Join in the fun live or virtually

It’s one of the biggest Events, with a capital letter, each year in genealogy.

And it’s happening next week.

It’s RootsTech, the fourth annual “global family history event where people of all ages learn to discover and share their family stories and connections through technology.”¹

Attended by thousands of people in person, with many times more tuning in virtually from around the world, it’s hosted by FamilySearch, and the official sponsors range from the Association of Professional Genealogists to the National Genealogical Society, from Dell to Backblaze, from Ancestry to findmypast to Mocavo to…

Although it’s billed as a technology conference — and it certainly is that — there’s enough to bring a smile to the face of every genealogist, techie or not. Here are just a handful of the sessions attendees can expect (there’s overlap when a session is for more than one level).²

For beginner genealogists, 58 sessions including:

• Zap the Grandma Gap–Leave a Heritage Workshop with Janet Hovorka

• Online Trees: The Root of All Evil?, a panel moderated by Jen Baldwin

• Make BillionGraves and FindAGrave Easy to Use with Richard Young

For intermediates, 88 sessions including:

• Scrivener for Family Historians: Organize, Share, and Write Your Family Stories with Denise Levenick

• Let the Records Tell the Story with Crista Cowan

• Begging for Spit (a DNA presentation) with Blaine Bettinger

For the advanced researcher, 60 sessions including:

• Can a Complex Research Problem be Solved Solely Online? with Tom Jones

• Real World Cases from the Desk of a Genetic Genealogy Professional with CeCe Moore

• Treasures in the Ivory Tower: Remote Access to Special Collections with Laura Prescott

And there’s so much more.

Somebody called The Legal Genealogist is speaking about prison records… and there are many DNA sessions, computer workshops, focused presentations on using specific new technologies in research and lots and lots of opportunities to learn how to use technology to work smarter and faster.

Some 15 sessions will be streamed live around the world, and you can see the list and the schedule here at FamilySearch.

And there will be terrific keynote addresses as well. Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman, speaks Thursday, as does Annelies van den Belt, CEO of the parent company to findmypast. Friday’s keynoters are Dr. Spencer Wells, director of National Geographic’s Genographic Project, and … well… um… me. (Love my topic. The title is: Just Three Generations.)

There’s a lot more information available at the RootsTech website.

So… will we see you in Salt Lake City… or will you see us from around the world?

SOURCES