Something new has been added that can work out GREAT or NOT SO GOOD, depending on how seriously you take this challenge. It is a new tool that allows you to write directly into the web site for others to see your best or worst as the case may be.
Searchers wishing to find surnames can still find them using the search engine on the INDEX, QUERY and the SURNAME PAGE.
Your contributions may not show up in the site search engine but will show up using the Message Board search engine. You will find one on each board.
From: RootsWeb Review, 24 July 2002
ftp://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/review/20020724.txt 1d.
MESSAGE BOARD QUERIES
Posting queries on a RootsWeb/Ancestry Message Boards is an excellent way to find others who are researching the same or connecting families, and who may have information you seek. Today's online researchers are busy people, so make sure that your messages are easy to locate and understood. To accomplish this make proper use of the SUBJECT line, SURNAME box, and CLASSIFICATION menu when you post.
SUBJECT LINE: Make the subject complete, concise, and specific in describing the content of your message. Do not use vague subjects such as "genealogy," "searching," or "looking for grandfather." It is assumed that anyone posting or reading these Message Boards is searching for genealogy-related information.
Put yourself in the place of someone scanning through hundreds of posts on the Message Boards. Does your SUBJECT LINE identify the content of your query? "Seek parents of John Kelly, born 1842, Clay County, Kentucky" is good. A SUBJECT LINE can contain up to 53 characters, including spaces. If you are posting information (data as opposed to a query), make the SUBJECT LINE: "Will of James Smith probated 1873, Bell County, Texas" or "Obituary of Mary (Curran) Murphy, died May 1901, Dublin, Ireland." Women's maiden names are commonly put in parentheses to so identify them. Remember Message Boards are read and used by researchers around the world, so identify your ancestors and data, watch those abbreviations, and don't assume everyone knows where or what SF, CA is. Let there be no doubt, spell it out.
SURNAME BOX ENTRIES: Enter only the surnames that you have included in the message you have posted in this box. Do NOT include a bunch of surnames just because you are researching them. List surnames one at a time and separate them with a comma. Example: Smith, Cousins, James, Kohlhammer, Van Allen, de la Croix, Wood, Woods. Whether you list the names in upper, lower, or mixed case is not important. Surnames that have common spelling variants such as Wood and Woods should be listed separately and NOT as: Wood(s) or Wood/Woods. The search engine will not pick them up correctly if they are shown in the latter two styles.
The purpose of the SURNAME BOX entries is to enable Message Board searchers to use the ADVANCED SEARCH option and search ONLY on the names you have listed in the box indicating that they are surnames. It eliminates from searches words appearing elsewhere in a post (but not listed in the SURNAME BOX) such as the poster's name (Sally Smith may have posted numerous messages on the board and signed them with her full name in the message body), a common word (such as Cousins above), or given name (such as James above).
Do not enter anything other than surnames in the SURNAME BOX. Do not enter any given (first) names or locations, and do not use descriptive words such as "and," "many more," "Jr.," or "etc." Avoid all punctuation (except for commas, which are used to form the separation between each surname entry) unless it is a part of a surname.
CLASSIFICATION: The purpose of proper classification of messages is to enable Message Board users to view and/or search messages by data type. If you are posting a query or replying to a query, use the default classification of QUERY from the drop-down menu. If you are posting actual data, select the type that most closely matches the type of information you are posting: BIBLE, CEMETERY, WILL, DEED, PENSION, MARRIAGE, BIOGRAPHY, etc. (These are all listed under MESSAGE TYPE).
If you post a question about a document, such as a deed or a marriage record, or if you request a lookup, it is classified as a QUERY -- not as a DEED, MARRIAGE, or LOOKUP. Only transcribed data are classified as one of the data types.
To learn more about Message Boards, see also: "Message Board Solutions," (RootsWeb Review 5:29, 17 July 2002) "Meandering Through the Message Boards" (RWR 5:28, 10 July 2002); "Discovering Display Options on the Message Boards" (RWR 5:27, 3 July 2002); "Getting the Most Out of Message Boards" (RWR 5:26, 26 June 2002); and "Message Board Attach- ments" (RWR 5:23, 5 June 2002); and "Message Board Icons" (RWR 5:22, 29 May 2002) -- all issues of RWR are searchable and downloadable here: http://e-zine.rootsweb.com/
Comments like.............
"for everyone of the surname SHELMADINE"
doesn't usually generate any serious response.
Capitalize SURNAMES ONLY, not first names, e.g. Abraham LINCOLN.
OK, Now go ahead and do it.
MOMACON MESSAGEBOARD |
Send comments or suggestions to:
Ernie Miles