Presentation at 2016 RootsTech conference. Learn how anyone can use the FREE resources on FamilySearch.org to build their family tree in a collaborative, source-based manner. Covers the following areas: - What is FamilySearch Family Tree? - What are the benefits of a public tree? - How to navigate and add to the tree - Basics on working with others on family tree

1. Start and Grow Your Family Tree on
FamilySearch.org
Ben Baker

2. Who This Presentation is For
 Don’t have an FamilySearch account
or have only logged in a few times
 No reason to believe your family is
already on FamilySearch Family Tree
 Beginner at family history
 Regularly do family history, just
not in FamilySearch Family Tree
 Don’t have multi-generational LDS
ancestors
 Somewhat familiar with
FamilySearch Family Tree
 Haven’t done much family history
 Descend from multiple generations
of LDS church members
 Use FamilySearch Family Tree
regularly with lots of family
already in the tree
 Want insights into more
complicated features to be more
effective
Amount of family already on FamilySearch Family Tree / Experience with FamilySearch
FamilyHistoryExpertise

3. My Background
• Over 6 years as a Senior Software Engineer at FamilySearch
• Leads an engineering team working on FamilySearch Family Tree
• Currently work on Family Tree, but try to use all our products
• Have previously given several presentations going into more detail on
other topics, mostly for more frequent users of FamilySearch. To view or
download these presentations go to http://www.slideshare.net/bakers84.
• Go to http://www.slideshare.net/bakers84/start-and-grow-your-family-
tree-on-familysearchorg-syllabus to get a copy of the syllabus materials for
this presentation

4. What Does
Do?
Family Tree
Digitized Images
Indexed Records
Historical
Records
(Microfilm and
original documents)
Memories
Photos, Stories,
Documents, Audio

5. Why do Mormons do Family History?
https://www.mormon.org/values/family-history

6. What is FamilySearch Family Tree?
• A single COLLABORATIVE, wiki-like family tree
• FREE access to anyone worldwide (not just Mormons)
• Promotes SOURCE BASED genealogy
• Provides RESEARCH HELP to build your family tree
• Integrates with MULTIMEDIA to add memories to your family
• Support for 10 LANGUAGES with portions in 42 languages

7. Main Types of Family Trees
User Specific
FamilySearch
Genealogies
…
Most other online trees and
desktop records managers
Collaborative
FamilySearch
Family Tree
…

8. User Specific Family Trees
…
Mary
Beus
1851 - 1936
Michael
Beus
1811 - 1888
Marianne
Combe
1813 - 1910
User2
… …
…
Mary
Beus
1851 - 1936
Michael
Beus
1811 - 1888
Marianne
Combe
1813 - 1910
User1
… …
…
Mary
Beus
1851 - 1936
Michael
Beus
1811 - 1888
Marianne
Combe
1813 - 1910
User3
… …

9. Collaborative Family Trees
…
User1
…
User3
…
Mary
Beus
1851 - 1936
Michael
Beus
1811 - 1888
Marianne
Combe
1813 - 1910
User2
… …

10. How is Family Tree Like a Wiki?
“A wiki is a web application which allows people to add, modify, or delete
content in collaboration with others” – Wikipedia
Like Wikipedia and other wikis, Family Tree is maintained by volunteers and
changes made to data on pages is reflected to all users and change tracked
What are the benefits of a collaborative family tree?
• Reduces duplication of effort
• Increased collaboration arrives at the best information
• Information added outlives contributors
• We can all go further faster by working together

11. • Evidence data in the tree
continues to grow in
quantity and quality
• Not many reported issues
of edit wars
• More than 40,000 merges
per day continues to
reduce duplication in the
tree
• Will be able to merge
additional currently
unmergeable persons in
next few months
• Over 291,000 unique
visitors per day
(familysearch.org)

12.  Hundreds of millions of
historical record sources are
already attached to persons
throughout the tree
 Around 531M sources were
attached to persons at the
end of 2014
 Over 609M sources were
attached to persons at the
end of 2015
 More than 1.6M sources
are attached to person
every week

13.  Preserve precious
genealogical photos,
stories, documents and
audio
 Most memories are
attached to persons in the
tree
 Can share via social media

14. Why Get a FamilySearch Account?
 Can search historical records without an account, but can’t link them to
persons in the tree
 Need an account to view or edit persons in Family Tree – on roadmap to
provide viewing without an account
 Can view photos, stories, documents, etc., but can’t upload and preserve
your family treasures or link them to persons in the tree
 Can’t collaborate with other users without an account
 Did I mention all resources on FamilySearch are FREE?

15. How to Sign Up on FamilySearch

16. Tips When Registering
on FamilySearch
• Your contact name is what people will see
on changes you make
• Please check Yes if you are a member of
the LDS church
• Linking to your church membership
record will automatically bring in all of
your relatives that are/were members of
the LDS church into your tree
• You can get your Membership Record
Number from your temple recommend or
by asking your ward clerk
• Please read the legal documents

17. Managing Your Settings

18. Make Your E-mail Public

19. Start Building Your Tree

20. Add Closest Known Ancestors
Go to https://familysearch.org/first-run if you want to go through this wizard again
The wizard will display persons you have already entered
Note that all living persons in Family Tree will only be visible to you

21. View Training At Any Point
https://familysearch.org/ask/#/tree/

22. Basic Ways to
View Information / Navigate the Tree
Person Detail Page
Tree Views Person Card
History List

23. Landscape Pedigree View

24. Portrait Pedigree View

25. Fan Chart View

26. Descendancy Tree View

27. Person Card
 Provides basic information
about a person
 Provides links to jump to Tree
View or Person Detail Page
 Tip: Middle Click or Ctrl-Click on
Windows and Command-Click
on Mac will open a new tab
with the Tree/Person

28. History List Dropdowns
• Provides history of most recently visited 50 persons
• Use Tree and Person Lists to Jump to Tree View or
Person Detail Page View
• Use the Go To: text box to jump directly to a person ID
• Click on your own name to go back to you
• Click on your starting person ID to jump to that person
• Click on a person in the list to jump to that person
• Start typing a name or person ID to filter the list
• Select Add Unconnected Person to add a new person to
the tree that isn’t connected to anyone else with
relationships.

