Thanks, everyone. I finally got the password from Legacy (in fact got it three times). Now I just have to figure out out to use the program when I have some time. Neva "John & Neva Brigham" <neva@cwis.net>

To search vital records for Texas, see http://www.rootsweb.com/~txgenweb/ Birth Indices are available for most counties. For a complete Texas search go to http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/tx/txsearch.html#county or scroll down just a bit for a county by county search. The search results on a surname will include all available instances of the surname listed in the indices. In addition many RootsWeb Texas County pages have links to these indices, along with the particular county files that have been transcribed to their archives. http://www.tdh.state.tx.us/bvs/registra/index.htm is the link to Texas Vital Records. Here it explains the criteria for ordering birth and death records (50 years for birth, 25 years for death). Also included is how to order a "verification" of a record. See http://www.tdh.state.tx.us/bvs/registra/verbcd.htm My research in Bexar, Guadalupe, Nueces, Grayson, Robertson, Montague, Houston Counties has been greatly enhanced by the hard work that has gone into developing these indices. bev ------- End of Forwarded Message Bev <brencher@earthlink.net>

I highly recommend RootsMagic for your genealogy data program. Don't let the fact that it's version 1 keep you from trying it. It's written by Bruce Buzbee, who created all 10 versions of Family Origins. RootsMagic has been reviewed by several respected genealogy software reviewers, who state that it is one of the easiest to use programs but also very powerful and flexible. RootsMagic has a very active mailing list. (To join, send the command "subscribe" to ROOTSMAGIC-USERS-L-request@rootsweb.com to start receiving individual messages.) It also has a user forum. The few users who have complained about the program are those who expect to be able to use a complicated database (which all genalogy database programs are) without even looking at the Help file or the manual. BTW, since you are new to genealogy programs, I highly recommend the RootsMagic user manual. It gives lots of information and tips on using the software for genealogy research and data collection. I started using Family Origins at version 7 and upgraded to 8, 9, and 10. Many users have used it from version 1. 90% of us LOVE it. By the way, Family Origins is no longer supported by Genealogy.com. Bruce provides good technical support for RootsMagic and, over the years, has been and still is very responsive to users' questions and requests for features. One of the things I have spent a lot of time on over the years is trying to get source information correct. This is a problem for most new users, but RootsMagic makes it easy by providing a source wizard. It also does many, many helpful reports and exports excellent GEDCOMs. Data entry is quite simple, and the search function is powerful. I can't say enough about its capabilities. You can download a demo version of RootsMagic at http://www.rootsmagic.com/ and also see a list of features, the user forum, reviews, etc. If you decide to purchase RootsMagic after using the demo version to enter data, you simply uninstall the demo and install the purchased version. You will not lose any data you entered while using the demo version. As others have stated, the choice of software is very personal, so you will find others who prefer theirs. But I challenge you to try RootsMagic to find out why so many of us love it. See a few quotes below. Laurie "Sophisticated and powerful, RootsMagic is also the easiest to use genealogy program that I have ever tested." Kimberly Powell About.com Genealogy Guide "Editor's Choice. The new program is called RootsMagic and I've immediately fallen in love with it." -- Heritage Quest Magazine "All in all, RootsMagic is a winner. It is a very powerful genealogy program with all the features found in most competitive programs, plus it is very easy to use and has a modest price. I suspect that I will be recommending it to many people." -- Dick Eastman, Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter "In our opinion, FormalSoft has another winner. RootsMagic has a good balance of intuitive navigation and simple functions with powerful features." -- Gary and Diana Smith, Genealogical Computing magazine "RootsMagic's ease of use, well-designed reports and numerous capabilities make it an excellent choice for any genealogist." -- Rick Crume, Family Tree Magazine Laurie Nelson <lanenelson@rt66.com>

"Richard A. Pence" <richardpence@pipeline.com> wrote: > > What is coming back is run-on sentences that seem to say Isn't there a Latin expression for this type of argument? Oh, now I remember -- 'argumentum ad hominem' Tom "Tom Morris" <tmorris-NOSPAM@SPAMFREE.nh.ultranet.com>

