CD-ROMs aid genealogists Genealogy exchange

SHAKING YOUR FAMILY TREE

By MYRA VANDERPOOL GORMLEY

Los Angeles Times Syndicate

CD-ROMs are especially popular with genealogists who own computers since a CD can contain 650 megabytes of information. This is roughly equivalent to 160,000 pages of text compacted onto a 4 1/2-inch wafer that takes up a small amount of storage space.

There are two basic types of genealogy-related CDs --- those containing text and those with images. Additionally, most CDs include a program used to view and search the material. Text CDs contain either transcriptions of books, miscellaneous records or out-of- print publications. These CDs usually allow users to copy and paste sections from the CD into a word processor. On the other hand, image CDs are created by digitizing an image of something --- a book or microfilm, for example. Since it is impossible to search a graphic for text, publishers usually include a text index with hyperlinks to the image and some sort of search engine.

Three of the most common reader programs used for genealogy- related CDs are Adobe Acrobat Reader, Infobase Incorporated's Folio Bound Views and Broderbund's Family Archive Viewer. The latter is the only one that doesn't include its viewer on the CDs, but the viewer is available without charge.

The growth of genealogy on CD-ROM has been so explosive that a need has grown to have some form of bibliographical information about the medium as a means of listing and categorizing CDs to know what is available and what various CDs contain. "Genealogy on CD-ROM" by Marthe Arends is a new book published on the subject.

This book shows the researcher what is available on CD-ROM in all major categories, including biographies; genealogical references; historical references and dictionaries; journals, newspapers and periodicals; geographical finding aids; immigration and naturalization records; military records; African American and Native American records; U.S. resources; international resources; compiled family histories and genealogies; indexes; and Bible records. Screen shots showing typical views are spaced throughout the book to enhance recognition and understanding of selected CDs.

All CDs aimed specifically at genealogists (and available at the time the book was compiled) are included, as are a number of CDs that are useful to researchers, but not intended specifically for genealogists. These include several serial sets produced for the library market by such reference book publishers as R. R. Bowker and Gale Research. The book is organized by subject. Under each CD listing --- except for census records --- is the title, publisher, price, system requirements (operating system, RAM, hard drive, monitor), and a description of the contents of the CD. A separate section listing CD publishers and vendors appears at the end of the book.

The author has done a commendable job of collecting and arranging the information about these CDs. She includes caveats on many them, warning that the records on a particular CD aren't comprehensive for the time and/or region covered. She also provides background on various sources utilized in compiling the data appearing on many of the CDs. While the author doesn't rate the sources so used, she does provide enough information for the consumer to make more informed selections and purchases.

"Genealogy on CD-ROM" contains 266 pages in 8 1/2" x 11" paperback format. It is available ($33.45 postpaid) from Genealogical Publishing Co., 1001 N. Calvert St., Baltimore, MD 21202; (800) 296- 6687; www.gene-

alogybookshop.com/.

The Capital-Journal

Beyond 50: information for a maturing audience, a monthly section of The Capital-Journal, has a spot for the exchange of family history information, as well as its great features and themes the last Sunday of each month.

Those interested in finding or sharing information about their family history, contributing letters, articles or memories may send them to Beyond 50, in care of Linda Laird, The Topeka Capital- Journal, 616 S.E. Jefferson St., Topeka, KS 66607. Information or articles may be faxed to Linda Laird, at (785) 295-1230; or e-mailed to lindal@cjnetworks.com.

Copyright 1999
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved.