RootsTech 2014

Conference season has begun!

Rootstech 2014 is my first stop for the year and I’m super excited. I will be squeezing in a bit of research (mostly for clients) and otherwise am focusing on genea-friends and finding the most interesting tech subjects possible for joy and learning.

You can read about previous trips here and here. To recap, my rule of thumb for this conference is to stick to developer level classes where I’m more likely to test my tech-loving brain. Don’t get me wrong — I won’t understand all of what’s being taught, but I’d rather stretch than be bored.

Otherwise, as with other conferences, My focus will be good speakers and colleagues, where learning is more organic and I can soak up the excitement of others to sustain me through the year.

One different thing for me will be the society hat I’ll be wearing (figuratively speaking of course — I’ll actually be sporting an awesome burgundy felt hat on most days). My new role of Vice-President of the California Genealogical Society means I’ll be thinking about how info from classes will help my society. I also heart The Next Generation Genealogy Network and am co-hosting a meetup with other like minded folks at the Marriott after classes end on Thursday. If you are attending the conference and like to be around other digital natives, come join us (we might even have a surprise or two).

If you aren’t trekking to snowy Salt Lake City, make sure to check out the live-stream of select classes. Here is the schedule.

RootsTech 2013: Day 1

Thursday is the day when time everything is fresh. Many attendees meander in as they arrive in the area and get through registration. After the Keynotes, the RootsTech folks have kindly given us a break just to explore the Expo Hall.  Then classes begin.

Friday is the developer day, so I might choose a little chunk of time to head to the library on Thursday just to work on a problem. But you’d be hard pressed to find a good time in the schedule for any such research. This probably means that if a class bores me early on, I may just book to get through a roll or two of microfilm.  But, instructors, no pressure!

Continue reading RootsTech 2013: Day 1