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Internet Stuff You Need to Know
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I created this page in order to help point fellow genealogists to responsible, helpful resources online that will aid them in understanding some of the mysteries of the Internet. There are a lot of misconceptions, rumors, hoaxes and other bits of misinformation floating about. Hopefully this page will help to dismiss some of the worries and clear up any confusion.
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Definitions from NetLingo: Bookmark, URL.
Definitions from NetLingo: Virus, Worm, Trojan Horse.
My best advice in regard to protecting yourself against computer viruses and worms:
- Install a virus protection software program that will always run in the background while you work on your computer.
- Once each month, download and install the latest virus signature file for your virus software.
- Do not open an e-mail attachment if you don't know the person that sent it to you. Delete it immediately.
- Do not believe most virus stories that you read as many are merely hoaxes and myths. Do not forward them to others via e-mail. Instead, please see: Vmyths.com - Truth About Computer Virus Myths & Hoaxes
A definition from NetLingo and one from the ILC Glossary of Internet Terms.
There are many different opinions about copyright issues and information found on the Internet. Many of them aren't based on fact or on the actual copyright laws which are in place, but rather on personal interpretation of what a copyright is. Many times this personal interpretation is one that benefits the person whose opinion it is, instead of the person who holds the copyright. Please take the time to familiarize yourself with copyright laws and be sure to respect the copyright of web site owners as you visit their pages. The following are some basic items to keep in mind while you surf. Each of these items can be found at any of the following web sites with full explanations and answers to many other related questions. Most of all, remember that the things you find on the web - text, graphics, source code - aren't public domain simply because they are there, easily available to you via your computer. They are put on the web in good faith by the owners of the web site. Ask a web site owner for permission to copy articles, files or graphics BEFORE you do so, unless permission is already given on the site.
- All works are covered by a copyright upon creation - its not necessary to display a copyright symbol or statement in order to maintain a copyright on your work.
- Web pages are protected by a copyright. Information contained on those web pages and all original information that is not in the public domain is protected by copyright. A compilation of works, including a set of links arranged into a compilation, IS protected by copyright.
- URLs to web sites are not under copyright protection by themselves because they are a fact, just as telephone numbers are. However, a link is not the same as a URL:
URL + HTML code + descriptive text = A Link
- Graphics and other multimedia on a site are also protected by a copyright, unless they are clearly marked as public domain.
- Source code for a web page is copyright protected. Just because you CAN copy it, doesn't mean that you SHOULD copy it. Doing so would constitute a copyright violation.
- 10 Big Myths About Copyright Explained
- Australian Copyright Council
- Can I Borrow A Bit of Digital?
By Marie D'Amico.
- CIPO-OPIC : Canadian Intellectual Property Office - Office de la Propriété Intellectuelle
- Copyright & Fair Use - Stanford University Libraries
- Copyright and Fair Use in the Digital Age
- Copyright and Intellectual Property Resources
- Copyright and the World Wide Web
- Copyright Clearance Center Online (CCC)
- Copyright FAQ
- Copyright for Family Historians
Article by David Hawgood with a focus on UK laws.
- Copyright in the Internet: A short primer for business lawyers
- Copyright in the New World of Electronic Publishing
Article by William S. Strong.
- Copyright Laws on the Internet - The Mystery Behind the ©
-
 COPYRIGHT Mailing List
For the discussion of copyright issues, particularly as they pertain to genealogical matters (e.g., reprints; fair use; mailing lists; publishing of books, webpages and the like). Archives: browse or search.
- Copyright on the Internet
- Copyrights & Wrongs
Written by Mark Howells for one of several different genealogical publications.
- Copyright Table
Courtesy of Cottrill & Hefti, Professional Genealogists.
- Cyber-Property: Copyright, Citation, and the World Wide Web
- Database Copyrights
- FindLaw: Copyright
- Horror on the Web
Article from Shaking Your Family Tree, by Myra Vanderpool Gormley, C.G.
