Here's some food for thought from a recent Genealogy Newsletter. Since all of our work is on Rootsweb (county pages and mailing lists), we are indeed indebted to Rootsweb. If you could afford a small contribution at this time, it would really help. Each of contributing just a bit will make a large sum in the end. ==================================================== Where is all this going in 1999? I have as much trouble peering into the future as I do digging up the past, but it appears to me that the costs of computer genealogy (software and CDs) are likely to increase. Moreover, the price of admission to many genealogy sources on the Web is probably going to go up. Many surfers are already paying $5 to $10 per month ($60-$120 annually) to have access to various sources or finding aids. Many onliners are discovering their "free" Web space or e-mail account comes with hidden prices -- loaded with ads and their names and e-mail addresses sold to cyber-merchants. RootsWeb is one of the "Top 25" or so sites on the Internet and continues to swim against the tide by providing free access to huge amounts of genealogical data. Yet currently less than three percent of its users are providing financial support. If RootsWeb users contributed only $2-$3 per month ($24 to $36 annually) there would be adequate financing to maintain and build an incredible genealogical resource. If they don't, the future of Internet genealogy looks expensive. * * * * * DONATIONS TO HELP SUPPORT ROOTSWEB ARE GREATLY APPRECIATED. For details about support levels/benefits and payment options, please visit: <http://www.rootsweb.com/rootsweb/how-to-subscribe.html> or send e-mail to: [email protected] RootsWeb's address is: RootsWeb Genealogical Data Cooperative, P.O. Box 6798, Frazier Park, CA 93222-6798. (Please include your e-mail address on all correspondence and checks.) Carol Carol Pridgen Martoccia 903 East Fifth St. Greenville, NC 27858 PRIDGEN Homepage : http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Meadows/6297 PRIDGEN Archives: http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/listsearch.pl List manager for the Pridgen Family and for Wilson County, NC (NCWilson)