Technology

Tech Tuesday: The Next Generation v9.0 upgrade review

November 27, 2012 By Lauren Mahieu Leave a Comment

The Stanwood Family site at http://www.stanwoodfamily.com

I really have enjoyed The Next Generation (TNG) – is a great way to share your research with others online. My dilemma in the past has been trying to keep TNG updated with the data I have in my primary desktop software, Roots Magic (which I LOVE!). Recently I learned that you can simply overwrite your TNG data by uploading a new Gedcom, so I thought I’d give that a whirl. First, though, I decided to upgrade TNG from version 8.0 to 9.0.

The upgrade went without a hitch. TNG has an excellent forum and a Wiki which answers most questions. However, when I’ve had additional questions that I can’t solve with the online helps, Darrin Lythgoe has been WONDERFUL about providing support for his product. When I first installed TNG a couple of years ago, he guided me through the process when I had issues. (Discovered it runs best on Linux, and my host was Windows-based. A change to Linux solved those problems.)

While my upgrade was smooth, updating my database was a little more challenging. Most of my issues were from my own error in not verifying paths for media images prior to uploading my Gedcom. In addition, some of my image files are “choking” the thumbnail generator. I’ve not yet been able to figure out why, so I had to manually create thumbnails for several hundred images I loaded over the weekend. I still have some that will not convert even manually, even when I try to reduce the size of the original image. I’m sure I’ll find the answer soon enough, or will contact Darrin for additional help. Other than that. I really had no issues.

Now, what I would really like Santa to bring me for Christmas is a Roots Magic iPad app! Are you listening, Bruce Buzbee? Unfortunately, since he’s been working on the new release of RM 6.0 (which is GREAT, by the way), I will likely have to wait until 2013 for any RM iPad app! Until then, my TNG data is just a click away….

Filed Under: Tech Tuesday, Technology

Excel, Evernote, RootsMagic, and my research log

February 4, 2012 By Lauren Mahieu 4 Comments

Excel spreadsheet for New Hampshire - a combined planning tool and research log

After my first day at the Family History Library, I realized I need a major over-haul of my research log. For quite a while now, I’ve used Excel to plan what materials to research at a repository and updated the spreadsheet with what I’d located. However, I didn’t have a really good way of incorporating that into a research log.

However, I think I’ve come up with a system that will work and is relatively simple to use. Above is the spreadsheet that I created before coming to Salt Lake City, listing the various films and books I wished to see for the state of New Hampshire. (I created other worksheets for additional states that I was focusing on.) To utilize this as a tool that can be referenced in RootsMagic 5′s internal research log, I added a column for a reference number on the far left.

Another modification is the use of a link to Evernote, as applicable, in the column on the far right. Included is a brief summary to identify what was found, and a link to more comprehensive details that are saved in Evernote with scanned images, when available. For example, Daniel Wescott was found in the New Hampshire Provincial probate records (Ref. ID #110). The blue hyperlink shown in the far right takes me to this page in Evernote:

Images from the Family History Library CD-ROM that were saved using "Screen Snip" and loaded to Evernote

This evening I will be working on entering my research results into RootsMagic’s new research log function. I’ve just started experimenting with this, but think it will be helpful to utilize this new feature in RM 5 so that all research results are available within the program at a glance. Here are a couple of screen shots, using the search above completed for NH probate records:

The Reference ID is included in the upper right hand corner (taken from Excel spreadsheet)

And here is the completed log in RootsMagic:

Completed research log entry; additional resources will be added under this one research goal of "probate"

While this process may take a couple more steps, in the long run it is saving me time, as I know what I’ve checked, and can easily reference these lists when at other repositories.

What do you use for your research log? If you are a RootsMagic user, have you started to utilize their tool?

Filed Under: Learning, Research Trips, Technology

Tech Tuesday: My Super Experience With Scrivener!

January 10, 2012 By Lauren Mahieu Leave a Comment

Screenshot of the Scrivener "cork board" which allows you to organize your writing

Growing up I always had pen and paper in hand. I’d sketch out newspaper templates, and would write amusing articles for my family’s enjoyment. As I grew older, the pen was replaced by a typewriter. In my Sophomore year at Elsinore Union High School, I was given the opportunity to write for The Rancho News, where I’d cover the happenings at our local high school for the community newspaper.

