Get
on the Distribution List.
This
is probably the way you can most improve your experience here. Some of
you may pass through here out of idle curiosity, without any intention
of keeping up with things. This is fine. But some of you will probably
want to check back and see what is new. If you are on the distribution
list, you will be notified by email when I post new material. I will even
tell you what it is that I have posted. Email will arrive about once a
month if I had to guess, but it may be more or less frequent at times.
I will never share this list with anyone, nor will I ever spam any of
you.
Check
the Announcement Section.
When
you come to visit the site, take a moment to read the latest announcements
in the Announcement Section on the front page. This will have the most
recent additions and will basically correspond to the emails on the distribution
list. These will also be archived on a page dedicated to all of the Past
Announcements.
Look
at the dates.
Another
way to see if anything has been added is to check the date that the site
was last updated, located on the front page. If you frequent a particular
page or section, you may also find dates their too. Often these will be
the dates items were added.
Notice
the numbers in brackets next to names.
The
names of our relatives are often followed by numbers highlighted in red
and in braces "{ }." I guess the
best way to describe their use and show their value is by the following
example:
My
great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather was Joshua Hopkins{#97},
who was born in 1657. I am descended from him through his son, Joshua
Hopkins{#95}, born in 1698. Among his sons
was my great-great-great-great-great-grandfather, Joshua Hopkins{#93},
born in 1725. This Joshua{#93} had a son,
Joshua Hopkins{#91}, born in 1753. Joshua{#91}
had eight children. Two of his sons were Joshua{#838},
born in 1787, and Giles{#89}, born in 1791.
Giles Hopkins{#89} was my great-great-great-grandfather.
I do
have the dates of birth for these men, and I could refer to one as "Joshua
Hopkins (b. 1725)." But I don't always have that information for
everyone in my database. I also think it is easier just saying "Joshua
Hopkins{#93}." When corresponding, please
use the numbers and names together when referring to individuals.
There
is one final word on the numbers. You might think that there is a pattern
in their assignment. This is not necessarily true. While the Joshua's
in the example above were 97, 95, 93, etc., the last one was 838. The
sequence is strictly the order in which I entered them into my database.
Check
out the Blog (Web Log).
This
site has been, and will continue to be, a monumental task. There is just
as much going on behind the scenes as on the site itself. The Blog
is a good place to see what is going on there, and possibly give some
input.
|