I have run into the same problem. In the "old days", we would send out family group sheets and often a pedigree chart to those with whom we were exchanging information and trying to connect. Now these are popping up on World Family Tree discs and all kinds of other unexpected places with errors galore! Many of us who have been interested in genealogy for quite some time have really obtained information the hard way, by looking at ROLLS and ROLLS of microfilm and searching in libraries, etc. Before the Internet, it wasn't uncommon to write 100 letters a year, all with SASEs. I still love research and libraries and hope that if and when I (ever)get things organized that those who are interested will have to at least go to a library to find the information. It's nice to share information and be helpful but one certainly doesn't have to send everything they have ever found. Carole in CO -----Original Message----- From: NM Meyers [mailto:nmmeyers@centurytel.net] Sent: Wednesday, March 27, 2002 11:18 AM To: OHLORAIN-L@rootsweb.com Subject: [OHLORAIN] Going crazy! Every day I find more and more of the research that I have done on my family lines posted on the "net" somewhere, and often reproduced with errors. When I share data with "cousins", I very clearly tell them what it proven and what is only suspected and ask them politely NOT to any post info that has not been proven. Alas, that request falls seems to fall on deaf ears. They simply enter the info into their programs and then make and forward a gedcom along to many others. It then soon appears on the internet somewhere. It even ends up in some publications that people are buying. Simply am unable to contact all the people that are reading it and warn them of the errors. How are some of you researchers handling the same type of problem? It would be good if people learned to edit their gedcoms before they send them on to others. -- Nancy M. Meyers, Lorain OH ==== OHLORAIN Mailing List ==== Search the Archive of Messages for OHLORAIN Mailing List http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/listsearch.pl

I share a gedcom on Ancestry without my notes, but with my sources, so that anyone can see exactly where I got the various pieces of information, and thus judge whether they think what they find of value. I am glad to let people use this material, but I hope that if they do, they keep the sources. Like some of the rest of you, I have begun just sending family group sheets with notes and sources and some pedigree charts. I send these in PDF format, so people have to make an effort to type into their databases what they take from what I send. I find it annoying at times that a few people want all kinds of details from me, but do not want to share much of anything in return, or put any effort into learning how to research. Some of them do not even write to say thank you. What annoys me most, however, is when people have obviously incorrect material that they have collected from "heaven only knows where" that when presented with corrections, ignore the more accurate information. I do think the people who only "collect" miss the fun of finding the missing pieces of the puzzle in that musty court house, historical society, small town cemetery, etc. Margaret Scheffler