Hi Das: Thank you for posting that article to explain what some of us researcher have to go through when looking up ancestors, but the dedicated surname field is only as good as the Search Engine, and the worst one for me is the Atomic SE., The (3) three Surnames that give me the most trouble are. 1 )Mortimer especially from England because there is a location in England called Mortimer and ...........also all those with the given name Mortimer. 2 )Manuel which also produces written manuals as in books........... and 3 )Parent which always returns " the parents of " Now that you can edit your previous entries, it begs the other question I always had, which is are you able to change your E-mail address, ( as so many of us have done over the years ) so that someone reading an entry from say 1999 or 2005 can actual respond to your current addie. Edd Sinnett in Florida _________________________________________ ----- Original Message ----- From: <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, March 09, 2011 9:00 AM Subject: [IRL-DUBLIN] [Irl-Dublin]Genealogy Tip by Joan Young from RootswebReview, 9 March 2011 Genealogy Tip By _Joan Young_ (mailto:[email protected]) Are Your Genealogy Posts Getting Lost in the Forest? Everyone has considered the age-old question "if a tree falls in the forest and no one is around, does it make a sound?" Both sides of that issue can be debated with valid arguments. However, when it comes to family history research there can be no debate about the difficulty in posting queries or data that will help interested people find your posts. This is especially true when your message concerns ancestors with surnames (last names) that are also common words or given names (first names). When you are researching surnames such as FOREST, LANE, ROBINS, or ROBERT, make use of all available options at your disposal at the time you post the message, and also when searching for existing posts. If you are not careful with common-word surnames your message will be like the tree that falls in the forest and no one will see or hear it. Some pointers that may help you when posting and searching are: 1) Post your queries in places such as the RootsWeb/Ancestry _message boards_ (http://link.rootsweb.com/u.d?L4GnlSPskvyok_8N6jUdZ=12991) where the database offers a dedicated surname field. Enter only the surnames found in your query in the surname box. Enter the surnames in a manner that will enable proper indexing for future searches. If you enter: ROBERT(S) or LANE/LAINE your surnames may not be found in a search unless someone were to enter the names exactly as you wrote them which is unlikely. Enter the surnames and variants individually with a comma and space to separate them: LANE, LAINE, ROBERT, ROBERTS. Do not enter any characters or symbols, dashes or slashes, which may cause the searcher to miss your entries or may introduce non-surnames into the search field. The words "and" "or" "etc." and "family" a re not surnames and should not be entered into the surnames box. Properly entered surnames in a dedicated field will yield only surnames and no extraneous words in a search. While most researchers will perform a search to find your message, some people prefer to browse through all messages on a board scanning the posts for items of interest. Commas separating surnames make it easier for researchers who browse to find names they are seeking. Your VAN WINKLE ancestors might be mistaken for separate surnames VAN and WINKLE unless you make use of commas as delimiters. Surname box entries listed: LANE, VAN WINKLE, ROBERT, ROBERTS make it clear exactly which surnames are included in your message. Don't let your VAN WINKLEs sleep for another twenty years. 2) If you are posting your query or data in a database that has no dedicated surname search feature (such as the RootsWeb _mailing list archives_ (http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/search) ), be sure to include as much information about your ancestor as possible to help others find your message. For example: if your query concerns James ROBERT of Perth, Australia be sure to include the full name and location in your post. Many search engines permit searches for full names such as: "James ROBERT" or perform Boolean searches for James NEAR ROBERT, or James AND ROBERT, or even "James ROBERT" AND Australia. Try various combinations of search criteria to find the maximum number of posts. 3) Make use of online databases for posting or uploading your family tree. Family Tree databases such as RootsWeb's _WorldConnect_ (http://link.rootsweb.com/u.d?X4GnlSPskvyok_8N6jUdv=13011) will always have a search engine that finds the surnames included in your tree and not similarly-spelled extraneous words. After reading the above information, are you having second thoughts about your existing RootsWeb message board posts? Here's an additional tip: you can now edit (or delete) your own posts on the boards. So, do a search for your posts and fix errors in surname entries, or remove obsolete queries and post an updated message. Don't let your queries be like the fallen tree in the empty forest never to be seen or heard from again. Reprints Permission to reprint articles from RootsWeb Review is granted unless specifically stated otherwise, provided: 1. the reprint is used for non-commercial, educational purposes; and 2. the following notice appears at the end of the article: Previously published in RootsWeb Review: 9 March 2011, Vol. 14, No. 3 ****************************** ATTENTION TO ALL:- Do any of you ever get to the bottom of this mail?, and do you remove the details that do not apply to your mail and change the SUBJECT LINE for best useage of ARCHIVED MATERIALS. ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message This email was cleaned by emailStripper, available for free from http://www.papercut.biz/emailStripper.htm

