I posted a query at a new site. Please go take a look and let me know if you have anything on this family.
My Murphy Family at FamilyPuzzler
D.
Archive for the Category »Websites «
I got a notice that someone had posted a blog entry about my recent entry concerning the issues with Rootsweb/TGN/Ancestry, etc, etc, etc.
He says “as an ancestry subsacriber I pay for GenWeb too” (sic)
To that I have to ask….WHAT?? (what that has to do with my article I really haven’t a clue, I know quite a few people who subscribe to Ancestry who support free genealogy) The entire group (TGN, Ancestry, Rootsweb), to the best of my knowledge, is owned, again, by investors..they want money, most at USGenWeb want free access to genealogy. They want people to have to pay for genealogy…USGenWeb wants to give it away…I have a hard time visualizing a healthy relationship, one that is good for all parties. USGenWeb wants to be able to offer it to everyone for free, no strings attached. This was the original agreement with Rootsweb, before they sold out to the large group. Now, it seems that little by little, USGenWeb is losing it’s identity. Many of my visitors email me asking about “…your Rootsweb site”…my sites aren’t Rootsweb sites, they’re USGenWeb sites. They aren’t any more a Rootsweb site than someone elses is a Yahoo site (when it’s hosted on yahoo). A current issue has to do with banners that must be posted to the top of every page of every website hosted at Rootsweb. I, personally, don’t have a problem with a required acknowledgement of who is generously giving us free webspace, but when that acknowledgment is required to be at the top of every page, and it *appears* to claim ownership…(all this coupled with that AUP I already told you all about) I do have a few issues with it. (Notice I said *appears* to claim ownership…meaning it appears that way to me, and to many others I’ve spoken with.) I was going to include a link to the banner here but I can’t seem to find it now. If anyone has it please email it to me at dee@pavey.org
He also asked for evidence concerning the claims that some people are making that their data was being harvested from their site and placed behind a pay site. Well, first of all, I said people are claiming, not that I was claiming. But, here are some links for your reading pleasure:
Spoken-For.org
Eastman’s – read carefully a few comments
Untangle Family Roots
About.com
Ancestry.com Hijacks CowHampshire
Family Oral History
That’s all I can get together right now…we’re still a little busy with things we’re doing to make sure people don’t ever have to pay for genealogy on-line…hmmm…it seems to me that Some of these other groups probably want just the opposite…for people to have to pay (them) for research….maybe that’s what all of this hullabaloo is for…to stop us (or slow us down) from doing what we were doing…offering genealogy data for free.
No matter where you stand on this issue, I will respect your right to feel the way you do, I hope you will respect mine, as well.
Have a wonderful day everyone! I know I will! 
Category: Blogs, Websites
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My personal genealogy has been put on the back burner for a while. I am the coordinator for quite a few USGenWeb County sites. There are some issues now with Rootsweb, who has been hosting many, if not most, of the USGenWeb sites for a long while. The issues are:
1. Years ago, the original owners of Rootsweb had claimed to going through the non-profit set-up for Rootsweb.
“We’ve been working with two firms of attorneys since late last year to obtain status for RootsWeb as a non-profit corporation…”
2. That non-profit status never happened, and many of us can’t remember ever receiving an explanation as to why.
3. Rootsweb was later (about early 2000) bought by Ancestry, a for-profit company.
4. Many are in agreement that a for-profit company, such as ancestry/The Generations Network, etc. can’t be good for a non-profit group like the USGenWeb Project.
5. Rootsweb had originally offered free webspace for all USGenWeb Counties. While this seems like a nice gesture, many in the project feel that since Rootsweb is now a part of a large organization, with investors who aren’t even interested in genealogy, it is no longer a generous, no-strings-attached offer as it may have once been.
6. One reason they feel the way I described in #5 is because there have been quite a few claim that information from their personal USGenWeb County site was harvested and placed behind a pay-site.
7. The AUP, in many peoples opinions, takes complete control of everything you upload to the *free space* they give you. Rootsweb has claimed that the following section was necessary in order for them to be able to back up our pages in case of an emergency. I, for one, have had my other sites hosted on other servers and I don’t believe any of them included this section:
By submitting Submitted Content to RootsWeb.com, you grant MyFamily.com, Inc., the corporate host of the Service, a limited license to the Submitted Content to use, host, and distribute that Submitted Content and allow hosting and distribution on co-branded Services of that Submitted Content.
Here are some links:
- Untangled Family Roots
- Genea-Musings: My Family, Inc Terms and Conditions
- The Unofficial History of the USGenWeb
I think that everyone should take a good look at their web host. If their terms of service include anything stating that they can take your website (or data, or submissions, etc.) and give it to another of their companies to “copy and redistribute” you should seriously consider your options.
Please take the time to research this issue if it concerns you. This isn’t the entire story, and, like all others, there are other sides to it.
Category: Websites
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Well, it appears that One Great Family has fixed my problems.
Thank you One Great Family…I recommend this website to anyone researching. They have added quite a few to our tree. Of course, I will verify everything found through them, but I do that with anything I find on the internet.
If you’re interested in OneGreatFamily click on this banner:
Category: Websites
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I have another blog called GenLady. I posted about a little trouble I’m having with the website One Great Family. Here is the link to that story.
Well, I’m still having trouble. I hope someone can help me…I still haven’t heard back from the company since that first day. 
Category: Websites
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