolina, 11–14 May 2011. Click here to read more. Deadline is 1 April 2010 for proposal submissions.

 

 

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A government genealogy service lets family history leap off the page - latimes.com

20 January 2010 by Libbi.

A government genealogy service lets family history leap off the page - latimes.comYes, it’s little known. But it’s covered in my upcoming 9th Edition!!

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