You all know that I'm a big fan of FamilySearch Indexing. Because of their efforts we have billions of free records and images at FamilySearch. They have announced an exciting event for July 2 that you can participate in. They will be trying to break their all-time record for records indexed in one day. The previous record of 4.9 million records was set on April 30.

I hope you will join me sometime on the 2nd to index at least one batch. The cool thing is - you get to choose the records to index. If you haven't yet signed up as an indexing volunteer, visit http://indexing.familysearch.org. We also have a couple of webinars you can watch about indexing here and here.

Here's their official announcement:

July 2, 2012 (or 1st, depending on your time zone), is going to be an amazing day! We can feel it! It could be the first day that we achieve "5 Million Name" fame. That's right. It might be the day that we index and arbitrate 5 million names (or records) in just 24 hours! No other name transcription project that we know of has ever come close.

Together, we've achieved unbelievable success in the past three months. Our highest day for indexing & arbitrating combined—for the last three months and in the history of indexing—was April 30th. On that day, we reached 4.9 million records submitted. Amazing! We nearly made 5 million with just our everyday effort!

To make sure we reach the goal of 5 million records, we'll need help from every indexer and arbitrator out there. Everyone will need to submit an extra batch or two (or more!) during the day. Remember, though, that our "day" starts at 00:00 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC/GMT), which means 6pm MDT (Utah time), on Sunday, July 1st. Check the Facebook event page for your local start time.

Now, please don't think that we're focusing completely on quantity and forgetting about quality. Next week, to prepare, we'll provide ways to improve the quality of your work and suggestions for how to get ready for the big day.

Spread the word! Tell your friends and family about the opportunity to be a part of this history-making event. We may not have another chance like this for years, so plan now to get involved. We need you and everyone else out there to reach this goal!

Look for more details next week. For now, let's keep on indexing (and arbitrating)!

Start times for various locations:

• Sydney, Australia: July 2 @ 10:00 AM 
• Moscow, Russia: July 2 @ 4:00 AM
• Kyiv, Ukraine: July 2 @ 3:00 AM
• Johannesburg, South Africa: July 2 @ 2:00 AM
• Paris, Berlin, Rome, Brussels, Warsaw, Stockholm: July 2 @ 2:00 AM
• London, England: July 2 @ 1:00 AM
• Sao Paulo, Brazil: July 1 @ 9:00 PM
• Buenos Aires, Argentina: July 1 @ 9:00 PM
• Ottawa, Canada: July 1 @ 8:00 PM
• Santiago, Chile: July 1 @ 8:00 PM
• New York City, New York: July 1 @ 8:00 PM
• Chicago, Illinois: July 1 @ 7:00 PM
• Salt Lake City, Utah: July 1 @ 6:00 PM
• Phoenix, Arizona: July 1 @ 5:00 PM
• Los Angeles, California: July 1 @ 5:00 PM
• Anchorage, Alaska: July 1 @ 4:00 PM
• Honolulu, Hawaii: July 1 @ 2:00 PM

The recording of today's webinar, Digital Images: Scanning, Editing, and Preserving Your Photos is now online for a limited time. In the webinar, Legacy's Geoff Rasmussen covered:

• Golden Rules of Digitization: Choosing the right resolution and file formats
• Step-by-step process of scanning a document or photograph
• Basic editing/restoring techniques including using the cloning, spot healing brush, straightening, red-eye removal, stitching and panoramas tools
• Adding a picture to your Legacy family file
• Flip-Pal's sketch kit
• Picture resizing for Legacy Charting
• And much more

View the recording

If you could not make it to the live event or just want to watch it again, the 1 hour 47 minute recording of Digital Images: Scanning, Editing, and Preserving Your Photos is now available to view in our webinar archives. Visit www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/webinars.asp to watch. It is available for free until July 9, 2012.

Pre-order the webinar-on-CD

Own your own copy of Digital Images: Scanning, Editing, and Preserving Your Photos by purchasing the webinar-on-CD for just $9.95. It includes the 1 hour 47 minute recording of the class, the complete Q/A session, and 11 pages of handouts. Click here for more information or to purchase.

