Ancestry Magazine

Point. Click. Send.

Computers and the Internet have revolutionized the way families communicate. E-mail, Voice Chat, and webcams make it easy for people to keep in touch. In days-gone-by, a family gathering often meant a Sunday dinner at Grandma’s house or a leisurely visit with a favorite aunt who lived nearby. But today, with so many families living a long distance from one another, using technology to connect with kin is an attractive alternative.

One of the most convenient and popular communication tools is a family website. And with a private, password-protected site through MyFamily.com, connecting with family is just a few clicks of a mouse away.

MyFamily.com, Inc. is the leading provider of private websites for families around the world. The company is focused on connecting families with their histories and one another, providing both free and paid subscription services through its network of Internet properties, including Ancestry.com, Genealogy.com, and RootsWeb.com.

I started my first MyFamily.com site — The ALAFFFA Family Web Site — in 1998. ALAFFFA is an acronym for the surnames of my mother and her siblings: Abbott, Lizanov, Alzo, Figlar, Figlar, Figlar, and Augenstein. I upgraded to a Super site in 2003 for the unlimited storage space and domain name <www.alafffa.com>. In May 2003, I created a second MyFamily.com site, “The Mil’pos-L’utina-Hanigovce Web Site” a village-based group site for descendants of immigrants from Mil’pos, Hanigovce, Olejnikov, Lutina and nearby villages in Saris County, Slovakia (former Saros, Hungary). Through these sites I have expanded the way my immediate family communicates and have collaborated with a number of other researchers who share similar family history goals and interests.

It may be that you are among the millions of users already taking advantage of the easy-to-use services at MyFamily.com, or perhaps you have seen the advertisements, but haven’t had the chance to explore the benefits of having your own family website. Whatever the case, the following information will help you make the most of MyFamily.com.

Why Set Up a MyFamily.com Site
MyFamily.com offers your family the opportunity to connect and strengthen family bonds. The service is easy, private, and secure, and provides an “online home” for your family—a place to meet with loved ones as often as you’d like. Unlike public websites, your MyFamily site is password-protected so only you and those you invite to participate can access it.

With step-by-step instructions and pre-formatted templates, even the novice computer user can log on to share news, photos, or other important family information. A MyFamily.com website gives your family a virtual home where even the furthest-flung relatives can be brought up-to-date with current family events.

Creating Your Site
Creating a family website on MyFamily.com can be accomplished in a few easy steps. Start by going to <www.myfamily.com> and selecting the Create My Site Now tab. You will then see a screen with the following site options:

• Option A: Choose Free Trial. This option lets you try out a Standard site free for thirty days. You can sponsor the site at any time by clicking the free trial countdown in the upper right-hand area of your site.

• Option B: Choose Standard Site. A Standard site enables you to have unlimited site members, all of whom will receive e-mail accounts. You will also have 100 MB of storage space, with no popup ads.

• Option C: Choose Super Site with Personal Domain. This option provides a personal domain (e.g., www.brownfamily.com), with 500 MB of space, and offers e-mail accounts for each site member at your domain (e.g., jimbrown@brownfamily.com) without any banner or popup ads.

Once you choose the site type that works for you and your family, you are taken to a screen where you will need to provide basic information about yourself and select a required username and password. You must have a working e-mail address to set up your sit e. When you create a site, you become the Site Administrator.

Next, you will choose a website name (for example, the “Alzo Family Web Site”) and the type of site, such as Immediate Family, Extended Family, Club or Group, and so forth.

Then you can begin adding members by typing in their names and e-mail addresses. A temporary username and password will be sent to each user via e-mail to those you have invited, along with a standard invitation that highlights the purpose of the site and the features available. If you do not know someone’s e-mail address, leave that field blank. MyFamily.com will notify you of that person’s temporary username and password so that you can invite them later by telephone.

When you continue you will see a message informing you that your site has been created. The names and e-mail addresses of those you invited to participate in the site will also appear. You may add new members to the site at any time by clicking the Add Members button on the main page of your site.

Now that you have created your site, you are responsible for managing the site and helping your site members to participate. You will be responsible for creating and maintaining a successful site. As Administrator you will add members and exercise other privileges such as the ability to change your site name, personalize your invitation messages, designate what features will be available to members, and customize the site’s appearance with different colors or themes.

What Can You Do with Your MyFamily.com Site?
Each MyFamily.com site is designed around a generic template that offers you the following standard features:

Address Book. This searchable, electronic rolodex alphabetically stores the most current contact information for your site members.

