| There are many people that have taken up genealogy | | | | access. You can use the internet to visit genealogy |
| for their hobby. It is interesting and fun to discover who | | | | forums and family history sites. One of the best |
| your ancestors were and to have the ability to trace | | | | resources for researching your ancestors is the |
| your history back as far into history as is possible. As | | | | internet. |
| you begin researching your family tree, it will be very | | | | As you use your home computer you may decide that |
| helpful to have the correct genealogy supplies. You | | | | using genealogy software is useful to you. You can |
| should at least have a way to take notes that you can | | | | get free versions or may decide to go with one that |
| refer to easily later. You can use a simple notebook | | | | costs money and has more options. The software can |
| and a pen. Be sure to take exact notes as you | | | | assist in keeping you organized. There are some |
| interview family members about the prior generations | | | | versions of the software that will allow you to cross |
| that they can remember. You may want to bring a | | | | reference your data against the data that their other |
| recorder and record the conversations that you have | | | | customers have put together which can assist you in |
| with elderly relatives. | | | | filling in any gaps that may be in your research. |
| You can even find genealogy forms that will assist | | | | Having a printer is also a very nice tool to have |
| you in organizing your information. You can download | | | | access to so you can print out files that you discover |
| these forms on the internet or find them in books | | | | when you are doing internet research. Your hard drive |
| written about how to conduct your family research. | | | | can crash at any time. It would be very aggravating to |
| The forms include family data forms, census | | | | lose all of your information after spending months of |
| extraction forms, time lines, cemetery records, | | | | hard work. If you make the time to print out the most |
| pedigree charts, and correspondence logs. You will | | | | important documents then you will at least have some |
| also need to have a filing system to assist you in | | | | record of what you have put together. |
| keeping all of your papers and documents safe and | | | | An even better decision would be to back up your |
| organized. You could use an accordion file or a filling | | | | digital files on a CD, DVD, or zip drive. Check to see if |
| cabinet that is specifically for your research. | | | | the genealogy software that you use might offer |
| A scanner is a very useful tool to have access to as it | | | | extra storage space on their site. You ISP or another |
| will assist you by making digital copies of all of your | | | | service may be able to offer you some extra storage |
| files. It will also allow you make copies of the pictures | | | | space that lets you store and upload the files so they |
| and pictures that may belong to family members that | | | | will be protected in the event that your computer |
| want their precious pictures and documents returned | | | | should crash. Having a magnifying glass around also |
| to them. As you begin working with photographs, be | | | | comes in handy when you are studying old |
| sure to apply labels to them so you can remember | | | | photographs and documents. Old records can be |
| who the subjects are. Label them as you remove | | | | difficult to make sense of and having a magnifying |
| them from the scanner or as you put them into your | | | | glass available might allow you to make out certain |
| filing system. Keep the older documents and | | | | dates or words. |
| photographs safely so that you will have them to | | | | You should also have an email address that you can |
| show the future generations. The papers and files you | | | | dedicate strictly to your family history research so that |
| purchase should be acid free and designated for | | | | you can store all of your correspondence in that one |
| archival or preservation. | | | | place. You can get a free email account from many |
| Having a library card can prove to be another useful | | | | different places on the net. That will give a reference |
| item that is in your supplies. The library can be a | | | | point to the people that you will meet on a genealogy |
| wonderful help as you begin to research your family | | | | forum if they want to contact you with information. |
| tree. You may have the ability to search many | | | | A distant relative that is also doing a family history |
| databases at the library and some that you are not | | | | research project will discover your email address and |
| able to access anywhere else. You may also be able | | | | will contact you out of the blue. You will discover that |
| to access reference books that include official | | | | researching your family tree is a lot of fun and can be |
| documents and records of the areas in question. The | | | | very rewarding too. Once you have the correct |
| library can also be used as a backup source of | | | | genealogy supplies, the process will be a whole lot |
| internet access in case you have something happen to | | | | more efficient as well. |
| your home computer or you happen to lose internet | | | | |