Do you think Stirnet is worth the price ?
wjhonson
server. I haven't looked at it in quite a long time now. In my PHP
ramblings, I've discovered just how darn simple it is to add a
"Members Only" section to any website, so I'm playing with doing so on
my site http://www.countyhistorian.com
I'm not really sure what I'd put *in* to the Members Only section just
yet.
Anyway, I was curious now, what Stirnet charges exactly and I found
there page here
http://www.stirnet.com/main/index.php?option=com_registration&task=register
which explains their rates. Fifty-seven pounds a year is what like a
hundred dollars U.S. ?
Does anyone on this list, subscribe to Stirnet, and do you think it's
worth the money you're paying?
Will Johnson
Rick
haven't subscribed so I can't access the information.
Regrettably, although several of my ancestors appear to have married
heiress, I haven't found one for myself !! <joking >
And while I am here, "thank you" to those of you who have shared your
information with others, like myself, who struggle through the maze of
misinformation that is out there on the internet...
I'm gonna have to go buy a printer if I find any more sites that show my
descent from all those Kings, Counts, Dukes, Lords, Barons and Knights.
Although I DID find one ancestor whose father was a mere Wealthy
Merchant, but that ancestor's wife was descended from Kings, Counts,
Dukes, etc..
I'm getting fatigued from all the recording of information!! ;-)
melanie chesnel
> wjhonson wrote:
> > I used Stirnet when it was free to view without needing to use a proxy
> > server. I haven't looked at it in quite a long time now. In my PHP
> > ramblings, I've discovered just how darn simple it is to add a
> > "Members Only" section to any website, so I'm playing with doing so on
>
> > I'm not really sure what I'd put *in* to the Members Only section just
> > yet.
>
> > Anyway, I was curious now, what Stirnet charges exactly and I found
> > there page here
>
> > which explains their rates. Fifty-seven pounds a year is what like a
> > hundred dollars U.S. ?
>
> > Does anyone on this list, subscribe to Stirnet, and do you think it's
> > worth the money you're paying?
>
> > Will Johnson
>
> I've noticed that some of the archived posts link to Stirnet, but I
> haven't subscribed so I can't access the information.
>
> Regrettably, although several of my ancestors appear to have married
> heiress, I haven't found one for myself !! <joking >
>
> And while I am here, "thank you" to those of you who have shared your
> information with others, like myself, who struggle through the maze of
> misinformation that is out there on the internet...
>
> I'm gonna have to go buy a printer if I find any more sites that show my
> descent from all those Kings, Counts, Dukes, Lords, Barons and Knights.
> Although I DID find one ancestor whose father was a mere Wealthy
> Merchant, but that ancestor's wife was descended from Kings, Counts,
> Dukes, etc..
> I'm getting fatigued from all the recording of information!! ;-)
subscribed to see the pages found. My question is how accurate/
reliable are the family trees on stirnet. It is one thing to pay a
subscription to Ancestry for example and get access to primary sources
as well as member's trees but if the subscription was only for
member's trees I would long since have stopped paying as the quality
of info obtained would not be worth it. Genes reunited has a
relatively cheap subscription which allows contact with other members
only and no primary sources which I also pay willingly as it has
enabled me to find 'lost cousins" with whom I have shared photos,
memories and the like. I would be interested in hearing what value
stirnet gives, what its relationship is with primary sources etc
regards
melanie
Renia
From memory, Stirnet's data is taken mostly from published pedigree
sources, such as the various Burke's editions.
You should subscribe to access the data, but you don't have to, if you
know how to avoid it. 8:)
Dave D.
be mostly a clear presentation of Visitation pedigrees (with the
strengths and weaknesses implied), but there is also an attempt to
improve things -- if something in the Visitations is contradictory or
crazy, the Stirnet people do their best to sort it out. I have only
taken a short term subscription since I agree that its quite pricey
for a full year. Worth a look, I think.
Dave
holl...@gmail.com
see the information for several seconds before it vanishes and a
screen appears saying that to see the information you need to join.
However, I find that if you hold your shift key when the information
first appears, it stays and you can read it. Now that I've said this
publicly, they may make their firewall more effective.
The only usefulness of stirnet, IMHO, is the hyperlink connections of
females between differing visitations, i.e., wife of x is hyperlinked
to be the daughter of Y in a different county and visitation.
Otherwise, these are just the visitations. Even their presentational
style is somewhat difficult to use (females of the first generation
are way down at the bottom in stirnet's configuration).
Most of the visitations are in the public domain and will eventually
be on google books which (for now) is free.
Chris Matchinski
because I have done it). The problem with that is if the information covers
more than one page you are out of luck, unless what you are intrested in
is on page 1. Also it is rather time consuming-catching the page before it
disappears.
Chris Matchinski
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lostcopper
> I used Stirnet when it was free to view without needing to use a proxy
> server. I haven't looked at it in quite a long time now. In my PHP
> ramblings, I've discovered just how darn simple it is to add a
> "Members Only" section to any website, so I'm playing with doing so on
>
> I'm not really sure what I'd put *in* to the Members Only section just
> yet.
