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 OneGreatFamily Update - June 18, 2004

In This Issue:
OneGreatFamily can help you save time and work


How can OneGreatFamily help me save time and work?
  A look into the documentation feature at OneGreatFamily
Q&A:Starting on Your Family Tree
  How do I get my family tree into OneGreatFamily?
Success: Thanks OneGreatFamily!
  Success found at OneGreatFamily
One Great Genealogy Site Award
  DistantCousin.com
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Last Week at OneGreatFamily . . .

Site Activity Summary

  • 254,638 new individual merges!
  • 80,381 new individual hints!
  • 91,709 new family merges!
  • 21,714 new family hints!
  • 147 average individual merges per group
  • 47 average individual hints per group
  • 47 average family merges per group
  • 6 average family hints per group

    If you didn't receive a GenMail telling you about new merges in your family tree, your tree wasn't affected by this activity. You may want to add new individuals or information to your family tree to improve the likelihood of matches and merges taking place.

    Having Success?

    OneGreatFamily wants to hear from you. Please send us your success stories and your recommendations for new features.

    Submit your story
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  •  How can OneGreatFamily help me save time and work?
    Don't always believe everything you read! In genealogical research and in life, we all need to be careful not to believe everything that we hear and see. When you are not looking for information with credentials, it is amazing the amount of false information that can be found.

    For years, information on the Internet wasn't taken seriously. Why? Because anyone could post anything they wanted, and not many people were taking the time to document what they posted. As the Internet has progressed, so has its credibility. To make sure that the information you take from the Internet is credible, there are now citations and documentation to validate it.

    In the same respect, OneGreatFamily encourages the documentation of source data in order to allow all members to utilize and improve upon credible data. One of the main ideas behind OneGreatFamily is that we are all researching together, so that we can save time and work by building a foundation of trust. In order to build trust, documentation and credibility is needed.

    Adding all available documentation about how, where, and from whom we obtained certain genealogical information, adds credibility to our work and saves time for everyone who works with us. Documenting data is sometimes misrepresented as time consuming and complex; however, once you understand a few simple concepts, you are ready to roll.

    The differences between citations and notes are often subtle, but do exist. Citations typically contain information about the source from which you received your data, while notes are used to capture the specific information found in those sources, such as occupations, migration information, and name variations.

    Source documentation and citations allow other researchers to verify the information that is being citied by tracing the data to a primary source of evidence. A citation should provide enough information for other researchers to find the same documentation. OneGreatFamily allows you to add information from numerous sources to each individual or family record in your family tree.

    Notes often contain information such as changes in the spelling or pronunciation of names, addresses, occupations, friends or associates, and any other available information about an individual. Notes can be very valuable when providing original data not found elsewhere.

    Whenever reviewing personal genealogical information, source information is incredibly valuable. Keeping your information well documented and organized is a great courtesy to other researchers who may wonder if your information can be trusted.

    Visit OneGreatFamily and add documentation to your family tree.
     Q&A: Starting on Your Family Tree

    How do I get my family tree into OneGreatFamily?

    There are three main ways that you can get started entering information into OneGreatFamily.

    1. Submitting what research you have already done as a GEDCOM file

    You can upload a GEDCOM containing your ancestral information. A GEDCOM is a file that stores genealogical information in a particular format, which allows researches to share and work together on their information. We not only allow you to add your GEDCOM to the collection of others that have been submitted, but once yours has been added, it will begin to connect with others as family links are found! This allows you to save time by uploading the information that you have collected and entered using a different program and not have to start from scratch.

    You can upload your GEDCOM into OneGreatFamily by selecting “Import GEDCOM File to View” from the File menu in the Genealogy Browser or by selecting the second option on the Organize Anchors Page that appears each time you launch the Genealogy Browser after logging in.

    2. Entering your family tree directly into OneGreatFamily

    If you are new to OneGreatFamily, you will find that OneGreatFamily offers everything that other family tree services offer, plus more. If you do not already have a file containing your information, you can use our easy-to-use interface for starting from scratch. To start manually entering information, just launch your group and select the first option on the Organize Anchors page. From there you can begin to create records for yourself, your immediate family, and your distant relatives. As soon as you enter the information, OneGreatFamily begins to search what others have entered to find matches.

    3. Starting with what someone else has submitted

    Because new names are constantly being added to OneGreatFamily, many members find that others have already submitted some of their ancestors. This allows members to pick up where others have left off. Do a search of our database and see which of your ancestors have already been added. If you have additional information to add, just type it right in as if you were the original submitter. The information is automatically updated! It's that easy!

    All of these techniques allow members to add information to their trees, and together, they are working to create the largest single family tree available. No matter which method you choose to upload your information, OneGreatFamily offers technology that can match and merge it with the information that has been submitted by others.

    Visit OneGreatFamily.com and expand your family tree today!
     Success: Thanks OneGreatFamily!
    The following success story shows what can happen when OneGreatFamily finds information in your family tree that can be matched and merged with others:

    I have to tell you that I was skeptical about your claims that I could add generations to my family line when I signed up for the free trial. I have been working on my genealogy for years and was certain I was making fair progress on my own. However, a few hours after uploading my own GED file, I had added a new family line with generations of information. Since then, I have been adding data regularly and am finding new members of my ancestry file right and left. I have a few lines that I have been stuck on for some time, but I am now hopeful that I will finally be able to crack some of these mysteries. Thank you for your efforts to bring us all together.

    Thanks!

    Darlene White

    Submit your success story to OneGreatFamily
    Visit OneGreatFamily see the human family tree from your own perspective
     One Great Genealogy Site Award

    DistantCousin.com

    DistantCousin.com is an online library of data and links to aid in your genealogical research. Data includes millions of records from city directories, hundreds of thousands of gravemarker photographs, tens of thousands of obits, and much more.

    Visit DistantCousin.com today!
    See past award recipients
    Recommend the next One Great Genealogy Site award recipient
     Get FREE Time on OneGreatFamily.com

    Want some FREE time?

    Current subscribers can earn additional free time by referring others to OneGreatFamily.com. OneGreatFamily needs your help in growing the largest single family tree in the world. You can get free subscription time on OneGreatFamily by referring others to this unique service When anyone you refer to OneGreatFamily subscribes to our service and enters your username, you get an additional free month.

    Learn more about this FREE opportunity
    Refer a new subscriber to OneGreatFamily today.



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