What Motivates Miss Rancho-Temecula Contestants?

One of my first newspaper articles, published in The Rancho News

By 15, I was taken on as a paid, freelance reporter. Toting my 35mm camera, I’d cover stories such as the design of the Riverside County Emergency Medical Services (the predecessor of 911), area floods, and how the gas crisis of 1979 was affecting Temecula residents. My first paycheck was a whopping $18.37, but I was in heaven – getting paid for something I LOVED! My dream was to become a photojournalist, but in the end, I decided to be practical chose the nursing profession- it pays the bills! But I digress. :-)

I have some opportunities for writing projects at work as a healthcare executive, but most of my pen-and-paper (okay, word processor) outlets are enjoyed at home. Enter Scrivener! From Literature & Latte, the producers of this cool software application:

“Scrivener is a powerful content-generation tool for writers that allows you to concentrate on composing and structuring long and difficult documents. While it gives you complete control of the formatting, its focus is on helping you get to the end of that awkward first draft.”

I first learned of Scrivener as Lisa Alzo discussed her favorite writing tools as a guest speaker on Geneabloggers Radio. I’m still playing with the trial version of Scrivener (it gives you 30 non-consecutive days to test-drive it before deciding if you wish to pay the reasonable $40 purchase price), but I’m pretty sure this is the tool that is going to help me write “The Wasgatt Book.” What I like best:

You can organize your notes and your media in separate folders which can be referenced as you write your draft. No more switching between multiple files, programs and databases!
Electronic “index cards” allow you to create a synopsis that can be organized.
Customized labels allow for color-coding. I’ve selected a color for each of Thomas and Margaret (Davis) Wasgatt’s eleven children, allowing me to focus on each line of descent individually.
Items can be tagged; for example, my index cards above all show “to do,” allowing me to see where I am in the writing process.
“Scrivener Links” that create a split-screen; you can view a document in the bottom of your screen while completing your draft in the window above. Great for referencing PDFs, images, or other documents within in your file!

Creating a "Scrivener Link" allows you to view another document within your file while working on your text

I am barely scratching the surface of Scrivener’s many features and abilities in this brief intro, as I’m still quite a neonate in my usage. However, the software is very intuitive while still providing sophisticated tools to help with your research/writing project, no matter how large or small. Check out Literature & Latte for more info. Happy writing!

Filed Under: Learning, Technology

Tech Tuesday: Cute pictures with Cute PDF

December 20, 2011 By Lauren Mahieu Leave a Comment

PDFs are great for compiling documents

I love PDFs. They are great for compiling photos of documents. Take, for example, the photographs of the pension file for Thomas H. Stanwood who served in the Civil War. The original documents were photographed by my cousin who lives in Washington, D.C., and was kind enough to visit the National Archives and take the digital images for me.

After reading (and re-reading) the documents, I like to draft a summary of my findings and copy the images into a Word document. (You can see the completed document for Thomas’ pension files here.) However, this process is rather tedious. What I find most time consuming is sizing the documents to fit into Word. The process can be SLOOOOOOOOW when large images consume the computer’s memory and decrease it’s speed.

Sometimes I just want a “quick fix.” I may have old photographs or images of documents that I want to convert into a PDF format. Cute PDF comes to my rescue.

Cute PDF is free. It allows you to “print” to PDF.

To make a PDF using Cute PDF:

1) Download and install the program here.

2) Select an image (or several images that you wish to include in your PDF) and right click and select “Print.”

You will see the following screen:

Cute PDF Screen

3) Select Cute PDF Writer in the upper left hand corner, and click whichever format you prefer for your document on the right. Click “print” in the bottom right hand corner.

4) Type the name for your file and click “Save”.

Save Your PDF

5) Open your PDF!

Photos saved into a PDF document

Filed Under: Tech Tuesday, Technology

Tech Tuesday: Money and the Great Ancestry.com Debate

December 6, 2011 By Lauren Mahieu 3 Comments

Ancestry.com - making my research easier

The year was 1994, and I remember the day like it was yesterday. That sound…that beautiful sound of a dial-up modem, connecting to the internet. My husband was by my side, showing me what the “world wide web” was like. I was mesmerized and astounded. I don’t recall what I said, but I’m sure “WOW!” was in there somewhere. Not that there was a ton of genealogy sites online in 1994, but my immediate thought was how this “www” thing was going to revolutionize genealogy.

