Where Are My Online Family Trees?

The Genealogy Guys blog has a post today "Day 13: Organize Your Online Trees"  by Drew Smith suggesting we organize our online family trees.  But first, we need to identify where we have our online trees.

I've had an online family tree for about 20 years or more, probably starting with Ancestry.com.  At that time, I was using the current version of Family Tree Maker, created a GEDCOM file, and uploaded it to Ancestry.  Over 20 years, I uploaded a GEDCOM file to almost every online family tree system that I could to be used as cousin bait.  Frankly, I can't remember every site where I've uploaded an online tree.  Some online tree sites have disappeared and some are dormant.

At present, and since 2006, I am using the RootsMagic desktop family tree program as my "master" program.  Today, my RootsMagic tree has 55,799 profiles.

Here is a list of the online family trees that I can recall and find still in operation.  How complete are they?  Many are not up-to-date, so perhaps this will be helpful - I could add a new tree and delete the old one(s) at some sites.

1)  Ancestry Member Trees (an isolated tree) -- My main research tree on Ancestry.com is synchronized weekly with my RootsMagic tree using the TreeShare feature.  I last updated my Ancestry Member Tree on 12 January 2020, and it has 56,059 profiles.  It has more profiles than my RootsMagic tree because I make mistakes during the synchronization process.  I have not tried hard to correct the mistakes because, in the future, I will upload a new tree in place of this tree.

I use this Ancestry Member Tree to obtain and evaluate Record Hints for each person profile, and often search for more records on a specific person profile.  I receive Web Hints on RootsMagic from this Ancestry tree, which I use to add content to my RootsMagic tree.  I have my autosomal AncestryDNA results attached to me on this Ancestry Member Tree.

I have several other Ancestry Trees for friends and clients which I have created over the years.

2)  MyHeritage Family Tree (an isolated tree) -- I have two trees online at MyHeritage - one for a friend, and one for my research tree uploaded in October 2018 with 50,883 profiles.  This tree is attached to my MyHeritageDNA results, along with my wife's and my cousin's DNA results.  With this tree, I receive Web Hints on RootsMagic, which I use to add content to both my RootsMagic tree and the MyHeritage tree.

I uploaded a new GEDCOM file to MyHeritage on 11 January 2020, but it has not been posted yet.  When it is, I will connect the MyHeritageDNA test results to this new tree and delete the present tree.   I frequently use the Record Matches using specific MyHeritage record collections.

3) Findmypast Family Tree (an isolated tree) -- I have two trees online at Findmypast - one for a friend and one for my research tree uploaded in October 2016 with 46,066 profiles.  This tree is attached to my LivingDNA autosomal test results, but there are no matches to date.  With this tree, I receive Web Hints on RootsMagic, which I use to add content to my RootsMagic tree. I need to upload a new GEDCOM file to Findmypast to make this tree more current.

4)  RootsFinder (an isolated tree) -- I uploaded a limited GEDCOM file to this site in February 2018.  It has 5 generations with 1,091 profiles.

5)  FamilySearch Genealogies (an isolated tree) -- I uploaded a GEDCOM file as a Pedigree Resource File in the Genealogies section several years ago, but cannot find a reference to it on the website..  This site does have my RootsFinder tree.

6)  GeneaNet (an isolated tree) -- I uploaded a limited GEDCOM to this site in December 2019.  It has 646 profiles.

7)  FamilySearch Family Tree (a collaborative tree) -- I have created, or matched, over 34,000 profiles to FamilySearch Family Tree over the past 7 years.  I use RootsMagic to do this, but occasionally have to add or edit a profile in the Family Tree.  I add events, notes and sources for selected profiles and try to make the Family Tree profile as similar as possible to the RootsMagic profile.

8)  Geni Family Tree (a collaborative tree) -- I have added about 3,800 profiles to this online tree, and many of them are connected to the Geni World Family Tree.  Geni tells me that I have over 60,000 ancestors in the World Family Tree (I think many of them are from before 1600).  I uploaded most of them back in 2011 when GEDCOM files could be uploaded.  Subsequently, Geni did not permit GEDCOM uploads, but have recently permitted a GEDCOM upload of a group of profiles that need to be matched to existing Geni profiles.

