RootsTech 2013 - Day Two - Episode Two

It is amazing what is going on here at RootsTech 2013. There seems to be an endless stream of interesting people to talk to and discover new opportunities. Right now I am sitting in a panel discussion for the Family History Information Standards Organization or FHISO. This is the core of one of the main issues in genealogy today, the ability of all these desktop computer database programs and the online family tree programs and the online data base programs with respect to the sharing and transfer of data files including text, images, audio and video. The atmosphere in the room could be described as tense. On the panel are the following:

• Robert Burkhead - FHISO
• Bruce Buzbee - RootsMagic
• Joshua Harman - Ancestry.com
• Drew Smith - Federation of Genealogical Societies
• D Joshua Taylor - brightsolid

This is a necessary and interesting topic. There are, of course, other organizations thinking about and working on approximately the same issues, but this particular effort has attracted some of the larger genealogical commercial organizations. One question for discussion is where FamilySearch stands with regard to the establishment of a standard. There will be a lot more about this organization to discuss in the future. Since I originally got nominally involved in the BetterGEDCOM organization, I was interested when FHISO was established as, what appeared at the time, as a response to BetterGEDCOM. But, after some discussion I do not see their goals as opposites but rather as complements. I don't think this should be or is an either or proposition.

In addition, I have had a very productive interview with Elaine Collins, Business Development Director, for brightsolid (findmypast.com). There will be more about that in the future. I have a huge backlog of writing over the next few weeks to resolve.