google-site-verification: google65e716d80989ba07.html RootsTech: Live-Streaming Schedule | The Armchair Genealogist

RootsTech: Live-Streaming Schedule


RootsTech has announced the live-streaming schedule for this year's conference. I attended the live streaming last year and I encourage you to attend from the comfort of your armchair. This is a fantastic online learning opportunity for genealogists of all levels of experience. You will not be disappointed. 

The live-streaming will cover all lectures taking place in Room 155. Keep in mind that the times of these lectures are Mountain Standard Time, be sure to convert to your timezone.Use this link. Time Zone Converter

Thursday Feb 2 

8:30 - 10 am
Inventing the Future, as a Community (Keynote)
by Jay Verkler

11:00 am - 12:00 pm
Do I Trust the Cloud?
by D. Joshua Taylor
Description: With iCloud, Dropbox, and other cloud computing services taking center stage in data storage, genealogists are asking, “Do I trust the cloud?” Discover the basics concepts of cloud computing and how they relate to storing your genealogical data. In addition, relevant case studies will provide you with the resources needed to make a decision on whether or not cloud storage is for you.
(Rated for Intermediate Users)


1:45 - 2:45 pm
Effective Database Search Tactics by Kory Meyerink
Description: Online genealogy research requires effective searching of databases. With billions of names in thousands of databases, it’s easy to get lost. This dual focus presentation helps researchers search more effectively while also encouraging developers to incorporate more advanced search techniques, such as truncation, keyword, fielded data, proximity, phrase, and wild word searching.
(Rated for Intermediate Users)


3:00 - 4:00 pm
Twitter – It’s Not Just “What I Had For Breakfast” Anymore
 by Thomas MacEntee
Description: Twitter. You’ve heard about it on the news and read about it in magazines and newspapers. You’ve seen televisions shows display their “tweets” especially for celebrities like Oprah and others. You wonder what all the fuss is about, why so many people are talking about it, and if you really should be interested in what someone else is doing. And more importantly, you wonder if you are missing out on something which could be useful as a genealogy research tool. Social media applications such as Twitter allow you to build a group of subscribers or “followers” who can follow your conversations or broadcasts of information and respond automatically or pass the information along to their own followers. Sort of like the child’s game of Operator – but one that actually works!
(Rated for Intermediate Users)

Friday Feb 3

8:30 - 9:30 am
Exabyte Social Clouds and other Monstrosities (Keynote)
by Josh Coates
Description: Josh presents and discusses the origins, implications and possible eventualities of key technologies that are shaping our technological infrastructure.

9:45 - 10:45 am
Publish Your Genealogy Online
by Laura Prescott
Description: This lecture will discuss the fundamentals of publishing family data to a website, whether it is done through a big-name genealogy site, or by using genealogy software and a personal domain. We will explore options for appearance, access, costs, and privacy issues. Even without a computer-based genealogy program, there are some reasonable alternatives for placing a genealogy online. Whether you use a PC or a Mac, or even a public computer at your local library, you have choices for software, online access, and the final presentation. We’ll also review additional important considerations like degree of interaction, multimedia, and sources. Although the process may seem intimidating, after we work through each of the steps and explore the various options, the adventure into publishing an online genealogy will enter the realm of possibilities.
(Rated for Intermediate Users)


11:00 am - 12:00 pm
Optimizing Your Site for Search Engines
 by Robert Gardner
Description: With the explosion of genealogical information available on the World Wide Web, it is becoming more and more important to make that information available and prominent on Internet search engines, such as Google, Bing, and Yahoo. This session is targeted at site owners and software engineers. It will discuss standards and techniques for making the information on your site easy for search engines to crawl, index, and rank. Topics will include optimal page layout, sitemaps, and a proposal for a new genealogy-specific microdata standard that will allow search engines and other internet tools to make the most of your genealogy content.
(Rated for Developers)


1:45 - 2:45 pm
Genealogists “Go Mobile”
by Sandra Crowley
Description: Instead of a backpack that contains a laptop, camera, portable scanner, flash drives with our files, and maybe even printed copies of our research, we now have SmartPhones, electronic tablets and other devices. The world of genealogy and technology is rapidly changing, and we want to know how to use the future to find our past. Our family tree is truly in our pocket – in a form that we can access, update, print and share. This session will take a look at the latest trends in hardware, software and cloud storage and examine what the future might look like.
(Rated for Intermediate Users)

3:00 - 4:00 pm
Google's Toolbar and Genealogy
by David Barney
Description: The web is a vast resource for finding genealogical data, but the problem has always been filtering through all the irrelevant content to find just what you are looking for. Google’s mission is to make the world information (and that includes genealogical data) universally accessible and useful. Learn about Google’s recent efforts to organize genealogical data and make it easier to find the specific information you are looking for.
(Rated for Intermediate Users)
Saturday Feb 4

8:30 - 9:30 am
Making the most of technology to further the family history industry (Keynote)
 by Tim Sullivan
Description: From the arduous task of scrolling through microfiche, to bringing family history research online, to taking your family tree with you on the go, Ancestry.com is leading the technology landscape for family history. With technology available to surface the 7 billion records and 29 million family trees on the site, Ancestry.com has the sophisticated engineering and systems in place to take on the challenges of the fast growing family history industry, while also creating an avenue for users to weave search results into an edifying and meaningful family history story. Get the inside details of the technology behind Ancestry.com from some of their top technology leaders in this don’t-want-to-miss panel discussion.

9:45 - 10:45 am
Genealogy Podcasts and Blogs 101
by Lisa Louise Cooke
Description: Genealogy podcasts and blogs are the perfect way to pursue your family history no matter where you are. They are packed full of genealogy news, tips, entertainment and interviews with the experts. In this session Lisa Louise Cooke, host of the Genealogy Gems Podcast and author of the Genealogy Gems News Blog, will teach you how to locate them, subscribe to them for free, and the variety of listening methods. You will be up and running in one session!
(Rated for Beginners Users)

11:00 am - 12:00 pm
Future of FamilySearch Family Tree
by Ron Tanner
Description: Discuss how FamilySearch has changed recently and the new features that are being planned for new.familysearch.org including new concepts to allow people to change data.
(Rated for Beginner Users)

1:45 - 2:45 pm
Privacy in a Collaborative Environment by Noah Tutak
Description: When we work together on genealogy, we’re no longer are constrained to “My tree” or “Your tree." Suddenly, we’re all working on “Our tree.” In this presentation, Noah Tutak, CEO of Geni.com, will explain how to properly handle private and public data in a collaborative genealogical environment.
(Rated for Beginner Users)