Jamboree is coming and the app is available for download now! I am registered for both DNA day and for Jamboree. And as usual, the Jamboree committee has a wide array of topics, speakers and educational levels available to all who attends.
I will be there as an official blogger and I am so excited!
First, let’s talk about the App. One of the pluses I look for in deciding which convention to attend is whether or not they have an app available to it’s attendees. This is a very valuable tool when your busy going from one session to another and you’re looking where your next session is. What if you enter your next session and feel that it is not the right one for you? If you planned ahead, you would have selected your 2nd backup session and maybe even a 3rd. Now you can look quickly and see where your 2nd backup session is and get there quickly. I personally love using these apps and I believe SCGS was the first to have such an app created for it’s Jamboree convention. Here you can see a screen shot of my DNA day schedule.
I normally would have a 2nd or 3rd backup but not usually on DNA day, those sessions are ones that I really need to attend. I am hopeful that I will be learning a lot in each session too!
Next, let’s talk about my schedule at Jamboree. You see above what sessions I plan to attend on Thursday, DNA day, but what about the rest of the conference? Well, there are several including my backup sessions. Here I will only post the ones I believe will be very educational for me. On Friday, the first thing I have is Third Party Tools for Autosomal DNA by Blaine T. Bettinger Ph.D. I know this isn’t DNA day but this session was a special one, its 3 1/2 hours long and has special pre-requisites, it is also an extra cost for this class. I willing paid for it because I am at the point with my DNA results that I need direction in what to do next. This seemed like a logical class and I have heard from other convention attendees that Mr. Bettinger is an excellent speaker! Next, after lunch, I have Facebook: A tool for Genealogy Research by Thomas MacEntee. I have known Thomas for a few years and have learned about genealogy blogging from him at a few of his sessions in the past. I know that I will learn something new about Facebook in this session. The next session has me really intrigued. It is Generating Genealogy Blog Content by Michael John Neill. I know what you are thinking….I am already a genealogy blogger, I should know how to generate content for my blog. Well, if you look at my archive you will see that I don’t currently have a consistent track record for posting. I always have trouble with coming up with items to post about. I know I could post about my family and genealogy research but it becomes a problem if I want to enter NGS Family History Writing Contest or want to get certified by BCG. I don’t want to do anything wrong that would get me into trouble with either organization or prevent me from using the family members I post about as my subjects for the contest or the certification project. My next session is Choosing the Best Continuing Education Opportunities with Elissa Scalise Powell. I don’t think I have heard her speak before, but I am looking forward to her session. I am always looking for new ways to learn genealogical things and I believe that she will have some pointers for me. My last session for the day is Family History and Identity, Who does Your Family Think They Are? with Crista Cowan. The first time I heard Crista speak was at RootsTech last February. She was so funny and had the who room laughing. She imparted to use nuggets of knowledge while being funny at the same time. Ever since them, she has been at the top of my Must see Speak Again list.
Well, that is it for now. I will post my Saturday and Sunday schedule soon. I hope to see many of you at Jamboree this year. Who are you looking forward to seeing speak? Comment below and let me know.
As always,
