Genealogy Technology Links 7 Aug 2012

© Copyright 2012 Caroline M. Pointer

If you follow me on Twitter [@FamilyStories] or Facebook, you already know I post links to technology posts that I think might have some value to the genealogy world in some way whether the genealogist is a rookie genealogist [beginner], an I'm-getting-the-hang-of-this genealogist [intermediate], an I'm-owning-this-genealogy-thing-like-a-boss genealogist [advanced], or I'm-a-pro-at-genealogy genealogist [professional].

I've tried several ways to do this through sites that try to automate the process, but? That's aggregation, and, really, you can get 'automatic' anywhere. You don't need me for that. Or some of the sites are ugly in design. [And I don't 'do' ugly. Who wants to read 'ugly'?] 


This list is hand-picked and curated by me as a genealogist who really loves to seek out and play with tech. Most of the time, it'll be tech that isn't labeled as being for genealogy, but I'll include a short and personal intro to each link with my thoughts or questions about its use in our genealogy researching world.

You may see some of the links on my Twitter or Facebook streams depending on when you're on those social networking sites and when I'm on them, but more and more, they'll be just here.

For you. 

To read.

To decide if you can use them or not.

To share with others. [Especially this. Share all you want everywhere. Please.]

And it'll be here in the afternoons, Monday thru Friday. [And then on the weekends you'll get a shorter, but totally new list in the Genea-Tech Newsletter.]

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• 6 Things You Can Do Right Now to Reduce Paper Clutter from unclutterer.com ~ Okay. Most of us know about these tasks, but doing them is another thing. Whether you're aware of them or not, here's a short list to get you started in tackling the paper monster created from all that ancestor researching. Here's your permission. Or directive. Or suggestion. 
• No Excuses: It's Time To Turn On Two-Step Authentication from Alex Dobie on androidcentral.com ~ I don't know about you, but I use my Google account and procucts A LOT. However, I've not been using this 2-step authentication process because I didn't know about it. Now? Consider it 'done' for me. You can never be too secure, right?
• Has functionality finally caught up with the Android spec race? from Chris Davies on Slashgear.com ~ The video has sold me on the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1, even if it is a mock up. Like Chris Davies, the author of the blog post, I'm curious in the actual lag time. But? Its features *totally* compliment today's genealogy researcher, in my opinion. Wow. Talk about being able to annotate...Check it out. How could/would you use it while performing research? Feel free to comment below. =)
• 10 Ways to Get the Most From Your Wi-Fi-Only Tablet by Sarah Jacobsson Purewal on PCWorld.com ~ So. You bought the wi-fi only tablet to save a few bucks, right? No need to feel inferior with them. Here 10 *excellent* ways to get what you need from them through wi-fi. Or, at least, I think they're excellent. Maybe you won't, but you'll need to read them to decide, right? ;)
• Awesome Student@Home service connects geek youngsters with people needing tech help from redferret.net ~ Okay. So maybe I'm being fanciful, but wouldn't something like this be nice in the genealogy researching world. I dunno. Maybe through genealogical societies? Thoughts? Would it ~ could it ~ work?
• Destress Your Tech with a Delete Binge by Thorin Klosowski on Lifehacker.com ~ I don't care who you are. We *all* need to use the 'Delete' button. Let this article be your guide.
• Security in the iCloud age by Lex Friedman and Dan Moren at Macworld.com ~ These are some excellent password security preventative measures we should all take as we use and depend on the cloud more and more to store our data.
• 7 Awesome Features You’ve Forgotten About in Windows 7 by Whitson Gordon on Lifehacker.com ~ Or maybe you never knew about them in the first place. No matter. Get your research and data organized on your computer with these Windows 7 features. 
• 7 Productivity Tools for Your Business by David Sandy on enterprisenation.com ~ Don't let the title fool you. Even if you aren't a a genealogy 'professional', you're going to want to check these productivity tools out. I promise. And you may know about some of them, but probably not all of them. Or perhaps you've heard about them, but you're not using them. In any case, read it. Then do something from the list, and I promise you'll be more productive in your genealogy or family history research - even if it's in a small way.

Okay. That's it for today. Don't worry. There'll be more tomorrow. There's always more. If you want the links in real time or even more links, follow me on Twitter as @FamilyStories and/or Facebook as caroline.pointer. Or just wait for tomorrow's list with highlights. =)

~Caroline