29. Person Detail Page
• Shows all you’d ever want to know
about a person
• Place to change or add information
• Links to supporting sources
• Shows uploaded photos, stories and
documents
• Provides help to clean up and add data

30. Research Help
• Data Problems
• Generally indicators of incorrect or missing data
• Record Hints (are awesome!)
• Search indexed records for you
• Will find records based on all information,
including maiden and married names
• Often overcome errors in records
• Only present high confidence matches
• Significant increase in sources attached since
rollout – 1.6M per week
• Research Suggestions
• Suggestions for additional family members, etc.

34. Congratulations!
You have just found someone
in a record that is not in the tree

36. Life Sketch & Vital Information

37. Other Information
• Can record many more
specific facts and
events about persons
in the tree

38. Sources
• Lists all sources
attached to the person
• Can tag sources as
containing information
about events
• Links jump directly to
records or web pages
containing information
• Can create sources from
uploaded documents
• Add custom sources for
records not found on
FamilySearch
• Can reorder via drag
and drop

39. Search Records
• Opens new tab with pre-populated search as
starting point to look for more records
• Use search options to find matching records
• Can search records on Ancestry, FindMyPast
and MyHeritage as well as on FamilySearch

40. Family Members
• View closest family members
of the person
• Click the pencil edit icon to
modify information or
remove from family
• Add additional children or
siblings easily
• Select preferred spouse or
parents as desired

41. Editing
Relationships

42. Visualize Relationships
Parent Child Relationship
Father Mother
Child
Mother
Child
WifeHusband
Parent Child Relationship
with Single Parent
Couple Relationship

43. F M
C
F M
C
F M
C
F M
C
F M
C
F M
C
F M
C
F M
C
F M
Tips
• Visualize or even
draw out the
relationships when
trying to decide
how to understand
or fix relationships
• Pay attention to
person IDs
• Remember how to
edit and delete
relationships
M
C
WH WH
WH
…
…

44. Discussions and Notes
 Discussions provide way to
collaborate with others
regarding details on a person
 Notes allow addition of any
information of note about the
person

45. Printable Charts
• Can easily print various charts from any
person detail page and some tree views
• Pedigree Chart and Family Group Sheets
are editable PDFs that can be saved and
modified later
• Easy to share with others

47. Portrait
Pedigree

48. Difference Between Family and
Family With Sources Options

49. 7-Generation Fan Chart

50. Latest Changes and Tools
• Show All Changes brings up the change log
where details about all changes can be viewed
• Possible Duplicates will check the system for
duplicate persons that may need to be merged
• Use Report Abuse to report if you see other
users modifying data in obscene or destructive
ways
• You can delete persons that you are the only
contributor for. If you see something else you
feel should be removed, please call support.

51. All Changes
• Click on blue links to see more
information
• Can view who made changes
and contact them
• Can restore some changes
• Can view changes to some
change types (i.e. all changes to
birth) by clicking on the title of
the change or the History link
from the person detail page.

52. User to User Messaging
 Collaborate with other
users via the

53. Memories
• Upload photos,
documents, stories
and audio about your
ancestors to bring
them more to life
• Link to their person
detail pages in Family
Tree by tagging
• Supports sharing on
Facebook, Twitter,
Google+, Pinterest
and via E-mail

54. Lists Tab
 Watch people you’re
interested in
 Will receive weekly e-
mails when others
make changes
 Can review changes to
the people being
watched
 Lots of cool features
described in more detail
in FamilySearch Insider
Tips and Tricks
presentation on
SlideShare

55. Find Tab
• Search for persons already in the tree
• Can refine search in numerous ways

57. Achieving Regular Small Successes
• Look to resolve indicator icons on your relatives
• Data Problems
• Record Hints
• Research Suggestions
• LDS Ordinance Icons for LDS church members
• Add any memories you have
• Photos
• Documents
• Stories
• Audio
• Try to work from closest to more distant
• Start with closest direct ancestors
• Make sure children for direct ancestors are recorded and also have indicator
icons resolved
• Move to grandchildren and great-grandchildren of your direct ancestors

58. • In-person help at
FamilySearch Centers
and Libraries
worldwide
• Many offer on-site
courses, microfilm
ordering and other
services

59. Find a Family History Center Near You

60. Many Helps and Training Available
• Contact support when you need to
 Call 1-866-406-1830 (US),
 Live Chat, E-mail or Local Help
• Escalate if necessary
• Track cases you’ve submitted at
https://familysearch.org/help/mycases

65. “Here is a completely FREE genealogy website with billions of indexed records, access to
billions of pages of unindexed records (most of them original source material), with a
significant educational component (the Wiki and Video Courses), a collaborative family tree
(featuring sources, notes, record hints, photos, stories, etc.)”
“It is probably the online family tree with the most potential to be correct”
Randy Seaver
Noted (non-Mormon) Geneablogger and RootsTech 2016 Ambassador
http://www.geneamusings.com/2015/01/why-arent-researchers-using.html