|
Sample Genealogy Website:
Genealogy Workbench Website |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
Notes |
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
| What are we genealogists
always doing? Traveling and visiting research sites.
And what do we always need on the road? Our
home computer. Actually what we really want is something
off our home computer - our genealogy bookmarks
and hyperlinks and our general computer folders
that we use everyday. I have organized mine into
what I call a "genealogy work bench."
I have found my genealogy
workbench invaluable for my genealogy work. Not
only is it a great tool in my daily research at
home, it also overcomes the problem of being separated
from my home computer while on a genealogy trip.
Here's how:
-
When I'm
traveling, I have frequent access to the
internet in libraries and archive centers
where I can use my genealogy workbench
for quick access to my sites and my quick-references.
- Before I leave home I upload
selected genealogy files to my Online
File Folder
 and then I have
access to them from most research centers (i.e.,
that have internet access.)
- Also before a genealogy trip,
I upload my favorites from my web browser to
my genealogy workbench and access them via a
hyperlink from my genealogy workbench. In
this way, I have full access to my normal internet
environment.
- I also generate my PAF genealogy
database as a series of web pages, in effect
a "mini-website," then I upload it
to my genealogy workbench and reference it via
a hyperlink. In this way, my current genealogy
database is available on the trip for quick
reference.
-
I use my Online
File Folder to upload and save items I run
across at local library websites. And
notice my personal Online File Folder is password
protected.
-
I access my
web-based e-mail from my workbench.
- And notice ... with this setup,
I have a permanent e-mail address for my genealogy
correspondence.
-
I have set this as my home page and I often
update it so it is always fresh and contains
what I actually am using daily.
|
| Detailed
Article |
Article
(PDF): Genealogy Workbench (click here)
Here is a detailed article
describing the www.martygale.name genealogy workbench
website. Also, see
other articles |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
click
the figure above
to see my genealogy workbench |
|
| |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
Here's
What you Need for a Genealogy Workbench Website
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
I built my genealogy workbench using
my free ad-supported five-page Website
Tonight plan which allows me to build
my workbench with an easy-to-use, template driven, non-technical
online service. I used two of my five pages for my basic
work environment of hyperlinks and reference text. I made
one of these two a password protected web page (a standard
feature of Website Tonight) to prevent the general public
from viewing it (i.e., some information is still private).
I put all my genealogy links I would need when on the
road on these two pages dividing them between the public
web page and the private web page. I also put some handy
quick-reference information so I wouldn't have to keep
looking up these little facts. Then I used my remaining
three web pages for a contact page, a guest book page,
and a forum page. Notice that a "page" in WebSite
Tonight can be any length you want.
|
| Domain
Name (Click Here):
|
 |
From
$1.99 per year
(includes many free
services)
The domain name
is the web address of a website. For example, the domain
name of the website "www.jimolsen.name" is
"jimolsen.name." It will not only
be used to form your website name but also could be
your genealogy e-mail address. In fact, once you own
a domain name, you can use it as your permanent e-mail
address (e.g., "jim@jimolsen.name") and end
once and for all the e-mail chaos when you change your
Internet Service Provider (ISP). For a genealogy website,
it's best to use a domain name ending in .name, .org,
or .info for a genealogy website. If your domain name
such as "jimolsen.name" is not available (someone
else has already claimed it) then try a numbered name
such as "jimolsen142.name". Also, try variations
such as "olsenfamily.name."
|
| WebSite
Tonight (five page): |
 |
From
$2.79 per month (free with domain name but with advertising)
This will be the home of your genealogy website. Your
website is actually just a bunch of files (i.e., linked
together) in which you copy the files from your computer
to your website using standard file functions (e.g., Windows
drag and drop). We have a full line of hosting
plans. Also, you obtain a free
"Economy Hosting Plan" when you register or
renew a domain name which is identical to the paid-plan
but is ad-supported. |
| C-Site
Copyright Protection - Optional (Click
Here): |
 |
Just
$14.99 one time (plus government filing fee)
A growing problem for genealogists is to see their genealogy
work, verbatim, on other genealogy websites and without
giving any credit to the author who did all the work to
create the information. In fact, anyone who visits your
genealogy website can download your work and claim to
be the author. The solution is to obtain an official federal
copyright of your website. While you can always copyright
your work by just putting the copyright words (e.g., "Copyright
2007 by Mildred Smith") on each web page of your
website, without a federal copyright, it’s difficult
to prove actual authorship. With c-Site, we’ve made
it easy for you to protect your website contents and file
for a federal copyright – the indisputable legal
proof you need to claim ownership of your work. |
| Online
File Folder
- Optional (Click
Here): |
 |
From
$4.95 per year
Every genealogist needs online file storage. Online file
storage is disk storage housed on a internet server and
is an addendum to the disk storage on your local computer.
The point is that the online file storage is accessible
from any place in the world from the internet, not just
your home computer. Our "Online File Folder"
service provides disk space on our highly reliable servers.
You access your "Online File Folder" using any
standard web browser such as Internet Explorer or Netscape
Navigator. With an Online File Folder, you'll be able
to upload (or download) any files from any computer with
internet access using a very easy and user-friendly interface.
This capability is great on genealogy trips when you are
using the public computers in a library or research center.
Prior to the trip, you'll be able to easily upload files
from home to be used on the trip (i.e., accessed from
any public computer). Or you can easily upload files from
the library (i.e., those great files available only at
that library) then download your treasures once you're
back home. We have written an article on the genealogy
road warrior which explains these procedures in detail.
AND this is also a great secure offsite storage location
for those irreplaceable family history files and folders
or your financial records. |
| Traffic
Blazer
- Optional (Click
Here): |
 |
From
$17.74 per year (usually one year is enough)
One of the main purposes of a genealogy website is communication
with your fellow genealogists and family members. How
will your long-lost cousin who has the family bible and
is activity searching for your mutual ancestors ever find
your genealogy website? Search engines - that's how! You
must get your genealogy website listed in all the major
search engines for the genealogy keywords and phrases
(family names, locales, etc.) that are important to your
genealogy website. This process is known as "search
engine optimization." It is a process of refining
your website so that it is in the best possible position
to gain a high search engine ranking. However, search
engine optimization is a lengthy and tedious process.
In fact, the author of a website must design and execute
a time-consuming campaign to complete the search engine
optimization of the website. The campaign will be an iterative
process in which the website is optimized for search engines
then tested to see if the author was able to second-guess
the logic of the search engine to collect the right keywords
or phrases as well as judge the website as relevant for
those keywords or phrases when a visitor searches for
them.This is where "Traffic Blazer" can help.
“Traffic Blazer” is a search engine optimization
and submission tool. It provides all the tools you will
need to undertake a successful search engine optimization
campaign. For a modest yearly fee, the ”Traffic
Blazer” battery of tools will be available to you
to analyze your website, optimize its contents for search
engines, and track the results of your campaign. “Traffic
Blazer” guides you through every step of the search
engine optimization campaign. In this way, your website
will be found by your long-lost cousin when he or she
performs a search. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
