I'm sorry to be blunt. This is getting totally out of hand and these sort of comments whether tongue in check or not is not helping the situation. Dave gave the definitive and official advice regarding the period (or full stop) it shouldn't be for Syndicate co-ordinators to advise their volunteers to do something to the contrary. Syndicate co-ordinators or volunteers have a perfect right to disagree with the "official" advice offered by Dave, but these should be raised via the DISCUSS list or with Dave direct and if need be to get the advice amended or clarified.. Allan Raymond [email protected] http://www.btinternet.com/~allan_raymond/Monarchies_of_Europe.htm FreeBMD - putting birth marriages and deaths on the Internet http://FreeBMD.rootsweb.com/ ----- Original Message ----- From: "Roger J. Legg" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: 26 October 2001 03:20 Subject: The Infamous period............ Dave Mayall wrote on 23/10/2001:- >Having reviewed the position that we find ourselves in now, in particular with regard to the large number of files that have been loaded without transcribing the full stop, we will adopt the following strategy; 1) The full stop *is* potentially valuable data. 2) If transcribers can see a clear full stop at the end of a forename, they should transcribe it. 3) It is accepted that there will be occasions where transcribers cannot *clearly* determine whether a full stop is present, and in such cases it can be omitted. 4) There is NO requirement or expectation that transcribers will make changes to previously loaded files. 5) The database routines will be amended to disregard the presence or absence of the full stop in names (but the full data *will* still be retained by FreeBMD.< I checked with my syndicate organiser after reading the above. My syndicate organizer disagreed with Dave Mayall and told me not to enter the period after forenames when transcribing the deaths index. With tongue in cheek I would urge all transcribers to check with their syndicate organizer before making any decision as to the merits of ........... Roger J. Legg Surname Interests:- CARR Broom Hill, Northumberland, England HEAD / HEDE Kintbury, Berkshire, England LEGG Saint Giles, Camberwell, Surrey, England SHIELD South Shields, County Durham, England WOODS Gorleston on Sea, Suffolk, England, Pre 1889 WOODS Gorleston on Sea, Norfolk, England Post1889 ICQ 129377740 ============================== Visit Ancestry's Library - The best collection of family history learning and how-to articles on the Internet. http://www.ancestry.com/learn/library