Out on a Limb: Getting Together

Genealogy can be a lonely pursuit if you let it: Much of our research activity involves searching Web sites, scrolling microfilm and scanning books in relative solitude. But family history is so much more satisfying when you have kindred spirits to share your genealogical triumphs, trials and discoveries with.

That’s the philosophy we’re embracing as Family Tree Magazine enters its eighth year of publication. We want to help you learn and enjoy your hobby not just through our articles, but also from one another. To that end, we’re excited to introduce a brand-new tool to bring our community together: the FamilyTreeMagazine.com Forum <forum.familytreemagazine.com/forum>. Our online bulletin board is your place to chat, swap research hints, post queries and network with your fellow Family Tree Magazine readers, as well as our editors and experts.

The forum also allows you to enhance and expand upon the content we print. Within various articles, you’ll see invitations to share your ideas and comments on the topics at hand — we’ll even include some in future print editions.

Speaking of print editions, this one debuts several new columns: History Matters looks at how long-ago trends and innovations affected our ancestors. (You now can find living history and genealogy events online in the Calendar area of our forum.) Test your genealogical — and humor — quotient with our Uprooted celebrity family tree quiz. And get reading recommendations from genealogy gurus in The Book Report. Beginning next issue, contributing editor Maureen A. Taylor will tackle your real-life research dead ends in Brick-Wall Busters.