Well, here we are, more than a decade (almost two!) later. My dial-up modem has been replaced with wireless internet service and WiFi in my home. The internet has grown, and we have a lot of free genealogical stuff available to us online. Find-a-Grave and FamilySearch are a couple of my oft-visited sites and bookmarked for easy use. I have subscriptions to several pay sites, but by far Ancestry.com is the one I simply can’t live without.

Therefore, it came as quite a shock and a surprise to hear a genealogist recently state he had canceled his membership to Ancestry.com due to the price.

Wow.

Hmm.

Really?

I recognize that times are hard and some people may not be able to afford Ancestry.com. That is certainly understandable, and fortunately Ancestry.com is available for free to users in many libraries and Family History Centers, so even those who aren’t able to have a personal subscription may still take advantage of their many great databases.

However, the person relating this decision was not financially strapped. This person simply felt that Ancestry.com’s prices were out of line, and chose to cancel the subscription to “make a point.” Unfortunately, he’s not the first one I’ve heard with the same beef.

Hmmm.

Well….

It never ceases to amaze me how some people expect to get something for nothing, or at least something for next to nothing. Maybe I’m old fashioned, but I don’t have a problem paying for services I use, and allowing the company who provides me those services to pay their employees who process and index the records, pay for the technology that publishes those records so I can download them on my home PC, and even make a couple of bucks.

I consider my Ancestry.com membership to be quite a bargain. While FamilySearch.org is spectacular (and FREE- hooray!), it is only one site. Most people will concur that Ancestry.com is by far the leader of the large, subscription-based family history research sites. The number of databases, constantly growing, is astounding. The types of records I’ve been able to download is incredible. I’m particularly grateful for Ancestry.com’s Maine databases, providing a strong framework for researching my Maine roots with birth, marriage and death records. FamilySearch.org complements my research with excellent Massachusetts and other records.

Could I obtain those records by other means? Certainly. With one little caveat – I have to know WHERE to look in order to find those documents. Oh yes – I would also have to invest my time in scrolling through those rolls of microfilm, and then print, scan or photograph any items I found that I’d like to save for my own records. Even with the many pay (and free!) web sites, I still spend a considerable amount of time in front of the microfilm reader at my local FHC to look at the many documents (okay, MOST documents) that aren’t yet available online. Online research gives me a huge advantage as I can find out where my ancestors were, and what additional records I need to find either through research trips or on microfilm.

I guess it all comes down to priorities. For me, time is my most valuable commodity, and Ancestry.com is worth every penny I pay. I can search, find my family, click a button and download the image right onto my hard drive. In exchange for $299 per year (I have the “world” membership, but could downgrade to $149 for a U.S. subscription), I can view records from around the world in the comfort of my own home. Ancestry.com gives me the head start so I know what films to order, where to fly off to for my research trips, and allows me to develop my family history at a much more rapid pace than would otherwise be possible.

Instead of looking at how much I pay for my membership, I’m inclined instead to think about how much I’ve saved…saved in time not wasted, money not spent on incorrect microfilms, and trips not taken to locations where my efforts will prove unfruitful.

Perhaps it all comes down to perspective. You know….is that glass half empty or is it full? Ancestry.com keeps mine pretty darn full these days. What about you? Do you get your money’s worth from your Ancestry.com subscription?

Filed Under: Tech Tuesday, Technology, Web Sites

Tech Tuesday – ToodleDo, Baaaaaby!

November 29, 2011 By Lauren Mahieu Leave a Comment

I’ve gotten used to the snickers of my coworkers, who are amused by my use of technology. Hey, my goal is to be efficient, and technology is the best way to get there. One of the things I learned long ago is whenever possible, only touch a paper once. Then either file it, toss it, distribute it….don’t save it for later. Well, often that’s not possible. Especially in genealogical research, we need to spend time truly analyzing and “digesting” or mentally “processing” a document. I find when I’m in the middle of a research project, I don’t have time to finish all that I want to accomplish. I may have worked on a family line all weekend long, but alas, Monday morning comes and off to work I go. I don’t want to forget where I’m at in the project, so I’ll “ToodleDo” it – that is, add it to my online, cloud-based task management system, so I can pick back up where I left off on the upcoming weekend. Other times I find I get bored working on one family line, and just need a break. However, again, I don’t want to forget about ideas I had for research, or overlook data entry of documents gleaned at repository.