"Ol' Bab" <olbabNO-SPAM@rochester.rr.com> wrote: > > We knew Mom was fooling around with genealogy, but the extent was a > surprise! > > We (I and eldest son) want to do it right, save this stuff to > electronic format, make it available on a website (that's no > problem). > > The problem is to get the right software the first time. Probably > other problems ...... tell me. Not much money available. > > Any good advice is appreciated. I don't want to start entering > data, only to find the effort wasted due to poor choice. > > Using my "handle" for now, until I figure how you people get away > with letting your names and email addresses hang out for SPAM > harvesting... Family Tree Maker 10 buy the single CD version I made this using FTM 10 automatic web påublishing software http://familytreemaker.genealogy.com/users/w/a/t/Hugh-B-Watkins/ 22MB unused image space this by another beginner http://familytreemaker.genealogy.com/users/n/o/r/Gary-K-Norgaard-NJ/ and this with the AOL >> page created with Easy Designer << http://hometown.aol.co.uk/hughw36/myhomepage/famtree.html so enjoy Hugh W "Hugh Watkins" <hugh_watkins@net.dialog.dk>

> > I'm not the person you quoted, Heather, but it might help to have > > more than one TMG user handy, depending on what your questions are. > > > > Diane Sibert Huyer > > I am not using TMG, but am interested in the program. I have heard > wonderful things about TMG. I have been to the site and read > reviews and think that I am ready for an upgrade. I understand that > I can keep my 'whole' family in one file, but have subgroups so that > if I want to exchange info I can export only the subgroup that I > need. I this true? Also, I understand that there is a way to save > variations of surname spellings, so that you can still search and > find, my current program will not find someone with a MUNDAY and > MUNDY as being connected. Will TMG solve this problem??? Also, can > TMG print out charts on one page??? Or at least let you preview to > fit the screen so that you have some idea of what is being printed. > > "Heather Olsen" <kitchen6@earthlink.net> IMHO this is all a bit off-topic for this particular newsgroup, but I heartily recommend that you do the following. Subscribe to the TMG mailing list by sending an email to: TMG-L-request@rootsweb.com with the word: Subscribe in the subject & body of the email. You will find there the experts who can advise you on every aspect of TMG. Enjoy! Bob Robert Heiling <robheil@attbi.com>

> > > Using my "handle" for now, until I figure how you people get away > > > with letting your names and email addresses hang out for SPAM > > > harvesting... > > > > Dunno -- my spam generates from another source, not the newsgroups. > > > > singhals@erols.com > > Newsgroups are generally not the source of spam. Wrong! Newsgroups are one of the major means of harvesting email addresses. > Open email > addresses within website ARE a problem. There are many web crawlers > that harvest these URLs and guess who gets swamped. You can reduce > the problem by using NOINDEX, NOFOLLOW commands in META TAGS and by > using the ASCII equivalents for your URL to hide it from the > crawlers. > > <aepalmer@a-znet.com> Spammers pay big money for the specialized software they use to harvest addresses and send millions of spam email/day, but they make good money also because there are enough suckers out there to fall for the advertising pitches. Bob

> While I applaud your desire to see that your mother's research is > made as accessible as possible, may I also suggest that you make > sure that you produce several hard-copies of your end product. > These will most likely still be around and useful when the computer > files are dead and unreadable, especially if you do not want to > commit yourself to migrating the files as time goes by, and make > sure that copies are placed in appropriate repositories. Also, > think deeply about donating her research notes to an appropriate > repository when you are done with the work. > > Mary Mannix <mm0028@mail.pratt.lib.md.us> Excellent post and excellent advice! Right on target. :-) > Mary K. Mannix > Maryland Room Manager > C. Burr Artz Central Library > Frederick County Public Libraries > Frederick, MD > www.fcpl.org > Home of the Linton-Holdcraft Obituary Collection I'm wondering where the original poster disappeared to and why we have gotten no feedback so far from that original poster with a real ID! (although possibly a munged adddress). I'm also wondering if he/she has any connection to my 7g-grandfather, Jonathan Hyde (1626-1711), who was born at Denton, Lancashire, England and died 05 Oct 1711 at Newton/Cambridge, Middlesex, MA. Bob Robert Heiling <robheil@attbi.com>