>
> Anyway, I was curious now, what Stirnet charges exactly and I found
>
> which explains their rates. Fifty-seven pounds a year is what like a
> hundred dollars U.S. ?
>
> Does anyone on this list, subscribe to Stirnet, and do you think it's
> worth the money you're paying?
>
> Will Johnson
When I went to the free Stirnet, I found it useful for getting
"direction". Most of the information I got there has now been
corrected, but it was useful for pointing the way to the more useful
information. I had a bit of an argument with the owner, however, when
he said that people who had contributed information could get a free
membership. I did, in fact, give information to him that he used on
the site (for Massy, Evans of Bulgaden Hall & Eyre). He said he didn't
remember my contribution and would not provide free or even discounted
membership. As my finances are extremely limited & I am in the US,
like you, the amount is far too much for information that is so often
incorrect. The Burke's website, by the way, has become nearly
useless; it is almost impossible to find anyone on it even when you
know that they are in one of the published volumes & have paid to
look. That's my rant for the day. Time to go make nice to my
customers. Bronwen
John
I do subscribe to Stirnet and use it fairly frequently, primarily
because of the convenience it provides. Although it started out as
primarily the visitations and the Burke's publications, it has
expanded beyond that and includes at least some information from many
other useful sources - many of which are not available on-line. I
generally will not cite it as a source (except perhaps on a temporary
basis) but instead use it as a "finding aid" to track down the actual
source.
As has been mentioned, its use of hyperlinks to tie families together
is especially useful - you certainly don't have that capability in the
book forms of the visitations or other sources, and you get it in
large databases (such as Leo's Genealogics) only to the extent that
they encompass the families in question. Yes, Stirnet has its
limitations and its errors, as does does every other source (on-line
or otherwise), but it can be a very useful (and convenient) tool for
some degree of research.
Its cost is a bit steep, but the cost of a year's access works out to
about 25 cents a day - not too bad, even if you don't use it every
day. But each of us makes our own judgment as to what is useful for
our particular research and what we're willing to pay for. In my
case, I find Stirnet be quite useful for the price. That may not be
the case for others....
PS: I don't subscribe to other genealogy sites, primarily because I
can access a number of them for free via my local library system (in
some case, from home via the library system). Charging for access to
information just because you can technically do so is a non-starter -
you have to demonstrate that there's a value in the information that
you're charging people for.
Rick
> There is a way to print a page from Stirnet when not a member. (I know
> because I have done it). The problem with that is if the information covers
> more than one page you are out of luck, unless what you are intrested in
> is on page 1. Also it is rather time consuming-catching the page before it
> disappears.
> Chris Matchinski
I've made the decision to purchase a new printer, despite the economy !!
So I'll experiment and give it a try.
If the "wealthy merchant's daughter-in-law" thing is even 1/4 accurate,
hand transcribing would be a daunting task.
I've already experienced copying reams of information only to find an
inconsistency when cross referencing, which is...perhaps "annoying"
would be the politest word, although not among the many that I used at
the time. :-P
Thanks for the information.
Rick.
Monica Kanellis
data base, you can get free membership/access.
best,
MK
> -------------------------------
> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to GEN-MEDIEV...@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message
>
Rick
> If you can make what they consider a meaningful contribution to their
> data base, you can get free membership/access.
>
> best,
>
> MK
Does 3 generations of MY immediate ancestors count? Nobody seems to have
us! <g>
lostcopper
wrote:
>
> - Show quoted text -
That is if he can "remember" your contribution. Is there anyone who
has contributed information to him & actually received a free
membership? - Bronwen
Cherryexile
of landed gentry. It is a relatively quick and easy way to build a
'skeleton' of connections, especially across families, but the same
caveats always apply; 'check it against primary sources where
possible'.
I, too, found the route of passing on information slightly
problematic; not getting a reply - ever.
It may be unfair, but I get the impression that the task is getting
much bigger than the operators originally contemplated and it is
stalling for lack of resources.
Much more is available on-line elsewhere now than when I started using
it, but I still subscribe. At least for now.
melanie chesnel
Having read through all the replies with interest it seems that
stirnet is a convienient database of other people's interpretations
and corrections to secondary sources, not even the secondary sources
themselves, nevermind primary sources and as such is quite expensive
for what you get - it becomes value for money only if you need to
access an "index" to many of such sources at once or find the
hyperlinking of families useful. I can imagine I might be tempted to
use it if I find a direct line between one of the pages and an
ancestor but once the line has been established and the information
retrieved I would have no furthur use of such an expensive
subscription.
