Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter Weekly Summary of Events and Topics of Interest to Genealogists Vol. 1 No. 7 February 26, 1996 ================================================================ Copyright (C) 1996 Richard Eastman (roots@cis.compuserve.com). All rights reserved. Do not upload to other online services, bulletin boards or newsgroups. See the details at the end of this newsletter. If you do contact any of the companies or societies mentioned in this newsletter, please tell them that you heard about their services in this newsletter. IN THIS ISSUE: - Memorial - Family Tree Maker for Windows Deluxe Edition II - GED2HTML: A GEDCOM to HTML Translator - Family Matters 2.41 - Kith and Kin version 3.03 - Hebrew Calendar for Windows 7.5f - Online Rescue Saves Scottish Genealogist - Genealogical Jamboree in California - H&R Block to Take CompuServe Public - Prodigy Owner Wants To Bail Out - Wall Street Journal to Charge for WWW Access - The Online Business - WWW Home Pages Spotlighted ================================================================ - Memorial This edition of the newsletter is dedicated to the memory of my son Christopher who died two years ago today in a skiing accident. Chris was 15 years old and an "online computer junkie." I hope he is reading this in cyberspace. ================================================================ - Family Tree Maker for Windows Deluxe Edition II In last week's newsletter I reported that a new version of Family Tree Maker for Windows was reportedly available. About 12 hours after I e- mailed the newsletter my new copy of the program arrived. I opened the box and found five (yes, FIVE!) CD-ROM disks. Family Tree Maker has become the most popular genealogy program in the world with more than 500,000 copies sold. The new version is sure to be a success as well. The main program for Family Tree Maker for Windows Deluxe Edition II is all on one CD-ROM disk that also includes a Family Finder Index of 115 million names. This is an index only. Entries there point to records in 45 other CD-ROMs that you can purchase from Broderbund. Two more CD-ROM disks contain the entire Social Security Death records, and the final two CD-ROM disks contain the 6 million individuals listed in Broderbund's own "World Family Tree Index" database. The item that caught my eye was the "instant link" to Broderbund's online server. You install Family Tree Maker Deluxe Edition II and it optionally will set up a link to your favorite World Wide Web browser. From within the genealogy program you can click on an icon and almost instantly be connected to Broderbund's Web server. I suspect you will see similar online links embedded within most software within 2 or 3 years. Another major announcement from Broderbund is a partnership with Genealogical Publishing Company to publish key portions of GPC's genealogy books on CD-ROM. The news release also states that "The two companies have also agreed to work together to make the genealogy information available online through Family Tree Maker Online." The news release did not mention prices for this online access. Family Tree Maker II Deluxe Edition comes with a 463 page manual that seems well written. I haven't had a chance to read it thoroughly yet, but I do strongly disagree with one statement that I found on page 193: "Often, the information in the Family Archives [CD-ROM disk] is so complete that you won't need to go to the actual record (marriage, census, etc.) that the information in the Family Archive came from." I shuddered when I read a statement advising users that they might not need to check original source records. I hope that Broderbund retracts that in the next printing. Family Tree Maker for Windows Deluxe Edition II actually has two different programs on the CD-ROM disk. One program is for Windows 95 and the other is for Windows 3.1. Both versions have the same functionality but Broderbund says the Windows 95 version uses a lot of 32-bit code which results in a faster program. While the program will run in 4 megabytes of RAM memory, 8 megabytes is strongly recommended. It also requires 10 megabytes of hard disk space plus room for your data. It optionally supports any Windows-compatible printer or plotter as well as a scanner, video capture board and sound board. The new Deluxe Edition II is expected to appear in stores within the next few weeks, the "street price" will be about $90.00. For more information, check out Broderbund's section on CompuServe at GO BBFORUM or on the World Wide Web at http://www.broder.com/studio/atoz/famtre.html ================================================================ - GED2HTML: A GEDCOM to HTML Translator GED2HTML is a shareware program for Windows that reads GEDCOM data files and then creates a collection of HTML files suitable for presentation on a World Wide Web home page. I experimented a bit with the program this week and found it easy to use and logical. GED2HTML accepts files in the GEDCOM 5.3 draft standard, with some variations to accommodate idiosyncrasies of the various genealogy programs in the marketplace today. The output is HTML files containing the individual data, an index suitable for quickly locating an individual by name, and an auxiliary surname index with links to the first individual with each surname. Each output data file can contain a single individual or multiple individuals. Files can be organized into subdirectories or a flat collection. In addition, the HTML output is template-driven, so that the format of the HTML files can be changed by users who wish to customize things. Once a group of HTML files is created, you upload them to your personal web page, and your family tree is available on the World Wide Web. GED2HTML's documentation is all written in HTML. You use a Web browser to read the manual. The hypertext links work well in the manual, making it easy to move back and forth as you look up specific information. The program was originally written as a UNIX program and then