Calendar. The calendar is the central place to enter all of your important family dates (e.g., birthdays , anniversaries, vacations, etc.), so your family can keep track of these special events, using reminders that you can set up in your individual account. It is also the place to schedule chat sessions with members.

Chat. This easy-to-use communication tool allows multiple family members to converse online at the same time without having to pay long-distance telephone charges. The chat room is private and only members of your website can participate.

Family Tree. This feature enables you to post your family tree information either by creating one directly on the website (using Online Family Tree) or uploading one that was created with your favorite family tree software program and saved in the GEnealogical Data COMmunications (GEDCOM) format. This format allows genealogy files to be opened in virtually any genealogy software program. This feature also provides you with the option to submit your family tree to the Ancestry World Tree database at Ancestry.com.

File Cabinet. This section is the storage area for electronic versions of such items as family newsletters, reunion invitations, or itineraries. You can upload standard documents created with word processing software, PDFs, or spreadsheets. Video files and sound clips (created in many popular formats) can also be added here.

History. This area is a great place to record your own family’s memories and stories and enable them to be shared by current family members and preserved for future generations. For example, post a family poem or words of remembrance written for a departed family member.

News. This is the central place you can quickly let the members of your website know of any important events or information (e.g., births, weddings, or graduation announcements, and any other newsworthy events).

Photos. This section serves as an electronic photo album where you can share pho tos (complete with title, date, and description) of the newest grandchild or your most recent family reunion. The recommended format for posting images is JPEG.

Polls. This feature enables you to get your family’s opinion on just about any topic, from who will win the next Super Bowl to where the family would like to go for their next reunion. You simply type in a question and a selection of answers.

Recipes. Here you can easily share the recipes for those favorite dishes or treats your family members prepare for birthdays, holidays, or other special occasions.

Reviews. Use this section to post personal opinions and ideas about books, movies, television shows, vacation spots, etc. and to get further acquainted with other site members by finding out their interests and hobbies.

Personalize Your Site
While MyFamily.com follows a standard format for adding and updating information, there are various ways to add a personal touch to your site.

Site Features. Choose the features that are appropriate for your family or group by using the Features Administration page. For example, if your family is not interested in posting or reading reviews, you can simply turn the Reviews section off from display on your site.

Edit Your Invitation/Re-invitation Messages. Personalize your invitation message, and also the re-invitation message, which can be used to contact site members who have not logged into the site for more than fourteen days.

Member Rights. You may change a member’s status on the member rights page. The following types are available: guest, user, and administrator. “Guests” can log onto the site and view all content but are not allowed to add or change anything. (This is appropriate for young children.) “Users” have login privileges and the ability to add content and files to the site. I f you choose, you can allow other members of your site to have administrator status as well.

Site Appearance. While the basic structure of a MyFamily.com site is set to a default, there are a few changes you can implement to personalize its display. For example, use the Color Theme Selector to reflect your favorite colors or to apply a patriotic or holiday theme. Another option is to change the site’s cover photo. Use one that best represents your family, such as your latest reunion photograph or a family logo. You may want to keep several cover photos and rotate them.

Customized Front Page. A custom Front Page is created just like a News item, but will appear on the site’s Front Page just under where the scrolling announcements normally appear, above “New Additions” and the site photo. You can maintain multiple Front Pages.

If You Build It, Will They Come?
There are two main keys to creating a successful MyFamily website: 1) invite as many family members as possible, and 2) get them to participate regularly on the site.

The more members you invite to your site the more interesting and active it will become. The most successful sites generally have between ten and twenty members.

Another option is to have more than one website representing different branches of your family, or a separate site for close friends, classmates, associates, or other specialty groups to which you belong.

As administrator, you should be available via telephone to walk a new member through the site features during his or her initial visit. If this is not possible, have them experiment with the features on the site, then log off and call you with any questions, or use the Chat feature on the site to provide instructions. You can even schedule an orientation session (using the Calendar feature) to instruct several new members at the same time.

Each site member should be encouraged to com plete a Member Profile page, which lists their contact information, birthday, hobbies, and other pertinent details. The information from the completed profiles will also transfer automatically to other site features such as the Calendar and Address Book. (Note: All information on your family site is accessible only to site members and is kept strictly confidential.)

MyFamily.com also has an extensive system of help files that should be able to answer your technical support questions. To access the database, simply click Help in the upper right-hand corner or the Help/FAQ at the bottom of any page on your site. Type your question in the “My question is…” field and then click the Search button. You can also e-mail customer support if the help files do not address your question.

