Genealogy Chat

I'm always in such a muddle with my tree, but found this helped me find the gaps and loose ends quickly so I don't have to faff around for half an hour before I start!

I expect others already do this, but here it is anyway..... I printed up my tree from GR (on 6 pages) - stuck them together and then put it up on the door of my 'office'. Then I went through it with a red pen and starred all the names which need some sort of attention. These are usually the ones which I gave up on, intending to go back to and then forgot. This has enabled me to get some useful research done even when I only have half an hour to spare as I can instantly find a starting point. It has also reduced the piles of paper which I 'meant' to return to at some time!

Blooming good idea,simple yet so easy,(bit like me)...(simple i mean) Glen

Thanks Glen! I didn't know whether to post it as there are so many genius's out there (and I'm not one of them!), I thought they would probably not need the tip LOL! Allie x

I've got my tree on PAF and I just look at entries at random if I am not pursuing any particular line of enquiry, or if I've got stuck. I always bung in where I am up to, ie ' can't find death for him, but wife is widow on 1881 census. Not on Freebmd or NBI.' that way I can pick up the research where I left off. But as soon as we've got our new office up and running I am going to pin my tree on it! nell just found out I don't have baptisms for a couple of gt grandparents. Oops!

Very good idea. By the way, you were invisible today from the beach.

rather thick and embarrased, how do you print the whole tree? Linda

hi allie, i've got mine up on the wall in front of me behind my comp but have'nt marked any yet will get round to it soon hazel.

tried to print my tree but 52 pages won't fit on my door.... not very far back gone sideways so would crick my neck!! Haha Kim

I've given up hope of printing my tree out (the walls are taken up with bookshelves anyway), but I do print text and family group extracts for people from time to time and find odd bits then that need checking. I've also had a bit of a spasm of GR enquiries about possible connections, which usefully take me into remote twigs. One of these enquiries led me to delete a wrong husband and children and find the right ones. J

My tree is too big to print from GR, and far too....well,.... wrong! I get round this by using my 'bits of paper'. I have a family record sheet for each family and an individual sheet for each person. These are kept in strict alphabetical order (har har) so that I can instantly find a person or family. My direct line are all written in red. Their siblings etc are outlined in red, everyone else is in black. All unconfirmed information is in pencil. This means I can pick a sheet at random and know instantly what I still need to check for a given individual or family. Not very scientific but it works for me. OC

Not necessarily time saving but…. I made a wise decision when I purchased a cheap tape recorder for when I’m “interrogating” relatives. This way you can pay attention to the conversation-and suddenly remembered anecdotes, jump in with a relevant question, and not have to look down to make notes. Far more friendly, and everyone likes to hear the sound of their own voice. They often don’t recognize themselves on play-back. Gets a giggle or two!! GREAT when the photo albums are out. Hope this helps someone. Caz

HI Has anyone else thought of asking relatives if they recall the zodiac sign as well as the year, if the exact date of birth has been forgotten? IT NARROWS THE SEARCH DOWN A BIT! For your delectation (borrowed from a website!!) Aries (21 March-20 April) Taurus (21 April-21 May) Gemini (22 May-22 June) Cancer (23 June-23 July) Leo (24 July-23 August) Virgo (24 August-23 September) Libra (24 September-23 October) Scorpio (24 October-22 November) Sagittarius (23 November-22 December) Capricorn (23 December-19 January) Aquarius (20 January-19 February) Pisces (20 February-20 March) Hope this helps someone. Caz