Genealogy Online for Dummies [Paperback]

Matthew L. Helm (Author), April Leigh Helm (Author)

Book Description

Series: For Dummies (Sports & Hobbies) | Publication Date: March 5, 2004

Researching our roots has become a top national pastime, and with the advent of the Internet, it’s also become much faster and easier than before. Rather than hop in the car and hope you can find the courthouse of the county where your great-grandmother grew up before it closes, you can relax and research in the comfort of your own home, at your convenience. The only problem is where—and how—do you start?

Genealogy Online For Dummies, 4^th Edition is a great starting point. Written by genealogists who manage and maintain several online genealogy services, this guide helps you make sense of the vast array of resources on the Web. It shows you how to

• Search online databases
• Explore genealogical societies
• Use geographic tools
• Research ethnic roots
• Validate your findings
• Share your research

So you don’t waste time and effort wandering all over the Web, Genealogy Online For Dummies, 4^th Edition shows you how to set up your own personal database first, using information you already have from family members. Then it helps you make your search productive by

• Choosing the right government resources to help locate your ancestors
• Fleshing out the statistics with personal information from geographical, ethnic, and religious sources
• Cooperating with other researchers, sharing information, and coordinating efforts with societies and research groups
• Providing proven tips, reminders, suggestions, and lists of online databases
• Offering suggestions for developing your own genealogical Web site, and more

To get you started in style, the bonus CD-ROM includes the full version of Family TreeMaker and Legacy Family Tree freeware, a tryout version of Adobe^® Photoshop^® Elements 2.0 for preserving treasured family photos, and lots of other valuable techno-tools. And it all comes with a warning: genealogical research can become addictive!

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The Helms have put together an excellent introductory guide to doing genealogical research online. They've avoided the usual trap of organizing their book by resources, which may be easy for the author but makes it harder on the user. So instead of devoting this chapter to useful Web sites, that chapter to valuable newsgroups, and so forth, they've organized the book in a way closer to the way you'd organize good family research.

They begin with a series of chapters on preparation, including doing initial groundwork, developing a plan, picking the names to begin researching, and locating ancestors geographically. Next, they deal with the means for finding valuable records and then delve into getting the most from your resources. Chapter 8, for example, discusses organizing and presenting your findings, while chapter 9 deals with cooperating with other researchers so that you can all be more effective (and probably make some new friends in the bargain).

As is always the case with a Dummies series book, the Helms present a "Part of Tens" section, in this case four chapters each covering 10 top online genealogical sites, tips for designing your genealogical Web page, sites for beginners, and general tips for "smooth sailing." An enclosed CD-ROM contains nine genealogy programs plus a wide assortment of Internet tools and utilities. --Elizabeth Lewis --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Review

"many useful hints" (Practical Family History, December 2006) "...there is a lot of good advice in this book for those starting out." (Ancestors, January 2007) "...a useful volume to keep close to your computer." (Family History Monthly, January 2007) "Easy to read yet filled with facts and information, this is a solid reference guide..." (Family History Monthly, December 2007) --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: For Dummies; 4 edition (March 5, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764559648
• ISBN-13: 978-0764559648
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,346,174 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Matthew Helm is the Chief Executive Officer of Boneyard Creek Heritage, Inc., a family and local history services company. He is also Chief History Officer at HistoryKat, Inc., a company that specializes in digitizing and posting historical records online. He's the creator and maintainer of the award-winning Helm's Genealogy Toolbox, Helm/Helms Family Research Page, and a variety of other Web sites. Matthew speaks at national genealogical conventions and lectures to genealogical and historical societies. Matthew holds an A.B. in History and an M.S. in Library and Information Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His full-time job is Director, Business Intelligence and Technology Solutions for Illinois State University.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

37 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An excellent intro to Web genealogical resources, June 20, 2000

By 

Frank Cunat - See all my reviews

This review is from: Genealogy Online for Dummies (Paperback)

The best review I can give of this book is that it directed me to about 6 Web sites I hadn't heard of which should give me a lot of useful information in researching my family tree. Unlike a lot of Dummies books, this one isn't padded with filler; every page conveys useful information, discussing numerous internet resources and making suggestions for organizing research. The book also contains lengthy sections on African-American, Native American, and Hispanic genealogical Web sites, and apparently has more information on these sites than many other books.

The reasons I didn't rate the book five stars are two-fold: there are dead links in addition to the live ones, and the book was published before the LDS database (maintained by the Mormon Church) was made available online. That suggests that this book is ripe for a 3rd Edition.

36 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Genealogy Online for Dummies, 4th edition,, May 14, 2004

By 

Arctic Reporter (Nome, AK USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Genealogy Online for Dummies (Paperback)

Genealogy Online for Dummies is a handy how-to, where-to, what-to, who-to, and why-to book. Matthew L. Helm, one of the authors, is executive vice president and chief technology officer of FamilyToolbox.net, Inc. With a bachelor's degree in history and a master's in library and information science, he created and he maintains the Helm's various genealogy websites. April Leigh Helm, the other author, is the company president. She has degrees in journalism and higher education administration. They are no dummies, and anyone who reads this book will be no dummy about genealogy online.