Or order the bundle:

• Digital Images: Scanning, Editing, and Preserving Your Photos (1 hour 47 minutes, plus 11 pages of handouts)
• Organizing and Sharing Digital Images (1 hour 44 minutes, plus 5 pages of handouts)

Purchase the bundle for just $17.90 here.

Browse all 10 of Geoff Rasmussen's webinar CDs here.

Special discount coupon

The special discount coupon of images2 that was announced during the webinar is valid for 10% off anything in our online store through Monday, July 2, 2012.

Register for our upcoming webinars (free)

• The Quest for your English Ancestors with Claire V. Brisson-Banks. July 11.
• Plan Your Way to Research Success with Marian Pierre-Louis, July 18.
• The Genealogy Cloud: Which Online Storage Program Is Right For You? with Thomas MacEntee, July 27.
• Neglected History by Megan Smolenyak, August 1.
• Wikis for Genealogists with Thomas MacEntee. August 8.
• The 5 C's for Success in Genealogy Today with Barbara Renick. August 22.
• Building a Family from Circumstantial Evidence, with Judy G. Russell, CG. August 29.
• Beyond the Arrival Date: Extracting More from Passenger Lists with Lisa Alzo. September 5.
• What is a 'Reasonably Exhaustive Search'? with Michael Hait. September 12.
• Getting Started with Heritage Collector Software with Kathleen Bitter
• Use Your Digital Camera to Copy Records with Mary Hill. September 19.
• Digital Research Guidance, Research Logs, and To Do Lists: FamilySearch, Research Wiki, and Legacy Family Tree with Geoff Rasmussen. September 26.
• Privacy and our Ancestors with Thomas MacEntee. October 3.
• Researching Your Irish Ancestors: Beyond the Basics with Judy Wight. October 10.
• Ten Brick Wall Tips for Intermediate Researchers with Marian Pierre-Louis, October 17.
• Your Civil War Ancestors: Beginning Your Research with Michael Hait. October 24.
• Breaking Down Your Irish Brick Wall with Judy Wight. October 31.
• Researching Your Canadian Ancestors - an Overview with Claire Brisson-Banks. November 7.
• Genealogy for Novices: Where Do We Begin with Linda Geiger. November 14.
• The Big 4 U.S. Record Sources with Mary Hill. November 28.

Click here to register.

See you online!

Learn how to correctly digitize your documents and photos, which resolution (dpi) to choose, which file types are the best (.jpg, .tif, etc.), and how to fix, repair, or enhance your digital image collections in a free webinar on Wednesday, June 13 presented by Geoff Rasmussen.

Join us for the live webinar on Wednesday, June 27, 2012 at 2PM (Eastern U.S.). Register today to reserve your virtual seat. Registration is free but space is limited to the first 1,000 people to join that day. Due to the pre-registration numbers, if you want to attend the live session, please join at least 30-40 minutes early to ensure your virtual seat. Before joining, please visit www.java.com to ensure you have the latest version of Java which our webinar software requires. When you join, if you receive a message that the webinar is full, you know we've reached the 1,000 limit, so we invite you to view the recording which should be published to the webinar archives within an hour or two of the event's conclusion.

About the presenter

Geoffrey D. Rasmussen is the father of four budding genealogists. He graduated with a degree in Genealogy and Family History from Brigham Young University and has served as director and vice-president of the Utah Genealogical Association. As host of the Legacy Family Tree webinar series, he has spoken virtually to nearly 100 different countries. He has authored books, videos, articles, and websites, and develops the Legacy Family Tree software program. On a personal note, Geoff enjoys playing the piano, organ, cello and basketball. His favorite places are cemeteries, the ocean, and hanging out with other genealogists. He met and proposed to his wife in a Family History Center.

Add it to your Google Calendar

With our Google Calendar button, you will never forget our upcoming webinars. Simply click the button to add it to your calendar. You can then optionally embed the webinar events (and even turn them on and off) into your own personal calendar. If you have already added the calendar, you do not have to do it again - the new webinar events will automatically appear.