There is a tradition of American Indian ancestry in both my mother and my father's families, but I have yet to find any proof of such ancestry. Can DNA testing reveal that there is American Indian Ancestry in families? I would really like to know if these family stories have any truth to them. Janey E. Joyce in San Antonio, Texas Janey Joyce <jejoyce@sbcglobal.net>

> > The download password is *******. I have downloaded it twice though > > both times it said the file was corrupted. > > > > Kasey Alvarez-Duckworth wrote: > > Actually, it's not. You may want to check the e-mail you were sent > when you *registered* to download. > > Even if it were, why are you spreading it around? Legacy asks > little enough of the genealogical community in return for providing > their software. If you want to use the software, why is registering > with them a problem? > > I have no connection with Legacy; in fact, even though I have the > software, I don't use it. But please respect their work. > > Joe Makowiec can be reached at: http://makowiec.org/contact/?Joe I d/l it twice in a year due to system crash and it was the same both times, so I assumed it was just to verify email addy. My goodness I did not mean to offend anyone. Just to help. These kind of "jumping the gun" responses are part of the reasons so many don't help anymore. Let me appologize for my mistake. Kasey Alvarez-Duckworth http://familytreemaker.genealogy.com/users/a/l/v/Kasey-L-Alvarezduckworth/ http://www.geocities.com/ms_historybuff/ Kasey Alvarez-Duckworth <ms_historybuff@yahoo.com>

"Heather Olsen" <kitchen6@earthlink.net> wrote: > > I'm not the person you quoted, Heather, but it might help to have > > more than one TMG user handy, depending on what your questions are. > > > > Diane Sibert Huyer > > I am not using TMG, but am interested in the program. I have heard > wonderful things about TMG. I have been to the site and read > reviews and think that I am ready for an upgrade. I understand that > I can keep my 'whole' family in one file, but have subgroups so that > if I want to exchange info I can export only the subgroup that I > need. I this true? True. It involves making a filter to filter out those whom you do not desire to share. > Also, I understand that there is a way to save > variations of surname spellings, so that you can still search and > find, my current program will not find someone with a MUNDAY and > MUNDY as being connected. Will TMG solve this problem??? Yes. TMG permits many names to be associated with a person. Only one is primary, but you can search for all variations. > Also, can > TMG print out charts on one page??? Or at least let you preview to > fit the screen so that you have some idea of what is being printed. I am not certain that I understand the question. There is a companion piece of TMG that does charting. How big are your pages? My 1200+ people won't fit on a single page. I believe that I can create a chart that fits on multiple pages and that I can modify the chart that is presented on the screen. I have not tried this yet though. > Thank you to All TMG users To learn more about TMG, you may want to get the book by Lee Hoffman, the Video Tapes by the designer of TMG, Bob Velke, and join the Arlington RUG which is a specialist group that discusses and educates about TMG. Also, why not join the TMG mailing list where you will get thoughtful and complete answers to your questions. Ed Feustel Arlington Rug Member "Edward A. Feustel" <efeustel@erols.com>

