Organize Your Family History

Stay focused and happy while exploring your roots

Do you have unread resources on your hard drive?

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Earlier today, I was entering my PayPal transactions into my financial software and I saw that I had purchased a document from Sassy Jane Genealogy last month that I had not read and don’t even remember purchasing. So I looked in my Mac’s Finder to see what I’d downloaded from that website and saw that it was a pdf called Ten Skills Every Genealogist Needs. That sounds fantastic! I can’t wait to read it.

I knew there were doubtless other forgotten documents on my hard drive, so I created a notebook in Evernote called Downloaded items to read/watch NOW and put it in my genealogy stack. Then I went on a hunt for other unread or underutilized resources hanging around on my computer. I bought them with the best of intentions and then moved on to the next shiny object.

I found digital copies of Family Tree Magazine. At least one webinar I haven’t watched. A research guide to Kentucky research. Another Sassy Jane Genealogy guide. And I feel like I’ve barely scratched the surface!

In these next couple of low-key weeks, I’m going to try to actually read or watch these valuable resources. And I vow to do a better job of keeping track of what I buy/download. Evernote should be my friend with this.

How about you? Do you have any learning resources you’ve downloaded but forgotten about? Happy hunting!

 

Backing up Evernote on a Mac (updated)

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I like storing important files on my hard drive, not in the cloud. Call it unreasonable, but I have a distrust of the cloud. Yet I love Evernote, the cloud-based note-taking and information storing app. In fact I depend on it for many facets of my personal, business, and genealogy lives. So I was thrilled when reader Corbin Dodge, J.D., was kind enough to spell out instructions for backing up Evernote to your hard drive, after I expressed my fear of what would happen if Evernote vanished, in a comment on my blog post How I store my genealogy information. I went through all the steps of Corbin’s clear and detailed instructions and now have such peace of mind knowing that my notes are safe and easily accessible outside of the Evernote app. (I back up my hard drive to an external hard drive and to the cloud.) I didn’t want this valuable information to remain buried in the comments, so Corbin has graciously agreed to let me reprint them here. [Note: Evernote issued an update which changed the way the backup is created. This post has been updated to include the new instructions.]

I share your concerns re: what if an app goes belly up (what nightmares are made of!).

One thing I admire about Evernote is that it is easy to backup your notes so they’re accessible even if the app goes away. To do this on Mac:

(1) select the “Notes” heading in the sidebar

(2) On mac, hold down the command key and the “A” key at the same time, which will select all notes (on PC, hold down the control key and the “A” key at the same time)
(3) On the main menu bar, click “File”, then select “Export notes…”
(4) A window will pop up. There is a drop-down box labeled “Format”. It gives you 2 options. Choose “HTML”
(5) Save*

To access the backups, click on any note in the folder. It will open in your default browser. You can backspace out the note name in the url to get the full table of contents of every note that was backed up. Not as smooth to browse as the app, but reassuring to know your notes are accessible even if Evernote goes away! It also saves the images, albeit as a separate image file

*I’ve found this folder structure works well to organize backups for my various apps:
Dropbox / Backups / Evernote / 2017-09-27 Evernote Backup

Selecting the HTML format is a safeguard in case Evernote ceases to exist. The alternate option is to save them as “Evernote XML Format (.enex)”, which is an Evernote-specific file format which saves more metadata about each note (e.g., notebooks, tags, author), so this choice could be useful if you ever need to restore lost notes into Evernote (i.e., if their sync ever messes up). The downside to .enex is that it’s not a universally-friendly file format, so it wouldn’t do you much good if Evernote ever goes kaput.

p.s., an added benefit of backing your notebooks up in HTML format is that you can easily go back and retrieve a previous version of any single note without affecting all of your Evernote notebooks (which would be the case if you didn’t select “HTML” in step 3.

You can learn about Corbin’s digital marketing business at corbin-dodge.com and read about his adventures renovating his 100+ year home at eastwoodbungalow.com. Thank you, Corbin!

 

My (very informal) research log

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A few commenters have asked me for samples of my research log. I hesitate to supply it because mine is so informal and not necessarily a good example for others to follow. But in the spirit of helping others, I offer it up.