- Intellectual Property Law Server
- LEGAL-ENGWLS Mailing List
For the discussion and sharing of information regarding the legal aspects of genealogical research in England and Wales including copyright, database rights, data protection, and privacy. Archives: browse or search.
- The Patent Office - Copyright
United Kingdom
- Royalties, Fair Use & Copyright in the Electronic Age
- SUL: Copyright & Fair Use: Articles and Publications
- United States Code Title 17 - Copyrights
From the Legal Information Institute at Cornell Law School
- U.S. Copyright and Genealogy
- U.S. Copyright Office
- Web Issues from The Copyright Website
- Web Law FAQ
- When Works Pass Into The Public Domain
-
 Who Owns Genealogy? - Cousins and Copyrights
Article by Gary Hoffman for Family Tree Maker Online.
My best advice in response to any of the topics below is to tell you to be sure and check out all sources and all sides of the situation before you jump to any conclusions and particularly before you forward misinformation to friends online.
- About Scams, Urban Legends & Other False Information
- The AFU & Urban Legends Archive
- Anti-Phishing Work Group
Phishing attacks use 'spoofed' e-mails and fraudulent websites designed to fool recipients into divulging personal financial data such as credit card numbers, account usernames & passwords, social security numbers, etc.
- The Bill Gates E-mail Tracing/$1000 Reward E-mail Message Is A Hoax
- Break The Chain
Help stop the spread of misinformation and junk e-mail by learning the facts about chain letters.
- Break the Chain: Stop Junk E-Mail and Misinformation
Information on the latest Internet chain letters, junk e-mail & hoaxes.
- CIAC Internet Chain Letters
From the U.S. Dept. of Energy, Computer Incident Advisory Capability.
- The Computer Virus Myths Home Page
- Data Fellows Anti-Virus Hoax Warnings Page
- Don't Believe Those Wild Net Rumors
By Teri Greene, Gannett News Service, from USAToday.
- Don't Spread that Hoax!
- Finding the location, identity, or affiliation of email senders
- FTC To Junk E-Mailers: "No Scamming While You're Spamming."
- HOAXBUSTERS
A public service of the CIAC Team and the U.S. Department of Energy.
- The Hoaxkill Service: Let's get rid of hoaxes now!
- The "90#" Telephone Scam Warning Is A Hoax
- On Spam: Wasting time on the Internet
(3/25/98) By Bill Gates.
- Spams and Scams
An online article from Family Chronicle Magazine.
- Stiller Research Virus Hoax News
- Stiller Research Widespread Virus Myths
- Trouble @ the In-Box
An article from the Federal Trade Commission.
- Urban Legends and Folklore
From About.com.
- Urban Legends References Pages: Inboxer Rebellion
- Virtu Software News - PASSITON Virus Terrifies Computer Users Everywhere
- Yahoo!...Urban Legends
Thinking of putting a genealogy web site online? Do you post family information on mailing lists or newsgroups? Are you considering publishing your family history research? Please remember your family members and their right to privacy before you publish any personal information or place it online. Use some of the software utilities below to remove any information about living individuals from your GEDCOM file before generating reports and web pages. Read the articles below for advice and current opinions on this topic.
Articles and other online privacy resources:
-
 Ancestry.com - Adventures in Cyberspace
From Shaking Your Family Tree by Myra Vanderpool Gormley, C.G.
- Ancestry.com - Exposing Our Families to the Internet
From Shaking Your Family Tree by Myra Vanderpool Gormley, C.G.
- Ancestry.com - Privacy in Genealogy : A Progress Report
By Candace L. Doriott. Genealogical computing v. 20.2 (Fall 2000). She is presenting the background regarding privacy issues in genealogy. She is discussing the attitudes and changes towards privacy issues. Includes a bibliography at the end of the article.
