Issue 51.10
The updated version of www.familysearch.org has a few features that were on the previous version of the FamilySearch website that are no longer available. The IGI (International Genealogical Index) no longer exists as a searchable database. You can still find the records that were transcribed (extracted) from original records of birth, marriage, and death by searching in the Historical Records collections. The patron-submitted records are temporarily unavailable.
The Pedigree Resource File and Ancestral File databases are available on the new version of the FamilySearch website, but they work differently: You cannot upload a GEDCOM file for inclusion in the Pedigree Resource File. This feature is planned for a future update. You can no longer download GEDCOM files. You can no lo9nger display information from the International Genealogical Index, Ancestral File, or Pedigree Resource File on a pedigree or family group record. This feature will be added in the future. Information about living people, including their place within a family, is not displayed.
The Family History Library Catalog is now published only online. You can still purchase the catalog on compact disc, but it is several years old and will not be reissued. You can no longer search Historical Books directly. Instead, find the book in the Family History Library Catalog. If the book was scanned during the Historical Books project, its catalog entry contains a link that you can click to see the scanned book online. I think that is a great feature. You can search by author, type in my name and up will come my family history books and you can see the William Carter book online, very easily.
You can no longer download and print publications about how to do family history research. The information from these publications has been transferred and updated in the FamilySearch Research Wiki. Information from the Research Guidance and glossary features is also in the research wiki.
We also lost the ability to use advanced search to search websites containing useful information for family history. The site owners were not affiliated with FamilySearch. So just use a search engine such as Google to search for other family history sites. The site currently does not provide information about genealogical institutes, university and home study courses on family history, online genealogical presentations, and upcoming genealogy conferences. Much of this information will be available in future updates of the site.
Shanna Jones is a professional genealogist, now accepting new clients. For additional information, Shanna can be reached at (435) 628-4900 or shannasjones@msn.com.