DNA Painter is a popular website for genealogists who want to explore their autosomal DNA test results. Join site creator Jonny Perl for this update on new features for tree visualizations and chromosome mapping, as well as other recent releases and tools.

We all want our writing to be clear and concise and agonise over getting it just right. Is that the correct word? Have I put the comma in the right place? Should that be an em-dash or an en-dash? Sometimes we just need a tool to help us identify the typos and grammatical inconsistencies or highlight the punctuation errors. This session will demonstrate free tools to improve our writing and help us become better writers.

Ransomware is a form of malware (malicious software) that encrypts a victim’s files so they cannot be accessed. The attacker then demands that the victim pay a ransom in order to have access to their files restored. Maybe, you’ve heard about ransomware in the news and thought it was a business problem, but in truth over 75% of ransomware attacks are aimed at individuals and small businesses. Why, because you are easy targets. Learn more about ransomware and what you can do about before it strikes, and if you are attacked how you can recover.

Everywhere we turn we hear from someone recommending the latest and greatest apps and tools to use in our research. But should we try to use all of them? Some of them? None of them? How do you choose what is best for you? We will go over the research process and help you decide which of your own activities need special tools and which work well with the standard tools we all should use.

Canva is a freemium model cloud-based graphic design app that allows even the most design-challenged genealogist to create attractive digital and print products. Colleen uses it frequently to create visuals for my blogs, social media posts, videos and reports, and for family celebrations. We will walk through navigating around the browser interface and features, review the various design libraries, and demonstrate some of her regular design use cases. We will also discuss free personal Canva, premium Canva Pro, and Canva’s Nonprofits program for your society.

Genealogical scholars make conflicting claims about the number of wives, and the number and mothers of the children, of Joseph Brownell, a Mayflower descendant of Dartmouth, Massachusetts, born at Little Compton, Rhode Island, 16 February 1699, to Thomas Brownell and Esther Taber. These conflicting claims raise significant questions about the makeup of Joseph Brownell’s family. Did he have one, two or five wives? Did he have one, three or eight children? To which wife, or wives, were they born? The presenter will lead participants through reasonably exhaustive research and standards-based evaluation of indirect and negative evidence found in Quaker meeting records, and vital, land and probate records to demonstrate how proof can be constructed to answer these questions. Correlation of this evidence with the timespan of each marriage will then enable his children to be assigned to their correct mothers.

This Connecticut-based, indirect evidence case study will highlight techniques for researching a woman whose maiden name is known, but her parents are unknown due to deficiencies in the vital records. Techniques will be demonstrated that rely on forming hypotheses and gathering evidence to test those hypotheses. Thorough research of neighbors and associates (the FAN principle) will yield enough evidence to tie this woman back into her family. Records used include pre-1850 census records, deeds, probate, church, and court. Death records of family members provide the final clues that tie them all together.

Mexico implemented federal registration of births, marriages, and deaths in the 1860s. These records are packed with genealogical information about your ancestors. This presentation will help you make the most of understanding and analyzing these records.

Quand un généalogiste se lance dans des recherches sur un combattant français de la Seconde Guerre mondiale, il est souvent amené à travailler sur un profil de prisonnier de guerre. C’est presque une affaire de statistiques, avec plus de 1,8 million de soldats capturés par les forces allemandes entre mai et juin 1940 ! La recherche prend alors une tournure particulière. Ce moment de la vie du combattant stimule la curiosité de son descendant. Et, ce qui n’est pas le moindre paradoxe, le généalogiste a parfois connu l’ancien prisonnier de guerre. Il a écouté les récits de son père, de son grand-père, il en a collecté les anecdotes. Mais une fois que le principal témoin a disparu, il se rend compte qu’il lui manque des données précises pour documenter cette histoire individuelle transmise dans l’intimité familiale. Heureusement les archives existent. Elles permettent de compléter les précieux souvenirs. Ce webinaire a pour but de recenser les sources, qui sont variées. Et, à partir de cet inventaire, il s’agira d’envisager les méthodes de recherche, et les conditions de consultation, en fonction des configurations.