Bradstreet and Bursley Task List

Last Spring I was working furiously on my Bursley family, preparing for our New England trip. Well, I was also researching several other lines while at the same repositories, and consequently, brought back a considerable amount of data that needs to be reviewed, analyzed, and where appropriate, entered in my database. The items above are some of the “to do” items for my Bradstreet and Bursley families.

ToodleDo also allows you to include notes for each item.

Notes for tasks allow additional information to be saved

I like to include notes in my list of tasks – may be links to other sites, information I need to review, or details on where I’ve filed the data requiring attention.

Photographed pages of books still need my review

I used to use the task list in my genealogy software, but it doesn’t provide the same versality that ToodleDo offers:

Sort by surname
Sort by priority
Detailed notes for each task
Online and in the cloud for reference regardless of your location

Like my other favorite application (read about my love affair with Evernote), ToodleDo is FREE!

Filed Under: Tech Tuesday, Technology, Web Sites

Why I love Evernote – Part II

November 20, 2011 By Lauren Mahieu 4 Comments

A few weeks ago I wrote about my love affair with Evernote, a free application that I use both at work and at home. Evernote and Roots Magic, my primary genealogical software, provide my main source of organizing my genealogical research and documents. I love both.

Evernote even searches text from images!

As much as I love Evernote, yesterday I began to question my organizational system. I’ve started the National Genealogical Society Home Study Course. It’s excellent! Lesson 1 discussed organization and how to manage your research files, and was the impetus for reconsidering my electronic organization. Well, after spending the better part of 24 hours considering this, I’ve decided: EVERNOTE STAYS!

Text AND photo searches
NGS has no firm recommendations, but suggests a system that is followed consistently that allows the researcher to easily identify documents and files. Evernote allows me to do this. See the above screenshot, in which I completed a search of my notes that contain the surname, Wasgatt. Evernote even searched the images, which I’d attached after doing a “Screen Snip” (details are in my last Evernote post) of online e-books which I’d saved in Evernote.

Flag items for later research

Flag items for further research or data entry, and save URLs where the info was found.

Evernote automatically attaches and saves the URL for any downloaded text, so you can easily refer back to the web site from where data was clipped. (More about clipping below.) Even more cool, you can add a check box to any note to flag it for further research. I use this feature often when I’m doing online research. Instead of stopping my research at that moment to process whatever data I’ve found, I can add this check box to be sure I come back later to analyze the information and process it, if appropriate. When complete, simply click the check box and the item will no longer show up when searching items requiring follow-up.

Google Chrome, a perfect Evernote complement

Chrome's Evernote Clipper - Clip an article (selected text), the entire page, or just the URL

I’ve been a long-standing Mozilla Firefox user; however, I’ve converted to Google’s Chrome. I made the switch for a variety of reasons, but a large consideration was the Evernote plug-in for Chrome is far superior (IMHO) over the clip tool for Firefox. When saving database from a web page into Evernote, you have several options – select text and save that as an “article”, clip the entire page, or just clip the URL. Chrome’s plug in for Evernote also allows you to select the Evernote notebook in which you wish to save the data, as well as select any tags you’d like associated with the information.

Let Google search your Evernote files

Another cool feature available to Chrome users is the ability to allow Google to search your Evernote files. (Not to worry, only YOU will be able to search – your files will remain private and unavailable to others.) This is really handy when I’m looking for new information, but may have forgotten what data I’ve already uncovered in previous searches.

Now what?
NGS has given me definite food for thought in how I organize my files. Using Evernote, I can find data through various tags. For example, I can search for all notes pertaining to the Stanwood surname that involve deeds. Alternately, if I’ve located a document which is applicable to two family lines, I can tag it with both surnames. (Bradstreet AND Stanwood, for example…it will then appear in searches for either surname.) This eliminates the need to have a copy of the same document in two separate folders.

What I will be doing differently, is more carefully tagging my notes in Evernote. In addition, I will begin to document in the note where on my hard drive I’ve saved the electronic version of the document. Great suggestions from the home study course! Between Evernote and NGS, I hope to become a much better genealogist. Now, time to go photograph my paper copies of deeds and probate records received by old-fashioned snail mail from various county court houses last week…and link in Evernote and Roots Magic, of course!

