Webinars. They are slowly getting known, but I still think a lot of people don’t actually know what a Webinar is. In short, it in a seminar or presentation that you watch on your computer. You can watch it live at a specified time, or later through YouTube or a similar viewing program.
In terms of genealogy think of them like video tutorials, and with the topics covered you could do almost all of your genealogy training online through watching webinars.
Webinars are ideal if you don’t have ready access to local genealogy groups or libraries to mix with other people and learn from. But they really are for anybody and everybody.
There’s a number of places that offer webinars, but today I’m mentioning those from Legacy Family Tree Webinars, and also The National Archives in England, and both have just released details of their webinars for 2014.
THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES
The UK’s National Archives’ record specialists are running a series of webinars, which are focusing on different series of records in their collection and the research skills that you will need to make the most of them. Each of The National Archives webinars will help you to begin your research in the areas below. And they are free.
Live webinars are available on set dates at set times, and last no more than one hour, click on the links below for more details (including times) for each session. Each presentation will also be recorded and will be made available to view after the event. The TNA website says “further information will follow on viewing pre-recorded webinars”.
January 2014
20 – Using Discovery
February 2014
13 – Army muster lists
March 2014
12 – Emigration records
April 2014
08 – Medieval and early modern sources
May 2014
12 – Victorian workhouses
June 2014
11 – Battalions and regiments in the First World War
LEGACY FAMILY TREE WEBINARS
A few years ago now the makers of Legacy Family Tree, the genealogy software program, branched out and started doing webinars. While there are some specific “how-to” webinars relating to Legacy the program, the vast majority of them relate to other facets of genealogy – more about a specific country or a specific topic. Have a look at the list below, and you’ll see the vast array of topics they are offering viewers.
Their webinars are free to attend live (at the nominated time), and free to watch for 7 days after the event. After that they are viewable buy you will need to have a one month, or one year subscription to their site to access them.
1 month – normally US$79.95, currently US$49.95*
1 year – normally US$12.95, currently US$9.95*
(please note, I don’t know how long the special is for as I couldn’t find details of a cut off date on their website)
The Legacy Family Tree Webinars site puts it nicely by saying … “Learn genealogy at your own pace with a monthly or annual webinar membership. All live webinars are free to the public. With a webinar membership, you get on-demand access to our entire video archives, and access to the instructors’ handouts. Watch via your computer or mobile device. New videos are added monthly at no additional cost.”
In the 2014 collection of webinars, FamilyTreeWebinars.com lists 52 classes (that;s nearly 80 hours of talks) from genealogy’s leading educators on topics ranging from genealogy technology to in-depth research methodologies and evidence analysis.
January 2014
03 – What’s New in Legacy Family Tree 8 by Geoff Rasmussen
08 – Are You a GOON? What is a One-Name Study and Why Do One? by Kirsty Gray
15 – Too Many with the Same Name by Karen Clifford
22 – Irish Research 101: Learning the Research Process by Judy Wight
29 – Ten Reasons Your Ancestor Was in Canada by Kathryn Lake Hogan
February 2014
12 – Family Stories: Using Newspapers to Reconnect with the Stories of Your Family’s Past by Tom Kemp
19 – The Ties That Bond by Judy Russell
26 – Searching for Surnames: Challenges, Pitfalls and the Downright Ridiculous by Kirsty Gray
March 2014
01 – Genealogy and Technology – State of the Union by Barbara Renick
05 – Using Google Earth for Genealogy by Lisa Louise Cooke
07 – Sources and Citations Made Simple, Standard, and Powerful by Geoff Rasmussen
12 – Some Lesser Known Irish Resources by Judy Wight
19 – 50 Most Popular Genealogy Websites by Kory Meyerink
April 2014
02 – 7 Habits of Highly Frugal Genealogists by Thomas MacEntee
09 – Get Organized Using the FamilyRoots Organizer Color-Coding System by Mary Hill
11 – Estate Records – More Than Just Wills by Linda Woodward Geiger
16 – Genealogy Evidence and Online Family Trees by Karen Clifford
23 – The Homestead Act of 1862 by Thomas MacEntee
30 – Google Glass and Family History by Devin Ashby
May 2014
02 – Legacy Family Tree – Virtual User’s Group Meeting by Legacy Family Tree Panel
07 – 50 Year View – What I’ve Learned Climbing My Family Tree by Tom Kemp
14 – Photo Apps for Android, iPhones or iPads by Maureen Taylor
21 – I Had My DNA Tested – Now What? by Ugo Perego
28 – Using Tax Lists to Solve Genealogical Problems by Linda Woodward Geiger
June 2014
11 – German Internet Research: A Launching Place for Your Research by Kory Meyerink
13 – 10 Ways to Jumpstart Your Family History Narrative by Lisa Alzo
18 – Copyright Mythconceptions by Judy Russell
25 – Documenting Native American Families in 19th and 20th Century Records by Angela Walton-Raji
July 2014
09 – Thinking About Becoming a Board-certified Genealogist? by Elissa Scalise Powell
11 – Legacy Family Tree – Virtual User’s Group Meeting by Legacy Family Tree Panel
16 – When Freedom Came – Documenting the Family’s Freedom Story by Angela Walton-Raji
23 – Researching Your Illinois Ancestors by Thomas MacEntee
August 2014
06 – Researching Your Tennessee Ancestors by J. Mark Lowe
08 – Research Recharge – Turning Old Clues into New Leads by Lisa Alzo
20 – Find A Grave – The World’s Largest Cemetery Database by Russ Worthington
27 – Researching Your Italian Ancestors by Ruth Merriman
September 2014
03 – Researching Your Jewish Ancestors by Jennifer Alford.
05 – Legacy Family Tree – Virtual User’s Group Meeting by Legacy Family Tree Panel
10 – Success with Manuscript Sources by Barbara Renick
17 – Evaluating Evidence and Resolving Discrepancies by Kory Meyerink
24 – A Library at Your Fingertips – the Internet Archive by Maureen Taylor
October 2014
01 – The Fair Court: Records of Chancery Courts by Judy Russell
03 – Overcoming Destroyed or Missing Records by Karen Clifford
08 – Welcome to FamilySearch Indexing! by Devin Ashby
15 – Researching Your War of 1812 Ancestor by Thomas MacEntee
22 – Tracking Migration Using the Draper Manuscripts by Mary Hill
November 2014
14 – Legacy Family Tree – Virtual User’s Group Meeting by Legacy Family Tree Panel
19 – Using Evernote for Genealogy by Lisa Louise Cooke
December 2014
03 – Family History for Kids by Devin Ashby
05 – Look Ma, No Hands! Using Dragon Naturally Speaking for Your Genealogy by Ivan Baugh
10 – Researching Your North Carolina Ancestors by J. Mark Lowe
17 – Bagging a Live One – Connecting with Cousins You Never Knew You Had by Mary Kircher Roddy
==========================
So make 2014 your year to learn, and join (or just watch) a webinar or two or three. But remember to check the date and time that the event will be in your area. To do this you can use a timezone converter like the one on timeanddate.com.
You must, must, must reinstate the crawl error download. The analysis of enterprise sites when the errors may be in the 100s of thousands cannot be done efficiently without the ability to export large numbers of errors and analyse them in spreadsheets for patterns. Please let us have it back!