#genchat CHALLENGE: the Ultimate Genealogy Tech Tool of the Future!

Your challenge, should you choose to accept it... 

I wasn't even going to do a challenge tonight! Honest! I wasn't! But, the crowd demanded it, and so, it shall be done. Tonight's discussion was based on technology; as the community comes off of the high that is RootsTech, it was an appropriate topic. What did we gain from the conference? What is new, what is out? Are we on "tech overload" or do we just not have the right tools to effectively match our research goals? 

Your challenge today is to imagine the ultimate tech tool of the future. What will it be? What will it look like? 

I have thought often of a "dream software," and tonight, it was given a name: Genealogy Office. My tech tool of the future includes the best of all worlds; it should include the features of... 

• The best genealogy software (including the ability to preserve social history, citations, and more)
• Photography and scanning, photo editing
• Excel
• Word
• Social media connections for sharing
• Blogging platform
• Research log 
• Research plan
• Research trip planning - including a live map with links to Starbucks, my favorite restaurants and nearby libraries and courthouses
• It will connect to all the major free and subscription websites for research tools
• It will connect to BillionGraves, findagrave and any other grave app
• It will bring the best of OneNote (or Evernote, depending on your preference)
• it will include features found in Publisher, Scribner, mind mapping

Essentially, I want one software package that will combine all the software I currently use for genealogy - including websites and apps - into one big system. I don't want to have to open any other program. Ever. (Oh, and it has a voice, like Siri. Kinda.) 

So tell me... what is your dream genealogy tech? 

Share it on social media, in the comments here, however you like; just be sure to include a link so we can all read about it! 

Thanks for accepting the #genchat CHALLENGE! 

Using Mind Mapping

Recently, I stumbled upon the Google Chorme app "mindmeister." Always looking for new systems and programs to explore, especially when it comes to advancing my research and organization, I decided to give it a go.

mindmeister (no capital letters in their logo) is a mind mapping program that allows the traditional technique to transfer from pen and paper to computer screen. It appears to be easy to use, and has several available options, even in the free edition, that are appealing.

[Here's the fine print. I am in no way affiliated with mindmeister. They did not communicate with me in any way, and I am writing this review of my own will and of my own opinions.]

mindmesiter allows the use of several templates to use for your mind maps... anything from to-do lists to event planning to writing a good blog post. The app is available on Android and iPad formats as well.

Example of the Writing a Blog template in mindmeister. 

Here's what I like, especially, about mindmeister:

1. The free version still has enough features to satisfy someone with the tool they've just downloaded. If you need more, you have that option. 
2. Templates allow you to be as independent or guided through the mind mapping process as you want. 
3. The ability to move around the page, adjusting as your brain processes through the project, appears to have more flexibility than other apps I have tried. 

I really do enjoy being organized. I have lists of my lists. So, to have a writing project laid out for me like this is really ideal. I anticipate using mindmeister for blog posts, articles, family histories, and much more. I find it helpful to sit down and really examine the various elements of a project; no matter the size. What is the objective? Is there a need? What do I need to be successful in this endeavor? This app really does help me get through all of that... I can always move around the document to add, detract, or adjust accordingly as the project outline comes together. 

Bottom line: I'm giving mindmeister a 4 out of 5 on my personal scale of apps/tools I love. I would give it a 5 if I could get all the features free. But, hey, I get that; everyone has to make a living. 

So. Do you use the mind mapping technique? If so, how? Pen & paper; software; white board?  I'd be interested to see what everyone else is doing. If not... why not? 

Geography in Genealogy

They go hand in hand. Geography and genealogy are - must be! - intertwined in your research journey. Following the path of an ancestral line opens new doors, exposes new details and provides new ideas on every branch of the family tree.

Let's go back to Oscar for a great example of what I mean. We'll stick to the geography specific information here.

• Born in New York. 
• Moved to Michigan as a toddler.
• Lived with sister and family in Missouri as a young adult.
• Enlisted in Union forces in Missouri Cav, originally. 
• After the war, he went back to Missouri for a couple of years.
• Homesteaded in Nebraska, spent the remainder of his years in a three county area.

Part of Oscar Brown's Homestead file.
Personal holdings of author.

I know the family moved to Michigan because Oscar ran for state senate at one point, and that tidbit was included in his political ticket in the local newspaper. From there, I was able to locate possible property records held by his assumed father, and the grave of his sister, leading to her family. I never would have found any of that if I had not known he spent time in Michigan.

On the 1860 census, he is listed in the household of his sister in Missouri. When I first found him here, I did not realize it was his sister, but was later able to match the family connection using documents in his pension file. From that information, I searched the Shelby County, Missouri area much more thoroughly, and was able to find employment records for him there after the war. We always assumed he went immediately to Nebraska, but that was not the case. Again, without the geography, those records would not have been located.

His homestead records, the remainder of his census records and other family information tell me about his life in Nebraska, along with that of his wife and children.

Even with all the records in the world, knowing what they experienced in their day to day is so meaningful to so many of us. I have a secret weapon in this part of the search: National Geographic.

The photos, the maps, oh my! A true world treasure, National Geographic has been documenting history since 1888.

This year, I obtained a copy of The Complete National Geographic software. Love it! Immediate access to every issue, every page, right on my desktop! If you have not explored this resource, I highly recommend it. (Note, National Geographic and its affiliates and I have no connection. I am not being compensated in anyway for this mention in my blog.) Simple searches on the software cd's provide exciting and informative background information on many facets of my ancestors' lives, and the places they lived. I have been able to fill my tree with amazing facts, and those maps! I could go on and on about the maps...

Have a great geography resource? I would love to hear your thoughts and suggestions!