9)  WikiTree (a collaborative tree) -- I added 6,769 profiles to the WikiTree using GEDCOM uploads, and occasionally added profiles by hand, over the past decade.

10)  WeRelate (a collaborative tree) -- I added 12,586 profiles to this site in 2007.

11)  I also have an ancestor tree at FamilyTreeDNA and several other sites.  

12)  I just realized that I don't have a family tree on AmericanAncestors, which uses the RootsFinder program.  I uploaded my GEDCOM just a few minutes ago.

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The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2020/01/where-are-my-online-family-trees.html

Copyright (c) 2020, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Share it on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Findmypast Acquires RootsFinder, Inc.

I received this information from Findmypast today:

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FINDMYPAST ACQUIRES ROOTSFINDER INC.

·         RootsFinder accelerates Findmypast’s development of the Findmypast Tree.

·         Acquisition marks the latest step in Findmypast’s drive to innovate and enhance user discoveries.

·         RootsFinder founder, Dallan Quass, joins the Findmypast team to assist with future integration work and tree development

Leading family history website, Findmypast, has acquired RootsFinder Inc. and their critically acclaimed RootsFinder family tree product, including new features to help customers analyze their DNA results.

The acquisition reflects Findmypast’s drive to innovate and enhance their customer experience by providing users with new ways to curate, share and explore their family history discoveries.

The acquisition will serve to help Findmypast and its partners accelerate development towards the new “Findmypast Tree” – a continuing effort that seeks to connect users anywhere in the world and offer them the opportunity to discover their family history by working together.  

Founded in 2014 by Dallan Quass, RootsFinder is a free online family tree builder that provides users with the ability to collect and store data from a variety of online sources, engaging ways to capture and visualize media, family connections as well as powerful tools to analyze DNA results. RootsFinder has established itself as popular resource for genealogists across the world and was selected as a semi-finalist in the 2017 RootsTech Innovator Showdown.

Findmypast will look to make use of a number of RootsFinder features in the development of the new tree including data storage, enhanced gedcom uploads, community collaboration, DNA visualizations, error checking and 3^rd party hints. These features will enable family historians to improve accuracy and uncover new leads through collaboration with fellow researchers.

There are no plans to change the features and services RootsFinder users currently enjoy and RootsFinder will continue to operate as a standalone product for the foreseeable future.

RootsFinder founder, Dallan Quass, will be joining the Findmypast team as SVP of Family History Technology and will assist with future integration work and development of the new tree. Dallan brings with him a wealth of experience in building family history platforms, machine learning, and search technologies.

Dallan Quass, founder of RootsFinder said: “Findmypast's commitment to novice and experienced genealogists alike is inspiring. We are thrilled to be part of their drive to make family history discoveries fun and rewarding for everyone regardless of skill level. Using extensive record collections and leading-edge technology, Findmypast and RootsFinder will help more people than ever before to discover who they are.”

Tamsin Todd, CEO of Findmypast said: “With RootsFinder, Dallan Quass has once again demonstrated his passion for innovating in family history. We are excited to add a product that is so well regarded by genealogists to the Findmypast family, and it will form a key part of our product roadmap as we work to make family history accessible and easy for users at all stages of their discovery journeys.”

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Disclosure:  I have a complimentary subscription to Findmypast, and have accepted meals and services from Findmypast, as a Findmypast Ambassador.  This has not affected my objectivity relative to Findmypast and its products.

I have used RootsFinder but have not made it my primary genealogy management program.  I think that this is an excellent move by Findmypast because of RootsFinders Web Hint capability and DNA analysis tools.

The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2019/02/findmypast-acquires-rootsfinder-inc.html

Copyright (c) 2019, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Share it on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Add DNA and Privacy to Your American Ancestrees Family Tree

I wrote AmericanAncestors Introduces American AncesTREES - Part I on 16 January 2019, and have failed to follow up on this new family tree offering.  

