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Archiver > TMG > 2000-02 > 0949426837


From: "Bob Sawyer" <>
Subject: Re: TMG-L: A way to share material
Date: Tue, 1 Feb 2000 12:40:37 -0500


With so many asking to be included, I will put the topic on
the list. Since you each have different interests, the
following probably does not answer all your specific
questions. Just ask, please.

I write each booklet as a letter addressed to my three
children. Of the last five, the longest ones are 24 pages.
Using the booklet feature in WordPerfect, I print landscape
on a letter-size sheet, divided into two pages on each side.
Then I fold them in half and staple them. I bought a special
booklet stapler (and a box of 6" x 9" envelopes for mailing).

I produced one in larger, letter size format. The small ones
will not accommodate everything. The center two pages
of the booklet are a single uninterrupted letter-size page, and
I have put five-generation charts there.

TMG is often my reference, and I have printed charts for
booklets, using TMG and VCF, but TMG does not write the
booklet. I write it in WordPerfect. With a flat bed scanner, I
insert many pictures, maps, letters, and the like.

They are short enough so I do not get bogged down--never
lose interest. The idea is to make them brief so that my
children do not get bored. With all the pictures, I hope to
catch the eye of my grandchildren too. So far, they have
stimulated interest. The children ask questions and we get
into discussions about family history. In other words, the
booklets serve my purpose (g).

As I sort and catalog all this wonderful inherited stuff, I find
an item or a cluster of items now and then that jumps out as
a booklet candidate. I stop the sorting and produce a booklet.
Everything is saved on disk, so the material can be (and has
been) used later for something else.

One describes the small farm on which I grew up,
contrasting my childhood surroundings with those of my
children. Two others introduce grandparents. Another
includes images of a few diary pages written by my grand
aunt in her late teens as she cared for her dying mother. One
is in Q&A format and is a mix of topics. Several more are
started. All are crammed with pictures and other graphics.

It is easy and a lot of fun once you learn enough word
processing and desk-top publishing techniques. Sometimes
graphics give me a snag, but I work it out.

Questions are welcome.

Regards, Bob Sawyer



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