Roots Television | Og Blog

I'd like to start by wishing all my favorite genies out there a VERY Happy New Year!!! One fortunate aspect of beginning each new year is that we have the opportunity to resolve to do almost anything to make positive changes in our lives. Granted, we can do this at almost any time DURING the year, but the New Year’s celebration gives us a kick in the pants to really get going. Start a diet? Done! Quit smoking? Patches ordered! Spend more time with the family? Vacation reserved for summer! Look for a new job? Classifieds and networks engaged!

But for genealogists, what can we resolve to do during 2007 that will help us with our research? Did I hear, “Get organized”? Bing-Bing-Bing – right answer! In new programming entitled File Not Found, Amy Johnson Crow offers a plethora of time and sanity-saving tips to help us all get our computer files better organized. Most genies suffer from at least some form of TMI (too much information), but a lot of us also suffer from WDIFWIKIH (where do I find what I know I have?), and Amy helps get us started on cleaning up and organizing everything from documents to photos. Take a few minutes and see if she helps you, too!

In other new Programming, Heir Jordan 3, professional genealogists/author/actor/native New Yorker, Jordan Auslander, flaunts his new movie deal, answers the question of what OCD and genies have in common, and lets you in on his secret catatonic version of Las Vegas. Og loves a good laugh, and Jordan always gets me going!

Wishing you happy file hunting,
Og from Roots Television

OK everyone, Og admits it… I need help. I need help with something that almost everyone who has a camera needs help with. Og needs to organize his photos. No more boxes filled with a confusing mish-mash for me! No longer will I have to refer to scrawled, fading notations on the back of photos to recognize a face! Noted genealogist Amy Johnson Crow’s presentation at the 2006 BYU Genealogy and Technology Conference is featured in new programming on Roots Television as File Not Found, Organizing Your Computer. In one facet of this program, Amy offers sound tips that will help make this the year that you scan, organize, and can actually find all your photos. Og knows that genealogists can have hundreds of family, cemetery, and document photos, so this may seem like a daunting task, but Amy’s tips make sense of the process. After viewing File Not Found, you, too, will conquer the photo chaos!

Og from Roots Television

In recently added programming, File Not Found, Organizing Your Computer, Amy Johnson Crow provides genies with the tools that allow us to “stop searching our files and start searching for our ancestors”. Og wants to be found, so I really like this idea! In this series of programs from the 2006 BYU Genealogy and Technology Conference, we’re taught that there’s no one “right way” to organize genealogical files on your computer, but to devise a method that makes sense to you. With this in mind, she establishes the importance of folders (our friends), sub-folders (our sub-friends – only teasing -- Og make joke!), and the consistent use of naming conventions. Employing just a few of her hints will help you clean up your desktop, document, and family files and folders, and by putting these files in a deliberate order, you’ll have a much easier time accessing information as needed throughout the year.

Og from Roots Television

Og hates to admit it, but I really like those South of the Border signs you see for 200 miles on Interstate 95 before and after reaching that huge South Carolina sombrero in the sky. That’s why I was tempted to name this segment Heir Today, Gone Tomorrow, but all of you who are part of the growing legion of Jordan Auslander fans would never stand for us yanking any of his shows. So, instead, we’ve added new programming, Heir Jordan 3, which you’ll definitely want to check out! Jordan’s keen wit, combined with a strong understanding of what makes genies tick, should put this show on everyone’s “need to watch” list. He’s obviously been there, done that at the Family History Library and at microfilm readers everywhere, and even has the battle wound to prove it – “archivist shoulder!” If this is your first time watching Heir Jordan, be sure to go back and review his other programs! You’ll be sure to learn that he’s Cool Today, Hot Tamale!

