Spending your money on Family research - where are those bargains?

[Paul E]

Hi newbie

Sharren's right, but someone else has pointed out that they may not accept the card if you already have a subsctiption.  Still, I suppose I could always join under the name of Kezia Mason!

The news re 1851 and 1841 was, I think  in the July issue of Your Family Tree (ie the one that came out in June!) or the one before that.

cheers

Paul

[gazza]

Is there a technical reason why 1837online credits expire or is it purely greed on their part?
If the latter, may I suggest a petition may be started here to send to them to get them to change their annoying policy. I'm sure they would take note with 16000 forum members/potential/existing customers watching.

[Arranroots]

I don't know about 1837, but I am inclined to think money-making.

I had a v annoying experience recently with Ancestry.

They offered an upgrade to Family Tree Maker in a Windows XP magazine free disk.  I liked the look of it and so upgraded - $29.  Ouch, but I gritted my teeth.

Imagine my horror when the next screen displayed after my credit card had been accepted was their "shop", advertising Family Tree Maker upgrades at $19!!!

I immediately sent off an e-mail protesting, but have not even had the courtesy of a reply!

Caveat Emptor as JAP would say.

Arranroots 

[suttontrust]

The practice of time-limiting one's purchase of units is pure greed.  The 1901 census was the worst example.  Pay £5, spend half of it and watch them gulp down the rest because you can't use it up there and then.  They've now extended the time limit to a week - wonderful.  I don't know of a pay site that doesn't do it.

[kerryb]

Hi everyone

I have had a couple of problems with Ancestry in the past but basically I think they are worth the money, one of things I have found which is good, to my cost, is that they appear to be only site that adds age to death cert details.  (When they actually have the details of the death that is)

I have found deaths registered on 1837online for instance and ordered the certs and found to my annoyance when I was looking for a 82 year old the cert was for a 3 year old.  If it had been on Ancestry I would have known this straight away. 

If only Ancestry could get all deaths on!!!!!!

Kerryb

[Keith Sherwood]

I've been a member of the Society of Genealogists for a couple of years now.  When I went down to London quite frequently I considered it good value, as there is a great deal to look at in their Charterhouse Buildings site; however, my visits are quite rare these days.  I pay just under £50 a year, and this also entitles you to a certain number of credits each quarter on their British Origins website.
But even on here these credits get gobbled up in 72 hours if you haven't used them all - I hadn't paid enough attention recently, and came back after a pause to discover that I'd missed the deadline by less than an hour...
Keith

[ladybird]

I thought I'd like to add a bit of a positive note re Random acts of Genealogical Kindness.
I have no end of kindness from 2 people in particular, one in Scotland and one in America, who snail mailed me free of charge a heap of photocopies and info on my rellies. I was quite prepared to pay for these as postage alone to NZ is not cheap. but that was not necessary and I can't thank them enough for their help.
Having said that, a Canadian contact just sent me a list of websites that "may be able to help" they didn't, I'd already checked them.

So I guess like a lot of sites it's the luck of the draw with researchers.

I have also just used Genfindit for an Irish birth...wonderful..at last a chip out of the wall and only had to wait a week.  Having been "done" before now by a so-called Irish researcher ripping me off for over £100 with a list of places "I could try" I was a bit wary, but in the end the $60A was well spent I think and I will use them again.

Just a few thoughts to add to the brew,
Sylvia in new Zealand

[Boongie Pam]

I've already 'fessed up, on another thread, the thousands I'd spent    

And read this thread with interest.

To me, there are 2 ways at looking at a bargain.

Time and Money.  And it's a seesaw.

In the past people would spend many many hours at their local LDS or library or travelling to a Record Office.

The current boom in family history is a self feeding monster, and profits are made.  On both sides.

The more records become "convenient" the less time intensive it is.  So we convert time cost into financial cost.

I would say that no complaint can be made as the true cost of this information has not really changed.  Though, for those living distant to the source of the records it has become cheaper.

It has never been free in the true sense of the word.

As for bargains my top one is a day trip to Carlisle Records Office.  

~ £30 petrol
~ £ 5 photocopying

(free parking no entry fee - no lunch too exciting)

Got 5 wills copied, plus more noted.
>>  All BMD records held by Wigton Parish church on film.
>>  Quarter Sessions to see my oldies rioting
>>  All census records (many indexed to aid a wider collection of poss. rellies)
>>  Newspapers for obits etc

Generally a fabulous haul and a real sense of detective work and joy at discovery.  Exciting to touch paper for a change.  

I also think the GROScotland is also a bargain.  £17.50 for all the BMD (to present day) inquests through the RCE (records of corrected entries), 1871 to 1901 census all indexed and on line.  My first trip added +250 names to my tree... IN ONE VISIT!!!

Both these examples are the balance between time and money.  Scotlandspeople is more expensive but add on travel costs to Edinburgh then it doesn't look so bad.

And I have a small correction to make - sorry Irene  

So therefore my other gripe is UK Death Certificates!!  Hardly worth the money are they?
Irene

You mean English and Welsh - not UK.  

In Scotland you get all parents named with deceased (or not) and occupation - providing the informant knew any of this.  You also get the informant's relationship.  

So Scottish certs can actually be a mini family tree in themselves, on one I had 7 family members named;  Deceased, his 3 wives, his father, mother and informant his married daughter.  So with the census I got his daughter's new family. Cost?  £1.20

I've said it before and I'll say it again.  You should all pray for Scottish rellies if you want a quick family tree!  Well as far as 1855!

Bye for the noo,
Pam
 

[suttontrust]

I completely take all the points about paying for convenience, and how much it would have cost pre-internet, if indeed records were accessible at all.  I don't even mind too much when somebody seeks to make a profit out of providing access to records.  What I object to is the farming out of records like BMD and census to the highest bidder, which then seeks to maximise its profit by ripping off the customer.  Take 1837online.  Instead of transcribing records into a database it just scanned the images and indexed them (badly).  Leicester University have done the same with directories (admittedly on a smaller scale) and have managed to produce a system where you can actually search the images - for free.  I can only hope that plans to put the 1911 census online will learn the lessons of this.