Once They Visit, Will They Return?
Inviting members is not enough. Your site content is critical to keeping the members actively logging in on a regular basis. Keep their interest with a dynamic, interesting site.

There are a number of ways to make your MyFamily.com site more than just a site with people’s addresses and a few family photographs. Remember, the success of your family or group site depends upon site participation and content. Below are a few ways I have encouraged participation on the sites I administer.

News. Family members are encouraged to post items here on a regular basis—everything from birth announcements to awards or notable achievements. I periodically post a message asking family members to submit items for inclusion in the printed family newsletter that I prepare four times per year. This gives everyone an opportunity to share news on a regular basis online and in the newsletter.

Photos. I post a monthly “mystery” photo on the ALAFFFA site as a fun family participation activity. Everyone guesses who is in the photo and when and where it was taken. I then post th e answer to the previous month’s “mystery photo” when I upload the next month’s photo. Some of the more popular photos have been of my grandmother or grandfather in their younger years, or childhood images of the parents of some of the younger generation.

Chat. I’ve used the Chat feature to schedule monthly “meetings” with my co-administrators of the Mil’po ˇ s-L’utina-Hanigovce website. I have also used the Who’s Online feature for informal or spontaneous contact with others who have logged on to the site.

File Cabinet. I’ve utilized the file cabinet for storing audio files of oral history interviews, video clips of family events and reunions, copies of our quarterly family newsletter, and spreadsheets of data uncovered during family history research.

History. This is where I post any updates on the family genealogy I uncover through research. Also, one of my latest projects is to upload profiles of ALAFFFA members included in current and past family newsletters. I use the Add Files link to enhance each posting with a picture of the person profiled and also audio and/or video clips that help tell his or her story.

Polls. I’ve used the polls to ask family members on the ALAFFFA site to vote for our family reunion themes.

Recipes. I’ve posted many recipes for favorite dishes that my Slovak grandma used to prepare, including her delicious buns, her Paska (Easter) bread, and Holupky (stuffed cabbage). For visual reference, I’ve posted a corresponding photo of each dish in the Photos section. Many of my cousins have remarked that these postings prompted them to prepare some of the dishes.

Keys to Participation
To make your MyFamily.com website enjoyable and rewarding to participants, you may want to consider the following guidelines:

• Visit the si te one or more times each week.

• When you are notified that another member has added something new to the site, check it out as soon as possible.

• Post something new on every visit to the site, even if it is just a brief note.

• Never post something offensive to other site members.

• Involve the younger generation. Connecting with relatives on a regular basis helps to develop strong family ties.

• Make MyFamily.com your Home Page.

Paying for the Site
As the site sponsor, you may choose to pay for the site subscription yourself. However, since everyone enjoys the benefits of the site, you may decide to share your subscription costs with family members. Some suggestions include asking for a small contribution from each member, voluntary donations, or building the cost into your reunion budget. The decision to ask your site members to share in the financial responsibility will depend on the number of site participants, and/or each individual’s or family unit’s financial situation or interest.

Go Beyond Your Own Family
Another way to make the most of MyFamily.com is to create a site for descendants of immigrants who came from a particular village or area. This is a good way to go beyond your own family’s genealogy and establish a community research protocol.

I created a village-based website after corresponding with a fellow researcher whose ancestors came from the same village as my maternal grandmother. After months of sharing attachments by e-mail, I suggested we use MyFamily.com as our research base. The site grew as we brought others into our research circle, including the current mayor of Milpos, Slovakia.

Now our website is a place to share family trees, photographs, and other data, as well as work on collaborative research projects. Just as our Slovak ancestors tended to settle in cluster communities when they first arrived, we have built our own “virtual” cluster community.

Whether you create a family or research group website, the keys to its success are member participation, frequent postings, and fun and interesting content. With a little persistence and creative thinking it is easy to make your MyFamily.com site more than just a place to store addresses, post occasional news items or photos, or list birthdays and events, but rather a simple and affordable way to have a virtual reunion with your family every day!

Lisa A. Alzo, M.F.A., is an instructor of genealogy and writing courses. She is the author of Three Slovak Women (Gateway Press) and the recipient of the 2002 Mary Zirin Prize given by the Association for Women in Slavic Studies. Lisa teaches Basic and Intermediate Slovak and Eastern European, and Great Lakes Region Research for MyFamily.com, Inc. and often speaks at national conferences, genealogical and historical societies.