Webinar time

The webinar will be live on Wednesday, June 27, 2012 at:

• 2pm Eastern (U.S.)
• 1pm Central
• 12pm Mountain
• 11am Pacific

Or use this Time Zone Converter.

Here's how to attend:

1. Register at www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/webinars.asp today. It's free!
2. You will receive a confirmation email containing a link to the webinar.
3. You will receive a reminder email during the week prior to the webinar.
4. Calculate your time zone by clicking here.
5. Make sure you have the latest version of Java installed on your computer. Check at www.java.com.
6. Click on the webinar link (found in confirmation and reminder emails) prior to the start of the webinar. Arrive early as the room size is limited to the first 1,000 arrivals that day.
7. Listen via headset (USB headsets work best), your computer speakers, or by phone.

We look forward to seeing you all there!

 "I wish everyone had to watch this seminar to be on social media!" is how Donna, one of our viewers today responded to Thomas MacEntee's webinar, Staying Safe with Social Media. I completely agree. Thomas covered topics such as:

• Is your birth date public?
• Ways you can stay safe
• Facebook, Google+, Pinterest, Namechk, and more
• Do you really know your friend's friends?
• What you should avoid online
• Should you click on the links in an email to accept a friend request?
• What about copyright?
• 10 rules for creating a hacker-resistant password
• And more

The Q/A session was just as good. After Thomas demonstrated his password-creation methods, one viewer wrote, "that's the best trick I've seen in a long time."

View the recording

If you could not make it to the live event or just want to watch it again, the 1 hour 30 minute recording of Staying Safe with Social Media is now available to view in our webinar archives. Visit www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/webinars.asp to watch. It is available for free until July 2, 2012.

Pre-order the webinar-on-CD

Own your own copy of Staying Safe with Social Media by purchasing the webinar-on-CD for just $9.95. It includes the 1 hour 30 minute recording of the class, the complete Q/A session, and 5 pages of handouts. Click here for more information or to purchase.

Browse all 11 of Thomas MacEntee's webinar CDs here.

Special discount coupon

The special discount coupon of safe that was announced during the webinar is valid for 10% off anything in our online store through Monday, June 25, 2012.

Register for our upcoming webinars (free)

• Digital Images for Genealogists and Technologists: scanning, digitizing, editing, and preserving your photos with Geoff Rasmussen. June 27.
• The Quest for your English Ancestors with Claire V. Brisson-Banks. July 11.
• Plan Your Way to Research Success with Marian Pierre-Louis, July 18.
• The Genealogy Cloud: Which Online Storage Program Is Right For You? with Thomas MacEntee, July 27.
• Neglected History by Megan Smolenyak, August 1.
• Wikis for Genealogists with Thomas MacEntee. August 8.
• The 5 C's for Success in Genealogy Today with Barbara Renick. August 22.
• Building a Family from Circumstantial Evidence, with Judy G. Russell, CG. August 29.
• Beyond the Arrival Date: Extracting More from Passenger Lists with Lisa Alzo. September 5.
• What is a 'Reasonably Exhaustive Search'? with Michael Hait. September 12.
• Getting Started with Heritage Collector Software with Kathleen Bitter
• Use Your Digital Camera to Copy Records with Mary Hill. September 19.
• Digital Research Guidance, Research Logs, and To Do Lists: FamilySearch, Research Wiki, and Legacy Family Tree with Geoff Rasmussen. September 26.
• Privacy and our Ancestors with Thomas MacEntee. October 3.
• Researching Your Irish Ancestors: Beyond the Basics with Judy Wight. October 10.
• Ten Brick Wall Tips for Intermediate Researchers with Marian Pierre-Louis, October 17.
• Your Civil War Ancestors: Beginning Your Research with Michael Hait. October 24.
• Breaking Down Your Irish Brick Wall with Judy Wight. October 31.
• Researching Your Canadian Ancestors - an Overview with Claire Brisson-Banks. November 7.
• Genealogy for Novices: Where Do We Begin with Linda Geiger. November 14.
• The Big 4 U.S. Record Sources with Mary Hill. November 28.

Click here to register.

See you online!

