SpringBoard, an official blogger for the 2015 NGS Family History Conference, is pleased to offer a review of this Skillbuilding lecture, presented Thursday, 14 May 2015:
T241: Alison Hare, CG, "Building Better Citations," reviewed by Michael Ramage, J.D., CG
Alison Hare, CG, presented a most insightful session on the art of constructing citations.
"Whistler Peak's Inukshuk," by John Johnston, is licensed under CC BY 2.0, detail.
The emphasis of this talk is reference notes, as they are oft used in genealogy. From creation of notes to the placement of citations in writings, it is covered here. She starts out with an image of an ancient Inukshuk, which Alison shows us is analogous to the use of citations: the columns should have the strength to hold up the manuscript.
After going through the must-have books (Genealogy Standards, Evidence Explained, and Mastering Genealogical Proof), Alison provides useful “basic principles” in a very clear, concise manner. She presents the parts and common elements of citations, and provides visuals that add to the learning experience. For example, her slide “Internet citations: the core” breaks down the subject matter to its most understandable elements.
All of the major aspects of citations are covered in this talk. A discussion on source quality gets to the proper methods to express the reliability of various sources.
Editorial tools, common elements, convention and logic, layers, consistency, and precision: they are all covered here. Thank you, Alison.
A recording of this lecture may be ordered from Jamb Tapes, Inc.
CG, Certified Genealogist, CGL, and Certified Genealogical Lecturer are service marks of the Board for Certification of Genealogists, used under license by Board-certified genealogists after periodic competency evaluation, and the board name is registered in the US Patent & Trademark Office.