il GENEABANK project

[Philippe RAMONA]

The GeneaBank Project

Objective

The Genealogical societies have made indices and transcribed many of
the parish or solicitors registers. These works are not always available
for all. The internet is a fabulous tool to enable everybody to reach
these works.

The internet is easy to access, cheap, even free (in the libraries, the
Supermarkets...)
A Genealogical society can easily place its databases on Internet for
free: many organizations offer free space to the independent people or
for
non-profit organizations.
Often the organizations don't wish to offer their data without anything
in return.
We propose to build a system that will permit to the associations to put
their data on Internet with easy access for the genealogists, but also
with a return for the societies.
The idea is to create an unofficial economy just for genealogists.

Principles

To built a system on the LETS principle (Local Exchanges Trading
Systems):
http://www.personal.u-net.com/~gmlets/, the local exchange systems.
The principle of the local exchange systems is to create an exchange
unit. This unit allows the members of a community to exchange services
without exchanging any money.

An individual , A proposes a service, pays with the LETS currency for a
B
individual, himself paid by a C individual for another service, etc...

In the LETS, the members begin with a 0 account and may have negative
accounts, in some limits. This systems works good as long as it's not
too big.

The GeneaBank project is a little bit different, as there would be only
positive accounts with an exchange unit created in return of the parish
or solicitors registers.

A Genealogical society would give all of its data, which will be
available through this system. The records are deposited in a bank. In
return, the societie's account is credited with a number of points
proportional to this deposit. For instance, the associations deposit the
500000 marriages of an area, and receive in return 500000 points.

This is an example of how these points can be used:
The society supplies points to its subscribers, for instance 1000
points for each one, by a credit transfer on its members account.
The member of the Genealogical society consults the database on
Internet:
For instance, he finds 5 interesting entries and decides to look at
them:
in that case, the system debits its account of 5 points and credits the
association's 5 points.
This system allows to the members of Genealogical societies to consult
the
data of its society or of another one...
That's only an example: the society may do what it wants with these
points: selling them against services (perusals for instance) or other
things.

The advantages

For the Genealogical societies:
-to recover adherents and extra resources: indeed, to come in the
system, you need to get points, distributed by the associations.
-to pay the volunteers who do perusals.

For the genealogists:
-to reach the databases with a low cost
-to create an exchange currency , that you can re-use to sell other
services (help between genealogists, paleography,...)

The Organization

A server posts the accounts and manages the transactions in a secure and
open way, with means of control for all.
This server is independent of the server containing the data, to avoid
fraud.
To begin and start the system, we propose to the societies a free
accommodation for their data: they don't pay anything, for development
or accommodation.
The data could be indexed on Geneanet, to obtain a central access point.

The rules

-the points creation can only be issued in return of submitting data:
parish or solicitors registers. that means for instance that gedcom
banks don't create points.

Each one can:
-sell his own data through this system
-create automatically an account on Geneabank
-do credit transfers from an account to another
-The system is completely free and doesn't keep any commission on the
transactions
-The societies do what they want with the points: gift to the
adherents, sell...
-A society that wants to go out of the system must return its
points
-There's no exclusive rights in participating to the system. The
association may propose on the same server a financial payment like
Cybercash or GeneaBank points.

Et in terra pax hominibus bonae voluntatis...

Philippe RAMONA
http://www.es-conseil.fr/pramona/
mailto:pra...@es-conseil.fr