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Archiver > STATE-COORD > 2008-03 > 1204814415


From: Janice Brown <>
Subject: Re: [STATE-COORD] Comments on banner
Date: Thu, 6 Mar 2008 09:40:15 -0500 (EST)


Tina,

I believe that you and the Advisory Board have been doing your absolute best to come to an agreement with The Generations Network/Rootsweb (TGN/RW). I commend you and the board members for your work on behalf of the Project.

There is no easy answer to the hosting issue, unless of course someone wants to step forward and be a Sugar Daddy or Sugar Momma. That person could donate a large sum of money to fund web space and list-serv space for this year and at least 10 years into the future. And then once that is done, they can figure out who is going to coordinate the logistics of setting up various web sites and mailing lists, and dealing with sub-accounts, passwords, and the technical side of administration? Let's be realistic. That is not going to happen.

As a state coordinator, it is my experience that it is much easier to "transition" a web site that is maintained on Rootsweb, than one found on a private server, when a coordinator leaves or is released. The sites located on Rootsweb (simply because of their location) also receive much more and faster "exposure" from the various external search engines, and from Rootsweb's own promotion pages. A new web site on a non-Rootsweb server may take from several months to a year to be adequately indexed by the major search engines, depending on the methods used to promote it by the coordinator.

Some folks can continue to complain about the past, and how you "donated" money to keep Rootsweb alive. The reality is that it was never a non-profit. It was owned by some well-meaning folks who ran it for a while, then sold it. Since none of us have seen that bill of sale, we'll never know what the exact promises or agreements were made, if any, about USGenWeb's role at Rootsweb. If it was simply an agreement to continue to host USGenWeb free of charge, then then that agreement is still valid.

As far as the new banner goes... I agree its a bit of a pain. I would prefer the banner be at the bottom rather than the top. However HOW MANY of our current project and county sites hosted on Rootsweb have a graphic stating that they are hosted by Rootsweb? --not all you can be sure, and yet that is the agreement when you sign up for free hosting space on Rootsweb. In my mind TGN/Rootsweb is just automatically claiming what their "free web site" users promise to do, but sometimes don't.

I will agree that TGN/RW benefits from OUR presence from a marketing perspective. However, WE also benefit from THEIR presence. Ancestry.com is considered a major player in the genealogical research field, and they HOST us (note the banners do not say they OWN us). And so we benefit from our connection through increased credibility. Do any members of the USGenWeb project truly believe that someone can simply visit our web sites, and will have all the answers they need to complete their family tree? We know better. I am not saying Ancestry.com/Genealogy.com/Rootsweb is the entire answer either--but they are offering more resources each day. As someone who is the librarian for a historical society, visiting a TGN site is often ONE of the early steps I recommend for a new researcher, in addition to visiting our library of course!

So far from my own county coordinators, the only complaint I've heard about Rootsweb free sites, is that they no longer permit advertising, other than from within its own family (TGN/RW/Ancestry.com/Genealogy.com). Previous to this, although their main pages remain free of such advertising (per bylaws), there was nothing preventing a coordinator from posting advertising on internal pages. In order to keep those non-TGN ads, some coordinators moved to non-RW servers. The state web site and my own NJGenWeb Project web sites contain no advertising as all, so it is not an issue, and they will, for now, remain on Rootsweb.

As far as the future. I agree with those who suggest that we should keep a close eye on TGN/RW. I was one of the people affected by Ancestry's Internet Biographical Collection aka search engine, when they snagged one of my NON-USGenWeb sites. I emailed their attorney, and received an email apology for their action. Then of course the "collection" was yanked. Despite that unpleasant event, I continue to give TGN/RW the benefit of the doubt that they have learned a lesson, and will be very careful about copyright issues in the future.

All of this IMHO.

All written with great respect for those with whom I disagree, and who disagree with me.

Janice Brown
SC, NJGenWeb

-----Original Message-----
>From: "Tina S. Vickery" <>
>Sent: Mar 5, 2008 7:59 PM
>To:
>Subject: Re: [STATE-COORD] Comments on banner
>
>Margie,
>
>The Board has struggled for many months with how to deal
>with this. A mainstay of the USGenWeb Project is that
>State/County and Special Project sites may be hosted on a
>server on one's choice. The USGenWeb Project is very
>unique in that the majority of our sites are hosted on
>Rootsweb.
>
>If I may give *my* opinion, these banners are no different
>than banners Geocities, Tripod, AOL or other hosting
>servers offer up, <sigh>, but a fact. The fact that
>TGN/RW has worked with us to provide a custom USGenWeb
>Project banner is testament to our long and established
>relationship. The Board and I have, and are continuing to
>explore options for the National Pages, but I must
>reiterate a mainstay of the USGenWeb Project is that
>State/County and Special Project sites may be hosted on a
>server on one's choice.
>
>Tina
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "ltlsis2" <>
>To: <>
>Sent: Wednesday, March 05, 2008 7:30 PM
>Subject: Re: [STATE-COORD] Comments on banner
>
>

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