FamilySearch announced that major updates and renovations made to the indexing function will be complete by July 2014.
For years the indexing website has been a separate program that users must download in order to participate in indexing. By July, the service will be embedded within the FamilySearch website. The changes are meant to help visitors to the site have a more positive experience in their family history work.
Michael Judson, manager of the indexing workforce, said that by embedding the indexing feature into the site, “Indexing will not seem like such a stretch anymore. It will seem like a natural part of what you do.”
Judson believes the changes will help make indexing easier for many.
“Most of our indexers are retired and are not the most technologically saavy individuals, so it has been really difficult to help them download this separate software,” he said.
With the new changes, anyone will be able to access the indexing site, where they can quickly learn about what indexing is and test drive the service. Visitors to the site will also be able to access news articles about indexing statistics.
Terry Dahlin, a family history librarian at BYU, is excited about the improvements to the FamilySearch website.
“The biggest problem that our users typically face is that the critical records they need to identify their ancestors are not readily available to them,” he said. “The new indexing program will make it easier for indexers to do their excellent work.”
Many new censuses, as well as birth, death and marriage certificates will be available along with other new improvements to the website.
Some of the other notable additions to the site include the ability to join multiple indexing groups, a Facebook integration feature as well as improved beginner experience and easier navigation across the website.
Those who access the indexing site will be able to view various projects that have been checked out and also find new projects they can work on. Site visitors will also be able to view FamilySearch indexing achievements over time periods and will also be able to view the progress of friends.
FamilySearch will be hosting a conference where more information about improvements to the sites will be discussed in February 2014. More information about the conference can be found at https://rootstech.org.