later ported to Windows. The manual still shows much of its UNIX heritage, so anyone not familiar with UNIX commands such as tar and awk may find the manual to be a bit confusing as Windows equivalent commands are often not mentioned. However, I'd consider that to be a minor shortcoming. I'd rate this an excellent genealogy utility for anyone interested in placing genealogy data in a public Web page. GED2HTML is a shareware program with a $20.00 registration fee. Look for the file GED2HTML.ZIP in the various online services. For further details, you can contact the author directly: stark@cs.sunysb.edu ================================================================ - Family Matters 2.41 Family Matters version 2.41 was released recently. This Windows program is written in Microsoft Access Basic 2.0. Family Matters was first released last October and has been updated a couple of times since then. The program has an excellent Windows user-interface that includes the ability for a user to size Window fonts and fields, which maximizes the visible data and children displayed. It also has a "draggable/dockable toolbar." Family Matters features a Family Group Form as its primary interface. Other on-screen displays include a Family Group Report, a Pedigree Form and Report, and photographs, as well as room for notes and commentary. New in the present release are a descendancy form and report, plus an individual report. The program also has full GEDCOM import and export. According to author Ray Nicklas, additional event coverage with sources and citations are in the works and will be released in April as version 2.50. A demo version of Family Matters 2.41 is available on CompuServe's Genealogy Forum and probably on most other online services. The demo version is fully functional, but is limited to 10 families in each file until registered. Once you pay the registration fee of $25, the author sends you a registration number that will remove this restriction. For further information, contact author Ray Nicklas at: 102733.2612@compuserve.com ================================================================ - Kith and Kin version 3.03 SpanSoft has released an updated version of Kith and Kin for Windows this past week. One of the more popular shareware Windows genealogy programs available today, Kith and Kin previously was nominated for a shareware industry award in 1995.. The program features a graphic interface that fully uses Windows' capabilities. It also has an on- screen timeline, zoom in and out of data, statistics and a relationship calculator. Pictures, maps, diagrams or even sounds may be embedded in or linked to a person or family. The program works well on Windows 95 as well as Windows 3.1. SpanSoft claims that Kith and Kin is the number 1 genealogy program in the UK although I am not sure how to validate that claim. In any case, it is a nice looking program. Look for the file KITKIN.ZIP on the online services or contact SpanSoft at: 100101.1155@compuserve.com. ================================================================ - Hebrew Calendar for Windows 7.5f An updated version of this program is now available. The Hebrew Calendar for Windows features date conversions, holidays, anniversaries, Torah/Haftarah, zmanim and custom calendars. Newly-added features in version 7.5f include simplified easy edit readings, holidays and month names and also selectable zmanim. Look for the file HBCL75F.ZIP on the online services or contact the author at 74651.116@compuserve.com. ================================================================ - Online Rescue Saves Scottish Genealogist I had the good fortune to be involved in an "online rescue" this past week. Rather than writing about it myself, I will substitute the following article from the February 22 edition of "OnLine Today": A minister from Scotland says sysop Dick Eastman and others in CompuServe's Genealogy Forum may have saved his life this week, effecting a rescue from 3,500 miles away. It all started when the "Roots" forum regulars were settling into their weekly real- time conference Tuesday night and Eastman noticed one of the chatters, the Rev. Kenneth J. Walker of Arbroath, Scotland, was having trouble typing. "He said he wasn't feeling well," Eastman later told Associated Press writer Jose Martinez, "and that he thought he was having a stroke." One member turned out to be a nurse from New York who asked the suddenly incoherent Walker through the computer if he was losing feeling in his hands, or if he could see out both eyes. Walker didn't type a response. Someone else online mentioned that Walker -- known only as "Ken" to the group -- lived alone and had been sick lately. Eastman asked Walker for his telephone number. "It took a while, but he typed it out," Eastman says. "I have two phone lines so I called him. The phone was busy, which made sense since he was online." The sysop then contacted an overseas operator, who gave him Walker's address in the seaside town of Arbroath, between Aberdeen and Dundee on the North Sea. She also connected Eastman to the town's police. "The police and an ambulance were in his house about two minutes later," Eastman says. The 38-year-old Walker spent several hours in the hospital before being released. Doctors weren't sure what happened, but the minister told Martinez he occasionally has "episodes" that can be life- threatening. "All I remember," says Walker, "is I thought my keyboard was melting. I thought I was going to die." AP says Walker apparently did not have a stroke, but he may have had an epileptic seizure. The minister, who is on leave from his Church of Scotland parish, says he does not even remember going online, just how the computer became his lifeline. "I thought as long I just stayed on the system ... I was OK," he told the wire service. He sent Eastman e-mail when he got home from the hospital, thanking him and others in the forum. He called Eastman a hero. Says Walker, "The communication highway gets a lot of bad press, but this is one case