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Archiver > TMG > 2002-08 > 1028290120


From:
Subject: Re: [TMG] Re: Questionable Source Cites; Internet
Date: Fri, 2 Aug 2002 08:08:40 EDT


My opinion of Internet genealogy probably ought not to be expressed in mixed
company as we used to say. I don't really object to wrong information on the
Internet fammily trees etc. Wrong dope has always been with us. But, before
the Internet, when one of my correspondents and I were exchanging info by
phone or writing, there was usually a process of revision and correction as
we exchanged opinions. The info on the Internet never seems to get corrected
or revised. I went through all the Charles Tylers trees the other day on the
Ancestry.com site. I had done this several months ago and e-mailed several
folks with suggested revisions. I find that no one has bothered to correct
the information and there it still exists, misleading and confusing. The same
sort of thing occurs with DAR records. I have found several egregious
mistakes in DAR lineage reports. I notified the librarians at the DAR library
but for me to correct the record required a great deal of effort on my part.
I couldn't figure out quite why the DAR was not willing to correct their own
records but as far as I know the records remain to this day, misleading and
confusing and often just dead wrong. I implore anyone who publishes
information in whatever format to monitor that info, make sure it is current
and correct as possible, and remove it from the Internet when it becomes
obvious that it is too inaccurate to be revised into useful information. I
would suggest the same for the DAR but I have no hope that they will do
so-Dale

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