I received this via email today from American Ancestors:

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Get More From Your Online Family Tree

An upgrade to American AncesTREES’s Premium Plan gives you access to unique DNA analysis tools, private trees, and 100 GB of media storage for only $34.99.

Discover exactly which DNA segments you and others in your tree have in common, and group matches according to family lines to help identify and prove relationships.

UPGRADE MY TREE TO THE PREMIUM PLAN

Premium Plan Benefits

Premium features include:

• Unique DNA tools
• Private trees -- make all or any of your trees completely private
• 100 GB media storage (over 50,000 photos)
• Hints from GenSmarts, a tool that analyzes your family history data and makes research recommendations
• Ability to remove ads and watermarks
• Choose with whom and how to share your tree
• Get unlimited record hints from AmericanAncestors, FamilySearch, FindMyPast, NewspaperArchive, and BillionGraves*
• Search hints from Ancestry and MyHeritage*
• Import an existing tree from Family Search or a GEDCOM
• Use research logs to track your findings
• Make and share videos of your family stories
• Keep your data safe and secure, our promise for all trees on AncesTrees

*Access to these records requires a separate subscription to the site providing hints.

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Notes:  The AmericanAncestrees premium plan costs $34.99 on a 12 month subscription.  AmericanAncestrees is an implementation of the RootsFinder online family tree started several years ago by Dallan Quass and Heather Henderson.  NEHGS and American Ancestors have added this implementation as their online family tree in the past few months.  

Disclosure:  I am a longtime annual subscriber (1992?) of NEHGS/AmericanAncestors, and have received no material considerations from them ever.  I have used the free version of RootsFinder and have blogged about it, but don't use it on a regular basis.

The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2019/02/add-dna-and-privacy-to-your-american.html

Copyright (c) 2019, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Share it on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

RootsFinder Online Family Tree Program Updates

I received an email from Dallan Quass, the creator of the free RootsFinder online family tree program, which noted the following updates to the program:

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RootsFinder is a free program that makes family history easy to research and easy to share, including DNA. Some of our recent developments include:

• A new circle view for DNA lovers: The DNA circle shows triangulation groups arranged around a circle so you can see all the kit numbers. Bands connect matching groups across the circle. It’s a great way to see the level of endogamy (intermarriage) in your tree.

•  New WebClipper and ToDo Creator browser extensions for Firefox that complement the existing ones for Chrome: The WebClipper and ToDo Creator make it quick and easy to add evidence to your RootsFinder tree and create research plans from major online genealogy sites including Ancestry.com, FamilySearch, MyHeritage, FindMyPast, Find A Grave, and more.

• New hint partnerships with Geni, RootsPoint, WeRelate, and WikiTree (in addition to the existing hint partnerships with FamilySearch, Findmypast, AmericanAncestors, and NewspaperArchive): When hints from these partners are enabled, users will receive suggestions for matching content at these websites. As always, unlimited hints are free, although some partners require a subscription in order to see content on their site.

• Dozens of enhancements based on suggestions from RootsFinder users in the forum and on support including infographics, research logs, and more. We listen to our users and appreciate all the feedback we receive.

We’re thrilled to see 5x growth in as many months! We are so excited to help make family history easy to research and easy to share. It’s never been easier to bring DNA results into your research and share with others. 

About RootsFinder

RootsFinder (https://www.rootsfinder.com) combines traditional family history with genetic genealogy, making it easy to research and easy to share. You get automatic hints from up to eight different websites, including FamilySearch and Findmypast, as well as search suggestions for sites like Ancestry and My Heritage. The evidence-based paradigm makes it easy to add data to entire families at once and trace facts back to their source. DNA tools help you analyze matches from multiple testing companies and link them to your tree. Now you can keep everything in one place and share for free.

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Here is my RootsFinder tree, which I imported from FamilySearch Family Tree about six months ago (of course, I added content to the FamilySearch Family Tree more than six months ago).

I need to get back into RootsFinder and experiment with the new features.  

