Fwd: 1940 Census—Are you ready?

[gene...@cfl.rr.com]

More details FYI:

The release of the 1940 US Census is just days away! The excitement and enthusiasm for this project is far greater than anything we锟絭e seen in the six years that FamilySearch indexing has been available. We couldn锟絫 be happier with the response, but we know this level of interest is going to challenge the capabilities of the indexing system.

There are some ways we can all help to reduce the system stress and keep everyone busily working to complete the census. Here are some ideas to consider:

1. Take your time getting started. We锟絩e all anxious, but there will still be plenty of work to go around after a few days. The first five states that will be available by Monday evening are:
   • Delaware
   • Virginia
   • Kansas
   • Oregon
   • Colorado
2. Avoid peak usage times. Saturday evening through Monday evening is the busiest period. Try Wednesday or Thursday if you want the best chance of working online.
3. Only download as much work as you think you锟絣l do in an hour or two. If you want to work offline, download two or three batches at a time, but not ten. For more information on working offline, click here.
4. Work offline. If you start to see the system acting slowly, you may want to download a couple of batches and work offline.
5. Review the training available now. Watch the How to Index the 1940 US Census video. Review the tips and tricks slide presentation. Read the project instructions. All of these helps will get you prepared to index the census quickly and accurately.
   Remember, it may take up to two weeks to make all of the states available for indexing. If your favorite state isn锟絫 available yet, feel free to work on any other state, but only download what you think you锟絣l finish. This will help everyone have a chance to participate.
   
   
   

Are You Indexing as a Member of a Society or Group?

Lastly, we锟絭e noticed that some who signed up to participate in the 1940 US Census Community Project did not associate themselves with a society or group when they registered as an indexer. While there is no requirement for participants to be affiliated with a group, there are advantages to both you and the group if you are.

As a member of the group, you will be connected to other indexers who are working on similar records, who can provide support and answers to your questions. The group you belong to will also qualify for rewards based on how many records its indexers complete. To see a list of participating societies in your area, check our interactive map.

Joining a group is easy, and can be done with a simple change to your user account at indexing.familysearch.org. We have created a handout and training video to help you make the change.

For those of you who are already indexing as part of a group, feel free to stay where you are. You can only associate your account with one group, society, or stake.

For questions and support, please contact the 1940 US Census Community Project Team:

• Phone: 1-855-IDX-1940
• Email: 1940cens...@familysearch.org

Thanks again for your dedication to making genealogy records searchable. Together we锟絩e making it possible for millions of people to find their ancestors!

Happy indexing!
The FamilySearch Indexing Team

[Denise Wells]

Patrice:

Please tell me how I can go from my login at Family Search and get my indexing put under FLGenWeb, would you?  That's what I was calling you about yesterday.  

I hope you had a great presentation yesterday.  I'm sure you did!  

I've done some indexing of the FL Census and it just happened to be for Duval County!  Imagine that.  

I had a long day today and will again tomorrow.  Friday I'll probably be working from home though.  

Rock on!  

Denise

On Fri, Mar 30, 2012 at 9:03 PM, <gene...@cfl.rr.com> wrote:

More details FYI:

The release of the 1940 US Census is just days away! The excitement and enthusiasm for this project is far greater than anything we’ve seen in the six years that FamilySearch indexing has been available. We couldn’t be happier with the response, but we know this level of interest is going to challenge the capabilities of the indexing system.

There are some ways we can all help to reduce the system stress and keep everyone busily working to complete the census. Here are some ideas to consider:

1. Take your time getting started. We’re all anxious, but there will still be plenty of work to go around after a few days. The first five states that will be available by Monday evening are:

1. • Delaware
   • Virginia
   • Kansas
   • Oregon
   • Colorado

1. Avoid peak usage times. Saturday evening through Monday evening is the busiest period. Try Wednesday or Thursday if you want the best chance of working online.

1. Only download as much work as you think you’ll do in an hour or two. If you want to work offline, download two or three batches at a time, but not ten. For more information on working offline, click here.

1. Work offline. If you start to see the system acting slowly, you may want to download a couple of batches and work offline.

1. Review the training available now. Watch the How to Index the 1940 US Census video. Review the tips and tricks slide presentation. Read the project instructions. All of these helps will get you prepared to index the census quickly and accurately.
   

1. Remember, it may take up to two weeks to make all of the states available for indexing. If your favorite state isn’t available yet, feel free to work on any other state, but only download what you think you’ll finish. This will help everyone have a chance to participate.
   
   
   

Are You Indexing as a Member of a Society or Group?

Lastly, we’ve noticed that some who signed up to participate in the 1940 US Census Community Project did not associate themselves with a society or group when they registered as an indexer. While there is no requirement for participants to be affiliated with a group, there are advantages to both you and the group if you are.

As a member of the group, you will be connected to other indexers who are working on similar records, who can provide support and answers to your questions. The group you belong to will also qualify for rewards based on how many records its indexers complete. To see a list of participating societies in your area, check our interactive map.

Joining a group is easy, and can be done with a simple change to your user account at indexing.familysearch.org. We have created a handout and training video to help you make the change.

For those of you who are already indexing as part of a group, feel free to stay where you are. You can only associate your account with one group, society, or stake.

For questions and support, please contact the 1940 US Census Community Project Team:

• Phone: 1-855-IDX-1940
• Email: 1940cens...@familysearch.org

Thanks again for your dedication to making genealogy records searchable. Together we’re making it possible for millions of people to find their ancestors!

Happy indexing!
The FamilySearch Indexing Team

-- ~~~~~~
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[gene...@cfl.rr.com]

Denise,

You need to be sure you have selected Florida as your state. Then
you can select the group FLGenWeb. If you already missed it, send me
your user id and the email address that you used and I can move
you. But ONLY if you are set for Florida.

You can still index any census.

Rel@ively,
Patrice