Monday, January 30, 2012

Geneabloggers - Motivation Monday - Starting Over

This is an ongoing series created by Dionne Kurti at Finding Josephine.

I'm glad I saw this blogging prompt! I know it has probably been available for a while, but I really needed it today. I was pretty good through December but just can't seem to get back to it. I guess it's true that the longer you don't post, the harder it is to begin again. I definitely need to set some goals to stay motivated.

In the future I hope to spend 2 days a month scanning and continue working my way through the alphabet with my family files. Of course, in April, it will be time for the 1940 census. I will work on indexing that so it is available as soon as possible.

In May, my daughter and will fly to Norway for a cruise to England, Ireland, Scotland, and France. With the exception of France, all of the countries are part of her heritage. We also will spend some extra time in Norway where my grandfather was born. I am currently trying to arrange meetings with descendants of his brother and half-brother still living in Norway.

I will be checking in to Motivation Monday from time to time to stay motivated. Thanks Dionne!

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Treasure Chest Thursday - Treasure in the Mail Box

Mom wasn't a diary or journal person. With 9 kids to manage and a large house to keep there just wasn't time. Just before Christmas I received a treasure in the mail! My sister mailed me a copy of a desk diary my mother kept for part of 1974. I didn't even know this existed.

Mom died in 1977, and was already diagnosed with cancer. She had moved to Florida for her health and to be closer to her sister and brother. The diary reflects her financial concerns as she notes a proposed budget and writes of her concern about jobs as a substitute teacher. Although her strength was failing, Mom maintained her volunteer activities at both her church and hospital.

I'm older now than Mom was in 1974 and I still have a lot to learn from her!

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Tech Tuesday - N(ook) 2 A(ndroid) Revisited

Last November, I wrote about converting my Nook Color to a tablet computer. I also commented that Barnes and Noble had made changes to their product line and was currently selling the Nook Color for $200.00 and had introduced a Nook Tablet which was selling for $250.00. The fact that I had paid $250.00 for my Nook Color and an additional $50.00 for the card to convert it to a tablet was initially disappointing, so I decided to see if I had jumped the gun and could have saved myself some cash by waiting.

I went to my local Barnes and Noble and spoke with one of the Nook sales reps. The Nook tablet is tied to the Nook market which has significantly fewer apps available than the android market. There are several genealogy apps available for the android while I have seen none available for the nook so far. There is also the question of cost. Barnes and Noble charges for many of the apps that are free in the android market.

In summary, I am very happy with my Nook/android tablet. The battery seems to last longer than my laptop's and I can take my genealogy files with me anywhere. I am very happy with the apps available and can even get dropbox. A computer that is between a laptop and a smart phone in size is just right for me!