For instance, here is the Historical Lifespan infographic for my tree:

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The URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2018/08/rootsfinder-online-family-tree-program.html

Copyright (c) 2018, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Share it on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Monday Genea-Pourri - 26 February 2018

Here are some of my family history and genealogy related activities over the past week:

1)  I continued searching for the parents of George Washington Seaver with resounding  success, with the help of Barry Sheldon.  More on this in recent and future posts.  I still need to document the Lida J. (Robie?) (Baker) (SCrooker) (Seaver) Brown's story.

2)  I moderated the San Diego Genealogical Society RootsMagic User's Group on Saturday, 24 February.  We had nine attendees, and discussed making an ancestor or descendants book; creating a MyRootsMagic web page or making web pages for an owned web site; TreeShare with an Ancestry Member Tree, including syncing a person, and bringing data from Ancestry to RootsMagic; FamilySearch interaction; Mapping and Place Lists; and Shared Facts (can you obtain a list of them?).

3)  Today we are on the airplane to RootsTech 2018 in Salt Lake City, Utah.  We get in at about 2 p.m., so I missed the Mondays With Myrt webinar today from the Family History Library.  I expect to go to the FHL on Tuesday for research, and then go to RootsTech classes on Wednesday, and camp out in the Expo Hall on Thursday through Saturday.  We are staying at the Radisson Hotel this year, and hope to have a wheelchair so I can transport Linda around the Salt Palace and out to dinner and parties.  I downloaded the rest of the syllabus articles and copied them to Dropbox and my laptop.  

4)  I worked on my tree in the new RootsFinder online family tree program, imported from FamilySearch Family Tree.  I wrote two blog posts highlighting the menu selections and the person profile features in the program.

5)  I have 255 Shared Ancestors on my AncestryDNA list (I had 252 last week), 760 4th cousins or closer (up from 743 last week), 649 pages (over 32,400 matches with at least 5 cM) (was 639 pages last week) of  matches.  I have 10 matches that are third cousins or closer, and 86 matches with 34 cM (0.5%) or more (was 85 last week).  My highest match has 779 cM (11.5%), and is one of my first cousins.  I have 15 DNA Circles (up from 14 last week). There were no new close matches (3rd cousin or closer).  Very few of the new matches have an Ancestry Member Tree.

6)  I have 2,886 DNA Matches on MyHeritage (up from 2,797 last week) with at least 8 cM (0.1%), with 25 matches with more than 34 cM (0.5%) or more (was 29 last week).  The highest match is 184 cM (2.5%).  Most of my close matches have very small trees with no common ancestors shown.

7)  I have 1,119 DNA Relatives on 23andMe (down from 1,120 last week) who share at least 0.10% with me.  Of these, only 1 shares 1.0% or more, and 36 share 0.50% or more (was 61 last week), with the highest match being 1.54%.  I struggle to find out anything about most of these testers.

8)  I have 2,412 autosomal DNA Matches on FamilyTreeDNA (up from 2,398) who share 0.25% (18 cM) or more, with the highest match being 96 cM (1.42%).  I have 12 who share at least 1.0% (68 cM) with me, and 1,303 who share at least 0.50% (34 cM) or more (was 1,294 last week) with me.  I have had better luck finding shared ancestors here with a few of these testers.

9) There were almost daily sessions working in RootsMagic to update FamilySearch Family Tree profiles for Seaver families and other database families, with occasional additions to the RootsMagic profiles. I have matched 22,702 of my persons with FSFT.  I now have 49,694 persons in my RootsMagic file.   I TreeShare almost every night.  There were also several sessions in Ancestry Hints to add content and source citations for the new RootsMagic profile additions.   I've fallen behind on the Record Hints with 58,131 waiting to be resolved, but I'm working on them.  Every time I add something to RootsMagic and TreeShare, the Hints multiply.  

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The URL for this post is: http://www.geneamusings.com/2018/02/monday-genea-pourri-26-february-2018.html

Copyright (c) 2018, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Share it on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Getting Started With RootsFinder - Part 2: Family Tree Profiles

I posted RootsFinder Delivers Powerful New Tools to Genealogists for FREE on Saturday, 17 February 2018 and immediately tried to use it.  Yesterday, I went through the program menu items in Getting Started With RootsFinder - Part 1: Program Menu Items.