I keep my log in Evernote. I have a notebook there called “2017 Research Log” and each time I do some research I try to create a log entry. I create a new note in the aforenamed notebook and head it with the date. Then I just type notes that I think might be useful in the future. I try to include what I was looking for, what I found and what next steps would be.

Here’s why it works for me:

  • First and foremost, it is easy for me to keep up. I just jot some notes to my future self and don’t get hung up on filling out a complicated spreadsheet or making sure I have every bit of information. For me, making it easy enough so I’ll actually do it trumps making it more complete.
  • It’s searchable, so I can easily search by person or surname. I could tag it by locality, family line or other category, though so far I haven’t done that.
  • Did I mention it’s easy?

Here’s a screenshot of a recent entry that’s fairly representative.

My genealogy research logI used to use a template in Evernote, one that I created when I was partnering with the dear departed Springpad. (I put that template at the top of this post; click on the image to make it bigger.) But I find I do better writing free form–I think it brings more information out of me.

Earlier this year I was experimenting with using the Log function in Reunion, also writing free-form notes, but I’ve discovered I prefer Evernote. I use Evernote on a daily basis for various aspects of my life and business, so I’m very comfortable with it.

I should mention that one downside to using Evernote as a research log is that it’s not sortable. It is searchable and taggable, but I can’t sort it like I could a spreadsheet. So far that hasn’t been an impediment to me.

I don’t think there’s any one right way to do a research log, but I’m pretty sure there are better ways than mine. But it’s working well for me at the moment.

If you are a spreadsheet person and aren’t intimidated by the opportunity to enter a lot of data, by all means check out Thomas MacEntee’s amazing research log spreadsheet.

Also, if you haven’t already feel free to join my Genealogy Research Loggers Facebook group for more conversations about research logs (as well as some samples from others).

Creating a research log habit

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Creating a research log habitI’ve been doing genealogy research long enough to know the value of keeping a research log. Yet I really resist it. I’m not sure why and it’s driving me a little crazy. I was thinking about it this morning as I was walking my dog and I vowed to amend my 2017 genealogy goals to add this important goal:

  • Create a habit of logging each research session

I think one of the reasons I’ve resisted using a log is that I find myself a little intimidated by complicated spreadsheets. The research log created and shared by Thomas MacEntee is a thing of beauty. Used regularly and properly it would elevate anyone’s research. Yet the idea of filling it out is just too much for me. And so I’ve been very hit or miss on writing down what I’m researching.

On my walk this morning, it hit me that a research log is like any organizing system: The very best one is the one you will use. It’s not a one-size-fits-all thing. There’s no right way to do it. The important thing is to just do something.

When I got home, I mindmapped what a simple research log I might create for myself would look like. Then I looked back at my previous attempts, all in Evernote, and I realize I actually have something in place that I can just pick up and start using again.

Back in late 2013, I partnered with the personal organizer app Springpad (RIP Springpad!) and created a Family History Organizer custom notebook. Part of it was research tracker template, a very simple form to track what you’ve done in each session. A Research Log Lite, if you will. I think I never felt my research tracker template was good enough to qualify as a research log and I didn’t fully commit to it. (I’ve blogged about my attempts.) But now I feel that if I use it regularly, I’ll actually have a nice body of knowledge. I’m going for it.

Today’s the first day of a new focus on keeping a research log. I created a 2017 Research Log notebook in Evernote, which is my preferred place to keep track of information (genealogy-wise and otherwise). I revised the original research tracker template a little and placed in my 2017 Research Log Notebook. (That’s the template, in its entirety, up in the top of this post. Click on the image to see it larger.)

I created my first note in the notebook, titling the note with today’s date and the names of the ancestors I researched. I copied the template into the note and filled it out. I tagged it with the ancestor’s surname (Adams) and created an “Adams RL tag”, so I can easily pull up all my research log notes about the Adamses.  I hope this is the beginning of a wonderful habit.

Bonus! I made the research tracker template, public, so you can add it to your own Evernote account if you want to give it a try.  Just click on the link and it should open up in Evernote for you. (I’m a novice at public Evernote notes, so if it doesn’t work for you, please let me know and I’ll figure it out.)

I’m always excited about creating new habits in the new year; I hope to be reporting here that it’s become ingrained!

I’m curious: Do you keep a research log? If so, in what format?