Although there would be little online research without the web browser, few people appreciate its importance. Not only does the right browser improve your online experience, some can be customized to provide awesome support tools. When combined with a search engine it becomes a very useful tool in your research toolbox.
Like automobiles, all browsers have the same basic features. And, like automobiles, it’s the details that make it the right browser for you. Each browser has a number of useful tools, but some of these tools, while helping you find information on your ancestors, are also collecting information about you which is then sold to others or used to bombard you with advertising.
Fortunately, there is one browser service that puts protecting your privacy first. That browser is Mozilla’s Firefox. Combine it with the DuckDuckGo search engine and you can chase your ancestors without worrying that someone is watching every move you make online. Mozilla.org is “the technology company that puts people before product”. Their Firefox Desktop Browser is free and available for Windows, MacOS and Linux computers. They also have the free Firefox Mobile Browser app for both Android and iOS devices. If you use both the desktop and mobile browsers, you can create a Firefox account and your browsers will automatically keep your favorite bookmarks, saved passwords and browsing history synched between your desktop and mobile versions of Firefox.
Mozilla is working on a number of web products that can also help your research efforts. Learn more at Mozilla.org.
The Digital Public Library of America (DPLA), The New York Public Library (NYPL), and LYRASIS are pleased to announce a new collaboration to help provide all public libraries with a free, open, library-controlled platform for managing their ebook and audiobook services.
Through this newly-established collaboration, DPLA, NYPL, and LYRASIS will each offer core services and tools that, in combination, will provide public libraries across the United States with a full-service pathway to acquire and deliver ebooks and audiobooks through a library-controlled marketplace and platform.
Want to learn more? Check out the announcement at the DPLA website.
This spring’s floods and tornados have destroyed many homes. It won’t be long before hurricane season is upon us. Now is the time to review your disaster plan and make sure your research won’t be lost should a storm comes our way. Need help? Review last year’s post on disaster prep at https://sagssupport.org/2018/04/30/research-notes-2018-4-30/.
October is Family History Month and the St. Augustine Genealogical Society’s Family History Faire. It’s not too early to start thinking about creative ways to share the stories of your ancestors. Looking for ideas? Check out the Storytellers Studio blog for ideas and resources.
Final Note
Each new post published at SAGS Support is automatically emailed to member subscribers and/or delivered to their newsreader. Research Notes is published every Monday morning and other articles are posted during the week. Subscribers have the option to control how often these updates are delivered. Look down at the bottom of this message and you will find a Manage Subscriptions link in the fine print as you see in this example. Click it and you will be taken to the WordPress.com Subscription Management page. Use the Delivery Frequency column to change your delivery options from “Immediate” to either “Daily” or “Weekly”.
Sample of the “fine print” at the bottom of each post.
Also down at the bottom of each delivered post is a Comment button. If you would like to comment on something discussed in a post or ask a question, just click the Comment button and you will be taken online to the comment section of the post where you can share your thoughts and read what others have shared.
To learn more, download a copy of the SAGS Support Guide.