In this post, I'm going to look through a profile in my RootsFinder online family tree.  Since I imported this tree from the FamilySearch Family Tree, the profiles depend upon what is in each FamilySearch Family Tree profile. 

1)  Here is my RootsFinder family tree when I open the program:

I can click on one of the right-facing arrows on the right side of the image above and see additional ancestors.  I clicked on the arrow for Frank Walton Seaver on the chart above and can see three additional generations of his ancestors (I had to drag and drop the screen to the left):

2)  I'm going to look at the RootsFinder profile of my great-grandfather, Frank Walton Seaver (1852-1922), who has a FamilySearch Person ID of LCRC-8K6.

In RootsFinder, I clicked on Frank's name to see his RootsFinder Profile:

The popup box for this profile opened, and there are three buttons below the person summary - for "View Tree," "View Profile," and "Edit Profile."

There are lists presented on the window above for "Spouses & Children" and "Parents & Siblings."

Each profile has gold stars for the number of "Evidences" (sources), and a green circle with a number in it for the number of "Hints" found.

3)  I want to "View Profile" for Frank to determine what is transferred from the FamilySearch Family Tree profile and how it is presented.  I clicked on the "View Profile" button on the screen above:

The screen above has these features:

*  A summary of the person's profile (in the gray background area on the screen above) - name, birth, death, parents names, gold stars and the Hints green circle, plus a RootsFinder ID number (which seems to have no relationship to the FamilySearch Family Tree ID).

*  In the left-hand column below the profile summary there are lists of the "Timeline," "Names," "Other Sources," "Notes," and "Research Logs."

*  In the right-hand column below the profile summary there are lists of the "Hints & ToDos," "Parents & Siblings" and "Spouses & Children."

*  Below the summary profile, there are icons provided for "Tree," "Bookmak," "Hints," "Research," "FamilySearch," "Video," "Share," "Merge," "Edit" and "Delete."

You can see each Timeline item (with a date and age, the event type, the event place, and the gold star to indicate a source is available.  By clicking on the Event type, the user can see an Edit Event icon and a Delete Event icon, plus a field to add supporting evidence.  For a Timeline item with a gold star, you can click on the star and see the Evidence provided.

By clicking on each Hint item, you can see the record provider, the Hint content, and a link to the Hint.  There is also an "Edit Hint" icon and a "Delete Hint" icon.

Further down, there are more Timeline events and Hints:

4)  I clicked on the Timeline event for a marriage and a Hint for a marriage, so you can see the information provided:

5)  Still further down, the Hints on the right-side end, and the list of "Parents & Siblings" and "Spouses & Children" begins:

6)  Still further down, the list of Timeline Events ends on the left side, and the "Untitled" Events (Gender and Biography in this case), and Names (including "Other" Names) are presented:

I believe that the Biography in this case is obtained from the "Life Sketch" field on the FamilySearch Family Tree.

7)  Still further down, the "Other Sources" are listed.  I believe that these are obtained from the "Sources" list on the FamilySearch Family Tree profile, which are not keyed to an Event in Family Tree.

8)  Still further down the list on the left-hand side are the "Notes."  I believe these are obtained, in this case, from the FamilySearch "Notes" list on the FamilySearch profile.

I clicked on one of the "Notes" on the screen above to see the content.

9)  The last item on the list in the left-hand column is for "Research Logs"  (not shown on the screens above).

10)  The user can add information to any of these fields by clicking on the Edit icon or the "+" (Plus) button.

11)  There is a lot more work to do on a person Profile in RootsFinder.  So far we've looked only at the information that is imported from the FamilySearch Family Tree.  

It appears that just about every field on the FamilySearch Family Tree profile for a person was transferred to RootsFinder, with the exception of the "Changes" and "Discussions" fields.

In the next post in the series, I want to look in some detail at the icons below the person's Summary Profile.  