Filed Under: Learning, Technology

Technology and Tracing Thomas

November 13, 2011 By Lauren Mahieu 1 Comment

Hannah (Higgins) Higgins, niece of my 4th Great Grandmother, Betsy (Wasgatt) Stanwood. Photo courtesy of Holly Green.

My favorite ancestor is Betsy (Wasgatt) Stanwood. She was one tough lady. She was five months pregnant when she married my 4th great grandfather, Benjamin Stanwood, in 1808. Not exactly politically correct in the early 19th century. When Benjamin died, she managed the family farm, and was listed as head of house on nearly all subsequent censuses. When her grown children and spouses moved to Minnesota, she went along for the ride, but came back to her home – Eden (now Bar Harbor), Maine. She apparently made this trip alone, although she was nearly 80 years old at the time. I love Bar Harbor – I understand why she came home.

I’ve dabbled in my Wasgatt genealogy throughout the years, but was again inspired to pick it back up when I saw the Wasgatt family Bible in Bar Harbor last summer. Armed with this info, and starting from scratch, I’ve been going through generation after generation, adding appropriate sources that I either lacked in my beginning days, or were dropped when moving from one genealogy program to the next.

One really cool thing about retracing your steps after so many years is that there are a lot more resources available online to assist. Not that I’ve ignored offline and primary resources, mind you. I’ve armed myself with copies of the Bar Harbor Town Records, filmed by Picton Press. Thomas F. Vining’s Cemeteries of Cranberry Isles and the Towns of Mount Desert Island. Oh yes, Maine Genealogical Society’s “Vital Records of Mount Desert Island Maine and Nearby Islands: 1776-1820,” and host of other resources.

The difference, however, is that genealogists can now avail themselves of bigger and better tools. If you haven’t found Google eBooks, for example, you are really missing out. (You can filter the book selection to see only those that are free – typically that’s where you’ll find the out of print history books.) This goldmine has given me the history behind the towns where my ancestors lived, and new places to seek for records. It’s a heck of lot easier to find what you’re looking for when you know what that is! (See Ancestry Insider’s post – Tree Decorators and Tree Growers.) After spending the last couple of weeks downloading and reading Google Books’ digitized version of out-of-print histories, exploring Betsy’s grandfather Thomas’ roots in Porsmouth and Rochester, NH, Berwick, Penobscot, Hampden, Trenton and Bar Harbor, ME, I’ve been able to glean a considerable amount of new information from the various county web sites. (See my earlier post on Maine’s digitized deeds.) For the rest, I’ve been able to contact historical societies and the county registries of probate and deeds, and copies of original records should be in my mail box this week.

However, there’s still a wealth of information we can access online that we didn’t have available twenty years ago. (Heck, a lot of it wasn’t even there five years ago!) Take, for example, Find A Grave. We all know about the wonderful death and burial info we can access with this great resource. However, what I’ve found even more beneficial is the ability to connect with cousins through this site. The photo of Hannah (Higgins) Higgins above, posted by the wife of a distant cousin, was one that I discovered at 1:30 a.m. this morning, surfing Find A Grave . (Hey, sleep is overrated!) Next time you visit Find A Grave, take a few extra minutes and email the poster. (Always appropriate before downloading their images, but especially important if they have additional photos and other info on your subject and they might be related.) This evening I’m very thankful for the internet – with it, the world is indeed a much smaller place!

Filed Under: My Family Lines, Technology, Web Sites Tagged With: Stanwood, Wasgatt

Maine’s move to digitize deeds – oh yeah!

November 6, 2011 By Lauren Mahieu 2 Comments

Hancock Co, ME deed, 22:422: Thomas Wasgatt, Jr. deeds 1/4 share of mills to son Thomas Wasgatt, 3rd

Researching deeds has always felt cumbersome to me. Unless you live in the area where your ancestors resided (not me), or visit the courthouse in the county where they lived (not feasible to do routinely, if, like me, you live on the opposite coast from your forebears), the easiest way to research deeds is to first order the microfilmed index from the Family History Center, determine the book and page where your ancestor’s deeds are recorded (if any), and then order the corresponding films.

