Organizing for optimal efficiency Archives — GENOHISTORY.COM

Organizing for optimal efficiency

A traveler on a dirt path finds the way blocked by a boulder pile.

Boulder Demolition for Genohistorians: Uncovering Ancestral Trails

7 Comments / Genohistory on Purpose, Leaving it better than we found it, Organizing for optimal efficiency, Research / By / 13 minutes of reading

If you have been doing ancestral research for some time, and taking it seriously, you know the glorious victory of tumbling a brick wall or two. You broke through to a piece of historical or genealogical knowledge that had eluded you. But some of us will eventually find our research path impeded by something bigger and much harder than a brick wall. What do you do when your path is blocked by a landslide of granite boulders ten times your height? The information you need is not just elusive. It’s gone.

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A 90-60 Census Workbook Case Study: Mystery of the Hanna Men

4 Comments / Censuses, Digging for genealogical gold, Genohistory on Purpose, Organizing for optimal efficiency, Products / By / 15 minutes of reading

Why were young men named Hanna starting to show up in multiple households of the sons of James Crook, the hub person of my current genohistory project? Getting an answer meant facing the PIP censuses, but with the 90-60, bring them on.

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Passably Equipped: Conquering PIP Censuses with the PASSED Method

4 Comments / Censuses, Genohistory on Purpose, Go-anywhere, paper-free solutions, Organizing for optimal efficiency / By / 11 minutes of reading

This article may be republished in your genealogical society magazine or newsletter. Simply notify me by email with the name of your organization, name of the publication, and date it will be published. Also include this statement with the article: “Republished with permission of Donna Cox Baker at Genohistory.com.”

I felt reasonably smart as I began my genealogy education. Not MENSA smart, mind you, but at least a bit above average. My ego took a bashing though, when I first hit the infamous roadblock—the PIP censuses (often mislabeled “pre-1850”) that only name the head of household with a string of tally numbers. It mystified me that anyone found them useful. An old spreadsheet had bested me until the PASSED Method emerged, made viable by an alignment tool I call the 90-60 Census Workbook.

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You’re syncing, but are you backing up?

12 Comments / Go-anywhere, paper-free solutions, Golden Egg Genealogist, New developments in the field, Organizing for optimal efficiency, Zotero / By / 7 minutes of reading

Failing to understand the difference between syncing and backing up your precious research could cost you years of work. Take a minute to wrap your mind around the two. Make it a priority.

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Introduction to Macros: Automating Repetitive Tasks

6 Comments / Golden Egg Genealogist, Organizing for optimal efficiency / By / 7 minutes of reading

An obscure and often overlooked button on your Microsoft Office toolbar—a thing called “macros”—can save you time, tedium, and trouble when you need to do a repetitive change across a lot of text or data. The macro I will describe below cut my work time by 97%!

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Paperless genealogy: A commitment

12 Comments / Go-anywhere, paper-free solutions, Golden Egg Genealogist, Organizing for optimal efficiency, Zotero / By / 7 minutes of reading

Today, as I watch the Notre Dame Cathedral in flames, I know I cannot put this post off any longer. Our research is a fragile thing, if dependent upon paper files. It’s unsafe if dependent upon a single copy in any form. Not even two copies will save it in a disaster, if both are kept together. You’ve heard it all before. You need to commit to paperless genealogy. But today, please hear it and act.

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Instant citations: Zotero’s Magic Bullet

Leave a Comment / Go-anywhere, paper-free solutions, Golden Egg Genealogist, New developments in the field, Organizing for optimal efficiency, Zotero / By / 4 minutes of reading

Genealogy friends, if I told you a free product could capture source citation information instantly for most sources in online catalogs with one click of your mouse, would you believe me? Instant citations? It is bonafide, proven, and you can prove it to yourself this very day.

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López? Dvořák? Genealogy and special characters

9 Comments / Golden Egg Genealogist, Organizing for optimal efficiency / By / 4 minutes of reading

In genealogy, we record names, places and sources reflecting worldwide cultures. Sometimes this requires special characters we do not find on our standard keyboards. But hidden on your PC is a way to include them. And it’s free! …

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High-powered hit-and-run data grabbing technique

6 Comments / Digging for genealogical gold, Go-anywhere, paper-free solutions, Golden Egg Genealogist, Organizing for optimal efficiency, Zotero / By / 9 minutes of reading

You’ve invested a day off and a tank of gas to have a precious four hours at an ancestral county courthouse, state archive, or local library. You want to make the most of every minute. Here’s my high-powered hit-and-run data grabbing technique to get home with maximum ancestral data in minimum time. …

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Descendants of slaveholders, we have a job to do

4 Comments / Digging for genealogical gold, Every little thing in context, Go-anywhere, paper-free solutions, Golden Egg Genealogist, Leaving it better than we found it, New developments in the field, Organizing for optimal efficiency / By / 6 minutes of reading

Some of you started long ago. I started six months ago. Perhaps some of you will start today. When it comes to the very difficult and incredibly rewarding challenge of documenting America’s enslaved populations, we who descend from slaveholders are the logical ones to do the work.  It makes sense at so many levels. Welcome, GEGs, to the Beyond Kin Project. …

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