- Ancestry.com - Respect Privacy When Posting Family Information
Reminding researchers to be aware of the need to preserve the the privacy of living family members.
- Can You Be Anonymous Online?
Article by Mark Howells.
- Genealogy.com: Privacy and the Family Home Page
Maureen Taylor discusses tips she is giving to the reader. The tips are intended to help the reader to be a responsible genealogist. She poses three very important questions, How do they use the information you supply? Why do they need it, And is the information resold.
- LEGAL-ENGWLS Mailing List
For the discussion and sharing of information regarding the legal aspects of genealogical research in England and Wales including copyright, database rights, data protection, and privacy. Archives: browse or search.
- New Privacy Threat: Genealogy?
From Wired News.
- NGS | Genealogical Standards | Standards For Sharing Information With Others
National Genealogical Society's standards regarding the sharing of genealogical research between researchers. It prescribes the importance of privacy of living family members, but also respect of copyright and other people's work.
- Oxymoron : Privacy and the Internet / by Myra Vanderpool Gormley, CG
Discusses the importance of remembering to consider the privacy of our living family members while we are communicating online and publishing online our various works. This article is found on the St. Clair County, Michigan website with permission from the author.
- Privacy Issues - Cregan Ancestry
Free buttons for other genealogy websites to promote public awareness in regard to privacy issues and genealogy.
- Privacy Rights Clearinghouse
- Share and Beware - Sharing Genealogy in the Information Age
Article by Mark Howells.
- USNews: Home-page snoops
Article by Margaret Mannix.
- USNews: Stolen identity - It can ruin your credit. And that's just the beginning
Article by Margaret Mannix.
- Wanted: Dead Only!
From the Cregan Ancestry Privacy Issues web page, graphics for you to use on your web site to show that you respect the privacy of your living family members
Software:
- Dave Naylor's Genealogy Program GeDStrip
The GeDStrip program creates HTML web pages from a standard GeDCom (available as an output file from most genealogy database programs). It excludes all data about living individuals from those pages, as well as all links for the remaining individuals.
- GED2GO (GEDCOMs to go)
For MS-DOS, runs under Windows also. A utility program which automatically finds and removes living persons from GEDCOM files.
- GEDClean Home Page
For Windows. A utility used to "clean" info about living individuals out of a GEDCOM file in order to maintain privacy.
- gedliving
For Windows. Software that privitizes a GEDCOM file.
- Res Privata
For Windows. An easy to use application for filtering private data from genealogy database (GEDCOM or GED) files. It can filter birth, death, marriage, adoption, notes, source and other details.
A definition from NetLingo.
- Close Popup
Don't you just hate those popup windows from web sites at GeoCities and Tripod that have ads in them? There is a program for closing popups, available for PC users (sorry to the Mac people! If I run across one for the Mac, I'll let you know). Version 4.0 is $20. Download the program, unzip it and place a shortcut to the program in your StartUp folder so that the program runs every time you boot up your computer. It works like a charm! When I ran it the first time it said I was missing a Visual Basic runtime file: MSVBVM50.DLL. I wrote to the author and he said to download this file: http://www.ryanware.com/msvbvm50.zip. Unzip it and place it in the Windows\System directory on your hard drive. I did and it worked great!.
- eCleaner
A freeware application that helps you clean the ">" marks that accumulate after an e-mail message has been forwarded many times.
- How to Turn OFF HTML or RTF in Various E-mail Programs
Created for the mailing list owners to aid in maintaining RootsWeb mailing lists, but helpful for everyone.
- Show-URL Bookmark Utility
To organize, share, and print your bookmark files.
- Tucows Downloads - Download freeware and shareware software
Find utilities for bookmarks, pop-up ads, e-mail features, web browsers and more.
A definition from NetLingo and one from the ILC Glossary of Internet Terms.
A definition from NetLingo.
 Report a Broken Link / Update a Link
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Cyndi's List Blog