Official Website of Hancock County, Maine (with portal to Registry of Deeds)

Well, the State of Maine has made the job of locating your ancestor’s probate records and deeds MUCH easier! Most of the counties have been working on digitizing old deeds and other legal documents. Indexes are available, and the time period from which they begin varies by county. For example, Penobscot county has indexed 1967 and forward, with links to the corresponding images, while other counties may have older (or only newer) documents indexed/linked. In addition, there’s also a difference in how you access and/or download files from each of the courthouses. Some of the county sites mandate that you log in, and others allow you to view by clicking a “guest” link. Some of the sites provide a link to purchase the documents (generally a $2.00 fee per image), while others will email records to you if you would like a document that you’ve located on their site. I’ve also been successful in using the Windows 7 “screen snip” tool to save a copy of the image on my screen when there are no download options. (Go to Programs>Accessories>Snipping Tool or download one of the free tools available online if you do not have Win 7 with Snipping Tool.)

While it would be totally cool to have ALL the oldest records indexed with the images to download, I have been very successful at finding my ancestor’s deeds through other means. Of course, the obvious method to locating an index is to order the microfilm from FamilySearch for viewing at your local Family History Center. As an alternative, you can check online. Good starting places to check for indexes are GenWeb and Cyndi’s List to see if they have linked to others who have published indexes for the area in which you are searching. Also, don’t forget checking with local historical societies, who may also have the information available. (The New England Historic and Genealogical Society has indexes for many New England states/counties available. While there last summer, I was able to look up the book and page number for many of my Stanwood, White and Scott ancestors who resided in Penobscot County, Maine. I ran out of time to look at the corresponding deeds on microfilm, but didn’t worry, as I was able to download copies of the deeds from the county web site. Click here for my NEHGS trip – and fun (NOT!) trying to get there during Boston’s Bruins parade last June!)

For those researching Mount Desert Island, Thomas F. Vining has blessed us with a wealth of information on his web site, Mount Desert Island Cultural History Project. Scroll down to deeds, and then you’ll find the Peters Plan and Salem Towne maps, which also includes a key to locate the corresponding deeds with book and page numbers.

Mount Desert Island "Peter's Plan": yellow box shows my Stanwood and Wasgatt ancestors' property holdings overlooking Frenchman's Bay

Using the Hancock county Registry of Deeds site in combination with the MDI Cultural History Project, I’ve uncovered a wealth of info on my Stanwood and Wasgatt ancestors. Most cool was yesterday’s discovery – my 5th Great Grandfather, Thomas Wasgatt, Jr., sold to his son, Thomas 3rd, 1/4 interest in two saw mills on Duck Brook, and 7/8 interest of the Cromwell’s Harbor saw mill. I knew the Wasgatts were involved in the lumber and milling industry, but this is the proof I’ve needed. Further, simply scrolling through the older deed (non-indexed), I was delighted to find another deed in which Thomas Jr. sold to Thomas 3rd half a lot (see E22 on map above) which he owned in common with Benjamin Stanwood, also a 5th Great Grandfather. This deed confirms an article by Rev. O.H. Fernald, DD (Wasgatt descendant) appearing in the Bar Harbor Record which stated the Stanwoods and Wasgatts were business partners.

Hancock County, Maine Probate Index

It appears Maine’s online digitizing project will soon include probate documents. The site allows for probate searches, and gives the docket number. Unfortunately there are no linked probate documents. For Hancock County, here is a separate search tool available at RegistryofProbate.com which gives the volume, page and docket number, and is searchable by surname. Armed with this information, you can then go to FamilySearch to order the appropriate microfilms to view the original probate record. Happily for me, Thomas Wasgatt has an 1820 probate record, and I will be thrilled to find what secrets await me there!

Filed Under: My Family Lines, Technology Tagged With: Bar Harbor, Maine, Stanwood, Wasgatt

Evernote and everyday genealogy

November 2, 2011 By Lauren Mahieu 6 Comments

I hate paper.

Paper requires time to organize.

Drawers to hold it.

Folders to straighten it.

Paper is messy.

Paper cannot be stored in the “cloud.”

Paper is inefficient.

I have a LOT of paper!