Surprise, Arizona, June 21, 2012 - Millennia Corporation, a leader in family history software and genealogy webinars, today announced that its software, Legacy Family Tree, is now available in the French language.

The software, used by beginners and professionals to record, plan, and share their family trees, is now the premier choice for French researchers. Legacy is also available in Afrikaans, Czech, Danish, German, Dutch, Norwegian, Swedish, and English languages.

"This is an exciting day for French genealogists," said Dave Berdan, president of Millennia Corporation. "We try to make family history easier for everyone, and using genealogy software in their native language is a big step in accomplishing our goal."

Key Features

• entire user interface and help system - all in French
• over 100 reports and charts - all in French
• creates web pages and To Do Lists
• same excellent features as the regular edition including over 100 reports, calendars, expert tips/advice, statistics, web site searches, and much more...

Price and Availability

Legacy Family Tree 7 is now available for US $29.95:

French - http://www.legacyfrancais.com/

Other languages

Legacy is also currently available in the following languages:

• Afrikaans
• Czech
• Dansk (Danish)
• Deutsch (German)
• English (Australia)
• English (Canada)
• English (United Kingdom)
• English (USA)
• Nederlands (Dutch)
• Norsk - Bokmål (Norwegian)
• Norsk - Nynorsk (Norwegian)
• Svenska (Swedish)

Translation is in progress for the following languages: Chinese, Eesti (Estonian), Español (Spanish), Italiano (Italian), Português (Brasil), Português (Portugal), and Suomi (Finnish).

More information about the translations is available at http://www.legacyfamilytree.com/InternationalLegacyVersions.asp

About Millennia Corporation
Founded in 1984, Millennia Corporation publishes the award-winning Legacy Family Tree genealogy software program and hosts weekly genealogy webinars with headquarters in Surprise, Arizona. More information can be found at www.LegacyFamilyTree.com.

More Completed State Indexes Now Searchable Online for the 1940 US Census

FamilySearch published new, free records online for Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Czech Republic, England, Georgia, Indonesia, Italy, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Scotland, Spain, Sweden, and the United States. The 1940 US Census Community Project continues to progress quickly. Online volunteers have now indexed 80 million names out of the historic 1940 census. Follow the progress online or search the 20 completed states at FamilySearch.org/1940census.  BillionGraves also contributed about a million indexed records. Search these diverse collections and 2.8 billion other records for free at FamilySearch.org.

Searchable historic records on FamilySearch.org are made available by thousands of online volunteers from around the world who transcribe (index) information from digital copies of handwritten records to make them easily searchable online. More online volunteers are needed (particularly those who can read foreign languages) to keep pace with the amount of digital images being published online at FamilySearch.org. Learn more about how to personally help provide free access to the world’s historic genealogical records online as a volunteer indexer at FamilySearch.org.

FamilySearch International is the largest genealogy organization in the world. FamilySearch is a nonprofit, volunteer-driven organization sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Millions of people use FamilySearch records, resources, and services to learn more about their family history. To help in this great pursuit, FamilySearch and its predecessors have been actively gathering, preserving, and sharing genealogical records worldwide for over 100 years. Patrons may access FamilySearch services and resources free online at FamilySearch.org or through over 4,600 family history centers in 132 countries, including the main Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Newspapers are packed with information celebrating the engagements, marriages and anniversaries. They also reported on the heartbreak of those marriages that ended in divorce. Learn what you can discover about your family in the recording of today's webinar by Tom Kemp. He also showed the new look of GenealogyBank.com and demonstrated its new searching abilities. Being able to search specifically for marriages, or engagement records, or divorce records is a great new search tool.

View the recording

If you could not make it to the live event or just want to watch it again, the 1 hour 30 minute recording of Marriages and Anniversaries: Mining Newspapers is now available to view in our webinar archives. Visit www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/webinars.asp to watch. It is available for free indefinitely.

GenealogyBank.com offer

GenealogyBank has offered our webinar viewers a limited-time special of 25% off the annual membership rate. The normal price is $69.95, the discount is $52.46. This is valid through Monday, June 25. Visit 

Special discount coupon

The special discount coupon of genbank that was announced during the webinar is valid for 10% off anything in our online store through Monday, June 25, 2012.

