All 'conferenced' out

The Springfield Hilton prepares for the invasion

I'm writing this on a (very nice) train between Ottawa and Toronto, on a lovely sunny morning. I have been a bit of a blog-free zone lately, and it's nice to be back.

I was at the FGS conference in Springfield recently, where I gave three presentations, plus one at the pre-conference Librarians' Day. Then I was conveyed to Chicago, in chauffeur-driven splendour, courtesy of the magnificent Thomas McEntee. I managed to get myself sunburnt (ouch) when the weather was much hotter and sunnier than I'd been expecting. This is now fading and peeling, so I look a little less panda-like when I take off my sunglasses. Flaky and peeling isn't a great look, but it's better than red and glowing: for a while you could have used my nose to guide incoming aircraft.

After my R&R stop in Chicago, it was on to Ottawa for the BIFHSGO (British Isles Family History Society of Greater Ottawa) conference, held at Libraries and Archives Canada, where I gave another three presentations. Now I'm on my way to my final appearance, at the Toronto branch of the Ontario Genealogical Society tonight. I'm really looking forward to seeing Toronto again, after a gap of 25 years. Oddly enough, on my last visit I stayed in North York, where the society meets.

As if all this trains, planes and automobiles activity wasn't enough, I've also just finished co-writing a book, and the manuscript is finally with the publisher - for the last few weeks even my slacker conscience wouldn't let me write anything longer than a quick Facebook or Twitter post until it was all done, hence the lack of postings on the blog. As I said, it's nice to be back. I still have one conference to come, 'Celebrating the Census' day on 1 October,  part of the day job back at The National Archives.

I hope to write in more detail about the conferences, but for the moment I just want to say how much I enjoyed both the Springfield and Ottawa events. My US and Canadian hosts have been wonderful, and as always it was great to meet old friends, and make new ones. I'd like to thank the host societies for inviting to to speak, and the audiences for turning up to listen - and also for their many kind comments and positive feedback. In particular I'd like to thank David Rencher and my other friends at FamilySearch who arranged for me to use one of their projectors for my talks at Springfield, so I didn't have to bring one across the Atlantic with me, and then lug it around three other cities before going home. Guys, every time I get on or off a plane or a train I think of you with gratitude!

Celebrating the Census - 1 October at The National Archives, Kew

This is where the day job and the spare-time blogging become totally intertwined. Since this is Census year in the UK and a number of other countries, we thought that an event to mark the occasion would be in order. After all, here at The National Archives we hold not only the census returns for England and Wales but a lot of other related records. So we will be Celebrating the Census on 1 October 2011 at Kew.

As a Scot with Irish ancestry, I am pleased to say that we have speakers from Scotland and Ireland as well as from England. Ironically, two speakers on the English census are Scots, and the speaker from Scotland in English. How's that for integration. We will also hear from FamilySearch about census returns in other countries, and from the creators of two wonderful non-genealogical websites, HISTPOP and A Vision of Britain Through Time. Two of the sessions concentrate on the 1911 census; one on the mammoth task of preparing the original records for scanning, and another on the Suffragette boycott of that census. At the other end of the time-scale are the many early census-type listings held here and elsewhere, and if you want help with finding people in the online censuses, Ancestry, Findmypast and Genesreunited will be providing hands-on tutorial sessions.

The cost is £30 for the day, including lunch, tea and coffee, with an Early-bird discount if you book by 31 July. Follow the link above for more details, including the full programme and online booking form.

Countdown to Rootstech - it's this week!

All of a sudden, it's nearly here. Today is my last chance to tie up loose ends at work before disappearing for a week. I have a mental to-do list, so I think I have everything covered. Car parking, flights, hotel and conference registration are all booked, and I have plenty of clean clothes; not ironed, mind you, but they only get crumpled in the case, don't they?

I signed up for Rootstech as soon as registration opened, because I thought it looked quite interesting, and I was looking for an excuse to go back to Salt Lake City. I had no idea that it was going to be so BIG. There will be over 2000 people there, from all over the world. Some of the sessions will be broadcast live online, which is appropriate for an event that is looking at  potential uses of technology in genealogy.

For the first time the providers and designers of the services we will be faced with genealogists en masse. Just think of all that walking, talking feedback! And of course the genealogists will have an opportunity to find out about the services we use. And buy new toys (I have my eyes on the Flip-pal Scanner I have heard so much about).

Apart from the live sessions, you can follow the proceedings through the posts of the official bloggers (and quite a few unofficial ones, too). If you use Twitter. the hashtag is #Rootstech. See you there I hope, one way or another.

Rootstech - a week from now

I've got three work days and one day off to go before I leave for Rootstech. I'll be in Salt Lake city for a whole day before the conference, and two days after it, and my diary is filling up fast! 

I arrive in SLC very late on Tuesday night, and I seem to have promised to meet some fellow bloggers for breakfast on Wednesday. I have also agreed to give a couple of classes on British records for Library patrons while I am there, one of them on Wednesday afternoon. After more than 20 years of using LDS resources, free of charge, this is the very least I can do to give something back. The talks will also be recorded for the Research Courses section of FamilySearch. On Wednesday evening I will have dinner with friends, if I can stay awake that long.

Then there is Rootstech itself, Thursday to Saturday. My bloggers' breakfast will be good practice for the early starts that I have found are the norm at American conferences. There are so many sessions and demos I want to attend, and people I want to meet, I just hope I can fit them all in. I have signed up for luncheon talks on all three days, so I can learn while I eat. The evenings are catered for too, with Thursday night at the nearby Planetarium, sponsored by Brightsolid, and Late Night at the Library on Friday, starting with a showing of that night's episode of 'Who do you think you are?', this time courtesy of Ancestry. On Saturday night, Dick Eastman is hosting one of his legendary post-conference dinners, and I have managed to get a ticket this time! 

Sunday will be a well-earned day of rest, and it may involve brunch at the Grand America - not cheap, but worth splurging out of if you are in SLC. No need for any more food for the rest of the day, either. Monday brings another talk and recording in the Library, and, I hope, time to get some research done there. I think I shall sleep very well on the long, long flight home the next day.