Og from Roots Television

Og feels like throwing confetti and a party for the winners of the most recent holiday season contest, Family Stories. Instead, I’ll be sending each of them a DVD of the one-hour documentary Call of Story. Congratulations go out to Gay Gantvoort of Oneonta, NY; Ana Oquendo of St. Petersburg, FL; Cathy DeSantis of Cote St. Luc, Quebec; Margaret Alford of Bowling Green, KY; and Ralph L. Hayes of Albuquerque, NM. These lucky subscribers to Og Blog wound up winners this time – but next time it could be you! Be sure to subscribe to my Blog for your chance to win -- just enter your email address in the right hand column, and click subscribe!

Og from Roots Television

Og is sooo excited about the new show we’ve just added! Take a few minutes and watch Youth in Genealogy, Part 1, where Starr Campbell answers the question posed by avid genies, “what can I do to get my kids interested in genealogy?” and offers suggestions on how to really get them hooked. She remembers her father’s interest in family history as being the catalyst that got her involved in genealogy at a very young age, and she has fostered that same interest in her own grandchildren in some very compelling ways. Join Starr in digging up photos, heirlooms and memories to share with a whole new generation of very enthusiastic genies! Stay tuned for more from Starr!

Og from Roots Television

Og never plans far enough in advance, but I wanted to give everyone a big heads-up that the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies will be hosting the 27th Annual Jewish Genealogical Conference on July 15-20, 2007 in Salt Lake City at the Hilton City Center. Last year’s conference was attended by over 1400 people, who attended over 280 programs that covered an amazing array of topics. For more information, please watch our very short show entitled IAJGS 2007 Conference, or refer to their website, IAJGS Conference, and don’t forget to mark your calendars!

Og from Roots Television

Apparently (Og loves a good pun), everything! In new programming, Youth in Genealogy, Part 2, author and two-time cancer survivor Starr Campbell tells host Sharon DeBartolo Carmack that simple things like photos, heirlooms, food and even a trip to the cemetery can help foster youngsters’ interest in genealogy. Starr has authored several books aimed at children in the preschool to kindergarten age group to help make genealogy approachable, easy and interesting for kids. The book series, The Adventures of James, evolved through visits she and her grandson took together – to a cemetery, and to an oncologist -- that had some basis of genealogical interest, and now she has other children in her family clamoring to have books written about them, too! After watching this show, Og wanted his own personalized jersey – see if you’ll be ordering your own to mark special moments and to pass along!

Og from Roots Television

All genies who have children assume that their kids will automatically be enthralled with the idea of searching records, decoding antiquated handwriting, scouring cemeteries for tombstones, and constructing complicated family trees. But what if they have a bad seed? That’s right – what if their child turns out to be an example of that rare species, reluctant genealogist? It may be difficult to accept – but they might not have to! Author Starr Campbell tells us in featured new programming, Youth in Genealogy, Parts 3 and 4, how to ignite even the tiniest spark of genealogical interest in our youngest family members. Watch her show and see whether her suggestions work for you!

Og from Roots Television

OK, Og has a puzzle for you: I can't see it, I can't feel it, and I don't know exactly how it works -- but it's in me, and it's in you, and it might tell us how much we share. What is it? DNA! Now for another Og puzzle: What kind of test do you not have to study for? A DNA test! And in new programming we've recently added to this site, Adventures in DNA Testing: The Swab, you can watch a short show produced by Nick Sherman of Fou Films showing how incredibly easy it is to use a DNA collection kit to uncover the hidden truths of your ancestry.

Og from Roots Television

Og likes playing games – even tag. But Og got exposed to a new game the other day. I was “tagged” in a game aimed at genealogical bloggers. Now I’m supposed to share five things about me that most folks won’t know – and that’s really hard. Og has lived many years, and has many, many descendents, but I finally came up with a few tidbits that might interest you.

1. Og is so old that I was friends with mitochondrial Eve. She was hot, but not like Cleopatra.
2. Og likes dancing with wild abandon next to a fire under a full moon.
3. Og has famous cousin – I can’t tell you his exact name, but let’s just say, “Yabba-Dabba-Doo!”
4. My favorite animal? That ones’s easy – dOG!!!!! My favorite weather pattern – fOG. My favorite drink -- grOG. What I do in my spare time – jOG. What I sleep on at night – lOG. I could go on and on, but I think you get the picture.
5. Og feels bad about this one – my great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandson was Attila the Hun. Every family has one, right?