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NOTE:  I have received no remuneration for writing this blog post or accessing RootsFinder.com.  I am in the process of reviewing the RootsFinder program.

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2018/02/getting-started-with-rootsfinder-part-2.html

Copyright (c) 2018, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Share it on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Getting Started With RootsFinder - Part 1: Program Menu Items

I posted RootsFinder Delivers Powerful New Tools to Genealogists for FREE on Saturday, 17 February 2018 and immediately tried to use it.  

I watched a bit of the "how to" video on the RootsFinder home page, and then clicked on the "Start Now...It's Free" button.

After logging into RootsFinder (it is FREE!), I was able to upload a family tree from FamilySearch Family Tree to RootsFinder, importing four generations of ancestors and one generation of descendants for those ancestors.  I was also able to import four more generations of ancestors for some of my ancestors.  I called this tree "Randy Seaver's FamilySearch Tree."

A user can also import a GEDCOM file, and I will do that soon so that I can compare and contrast the differences between the two import methods.  I'm not sure how many generations I'll be able to import using a GEDCOM file.

In this post, I want to highlight the different "menu" features available to use on RootsFinder.  Note that this is for my FamilySearch Family Tree, so it will include information from myself and other persons.

1)  Here is the Home Page for my account:

My Home Page includes:

*  My tree listing - I can select which tree I wish to use.

*  There is a "Demo Theater" in the middle of the page, with two sets of tabs - one set above the video screen and one below the video for each upper set of tabs.

*  There is a "News" listing on the left side.

*  There is an ad on the right side - this is the price of it bring a free online family tree.

2)  I clicked on the "Randy Seaver's FamilySearch Family Tree" on the screen above (recall that I have already imported data from Family Tree) and saw:

The tree shows four generations of my tree, with the persons name, the lifespan years, a series of gold stars, a green circle with a number in it, and a photo of the person.

I can use the "home" icon at the top left of the tree to get back to the home person (m,e!), or use the "+ or "-" buttons to zoom in and out on the tree.  I can use the arrow beside each person on the right-hand side of the tree to see up to three more generations of the selected person.

Over on the left side of the tree screen, there is a long list of menu items that control what the user sees on the screen.  I will go through many of these in the rest of this post:

3)  Here is the "Dashboard" screen:

The Dashboard shows me the most recent additions to my tree.

I can click on a person and edit the supporting evidence, or delete the person using the icons next to the person's name (not shown above).

There is a "Bookmark" opportunity on the left side of the screen above, and the user can select a name from the tree to "Bookmark."

4)  The "People" menu item provides a list of tree persons in last name - first name alphabetical order:

For each person, their birth date, death date, number of stars, number of hints, and FamilySearch ID number are provided.

There is a search box in the blue background at the top of the list.  The user can start typing the first name and then pick from the list, which seems to include some parents names also.

5)  The "Media" menu item shows all of the Media items attached to my imported ancestral families:

6)  The "Hints & ToDos" menu item includes the Hints that RootsFinder found on several different websites for me for my tree persons:

For this menu item, I can search for "Hints and ToDos" for specific tree persons.

7)  I'm skipping the "Research Logs," "DNA (experimental)," and "invitations" menu items for now.

8)  The "Content Lists" menu items has several items on it.  The first is "Evidences" which seems to be Divorce, Marriage and Source items for tree persons:

For this menu item, I can search for "Evidences" for specific tree persons.

9)  The next menu item on the "Content Lists" is "Notes," which lists all notes for my tree persons:

For this menu item, I can search for "Notes" for specific tree persons.

I clicked on one of the "Notes" and a popup window showed me the text Note:

10)  The next menu item on the "Content Lists" is for "Sources" for my tree persons.

For this menu item, I can search for "Sources" for specific tree persons.

11)  The next menu item on the "Content Lists" is for "Stories" for my tree persons.

For this menu item, I can search for "Sources" for specific tree persons.

I clicked on one of the "Sources" and saw:

I was happy to see that formatted text (with line breaks) is presented just as it is in Family Tree.