Register for our upcoming webinars (free)

• Staying Safe with Social Media with Thomas MacEntee, June 22.
• Digital Images for Genealogists and Technologists: scanning, digitizing, editing, and preserving your photos with Geoff Rasmussen. June 27.
• The Quest for your English Ancestors with Claire V. Brisson-Banks. July 11.
• Plan Your Way to Research Success with Marian Pierre-Louis, July 18.
• The Genealogy Cloud: Which Online Storage Program Is Right For You? with Thomas MacEntee, July 27.
• Neglected History by Megan Smolenyak, August 1.
• Wikis for Genealogists with Thomas MacEntee. August 8.
• The 5 C's for Success in Genealogy Today with Barbara Renick. August 22.
• Building a Family from Circumstantial Evidence, with Judy G. Russell, CG. August 29.
• Beyond the Arrival Date: Extracting More from Passenger Lists with Lisa Alzo. September 5.
• What is a 'Reasonably Exhaustive Search'? with Michael Hait. September 12.
• Getting Started with Heritage Collector Software with Kathleen Bitter
• Use Your Digital Camera to Copy Records with Mary Hill. September 19.
• Digital Research Guidance, Research Logs, and To Do Lists: FamilySearch, Research Wiki, and Legacy Family Tree with Geoff Rasmussen. September 26.
• Privacy and our Ancestors with Thomas MacEntee. October 3.
• Researching Your Irish Ancestors: Beyond the Basics with Judy Wight. October 10.
• Ten Brick Wall Tips for Intermediate Researchers with Marian Pierre-Louis, October 17.
• Your Civil War Ancestors: Beginning Your Research with Michael Hait. October 24.
• Breaking Down Your Irish Brick Wall with Judy Wight. October 31.
• Researching Your Canadian Ancestors - an Overview with Claire Brisson-Banks. November 7.
• Genealogy for Novices: Where Do We Begin with Linda Geiger. November 14.
• The Big 4 U.S. Record Sources with Mary Hill. November 28.

Click here to register.

See you online!

We've got a terrific lineup of webinar topics for you to conclude our June schedule. From your own computer you will learn from genealogy's experts about digitizing and editing your photos, staying safe with social media (Facebook, Google+), and finding marriages and anniversaries in newspapers. Best of all - every webinar is free to you.

Sign up for one or all of them today and we will remind you via email both one day and one hour before the live event. Because of the popularity of these topics, plan to arrive at least 20-30 minutes early. Remember, only the first 1,000 to join on the day of the live event will get in. Also, ensure that your Java is updated at www.Java.com as our webinars utilize this technology. Hope to see you online!

Marriages and Anniversaries: Mining newspapers for engagements, marriages, anniversaries, and divorce records by Tom Kemp. Newspapers are packed with information celebrating the engagements, marriages and anniversaries. They also reported on the heartbreak of those marriages that ended in divorce. Learn what you can discover about your family. Wednesday, June 20.

Click here to register.

Staying Safe with Social Media by Thomas MacEntee. Are you hesitant to use popular social media sites such as Facebook or Twitter or even Pinterest and share your genealogy research because of issues involving personal information and privacy? Learn how to safely navigate these sites and still get the most out of them! Special time - Friday, June 22.

Click here to register.

Digital Images for Genealogists and Technologists: scanning, digitizing, editing, and preserving your photos by Geoff Rasmussen. Learn how to correctly digitize your documents and photos, which resolution (dpi) to choose, which file types are the best (.jpg, .tif, etc.), and how to fix, repair, or enhance your digital image collections. Wednesday, June 27.

Click here to register.

By now you know that Legacy Family Tree gives you the ability to color-code your ancestors. See our webinar and article for the step-by-steps:

• FamilyRoots Organizer System webinar by Mary Hill
• Organizing Your Paper Files - Color-Coding

But it wasn't until my 'Legacy Tips & Tricks' class at last week's conference in California that I learned how much some of you wanted to customize these colors to match your own coloring system. After demonstrating how to pick your own colors, there was an audible gasp in the room. I was completely surprised. I had no idea until then that this was a feature that so many would appreciate. I decided then that I would write this article for you.