Now I'm supposed to "tag" five other people -- so watch out!

Og from Roots Television

Og is excited to direct everyone to informative new programming we’ve recently added to the site, a five-part lecture, Online U.S. Vital Records, presented by Loretta Evans at the 2006 BYU Genealogy Conference

In Part I of this series, Mrs. Evans tells us that the establishment of vital records in the United States was basically motivated by both a public health movement and in order to handle inheritance issues. These records – birth, marriage and death – were kept in various locations within the state, so it’s important to know where to go looking for them. A helpful tip she offers is that the earliest records were typically kept closest to home (where the person you’re researching lived), so start locally and expand your search from there.

Additionally, Mrs. Evans warns us that many early records were based on delayed filing, or were completed by other than the primary party, thereby introducing the possibility of errors existing in the record. Even when the records are accurate, she advises that it might be a good idea to obtain duplicate records from both the city and county, when they exist, as one record might contain more information than the other.

Take a few minutes to enjoy this interesting series.

Og from Roots Television

Need more info about vital records? Consider watching the whole five-part series, Online U.S. Vital Records, presented by Loretta Evans at the 2006 BYU Genealogy Conference. In her lecture, Mrs. Evans tells everyone the various types of records that may exist, informs us of what records contain what information, offers alternative hunting grounds for missing records (Og likes that part, as he is a mighty hunter!), informs us of the many reasons why even official vital records may contain incorrect information (reminding genies everywhere that information is only as accurate as those who provide it), and then lets us know the best places to go to get started with our searches. All this for free? Og is spoiling you!

Og from Roots Television

OK, you’ve done the hard stuff. You’ve collected the names, dates and places you need, and you’ve supported that information with documentation, but what does that really tell you about your family? In brand new programming we’ve just added to the site, Ancestors, Writing a Family History, we learn that in addition to preserving documents and photos, it’s also important to preserve a family’s history, the overwhelming majority of which lies in the memories of your relatives.

In Part I of this series, we learn that the place to begin our quest to write and publish a family history is with our oldest living relatives. While they may initially feel uncomfortable sharing, or uncertain that their memories may be helpful, their too frequently untapped recollections are often the goldmines that will help to jump-start your endeavor. This series is a must-see for anyone who wants to add depth to their family's story.

Og from Roots Television

Og is proud like peacock! Check out the following glowing review that Roots Television recently received. Genealogy Reviews Online

We have been working hard to provide consistently informative, pertinent, interesting, educational and even amusing new shows, and it’s exciting to see that effort recognized. And while Og is proud that our programming has been so favorably received, this may be a good time to admit that our website is always undergoing change, and that change just may include the future return of commercials. But if they do return, we hope you’ll agree that the programs we offer will be so outstanding that you won’t even notice the short commercials!

Og from Roots Television

Og is humbled – today I took a few minutes to listen to a new show that we’ve just added to the site, Veterans of the Somme, and Og heard the voices of true heroes. In this show, you’ll hear the vivid, firsthand recollections of the Battle of the Somme, a joint French and British assault against the Germans in 1916. The historic perspective that these brave soldiers’ voices lend to this deadly attack, which ended with over one million soldiers’ deaths, provides insight to the true devastation and misery suffered during the battle.

Og from Roots Television

Are you like Og? Maybe just a tiny bit? I have many, many ancestors – and I have the data to prove it. But do I have a rounded, complete vision of what they were like as people? No, probably not – I just have data points and a few pictures. If you’d like to leave an enduring legacy to your family, so that they can know just who you were, you may want to consider watching our short new program entitled Web Biographies. It will ease the process of biography writing by helping you organize data, insert photos, add pictures, etc -- and when you get stumped or at a loss for what to say, “Bio Wizard” will even help crack your writer’s block by suggesting over 500 topics to get those memories flowing. Writing your biography has never been so easy! Watch the show, then visit Web Biographies for more information.

Og from Roots Television