Beth said:

The biggest problem I have is with the World Connect databases we who
have them get our information taken by other indivduals and not
Ancestry. These started at Rootsweb and then of course they were
purchased by Ancestry.com.
---

Actually, the problem started before RootsWeb's WorldConnect
existed. World Family Tree was the original offender.

I have been a contributing subscriber to RootsWeb since it started. It
was originally a free, completely voluntary message board service to
allow researchers to post their interests and find others with similar
interests. It encouraged good research and sharing, not selling, the
results.

WFT (via Family Tree Maker) was a commercial outfit that invited
contributions of genealogical data. The firm did not verify any of the
information submitted or ask submitters to include source data. It was
more than cavalier in its (non)recognition of copyright. I believe
there was some sort of disclaimer that said the submitters vouched for
the originality of their work, but of course many of them completely
ignored copyright and freely stole others' work. WFT refused to allow
the original researchers even to view what it was selling without
paying a fee. It did not allow us to correct misinformation that had
been stolen from us, or to insert our copyright notices.

Ancestry perpetuates WFT's bad practices. It accepts submissions, for
which it pays nothing, and sells the information to its
subscribers. Ancestry is profiting from the effort and energy of many
researchers, including me, without even crediting them with their
work. This is piracy pure and simple, regardless of who does it.

For these reasons I will have nothing to do with Ancestry.com's
commercial ventures. The company has belatedly begun selling other
resources, such as censuses, that are at least secondary source
material not stolen from researchers. If it will cease profiting from
theft and copyright violations in its other materials, I will happily
retract my accusations.

The Mormon IGI is a similar hybrid. Genealogists should be
everlastingly grateful to the LDS for filming and collecting original
source documents such as parish registers, but should be extremely
wary of materials contributed to it by amateurs. The Ancestral File is
nearly as faulty as Ancestry's mishmash of family trees--use it ONLY
as a clue to finding original sources, NEVER as documentation in
itself. Learn the codes for IGI materials and order the films for
verifying what you find there. DO NOT cite the IGI as a source in your
own work.

RootsWeb is an entirely different matter. WorldConnect is free;
RootsWeb does not charge subscribers to post or to view
submissions. It prominently states that RootsWeb is not responsible
for the veracity of its contributors, and that users should verify any
information found there. It encourages inclusion of sources.

I suppose that if you're a Napster user or DVD pirate, you find
copyright merely a nuisance. It is not. It is one of the original
rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. Genealogists should
respect it.


Copyright 2003 Kathleen Much

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