On 14 May 2003 in soc.genealogy.methods, Heather Olsen wrote: > I am not using TMG, but am interested in the program. I have heard > wonderful things about TMG. I have been to the site and read > reviews and think that I am ready for an upgrade. I understand that > I can keep my 'whole' family in one file, but have subgroups so that > if I want to exchange info I can export only the subgroup that I > need. In the current version of TMG (5.07), you can either keep separate 'projects', or within a project, keep separate datasets. Alternately, you can create flags. You can use either one flag with multiple values, or multiple flags with T/F values, so that you can select people based on a flag. So you would either have a flag Mylines, with (arbitrary) values A for those in husband's father's line, B for husband's mother's line, C for wife's father's line, etc. Or you can have a flag Husbfather with values Y/N, Husbmother, ... TMG supports "up to 250 unique flags in each data set. There is no limit to the number of flags in a project." [TMG Help] I believe each flag can have up to 36 values (A-Z and 0-9). > Also, I understand that there is a way to save > variations of surname spellings, so that you can still search and > find, my current program will not find someone with a MUNDAY and > MUNDY as being connected. As with everything else, TMG offers several solutions to this. You can have an unlimited number of name records with an individual, so if you find an individual with MUNDY on some records and MUNDAY on others, you can record both variations. You can have, with each name record, a 'sort surname'. I research folk of Scottish origin, for whom M', Mc and Mac names are equivalent. So I can go through and set the sort name for all my McINTYRE and MacINTYRE records to MacINTYRE so they sort together. As with most genealogy programs, you can do soundex searches. > Also, can > TMG print out charts on one page??? Or at least let you preview to > fit the screen so that you have some idea of what is being printed. I've not used it much, but from what little I've played around with it, TMG's charting module, Visual Chartform, is a quite capable. If you send it to TMG's Chartform Delivery, they can print 3 feet square for US$20, and up to 3 feet x 30 feet for US$70, which I understand is quite reasonable. *Note* - I haven't used this service. If you want more opinions on TMG, you could join the TMG-L mailing list: http://lists.rootsweb.com/index/other/Software/TMG.html Also, you can order and try TMG, and return it within 90 days and get a refund. <standard disclaimer>I have no association with WhollyGenes other than as a satisfied customer.</standard disclaimer> -- Joe Makowiec can be reached at: http://makowiec.org/contact/?Joe Joe Makowiec <makowiec@nycap.rEMOVECAPSr.com>

>Thank you to All TMG users > >Heather Olsen Heather, in general the answers to your questions are "yes". You might want to join the TMG-L maillist on Rootsweb for a while and learn more about it. One thing, do NOT expect a manual that will tell you everything it can do- it has so many options and 3-4 ways to do the same thing (or maybe get the same end result) that such a book will never be written. I've used it since the 4.0 version came out and altho I look at other programs I've yet to find one that can compete in all areas with it. "May your Morn be bright and sunny, your Noon be warm and clear, your Dusk be calm and tranquil and your Night without a fear" His Jadedness, Andy Known Descendants of Queen Victoria Message Board http://members3.boardhost.com/KDQV/ agh3rd@aol.commonMkt (His Jadedness Andy)

Joan Best wrote: > State archivists invited to restore and preserve some four million > court documents left unexamined for over a century in file cabinets > in the St. Louis Courthouse have found nearly 300 lawsuits by slaves > seeking their freedom between 1809 and 1865. > > http://www.stlcourtrecords.wusl.edu When I tried to go there directly, I got a no DNS. I googled it, and got a URL without the WWW, which worked. Nice page, interesting content, but when I clicked on SEARCH THIS SITE, I got 0 hits on a name I _know_ was involved with the courts. So I tried several other names, and also no hits. On SMITH, I got 7 hits. *7* documents mention SMITH in a 200-yr period? I can't feature that! Clearly I did _something_ wrong...someone else want to try? Cheryl singhals@erols.com

> I'm not the person you quoted, Heather, but it might help to have > more than one TMG user handy, depending on what your questions are. > > Diane Sibert Huyer I am not using TMG, but am interested in the program. I have heard wonderful things about TMG. I have been to the site and read reviews and think that I am ready for an upgrade. I understand that I can keep my 'whole' family in one file, but have subgroups so that if I want to exchange info I can export only the subgroup that I need. I this true? Also, I understand that there is a way to save variations of surname spellings, so that you can still search and find, my current program will not find someone with a MUNDAY and MUNDY as being connected. Will TMG solve this problem??? Also, can TMG print out charts on one page??? Or at least let you preview to fit the screen so that you have some idea of what is being printed. Thank you to All TMG users Heather Olsen "Heather Olsen" <kitchen6@earthlink.net>