Once you have turned on the colors (Tools > Apply Ancestor Colors), you can change the colors by going to Options > Customize > View > Ancestor Color Coding. Here, click on the Change button.

Then, click on the Change Box Color buttons:

where you can choose from the basic colors or create your own.

Even though I don't use the color coding system to organize my paper files, I still use this feature. For example, when I'm browsing my pedigree, if the box colors are red, I immediately know that these ancestors are part of my mother's paternal line.

Happy color coding!

Ron Arons did a wonderful job of showing how he added the flesh to his ancestral genealogical bones in today's webinar, Putting Flesh on the Bones. His case study showed how persistence, intrigue, spreadsheets, and locating as many records as possible can really bring an ancestor to life. I loved his definition of genealogy: "extended psychotherapy" and his admission that he was "1/8 criminal." Whatever point you are at in your research, you will learn about real family history and thoroughly enjoy yourself! Well done Ron Arons.

View the recording

If you could not make it to the live event or just want to watch it again, the 1 hour 30 minute recording of Putting Flesh on the Bones is now available to view in our webinar archives. Visit www.LegacyFamilyTree.com/webinars.asp to watch. It is available for free until June 25, 2012.

Pre-order the webinar-on-CD

Own your own copy of Putting Flesh on the Bones by purchasing the webinar-on-CD for just $9.95. It includes the 1 hour 30 minute recording of the class, the complete Q/A session, and 1 page of handouts. Click here for more information or to purchase.

Special discount coupon

The special discount coupon of bones that was announced during the webinar is valid for 10% off anything in our online store through Monday, June 18, 2012.

RonArons.com

Be sure to visit Ron's website, www.RonArons.com, for his entire line of Black Sheep products, including his book, WANTED! U.S. Criminal Records: Sources and Research Methodology and his book, Jews of Sing Sing.

Register for our upcoming webinars (free)

• Marriages and Anniversaries. Mining newspapers for engagements, marriages, anniversaries, and divorce records with Tom Kemp, June 20.
• Staying Safe with Social Media with Thomas MacEntee, June 22.
• Digital Images for Genealogists and Technologists: scanning, digitizing, editing, and preserving your photos with Geoff Rasmussen. June 27.
• The Quest for your English Ancestors with Claire V. Brisson-Banks. July 11.
• Plan Your Way to Research Success with Marian Pierre-Louis, July 18.
• The Genealogy Cloud: Which Online Storage Program Is Right For You? with Thomas MacEntee, July 27.
• Neglected History by Megan Smolenyak, August 1.
• Wikis for Genealogists with Thomas MacEntee. August 8.
• The 5 C's for Success in Genealogy Today with Barbara Renick. August 22.
• Building a Family from Circumstantial Evidence, with Judy G. Russell, CG. August 29.
• Beyond the Arrival Date: Extracting More from Passenger Lists with Lisa Alzo. September 5.
• What is a 'Reasonably Exhaustive Search'? with Michael Hait. September 12.
• Getting Started with Heritage Collector Software with Kathleen Bitter
• Use Your Digital Camera to Copy Records with Mary Hill. September 19.
• Digital Research Guidance, Research Logs, and To Do Lists: FamilySearch, Research Wiki, and Legacy Family Tree with Geoff Rasmussen. September 26.
• Privacy and our Ancestors with Thomas MacEntee. October 3.
• Researching Your Irish Ancestors: Beyond the Basics with Judy Wight. October 10.
• Ten Brick Wall Tips for Intermediate Researchers with Marian Pierre-Louis, October 17.
• Your Civil War Ancestors: Beginning Your Research with Michael Hait. October 24.
• Breaking Down Your Irish Brick Wall with Judy Wight. October 31.
• Researching Your Canadian Ancestors - an Overview with Claire Brisson-Banks. November 7.
• Genealogy for Novices: Where Do We Begin with Linda Geiger. November 14.
• The Big 4 U.S. Record Sources with Mary Hill. November 28.

Click here to register.

See you online!