July 2011Each morning at the Family History and Genealogy Conference held at Brigham Young University there was a keynote speaker. One morning that speaker was D. Josh Taylor. I found Josh to be a very interesting young man. He became interested in genealogy when he was ten and has been researching and actively involved ever since. He has an MA in history and now an MLS (Masters of Library Science) as well. I think he is 26. He is nationally known for his genealogical expertise and is a dynamic speaker.
Here is what interested me so much about him. He is a guy that has never known the world without technology. It is almost like the technology is a part of his brain and how it functions in a way an older person can barely imagine. He thinks fast, talks fast and thinks in versions. As in software and hardware updates and versions! It is quite remarkable really. He left a lot of boomers in the dust for sure. Me included. He speaks in staccato phrases with nano second pauses. Part of it is his obvious innate intelligence, part of it his overwhelming enthusiasm and part of it simply his generation!
It was a very stimulating experience to listen to him and it made me want to go back to school and learn, learn, learn! Can I also say it made me want to be 20 again so I could grow up in this era. This is the only experience I have had that made me wish for that incidentally. I am quite contented being the age I am otherwise. But this time is a very exciting era and things are changing at warp speed. Somehow I am hopeful that jumping on the bandwagon, no matter how late, is an antidote for Alzheimer's. Wouldn't that be awesome?
Here is a thumbnail sketch of what he presented during that hour. Josh spoke of the history of genealogy in versions, like I said, as if it was soft or hardware new releases.
It is an act of service and love to remember our ancestors and preserve their memories!
The DAR (Daughters of The American Revolution) also cropped up in that era. They now have chapters in every state and around the world as well. All of the members must also prove a bloodline back to the the revolutionary war participants. There are the SARs as well and others. People's interest in their genealogy was stirring. Little did they know then of the sleeping giant that was about to awakened not only in the U.S. but worldwide.
Gen 2.0 Generation 2 came when microfilming became the way to record and store vital records and other pertinent information. In Salt Lake several immense granite vaults store worldwide genealogical microfilmed and other records. In this generation you could order films and search endless records on old film readers and microfiche readers. We still have them but they are not used like they use to be. Just last week the ordering of these films was computerized so patrons of the library can order them online from Salt Lake City, Utah instead of having library personnel do it for them. In Gen 2 nothing was digitized.
Gen 3.0 This was the generation of "Roots" by Alex Haley. On the Best Seller List for over 100 weeks this book revolutionized the way people thought about their heritage. Everyone pondered about their ancestors in a difference way, and some for the first time ever. The sleeping giant was awakened. This was also the era of the personal computer's emergence into our culture. Still primitive, but definitely catching the attention of the every day man and woman. I remember Jim and I talking about one and were wondering what in the world people would actually do with them. We thought maybe store recipes and make to do lists. Ha! If only we had had the vision of where it could go then. If only we did now!!
Gen 4.0 This is where we find ourselves today. There are thousands of genealogy websites on the internet, everything is being digitized at a rate of millions of records going up on line for our use monthly. It is truly mind boggling. Last time I checked on this, genealogy was the second most popular hobby in the United States but since then I have heard it is #1 in the world. I may have heard that from a genealogist though so I am not sure! Sources, we need source..for everything, right? Technology is moving at the speed of light and it's a full time job to even begin to keep up. The sleeping giant is fully awake now and a breathing, living entity. It's always changing and growing into something bigger and better.
So what is Josh's vision of...
Gen 5.0 One thing he sees is a whole new generation of technology experts emerging in our youth. He envisions the fever of genealogy will be sweeping the earth and this generation of youth will become very involved in mass numbers. Genealogy will not just be for the older crowd anymore. (Well, that is a load off as we definitely could use some help!!)
He sees the social networks like Google+, Facebook, and Twitter becoming an integral part of sharing information with people all over the world. He even mentioned that people will write their family histories 140 characters at a time on Twitter. I thought that was hilarious and also very possible. One lady at the conference stated in her presentation that she had her young teens buy into genealogy work by letting them play a "video game" called indexing for 30 minutes a day. I loved that! Even more hilarious ....don't you think?
So Josh made me think and made me appreciate how far we have come and what the future might look like for the genealogist. One thing I know for sure...the Lord's hand is in all of it and He is giving us all the help we could possibly need for now. Are you in? I am!
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