> I am ordering the Civil War Pension files for two on my ancestors. > Their index cards came up in Ancestry.com and I need help deciding > what numbers I am supposed to put on the Form 85 in box 10., which > asks for the Pension File No. > > One ancestor has two entries on his card: > > Date of Filing Class Application No. Certificate No. State From > > Which Filed > > 1890 Sept 10 Invalid 811332 584693 N.Y. > 1900 Sep 19 Widow 726795 > N.Y. > > It seems that he applied for a pension in 1890 and his widow applied > for one in 1900 (he died in July of 1900). Do I have to file > separate Form 85s for each application number (and pay double) or do > I put both Application Nos. in space 10 and only pay for one file? > Does the Certificate No. have to go anywhere on the form? > > The card for the other ancestor shows that only the wife filed for a > pension so that one should be simpler. > > PollyH <phheld@twcny.rr.com> Soldier's and widow's applications are combined into one file. I have ordered four Civil War Pension files, for the soldiers only, and in each case I received both the soldier's application and his widow's eventual application in one file and for the "price of one". In fact, one soldier had two widow's contesting for his widow's pension, he not having divorced his first wife before running away with and marrying the second, and I received all three pension applications in one file. Charlie Mulks mulksc@pilot.msu.edu (Charles Mulks)

Singhals at singhals@erols.com wrote: > > Using my "handle" for now, until I figure how you people get away > > with letting your names and email addresses hang out for SPAM > > harvesting... > > Dunno -- my spam generates from another source, not the newsgroups. Newsgroups are generally not the source of spam. Open email addresses within website ARE a problem. There are many web crawlers that harvest these URLs and guess who gets swamped. You can reduce the problem by using NOINDEX, NOFOLLOW commands in META TAGS and by using the ASCII equivalents for your URL to hide it from the crawlers. Cheers, -- <><><><><><><><><><><> Arrowhead Images <aepalmer@a-znet.com> <><><><><><><><><><><> I had a destiny once. All it did was get me into trouble !

While I applaud your desire to see that your mother's research is made as accessible as possible, may I also suggest that you make sure that you produce several hard-copies of your end product. These will most likely still be around and useful when the computer files are dead and unreadable, especially if you do not want to commit yourself to migrating the files as time goes by, and make sure that copies are placed in appropriate repositories. Also, think deeply about donating her research notes to an appropriate repository when you are done with the work. Mary Mannix ************************* Mary K. Mannix Maryland Room Manager C. Burr Artz Central Library Frederick County Public Libraries Frederick, MD www.fcpl.org Home of the Linton-Holdcraft Obituary Collection Mary Mannix <mm0028@mail.pratt.lib.md.us>

> I downloaded the free Legacy software. I filled in my email and > address. BUT, I have not received an email from Legacy with my > password. How do I access the software? > > Neva "John & Neva Brigham" <neva@cwis.net> It's been 2 1/2 years since I downloaded the version 3.0 demo, but the readme file at that time said enter the word "DEMO" for the password in order to install it. I get a password warning every time I open it from my desktop icon, but it continues on and works fine. Bob Robert Heiling <robheil@attbi.com>

> > > Many public libraries now have the Heritage Quest program on their > > > computer, and it contains all the census records, with free access > > > via the library's computers. Check with your local library. > > > > When I used this path from the Houston TX library the only census' I > > found were years 1790, 1800, 1810, 1920, 1860, 1870, 1890, 1910 > > and 1920. I believe that there are more years than that. I also found > > some of the indexing to be inadequate. I can say this as I have > > copies of census data I copied at the library that I could not find > > at Heritage Quest. > > > > "James Hills" <jameshills@att.net> > > The years you listed are at this point the only ones with indexes. > I would presume at the Houston Library you can find the other years > on microfilm. > [snip] > > "Richard A. Pence" <richardpence@pipeline.com> Heritage Quest has all years of the census except 1900 available for online browsing, including the ability to call up specific locations and pages. Many libraries that offer Heritage Quest (public libraries, historical societies, and genealogical societies) also offer remote access to it available (from outside the library) by using your library or membership card number to log on. Yes, only the years listed above are indexed by HQ so far. However, it's not at all difficult with remote access, to within 24 hours at most, get the reference numbers needed from the LDS online abstract of 1880 or through the census-lookup mailing lists for each state that HQ hasn't finished indexing (1900, 1930, and part of 1920), and then find the actual images for yourself on HQ. None of the online providers of census data have everything you could want available yet, but they've done an outstanding job of ensuring that their services compliment one another, being most advantageous to each of the companies and to us as well. Diane genmail@1st.net