12)  There are several more menu items on the list on the left side of the screen - for "Apps," "Reports," "Hint Settings" and "Tree Settings."  I will report on those in a later blog post.

In the next blog post, I will look at what is included in a person Profile in the RootsFinder online family tree program.

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NOTE:  I have received no remuneration for writing this blog post or accessing RootsFinder.com.  I am in the process of reviewing the RootsFinder program.

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2018/02/getting-started-with-rootsfinder-part-1.html

Copyright (c) 2018, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Share it on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

Monday Genea-Pourri - 19 February 2018

Here are some of my family history and genealogy related activities over the past week:

1)  I continued searching for the parents of George Washington Seaver without success.  The lead of the aunt, Lucinda M. (Pease) Fields, went nowhere.  I searched the Wisconsin and California probate records on Ancestry (because they are indexed) and found no mention of George, and this process eliminated some of the potential candidates identified earlier.  I wrote up a timeline for George's life from the available data.  Now I need to document Lida J. (Robie?) (Baker) (Crooker)(Seaver) Brown's life.

2)  I moderated the Chula Vista Genealogical Society's Research Group last Wednesday at the Chula Vista library.  I reduced my resolution on the laptop, and my HDMI to VGA dongle still didn't work well.  Gary's dongle worked fine, so he gave it to me, and said he had another.  Gary's a nice guy!  In the group meeting, I highlighted the RootsTech video streaming, how to access the syllabus articles, the FamilySearch Library visit, my Lanfear DNA connection on MyHeritage, and the George W. Seaver saga.  We went around the table and the attendees discussed their genealogy successes and challenges over the past month.

3)  Every week, I add one or two of my AncestryDNA Shared Ancestors line to my RootsMagic database in hopes of solving some of my long-standing research problems.  This week, it is a Richman cousin (4th or 5th cousin) which provided a potential link to my end-of-line 3rd great-grandfather John Richman (1788-1867); the common ancestors are probably my John's grandparents.   
4)  I managed to download the RootsTech 2018 syllabus articles for Thursday and Friday to my computer.  I need to do the Saturday articles also.  I save these individual articles in a single file folder, changing the file name to "FirstName LastName - Presentation Title.pdf" so that they are easily findable.  I will copy that to my laptop and my Dropbox file for access at RootsTech.  I've printed off some of the articles that I know I want to save to read at my leisure.
5)  I added a tree to the new RootsFinder online family tree program, imported from FamilySearch Family Tree.  I've been exploring the layout, navigation, and features of the program.

6)  Today's Mondays with Myrt webinar highlighted:  Larry Naukum's In-Depth Genealogist laminated sheet on New York Research, and access to New York resources; the new RootsFinder online family tree program which has unique features; Ancestry added the ability to add alternate information to the SSDI and other indexed-only collections; Cyndi Ingle's Facebook post about attendees photographing or recording in-person or webinar presentations; RootsTech 2018 video stream and keynote talks; the video will be available on YouTube, and the video and the edited chat log will be available on the DearMYRTLE Community Google+ page.

7)  I have 252 Shared Ancestors on my AncestryDNA list (I had 255 last week), 743 4th cousins or closer (up from 728 last week), 639 pages (over 31,900 matches with at least 5 cM) (was 626 pages last week) of  matches.  I have 10 matches that are third cousins or closer, and 85 matches with 34 cM (0.5%) or more (was 84 last week).  My highest match has 779 cM (11.5%), and is one of my first cousins.  I have 14 DNA Circles (no change for weeks). There were no new close matches (3rd cousin or closer).  Very few of the new matches have an Ancestry Member Tree.

8)  I have 2,797 DNA Matches on MyHeritage (up from 2,692 last week) with at least 8 cM (0.1%), with 29 matches with more than 34 cM (0.5%) or more (was 19 last week).  The highest match is 184 cM (2.5%).  Most of my close matches have very small trees with no common ancestors shown.