The book has 16 chapters organized in five major sections, also three appendices, an index, a genealogy Internet directory, and a tear-out "cheat sheet." The text covers in part one doing the groundwork, in part two focusing the online research effort, in part three expanding research online, and in part four using the computer and web to organize and share information. In summary, part five lists ten handy databases, ten things to remember when designing your genealogical website, ten sites that offer help, and ten tips for "smooth sailing."

Throughout the text are addresses of useful websites, research tips, definitions of genealogical terms, step-by-step instructions, and warnings. Examples of warnings are "don't violate any copyright laws by sending large portions of written works through email" (p. 215), and don't post on your website "any information that could land you in the doghouse with any of your relatives - close or distant" (p. 246). The text features sidebar discussions of issues like copyright (p. 250) and privacy (p. 248), and even a "mandatory lecture on privacy" (234). But the tone and message are generally positive: You can do genealogy online. The text explains not only the software, the search engines, the online resources (websites), but also the hardware appropriate for different tasks, and the basics of HyperText Markup Language (html) needed to create a website.

One appendix provides the basics of going online, for anyone not already connected to the Internet. A second appendix defines genealogical terms. The third appendix provides a long list of software available on the CD inserted in the back of the book, mostly demo software for Windows; but the CD itself contains only the demonstration software for Reunion 8, and a very useful list of genealogy-related urls. The index is detailed. At the center of the book is a 30-page genealogy Internet directory, organized into clear categories and fully annotated. The cheat sheet provides instructions for using the Helm's Genealogy Toolbox at www.genealogytoolbox.com/, as well as the addresses for 14 websites.

The final chapter's "ten tips for genealogical smooth sailing" take the reader back to the big picture: (1) start with what you know, (2) get organized, (3) always get proof, (4) always cite your sources, (5) focus, focus, focus; (6) share your information, (7) join a society or research group, (8) attend a conference or workshop, (9) attend a family reunion, and (10) don't give up. Before the reader gets here, the text has provided clear, detailed guidelines for thoroughly researching, organizing, and presenting genealogical information.

The organization and layout of this 332-page book are great. I found it easy to locate specific information, and I found the information clear enough for the beginner and yet substantive enough for the advanced genealogist. The graphics clearly illustrate the text, and the text is easy to read. The occasional 5th Wave cartoons are appropriate and humorous. I am adding this manual to my desktop reference collection of books that I want within arms reach.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars review of Genealogy Online for Dummies, May 12, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Genealogy Online for Dummies (Paperback)

Pros: Covers lots of topics and is a very valuable source for beginners with great, well written, summaries of many skills and sources needed for doing family history
Cons:

No real cons. I was a bit surprised, however, not to read more about the incredible land patent database of the former General Land Office offered through the Bureau of Land Management's Eastern State Office. There is no mention that people can actually download from the office's site copies of early land patents of ancestors after discovering how and where they received federal land. Yet, this only points out that one book, though great, cannot cover everything.

I was interested to review this book since I do a lot of genealogical research and wanted to see what more I could learn. I wasn't disappointed. There's plenty to be discovered through the great information supplied by this fine book. Though one of the "For Dummies" series for beginners, there is much here for people who aren't dummies but are advanced in their genealogical studies. The authors have their own website, "Helm's Genealogy Toolbox" at www.geneaologytoobox.com, and that is featured as well as other web sites and links.
The book also contains a CD with three items: 1) a trial version of "Family Tree Maker," a popular genealogy database, 2) an evaluation copy of "Homesite 5.5," a popular HTML editor, and 3) a gazetteer designed for genealogists,"World Place Finder." This CD runs on Mac OS system software 7.55 or later, which is useful if you haven't yet stepped up to OS X.
This book is indeed a fine source for all genealogists, covering not only what can be found on the web (an incredible amount), but also great tips for basic "how to do" skills. There is even information in one of three appendixes for the real beginner without many computer skills, such as getting set up with a service provider. The other appendixes include terms and more information on using the CD.
As to its organization, the book begins with the needed first steps about recording easily available information needed to "ground" what you later discover. Progressively you also learn about preserving notes and photos, organizing your records, and many other valuable tips to get started. Later chapters (a total of 16 in the book) continue with planning genealogical research trips and strategies, plus lots of great information about the almost countless sources that have developed on the Web to aid family history buffs. This includes some information even on foreign sources and archives.
The book also covers the increasing availability of various source records, such as census and vital statistics posted on the Web, plus the value of using comprehensive genealogical indexes, surname forums, and the incredible national GenWeb project which coordinates state and county records. And that's only a sample of what this useful book covers! The helpful index allows you to easy find the variety of specific topics in this great "how-to" book,.
Overall, its easy-to-follow style, like other "for Dummies" books, makes this a real winner for both the beginner and advanced genealogist. It is well worth the price.