that proves the people online are a community -- a cyber community." The Genealogy Forum (GO ROOTS) hosts real-time conferences every Tuesday night at 10 p.m. Eastern Time, hosted by Eastman, who manages the forum from his Billerica, Massachusetts, home north of Boston. (End of article) As a result of all this, Ken Walker and I have since received a lot of publicity. We were both interviewed on CNN Television. I also was interviewed on NBC Nightly News, the Today Show, CBS Radio News, CBC National News in Canada as well as the three major television stations near me in Boston. I believe that Ken Walker has also been interviewed by numerous broadcast and print media reporters. Several hundred newspapers around the world published the story. I'm even told that Time Magazine will give a brief mention of the story in next week's edition. If you have access to the World Wide Web, you can obtain all the details at CNN's Web server. CNN's Web page even has sound clips of the live interview conducted on Thursday morning. Look at: http://www- cgi.cnn.com/TECH/9602/internet_rescue/index.html The Boston Globe's story is available at: http://www.boston.com/globe/cgi- bin/waisgate?WAISdocID=5492819474+3+0+0&WAISaction=retrieve Another online source for the story is Web Review at: http://webreview.com/current/news/ndn/index.html A complete transcript of the online session is available on CompuServe's Genealogy Forum. Who says that genealogy isn't exciting? ================================================================ - Genealogical Jamboree in California Jamboree '96 is the annual genealogical exhibition sponsored by the Southern California Genealogical Society. The Jamboree is reportedly the largest annual genealogical event west of the Mississippi River with more than 2,000 people expected. This year's event will be held April 13 and 14 at the Exhibition Building, The Pasadena Center, 300 E. Green Street, Pasadena, California. Speakers scheduled this year include Joan Lowrey, Tim Polk, George Ott, Julie Overton, Wade Home, John Movius, Dewayne Lener, Henning Schroeder and Christine Rose. Admission is only $12.00. For more information, contact: Southern California Genealogical Society, 122 S. San Fernando Blvd., PO Box 4377, Burbank, CA 91503. Their telephone number is 818-843-7247 but I cannot find an e-mail address for them. ================================================================ - H&R Block to Take CompuServe Public You read the rumor last week in this newsletter, CompuServe confirmed it with a public announcement this week: The Board of Directors of H&R Block, Inc. has unanimously approved a plan that will separate CompuServe, Inc., from H&R Block, Inc., resulting in two independent, publicly- traded companies. "This decision reflects our commitment to maximize shareholder value," said Richard H. Brown, president and chief executive officer of H&R Block. "The separation of CompuServe will unlock the value we have created through both of these strong franchises and will better position each entity to aggressively pursue the significant growth opportunities in their respective markets." The plan approved by the Board of Directors entails an initial public offering of less than 20 percent of CompuServe in April 1996. H&R Block intends to complete the separation of the companies in a distribution of H&R Block's remaining ownership of CompuServe through a tax-free spin-off or split-off within approximately 12 months. ================================================================ - Prodigy Owner Wants To Bail Out Again, you heard the rumors in this newsletter recently. Now I can confirm it: Sears, Roebuck & Co. says it plans to sell its 50% stake in Prodigy Services Co., the nation's third-largest online service and a drain on Sears' earnings. Arthur C. Martinez, Sears chairman and CEO, told a New York meeting of analysts that "Prodigy does not fit into Sears' long-term strategy for growth. We are seeking a buyer for Sears' share in the company." However, Martinez apparently hasn't been able to find such a buyer and the public announcement without listing a buyer seems to indicate that Prodigy is now available at "garage sale" prices. The announcement was no surprise as rumors had been circulating for more than a year. Last summer, Martinez reportedly said that it was not clear that Sears, the nation's No. 2 retailer, brings anything strategically to the online venture. Prodigy was the outgrowth of an online venture begun in the early 1980s that originally involved CBS Inc., Sears and IBM Corp. CBS bailed out in 1986 after taking a $40 million loss. Since then, IBM and Sears are believed to have invested more than $1 billion in the service, but profits still seem elusive. Prodigy now has an estimated 1.5 million subscribers, far behind that of its two larger competitors. IBM isn't talking about its plans for the online service. However, an article in the Wall Street Journal last month reported that IBM is also seeking a buyer for its 50% interest in Prodigy. In a separate announcement, Prodigy has said it will launch its Prodigy.net direct access service on March 19, charging users a flat rate of $1 per hour for direct Internet-only access. ================================================================ Wall Street Journal to Charge for WWW Access You may recall my prediction a couple of weeks ago that the years 1996 and 1997 would see many commercial World Wide Web sites being introduced that charged for access. That prediction moved closer to reality this week as the prestigious Wall Street Journal announced its new fee-based WWW access. Tom Baker, business director for The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition, announced this week that the Journal will redesign its World Wide Web site to include material from all of the Journal's sections. The current free site, the Money & Investing Update, contains a wide selection of news and market information, but does not offer certain sections of the paper, such as editorials or the