Hi all! Just a note from the list manager. I am a volunteer host for the Genealogy Chats, Inc. Some of you may be familiar with this, some of you not. Just a little history: For many years, America Online used to have the Genealogy Forum that only AOL subscribers could access. This past summer, AOL did away with the "forum" as a seperate entity/community on AOL and made it a part of the parenting community (those still on AOL can access the new forum through keyword "parenting".) Many (but not all!) of the hosts of the old forum got upset with AOL and got together to create an online chat room that any one with internet access could use, thus the Genealogy Chats, Inc. Well, back to the present, I host 2 chats for the group (nonprofit!). The 2 chats I host are the NC/SC chat on Monday night from 9pm-10pm EST in the room "Cellar" and the IL/IN/IA chat on Friday night from 9pm-10pm EST also in the cellar. To get to the chats, go to the page http://www.genealogyforum.org. From the main page is a link that goes directly to the chat rooms by clicking on the box "Chat Rooms". You can also look at the links under the box called "Today's chats" and "topics" to see a schedule by day of the chats and a schedule by topic of the chats. 27 states are covered, either by a chat like the ones I host, or by a regional chat (Southern, Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, etc.) and a new chat is starting on Jan. 2nd called "coast to coast" that will cover all states. The page is new, so there is not a lot to it yet other than chats, but keep your eye on it as it is slowly growing. I'm also on the webteam so I know for a fact more and more resources are coming :o). Oh, and we also have chats for non-US research (Polish, German, Irish/Scottish, Canadian, etc.) So why am I posting this to the lists? Because this can be a great way for people to chat with cousins in real time rather than just through email. For instance, all the Barringers from PA can chat in the mid-atlantic chats and make connections quicker. Someone looking for Coventry in MA and haven't found a connection on the lists? go to the MA chat and see if you can't find help from someone there, maybe a host (us hosts usually have access to many helpful tools on and offline if we are hosting a specific chat rather than a general chat). So come on over and check us out if you get time. All chats are in EST (eastern standard time) so take that into account if you are in another time zone. Hope to see some new "faces" in there soon. For the 2 chats I host, quizzes will be coming in a few weeks to help us all learn more about the states we are searching. These quizzes are intended for fun and learning, and will focus on the specific states of that chat. Interested in general quizzes? Stop on by the Treehouse on Saturday nights from 8pm-10pm EST for loads of quiz fun! Right now, I'm the reigning queen of the quiz on Saturday nights, why not see if you can knock me off my throne?? hehe. Bye for now! Erin ===== Erin Bradford eabradfo@yahoo.com http://www.usgennet.org/usa/nc/county/cabarrus/ http://www.usgennet.org/usa/nc/county/mecklenburg/ ALHN County Coordinator for Cabarrus and Mecklenburg Cos, NC http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~kshai (The Genealogy Depository) Listowner Barringer Black Bradford Coventry Eller Hackett Hupp and Kern