Downloading Records from FamilySearch Family Tree

If you ask FamilySearch Support how to download a GEDCOM file from Family Tree, you may get the answer, "You can't". Technically this is correct, but if you use software that can synchronize its own computer database with Family Tree, there is a way that can be done. In other words, FamilySearch does not have a way to do it, but RootsMagic, Ancestral Quest, and Legacy Family Tree have ways of doing it.

If you have a paid version of one of these programs, find out from the program's support system how to do this.

In the past I have been able to do this using the free RootsMagic Essentials software,
http://rootsmagic.com/Products/
For instructions see the free videos at:
http://rootsmagic.com/familysearch/Videos/

Because of the fact that the FamilySearch Family Tree is designed as an open-edit site, your ancestral lines there can be changed by any other user, It can be very useful to have your own copy of your pedigree for many generations. That way if one of your ancestral lines disappears from Family Tree, you have an easy way to locate the change, and correct it if you feel it is an error. (Add a source where possible.)

Cleaning-up Living and Confidential Records

These are records that you have created that are hidden from everyone else.
In other words, you are the only person who can clean them up.
And this process only works in the Family Tree mobile app, at present.

In the app, tap the main menu, then tap My Contributions, then Private Persons. This will bring up a  list of "the top 200 results", I then tap a person's name if they were born over 100 years ago or if they have no birth date. I can then examine the information on them, their spouse and parents and determine whether to add information or mark the person as deceased. From their Person screen I can also search for historical records of the person in question.


MyContributions has lots of other information. If you are a long-time user of FamilySearch you may be surprised to see the statistics for your contributions!

Trying Indexing Again

Since my mission in FamilySearch Support has ended I have a lot more free time. Like everyone else, I am basically confined to home because of the COVID-19 pandemic. So I have been looking for things to do that are helpful in family history.

With a little encouragement, I decided to try FamilySearch Indexing again. Indexing allows me to make scanned copies of microfilmed records computer-searchable. I download a "batch" of images from FamilySearch.org by signing in and clicking the Indexing link at the top of the screen, Then I click Web Indexing and choose a batch to try. I have not needed to call the free support number for help, but it was comforting to know that it is available if I need  it. 1-866-406-1830

This is a little different from the previous version of Indexing which required me to install indexing software, which I believe also required having Java installed.  I like the change. 😊

Being a Canadian, I chose batches from Nova Scotia, but I ran out of these after about 4 days, so I switched to the 1851 census of Ontario. These are much faster and easier to do. They are generally easy to read, and each batch has a page of 50 names and a page with no names ("No extractable data") On census records you get to use the "ditto" key combination (ctrl+d) a lot, as members of a family have the same surname, and are usually born in the same place. Some fields in the template are missing in the records, these too can be dittoed. So far in the past two weeks I have indexed nearly 1000 names. When these are verified, the data is added to a Historical Records collection in FamilySearch and becomes computer-searchable, They also become available as source hints for documenting family members in the FamilySearch Family Tree. We love sources!

The FamilySearch website is accessible \to everyone with a free account. If you have some extra time, I encourage you to try indexing, I believe we have two weeks to complete any batch and submit it, so we can do it at our own pace. Two of the batches that I did had been started by other indexers but not completed. Their efforts were not wasted. I was able to carry on from where they left off. It is a good system!


[Reposted from my general genealogy blog: https://billbuchanan.blogspot.com/2020/04/trying-indexing-again.html]

What happens to my ordinance reservation during the COVID-19 outbreak? (659307)

[This is an official knowledge article, which will remain in effect during the COVID-19 pandemic.]

Due to the outbreak of COVID-19 and temple closures, FamilySearch is temporarily suspending all temple ordinance expiration dates until the temples reopen.
       
Reservations for temple ordinances will not expire while temples are closed.
An expiration date less than 90 days in the future will be extended to 90 days. Once temples reopen, the person holding the reservation will have 90 days to complete the ordinance.
An expiration date that is scheduled more than 90 days in the future will be automatically rescheduled, day by day, until temples reopen. This means that if a particular reservation expires in 100 days, the 100-day period won’t begin until temples reopen.