9)  I have 1,120 DNA Relatives on 23andMe (down from 1,125 last week) who share at least 0.10% with me.  Of these, only 1 shares 1.0% or more, and 61 share 0.50% or more (was 36 last week), with the highest match being 1.54%.  I struggle to find out anything about most of these testers.

10)  I have 2,398 autosomal DNA Matches on FamilyTreeDNA (up from 2,383) who share 0.25% (18 cM) or more, with the highest match being 96 cM (1.42%).  I have 12 who share at least 1.0% (68 cM) with me, and 1,294 who share at least 0.50% (34 cM) or more (was 1,283 last week) with me.  I have had better luck finding shared ancestors here with a few of these testers.

11) There were almost daily sessions working in RootsMagic to update FamilySearch Family Tree profiles for Seaver families and other ancestral families, with occasional additions to the RootsMagic profiles. I have matched 22,660 of my persons with FSFT.  I now have 49,674 persons in my RootsMagic file.   I TreeShare almost every night.  There were also several sessions in Ancestry Hints to add content and source citations for the new RootsMagic profile additions.   I've fallen behind on the Record Hints with 57,478 waiting to be resolved, but I'm working on them.  Every time I add something to RootsMagic and TreeShare, the Hints multiply.  

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The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2018/02/monday-genea-pourri-19-february-2018.html

Copyright (c) 2018, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Share it on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.

RootsFinder Delivers Powerful New Tools to Genealogists for FREE

I received this information recently from RootsFinder and my friend, Dallan Quass:

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RootsFinder Delivers Powerful New Tools to Genealogists for Free

RootsFinder.com is a free, online family tree that makes researching family history much easier. 

Unlike other online trees, which only provide hints to their own content, RootsFinder provides hints and search suggestions to websites such as:

• FamilySearch
• FindMyPast
• AmericanAncestors
• BillionGraves
• FindAGrave
• Ancestry
• MyHeritage
• and more

In addition, seamless sync with FamilySearch, integration with GenSmarts, evidence analysis, embedded research logs, and DNA tools (coming soon) add to RootsFinder’s powerful offering. 

Along with these valuable tools, RootsFinder has also developed two Chrome Browser Extensions. The extensions make research and recording information faster and more accurate.

1. WebClipper - Copy records and source citations quickly and automatically into your family tree from major genealogy websites such as Ancestry, FamilySearch, MyHeritage, and more. It adds records to entire families at once.

2. ToDo Creator - Save search ideas for later by attaching action items to specific people in your family tree, adding them to research logs, and marking them complete when done.

RootsFinder also has tools that make it easy to share your genealogy with your family safely and securely:

• Invite others to your tree, but you control who edits
• Ancestor reports with stories and pictures can be turned into family history books
• Descendancy reports in the register format
• Videos & photo mosaics created from your media
• Fan charts and wall charts
• Pinterest-like media wall for scrolling through photos

Two plans are available: an ad-supported Free-Forever plan, and a $35/year Pro plan that removes ads and includes additional storage and advanced features. Everyone gets a 30-day Pro plan for free.

A small group of dedicated genealogists and software developers have been working on RootsFinder for the past three years. Our goal is to provide a free online family tree that is focused on the needs of the genealogy researcher. We think we finally have something worth talking about. – Dallan Quass

About RootsFinder

RootsFinder ( https://www.rootsfinder.com ) was founded in 2015 by Dallan Quass, CTO of FamilySearch from 2002-2004 and the creator of WeRelate.org and GenGophers.com, two of FamilyTree Magazine's top 101 genealogy websites. Dallan is joined at RootsFinder by Heather Henderson, Erin Harris, and other experienced genealogists who share his love of family history.

Contact: dallan@rootsfinder.com

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NOTE:  I have received no remuneration ofor writing this blog post or accessing RootsFinder.com.  I am in the process of adding my family tree to RootsFinder.

The URL for this post is:  http://www.geneamusings.com/2018/02/rootsfinder-delivers-powerful-new-tools.html

Copyright (c) 2018, Randall J. Seaver

Please comment on this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post.  Share it on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ or Pinterest using the icons below.  Or contact me by email at randy.seaver@gmail.com.