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Genealogy Gift Ideas: Create Video Magic
Get ready to create some video magic this year!
I’ll bet you know a few folks on your gift-giving lists who would love nothing better than a truly geeky gift. If you didn’t see just the right item for them in yesterday’s post on iPads, tablets and accessory gifts, check out this one:
Camtasia software. I use this software constantly, and it’s a special favorite for screen-capturing my Google Earth Family History Tours. It’s great for anyone who is serious about putting together good-quality videos for family history or any other purpose. The product buy medication online singapore description says it all: “Camtasia empowers you to make amazing videos—even if you’ve never made one before. Record a video of your screen or bring in your own video footage. Then, use Camtasia’s drag-and-drop editor to easily create remarkable videos you can share with anyone. Keep your audience engaged by adding eye-catching animations, music, and captions in record time. With Camtasia, you’ll be able to produce stunning videos without being a professional video editor.” Click here to get Camtasia Studio 9.
Personally, I would get Camtasia and the AWESOME Snagit bundled: Camtasia Studio 9/Snagit Bundle
A New Place to Look for Your Immigrant Ancestor’s Passenger List
By S.MacMillen (Own work) [CC0], via Wikimedia Commons.
The time period covered by these indexes includes an enormous wave of immigrants, mostly from southern and Eastern Europe. Italians, Portuguese, Russians (including Jews), Poles, Slavs and more entered the U.S. by the millions. Record content varies, but may include ports of departure and entry, age, birthplace, gender, marital status, occupation, citizenship or last country of resident, contact information for loved ones in the Old World or in the U.S., intended destination, and even a physical description. Images of the actual record can be viewed.
Also new at FamilySearch are nearly 1.5 million indexed records from the Mexico, Distrito Federal, Civil Registration, 1832-2005, collection and over half a million indexed records from the Hungary Catholic Church Records, 1636-1895, collection. See the table below for the full list of updates. Search these diverse collections and more than 3.5 billion other records for free at FamilySearch.org.
|
Collection |
Indexed Records |
Digital Images |
Comments |
| England, Lancashire, Cheshire, Yorkshire, Parish Registers, 1603-1910 | 35,896 | 0 | Added indexed records to an existing collection. |
| Germany, Prussia, Brandenburg, Eberswalde, City Directories, 1890-1919 | 0 | 2,836 | New browsable image collection. |
| Hungary Catholic Church Records, 1636-1895 | 572,243 | 0 | Added indexed records to an existing collection. |
| Mexico, Distrito Federal, Civil Registration, 1832-2005 | 1,452,770 | 0 | Added indexed records to an existing collection. |
| Netherlands, Limburg Province, Church Records, 1542-1910 | 0 | 131,396 | New browsable image collection. |
| Russia, Samara Church Books, 1869-1917 | 88,149 | 0 | Added indexed records to an existing collection. |
| Ukraine, Kyiv Orthodox Consistory Church Book Duplicates, 1840-1845 | 129,110 | 0 | Added indexed records to an existing collection. |
| U.S., Florida, Marriages, 1830-1993 | 1,012,025 | 720,622 | Added indexed records and images to an existing collection. |
| U.S., Iowa, State Census, 1905 | 1,445,414 | 0 | New indexed record collection. |
| U.S., Massachusetts, Boston Passenger Lists, 1891-1943 | 2,829,077 | 0 | Added indexed records to an existing collection. |
| U.S., Massachusetts, State Vital Records, 1841-1920 | 755,766 | 0 | Added indexed records to an existing collection. |
| U.S., Pennsylvania, Philadelphia Passenger Lists, 1883-1945 | 874,690 | 0 | Added indexed records to an existing collection. |
Genealogy Gift Ideas: Family History On-the-Go
These days, genealogists can take all their research “to-go” on their iPad or tablet. Here are some of my favorite genealogy gift ideas that harness the power of portable computing and a Black Friday / Cyber Monday Special you won’t want to miss!
If you aren’t already using an iPad or tablet for genealogy, consider what it can do for you:
- keep your family tree and all your sources at your fingertips with tools like the Ancestry and RootsMagic apps;
- all kinds of imaging: document and photo scanning, microfilm imaging (right from the reader!) and a built-in regular and video camera for shots of relatives, tombstones, family artifacts and heritage sites;
- share cool finds on the spot–when great-grandpa comes up in conversation you can pull up his picture on the gorgeous tablet display;
- collaborate with other researchers with great free tools like online file sharing services such as Dropbox.com, and free video calls with Skype; etc.
- keep track of travel details, to-do lists and other needs (genealogy or not!) and MORE.
Now here are my gift picks, starting with the obvious: the iPad itself. To shop these items, please click on the links below so your purchases will help support the Genealogy Gems podcast. Thank you!
iPad 4 (with retina display, MD510LL/A, 16GB with Wifi, black). 5 MP forward- and rear-facing camera, a just-right-sized screen with gorgeous resolution, an HD video camera, plenty of storage for a portable device (with cloud storage, too, of course) and more. All this weighs in at less than 1.5 pounds, so it tucks easily in your messenger bag, backpack, purse, briefcase or even your laptop case. Click to get:Apple iPad with Retina Display MD510LL/A (16GB, Wi-Fi,) 
The speaker on the iPad is fairly small and sometimes you just need to pump up the volume. Here’s the perfect, simple solution:
SoundBender 2.0 Easy-Fit Magnetic Sound Enhancer (for iPad 2, 3 and 4). This wireless sound amplifier is really cool and works great! I originally saw it on the TV show Shark Tank and bought one immediately. It magnetically secures to the side of your iPad and bends sound toward you for your music, videos, games, Facetime and of course your Genealogy Gems podcast episodes! Click to get: SoundBender 2.0 Easy-Fit Magnetic Sound Enhancer for iPad 2 & iPad 3 & iPad 4
iPad Car Headrest/Mount/Holder (for iPad 1, 2, 3 and 4). My Grandsons LOVE this! Extra-long cable included. Turns your iPad into a backseat entertainment system. Perfect for watching movies, looking at pictures, playing games and more. Makes it more fun for non-researchers (adults and children!) to be along for the ride on those genealogy road trips and solves the problem of “who gets to play with the iPad.” Straps onto the headrest of the seat in front; extra-long cable extends 6.5 feet. Doesn’t require tools. Click to get: Ipad Car Headrest Mount Holder for Apple Ipads 1-4 Including Extra Long Cable
iPad Dashboard Car Mount. Use the vacuum base to safely secure your tablet onto the windshield. No messy adhesives! Makes it easier to consult online maps, recipes, weather apps and of course all those genealogy apps when you need to be hands-free. Use it to listen to the Genealogy Gems podcast while you work out, clean, sort files, cook and more! (Just don’t watch it while you’re driving!) Rotatable stand moves 180-degrees for comfortable positioning, Rotating ball joint ensures a perfectly angled display Click to get: SQdeal Universal Dashboard Car Mount Holder Cradle For Apple iPads 1 – 4 /iPad Mini
Learn how to get the most out of your iPad with my book, Turn Your iPad into a Genealogy Powerhouse. Learn how to think like an iPad/tablet user (it’s different than desktop computing). Discover everyday apps to help you with household, travel, business and other tasks. And of course, learn the myriad of ways you can harness the power of mobile computing for your genealogy. (Like all those ways mentioned above – imaging and document scanning and MORE.)
Between Black Friday (11/29/2013) and Cyber Monday (12/2/2013), you can purchase this book along with ALL my other books in special 40% 0ff bundles:
$29.95 for the e-book bundle
$49.95 for the print bundle
