News from WorldVitalRecords

Google Tip

Did you know Google can help you translate websites and documents? Have you used Google's Language Tools?

According to Daniel Lynch, author of Google your Family Tree,

"Currently, six individual components of Google deal with some aspect of foreign language... Genealogists will appreciate the ease with which these features can extend their foreign language skills and thus make new types of research possible."

1. Search across foreign languages (websites)
2. Translate text input by users
3. Translate content found on Web pages
4. Use the Google interface in one of nearly 120 languages
5. Access a localized version of Google
6. Translate words via the Google Toolbar

Check out Google's Language Tools by going to Google, www.google.com, and clicking on the "Language Tools" link on the right hand side of the search box.

Chats

Please join us for this week's chats. For more information on GenWise Chats, please click on the "Chat" link at the top of the GW home page. Please note that all chats are shown in (MDT and (GMT) time zones. To figure out the time in your time zone, please see a time zone converter like the one at http://www.timezoneconverter.com/cgi-bin/tzc.tzc.

In general, Mountain Standard Time (MST) is 1 hour ahead of Pacific Standard Time (PST) and 2 hours behind Eastern Standard Time (EST).

Saturday, November 7, 8:00am (MST) (Sunday, November 8, 2:00pm GMT)
GENTREK: Seven Stages in Genealogy Growth, Part 4
This week we conclude our 4-part series with the latter stages in a genealogist's progress. Dae has discussed these stages with many prominent genealogy professionals over the years – even a few FASGs. Come see the final stages and where you fit in. And, when the presentation concludes, do share some of your own experiences. Your Chat Hosts, Jayne McCormick and Dae Powell.

Sunday, November 8, 7:00pm (MST) (Monday, November 8, 1:00am GMT)
Pennsylvania Research Chat: Connecticut Claims
In the time shortly before the Revolution, the state of Connecticut claimed land in Northern Pennsylvania. This talk is about those claims. Your Chat Host, Jim Avery.

Monday, November 9, 8:00pm (MST) (Tuesday, November 10, 2:00am GMT)
GENTREK: Organize Your Research
Everyone has a mindset for organization. Aye, even I have one. Join us and we'll help you determine what your organizational mindset is. Your Chat Hosts, Jayne McCormick and Dae Powell.

Tuesday, November 10, 8:00pm (MST) (Wednesday, November 11, 2:00am GMT)
Paranormal Genealogy Chat: Dreams, Part 2
Can dreams be analyzed? Lets talk some more about dreams. Your Chat Host, Jim Avery.

Saturday, November 14, 8:00am (MST) (Sunday, November 15, 2:00pm GMT)
GENTREK: Case Study - Cluster Methodology
Perhaps the most common genealogical mistake is over-focusing – a too narrow search. Broadening research to include a cluster of migrating families can lead to convincing evidence of birthplace and parents. Your Chat Hosts, Jayne McCormick and Dae Powell.

Sunday, November 15, 7:00pm (MST) (Monday, November 16, 1:00am GMT)
Pennsylvania Research Chat: The Irish in Pennsylvania
A guest speaker, Beth McBride will give a talk about the Irish in Pennsylvania. Your Chat Host, Jim Avery.

Monday, November 16, 8:00pm (MST) (Tuesday, November 17, 2:00am GMT)
GENTREK: Newspapers – ONLINE! (Part 1)
Thousands of newspapers provide first-hand accounts about your ancestors that simply can't be found in other sources. You'll be fascinated by the stories, names, dates, places and events that have played a role in your family's history. Your Chat Hosts, Jayne McCormick and Dae Powell.

Tuesday, November 17, 8:00pm (MST) (Wednesday, November 18, 2:00am GMT)
Paranormal Genealogy Chat: How to attract Civil War spirits
A talk about how to increase chances of encountering a spirit at a Civil War battlefield or prison. Your Chat Host, Jim Avery.

Groups to Know

Researching the In-Laws

Tara Marie Christian Kriewaldt T is the administrator of the group, Researching the In-Laws. She writes, "Finding your OWN family is tough... finding the family you married into is HARDER!"

African American Lives 2: Tom Joyner

African American Lives is one of my favorite series. In this almost 3 minute clip, Dr. Henry Louis Gates tells radio host Tom Joyner about his great uncle who was executed for killing a confederate veteran in South Carolina. Joyner was later able to get his uncle pardoned for a crime he did not commit. You can watch a video about that at http://www.genealogywise.com/video/joyners-uncles-pardoned.

GW Member Kathryn Brannigan Walizer writes about all that PDF documents provide.

Traveling Though PDF Files
By Kathryn Brannigan Walizer

I have worked with PDF (Portable Document Format) files and find them very user friendly once you know how to navigate through them. To open a document that is available as a PDF you must first download Adobe Acrobat, which is free, at http://get.adobe.com/reader/?promoid=BUIGO.

The first advantage of a PDF file, Save a Copy, is found right on top of the page. Once you click on this link, a copy of the downloaded file will go straight to your computer. The icon with the words "Adobe" and "PDF" in red will easily identify this file in your documents.

Right next to Save a Copy is the Print icon, here you can print the entire file or pick the page you would like to print. For example, if you would like to print out a particular article within a document you can tell the printer what page it is on and print just that article. One tip however, look to the bottom of the page to see the exact page number as the numbering starts with the cover page.

Moving across the icons you will see E-mail. If your computer is set up for Microsoft Outlook you can click on the link and an e-mail page with the attachment already in place, is ready for you to add an e-mail address to send it to your family or a friend.

By now you are probably saying, "Wow, I did not know I could do all that with a PDF form." Wait there's more.

The Search Form allows you to put in a word or a phrase and it will search the entire document for that word or phrase. This is helpful when you know you read something in an article but can't find it. This feature finds it for you!!

Next, we find the Hand Tool. This tool allows you to move the page up and down, how neat is that!! We are not done yet, the Select Tool allows you to underline sections of an article you might want to save and when you right click it saves it to the clipboard where you can then copy it to a Word or WordPad file.

The next great tool, yes there’s even more, is the Snapshot Tool which will allow you to crop out a photo you would like to have a copy of and then paste it over to a Word or WordPad document.

The Zoom In tool makes the text as large as you would like for easier reading. There is one more tool that a printed document cannot deliver and I have saved that for last because it is so great.

If you go to View scroll down to Read Out Loud then slide over to This Page Only or Entire Document, turn on you speakers and the computer will read you the article. I kid you not!

Those that have recently updated Adobe, may be saying “I don't see all these icons.” They are incorporated into the file, edit and tool view. For example, the Save a Copy is in the file list, and the Snapshot Tool is in the tool list. Under tools, there is a customize tool bars unit with many other features.

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