Having been active in researching my family history over the last twenty years, I’ve amassed a wealth of paper. In the “olden days,” a trip to the library typically resulted in paper. I’d come home and dutifully file photocopies of book pages and research in folders that were created for each couple in my family. I had one for my grand parents, another for their parents, another for their siblings, etc., etc., etc. My home office is equipped with two filing cabinets to hold twenty years worth of research. However, thanks to Evernote, bit by bit, the papers in those cabinets are slowly decreasing.

Evernote is truly one of my favorite applications. It allows you to take notes, save attached files, synchronize your files across computers, and access the information online via your PC/Mac, smart phone or tablet. In short, Evernote replaces paper documents with electronic records. It is simplifying my life.

Evernote "Notebooks"

My love affair with Evernote began about nine months ago. I was seeking a means to organize my professional life. Splitting my time between my company’s two branch offices, I needed a means of ensuring that I always had access to meeting minutes, program information, notes for new projects, etc.

Evernote quickly became a very good friend, with electronic notebooks for each department and new project I was working on. I installed Evernote’s application on my laptop, and utilized the program’s web-based application from my desktop at work. My iPad and iPhone were soon the recipients of Evernote’s mobile apps, making it convenient to access my files at any time, from anywhere. As often as possible, I encourage co-workers to send me electronic copies of documents, which I forward via email to my Evernote account for future reference. When given paper handouts instead, I scan them in when the meeting is concluded. Occasionally I’ll keep important papers, but generally I find there’s no need – I toss them into the shredder as I can reference the electronic, scanned version instead, any time I need to.

It didn’t take long before I realized Evernote could also be an enormous help to me in other areas too. Like helping me empty out those two filing cabinets full of genealogical research in my home office! (Okay, that process kinda started when I switched to using RootsMagic a couple of years ago…but that’s a topic for another post, another day…)

While RootsMagic allows me to attach various documents to those in my database, I was still overwhelmed with all of those copies of book pages I’d made, and would often reference when working on a specific family line. Take, for example, the papers in the folder for Thomas Wasgatt and Margaret Davis, my many-times great grandparents. Instead of pulling out paper copies from my filing cabinet, I can now easily see what research I have on him by looking in the Wasgatt folder in Evernote.

Wasgatt Notebook in Evernote

Thomas was mentioned in several books, including the Genealogical Dictionary of Maine and New Hampshire, Old Hancock County Families, Maine Families in 1790, and more. Now I only need to click on the title, in Evernote, and then open the scanned pages from the books which are now attached to the individual notes shown above.

Not only is Evernote helping me to empty the filing cabinets of old research, it’s also helping me organize what I’m working on today. For example, when I go online to order microfilm through FamilySearch, I save the confirmation email with the details of the film order in notebooks which I’ve organized by state. The films I ordered for vital records in Franklin county, Vermont are saved in a notebook titled, “Vermont.” When I go to the Family History Center, I have the information handy, including the film number and title, and can reference it from a computer, my iPhone or iPad.

Further, Evernote lets me record the results of my research after I view those microfilms. In the past, I kept very detailed paper notes when I’d go to the library, so I’d know what books or microfilm I’d researched, and had a record of the results of those searches. The issue with that has always been finding the day and place of the research, as it was kept in a spiral bound notebook. Now, however, I have one electronic notebook titled “Research Folder”, and keep a note for each book or microfilm viewed, along with the date researched, and the results.

Research Log for FHC 10/13/11

Evernote truly became indispensable on my research trip to New England last summer. It complemented my digital camera, which I used to photograph documents and pages of books. As I reviewed various files and documents, I recorded the results in Evernote, and included the numbers of any photographed pages along side my research results.

Research Log with photograph numbers recorded

When I returned to my hotel room each evening, I uploaded the photographed pages/documents to my laptop, which syncs with SugarSync, an online, cloud-based backup service. To collaborate with cousins, I emailed them notes from Evernote, and then gave them permission to access the photographs in SugarSync. With the Evernote details, they could easily identify which photos in SugarSync were of value and download those specific images only.

Evernote has really made me rethink how I store information – both at work and at home. Like most people, I’m short on time, and am always looking for ways to increase efficiencies and make life simpler. I’m sure there are plenty more ways to use Evernote that I’ve yet to discover – I’ve probably only scratched the surface. It is truly a fabulous application, and best of all, it’s free.

Filed Under: Research Trips, Technology, Uncategorized

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