Genealogy Chat

I just wondered how you all store your family history data? I seem to have some stuff online that I've downloaded - copies of the census and BMD data then added that to my gallery here on Genes. Then I have some stuff at home in various boxes. And a handbag full of photos from my grandad! My husband is very organised and has proper records folders.
What do you all do? I need some ideas to make me more organised!

Make full use of available resources. In your particular case appoint your husband as chief archivist, he sounds well qualified.

Just one note of caution: Make sure that the info on your computer is backed up regularly preferably to a cd/dvd disk, memory stick or external hardrive.

On computer have folders for each person (surname, first name year of birth) I have documentation/photos and store electronic version in there. Also a word document with spinnets of information about the person (stories, what seaches done and excluded etc).

Am trying to duplicate in a filing drawer same format.

This way it is easy to go back to a person/family branch and check what you have already found out and what you are missing (photo, census or whatever). Seems to work for me at the moment!
B

Further about photos. It might be an idea to scan them all in and create a photo gallery in Word or whatever - create table with maybe 2 or 3 columns. Insert photo in each column - create 2nd row for information about the photo. Next row - more photos - etc. You can then store photos away safely.
You will probably get about 9 photos to the page.

B

Jonesy thanks for the suggestion. I think my husband would love to be able to organise me!
Barbara, thanks for your suggestions too. I do spend alot of time on the PC so it would make sense to load it there. One day I might even get my photos loaded to my tree on genes!

As CDs have a shelf life of about 10 year before they start to go brittle do a copy after 5/6 years.

also store any old documents & ink written stuff in Acid Free paper its a must.

And as someone once pointed out to me...

At one time we loaded our info onto floppy discs and I wonder who remembers and still uses or can access them...It wasn't that many years ago!

So the moral is.....Keep your info backed up to the latest technology, as and when it happens.

Chris

Thinking about it...

Some sites....Certainly FTM.. .For an annual subscription offer the facility to store a tree and associated documents in the 'ether'.

But whether they promise that the stored info could be downloaded to new technology in the future I wouldn't know.

Chris

Chris, that's a good point actually about modern technology. We use an external hard drive for backing everything up.
And I think I'm going to invest in some proper binders and acid free paper. You've all been so helpful. Thank you!

I find it ironic that all this information we've gleaned from sources that are, in many cases, hundreds of years old, give us cause for concern about our versions of them lasting ten years!

I think so RobG as those airing archived records have been stored in the right conditions ,away from moisture,damp,and changing tempatures,we at home dont have that controlled enviroment so care to protect is a must as far as possible should you want your findings to be part of hairloom.