Op-Ed page. Even the present free access sections will be dropped under the new plan. The Journal will announce a pricing plan for access to the site next month. Though Baker would not specify a price to be charged, he hinted that it would be under $9.95 per month. Baker also said that current subscribers to the print edition of the Journal would be eligible for discounts to the online fee. The present Web site is free to everyone, although users still must register in order to gain access. Baker, speaking at the Web Developer '96 conference in Chicago, also stated that the Money & Investing Update currently has over 240,000 registered users, of which 25,000 visit the site daily. Fewer than half of the users are current subscribers to the print edition of the Journal. In addition to its Web site, the Journal maintains a variety of other online products, including the Dow Jones News/Retrieval service and Personal Journal, a Windows program that allows users to download a customized version of the newspaper. ================================================================ The Online Business Commentary: The online industry is now undergoing the biggest shakeout in its history. As reported in the previous articles, H&R Block is about to spin its profitable CompuServe division off into an independent company. Sears is dumping its interest in Prodigy. General Electric sold its GEnie service a couple of weeks ago. AT&T and Microsoft both recently said they would redesign their proprietary services to operate on the Internet. Delphi seemed to stumble a bit with its new service being announced by its CEO, who then resigned a few days later as the company laid off 40% of its employees. The World Wide Web is becoming a collection of fee-based services. A rumor in October that CompuServe was in talks to acquire the Sears stake in Prodigy was denied by both companies. But CompuServe officials were careful not to disavow an interest in Prodigy. The new spin-off of CompuServe from H&R Block may generate enough cash to allow such a purchase. Another rumor is that America Online may purchase Prodigy in order to shut it down. This rumor seems difficult to believe as AOL only recently became profitable and doesn't appear to yet have enough financial reserves to purchase Prodigy. Then again, Sears just might sell its stake for a very low price. However, that would leave AOL in a relationship with IBM that would probably prevent the shutdown. Finally, a major new online service will be announced within the next few weeks that will become a major competitor to all of the above services. It appears to be interesting times in the online business. ================================================================ - WWW Home Pages Spotlighted Finally, here's a few new additions to the Web: Blairs' Book Service Online Database is a free-form text search database of over 8500 book titles and descriptions. You can search for surnames listed in the books. Of course, Blairs would like you to order the books from them as well. For more information, look at: http://www.genealogy.com/blairs Slovakian genealogy research: http://www.iarelative.com/slovakia.htm CNN's coverage of the "online rescue" conducted on CompuServe's Genealogy Forum: http://www- cgi.cnn.com/TECH/9602/internet_rescue/index.html ================================================================ If you would like to submit news, information or press releases for possible inclusion in future newsletters, send them to the addresses listed below. If necessary, a FAX can be used instead. Send it to: 508- 667-8920. Please include e-mail addresses so that newsletter readers know who to contact for more information. I do reserve the right to reject any information submitted. ================================================================ DISCLAIMER: This newsletter is being written and sent via e-mail at no charge. I expect to write one new issue on a more or less weekly basis. However, life sometimes interferes and the need to earn a living may create an occasional delay. I do have one request: if you do contact any of the companies or societies mentioned in this newsletter, please tell them that you heard about their services in this newsletter. ================================================================ COPYRIGHTS: The information contained herein is copyright 1996 by Richard W. Eastman except for information attributed to other sources within the text. This newsletter is for the personal use of the individuals on the mailing list. Please do not forward this newsletter to other online services, bulletin board systems or newsgroups. However, since subscriptions are free, anyone may directly obtain their own copy. The subscription information in the next paragraph may be freely copied and distributed in order to encourage others to obtain their own subscriptions. Please copy the subscription information paragraph verbatim. ================================================================ Subscription information: To subscribe to this newsletter via e-mail, send a message to one of the following addresses: CompuServe: 76701,263 Internet: 76701.263@compuserve.com roots@cis.compuserve.com Messages sent to any of those addresses all end up in the same mailbox. The message text should be "subscribe" (without the quotes). The rest of the message will be ignored. To unsubscribe, follow the above instructions above but use a message text of "unsubscribe" (without the quotes). In addition, the latest copy of this newsletter and an archive of all previous editions will be kept in the "New to Genealogy" Library on the Genealogy Forum on CompuServe (GO ROOTS). ================================================================ About the author: Dick Eastman is the forum manager of the Genealogy Forum on CompuServe and the author of "YOUR ROOTS: Total Genealogy Planning On Your Computer" published by Ziff-Davis Press. He may be reached at the above addresses or at: http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/roots