Will Johnson's original post gives theimpression he is thinking of
monitising his website and intersted in knowing what people will pay
for and how much they are prepared to pay. To that one could add and
for how long! Personally geneology is a hobby and between an ancestry
subscription, a genes subscription and the cost of certs from the GRO
or paying to use Scotland's People and the 1911 census it all adds up
to over £300+ last year - thank goodness IGI is free! Having said
that, this year I have no certs to buy and so may spend time and money
in the National Archive looking for/at relevant documents - living in
France it isn't easy to visit county archives for "free". If Will
wants a new way to monitise a member's only part to his website he
could do worse than providing cheapways to help overseas people access
primary sources in the UK which are not yet online. How he could do
this is anyones guess
regards
melanie
RobinPatterson
> Does 3 generations of MY immediate ancestors count? Nobody seems to have
> us! <g>
Rick, there's a fairly easy way to get your real (and a few alleged)
ancestors on a freely searchable database. Add them to Familypedia -
http://family.wikia.com
If you're registered (which is free too), you see hardly any
advertisements and those of us who are "regulars" will make an effort
to help.
Some members of soc.gen.medieval had problems entering data to
Familypedia a few months ago. Most of the wrinkles are now ironed out.
On the first preview or save, the pages look incomplete because of the
way templates call other templates etc. But it gets sorted fairly soon
in a somewhat magical way. "Semantic MediaWiki".
Rick
Thank you for your reply, Robin. I will look into it.
WJho...@aol.com
So in the U.S. the copyright on say some book published in 1930 is over,
but in the UK it still extends?
So you can't see the pages we can see? Now if I were to throw up all
those images and then say "pay me 20 bucks a year for full access to the DNB" or
whatever it happens to be. Then UKers would do it?
Interesting that Google Books blocks that based on your IP. A typically
website owner would have no idea what your IP is because most websites are
remotely hosted and the owner never sees your IP at all! I wonder if
there's ever been a case of this sort of international copyright infringement. I
mean Google Books can hardly plead that they have no idea who their
visitors are, but a small website owner certainly could.
In a message dated 2/20/2010 2:35:04 A.M. Pacific Standard Time,
Rick
I'm doing my research "on the cheap side".
Just by surfing the internet.
I don't subscribe to any of the pay sites.
Now that I've arrived at the "de" ancestors, it has begun to be a bit
more than I can comprehend.
My charts are all over the place and I'm having difficulty keeping track
of "who" is related to "whom".
Or "whom" to "who"?
And there is definitely a problem with "when" !
Some of the dates just don't correlate.
Nor do some of the "alleged" descents...
Oh, well. At least I'm learning a lot more History than I was exposed to
at University.
My professors would be impressed.
It's much more interesting when you realize that one of your ancestors
was actually IN the Battle being discussed.
It's absolutely fascinating to "flesh out" some one from a thousand
years ago...
Please pardon my enthusiasm. I'm kind of new to all of this. :-)
magscanner
it's just something he's doing in his spare time. That said, he does
refer to two researchers for hire, and one supposes that other have
sent him information.
I wonder if he's entered all the data by hand -- that would be quite a
task.
Besides Genealogics, are there other large general databases that
would be of interest to the people on this newsgroup?
Michael Ward
melanie chesnel
> Ha! Interesting and sneaky point ;)
> So in the U.S. the copyright on say some book published in 1930 is over,
> but in the UK it still extends?
> So you can't see the pages we can see? Now if I were to throw up all
> those images and then say "pay me 20 bucks a year for full access to the DNB" or
> whatever it happens to be. Then UKers would do it?
>
> Interesting that Google Books blocks that based on your IP. A typically
> website owner would have no idea what your IP is because most websites are
> remotely hosted and the owner never sees your IP at all! I wonder if
> there's ever been a case of this sort of international copyright infringement. I
> mean Google Books can hardly plead that they have no idea who their
> visitors are, but a small website owner certainly could.
>
> In a message dated 2/20/2010 2:35:04 A.M. Pacific Standard Time,
>
>
> If Will
> wants a new way to monitise a member's only part to his website he
> could do worse than providing cheapways to help overseas people access
> primary sources in the UK which are not yet online. How he could do
> this is anyones guess
I was thinking more among the lines of - you do quality work citing
secondary and primary sources and produce lineages based on that work
quoting sources, if you systematically associated a brief transcript
of the essential information in a source with a person in the lineage,
then that information would be of value to someone else researching
that person or lineage. I don't know how you collate your souces,
transcripts and lineages at the moment but if you could easily put it
all in a searchable database strinet style then that would be of value
and as such monitisable (to invent a word!) It seems to me the the to
sucess is the quality and reliabity of the sources, their
transcription and the ease of the search. For example in France the
archives office for Côtes D'Armor (http://
sallevirtuelle.cotesdarmor.fr/EC/ecx/connexion.aspx) has put on line
for free digital copies of the LDS micro films of all the pre
revolution parish registers and post revolution births mariages and
deaths for every commune in the département - a phenominal amount of
info but no searchable data base - if someone were to make such a
database that would be valuable and I for one would pay a reasonable
subscription, given the work involved. Personaly I am not sure how
much I would be prepared to pay to see copies of books online as
libraries exist, so do book sellers, but extracted info from the one
page in the book which is relevant to my research tied to the lineage
in question may well be worth more than a $20 subscrition if I have
confidence in the quality of the work done.
hope you find this a useful comment
melanie