LOL I will give you my hard to google names Wills, Lord (you can only begin to imagine the hits), James (surname) it makes me shudder just to think. Changing email addy on old posts, are possible if you posted to a message board, just answer the post again with the new addy, then it will show up in searches for the name. Eliz On Wed, Mar 9, 2011 at 11:52 AM, edd73 <[email protected]> wrote: > Hi Das: > Thank you for posting that article to explain what some of us researcher > have to go through when looking up ancestors, but the dedicated surname > field is only as good as the Search Engine, and the worst one for me is the > Atomic SE., > > The (3) three Surnames that give me the most trouble are. > > 1 )Mortimer especially from England because there is a location in England > called Mortimer and ...........also all those with the given name Mortimer. > > 2 )Manuel which also produces written manuals as in books...........   and > > 3 )Parent which always returns " the parents of " > > Now that you can edit your previous entries, it begs the other question I > always had, which  is are you able to change your E-mail address, ( as so > many of us have done over the years ) so that someone reading an entry from > say 1999 or 2005 can actual  respond to your current addie. > > Edd Sinnett in Florida > _________________________________________ > > ----- Original Message ----- From: <[email protected]> To: > <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, March 09, 2011 9:00 AM Subject: > [IRL-DUBLIN] [Irl-Dublin]Genealogy Tip by Joan Young from RootswebReview, 9 > March 2011 > > Genealogy Tip > > By _Joan  Young_ (mailto:[email protected]) Are Your Genealogy > Posts Getting Lost in the  Forest? > > Everyone has considered the age-old question "if a tree falls  in the forest > and no one is around, does it make a sound?" Both sides of  that issue can > be debated with valid arguments. However, when it  comes to family history > research there can be no debate about the  difficulty in posting queries or > data that will help  interested people find your posts. This is especially > true when your message concerns ancestors with  surnames (last names) that > are also common words or given names  (first names). When you are > researching surnames such as FOREST,  LANE, ROBINS, or ROBERT, make use of > all available options at  your disposal at the time you post the message, > and also when searching for existing posts. If you are not careful with > common-word surnames your message will be like the tree that falls in  the > forest and no one will see or hear it. Some pointers that may help you when > posting and  searching are: > 1) Post your queries in places such as the RootsWeb/Ancestry _message > boards_ (http://link.rootsweb.com/u.d?L4GnlSPskvyok_8N6jUdZ=12991)  where > the database offers a dedicated surname field. Enter  only the surnames > found in your query in the surname box. Enter the  surnames in a manner that > will enable proper indexing for  future searches. If you enter: ROBERT(S) or > LANE/LAINE your surnames  may not be found in a search unless someone were > to enter the  names exactly as you wrote them which is unlikely. Enter  the > surnames and variants individually with a comma and space to  separate them: > LANE, LAINE, ROBERT, ROBERTS. Do not enter any  characters or symbols, > dashes or slashes, which may cause the  searcher to miss your entries or may > introduce non-surnames into the  search field. The words "and" "or" "etc." > and "family" a re not  surnames and should not be entered into the surnames > box. Properly entered  surnames in a dedicated field will yield only > surnames and no extraneous  words in a search. While most researchers will > perform a search to find your message, some people prefer to browse through > all messages on a  board scanning the posts for items of interest. Commas > separating surnames make it easier for researchers who browse to  find names > they are seeking. Your VAN WINKLE ancestors might be  mistaken for separate > surnames VAN and WINKLE unless you make  use of commas as delimiters. > Surname box entries listed: LANE, VAN  WINKLE, ROBERT, ROBERTS make it clear > exactly which surnames are  included in your message. Don't let your VAN > WINKLEs sleep for another  twenty years. > 2) If you are posting your query or data in a database that has no dedicated > surname search feature (such as the RootsWeb _mailing list  archives_ > (http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/search) ), be sure to include > as much information about your ancestor  as possible to help others find > your message. For example: if your query  concerns James ROBERT of Perth, > Australia be sure to include the full name  and location in your post. Many > search engines permit searches for full  names such as: "James ROBERT" or > perform Boolean searches for James NEAR  ROBERT, or James AND ROBERT, or > even "James ROBERT" AND Australia. Try  various combinations of search > criteria to find the maximum number of  posts. > 3) Make use of online databases for posting or uploading your family  tree. > Family Tree databases such as RootsWeb's _WorldConnect_ > (http://link.rootsweb.com/u.d?X4GnlSPskvyok_8N6jUdv=13011)   will always > have a search engine that finds the surnames included in your  tree and not > similarly-spelled extraneous words. After reading the above information, are > you having second thoughts  about your existing RootsWeb message board > posts? Here's an additional  tip: you can now edit (or delete) your own > posts on the boards. So, do a  search for your posts and fix errors in > surname entries, or remove  obsolete queries and post an updated message. > Don't let your queries be  like the fallen tree in the empty forest never to > be seen or heard from  again. Reprints Permission to reprint  articles from > RootsWeb Review is granted unless specifically  stated otherwise, provided: > 1.  the reprint is used for non-commercial, educational purposes; and > 2.  the following notice appears at the end of the article: Previously > published in RootsWeb Review: 9 March 2011, Vol. 14, No. 3 > > ****************************** ATTENTION TO ALL:- Do any of you ever get to > the bottom of this mail?, and do you remove the details that do not apply to > your mail and change the SUBJECT LINE  for best useage of ARCHIVED > MATERIALS. > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message > > This email was cleaned by emailStripper, available for free from > http://www.papercut.biz/emailStripper.htm > > ****************************** > ATTENTION TO ALL:- Do any of you ever get to the bottom of this mail?, and do you remove the details that do not apply to your mail and change the SUBJECT LINE  for best useage of ARCHIVED MATERIALS. > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message >