The news includes:

· RootsMagic has more than 40 free online classes in the form of recorded webinars at its website.

• MyHeritage announces:

o They have added 900 million records to its global digital archive.

o They have added millions of new records from Scandinavia, including the 1930 Danish census and the Swedish Household Examination Rolls from 1880-1920, with more scheduled for addition this year.

· Their Family Tree Builder software is now available for the Mac, and a native Mac version is in the advanced stages of development.

· The Federation of Genealogical Societies has announced several important items:

o Registration is underway for the FGS 2015 Regional Conference in Syracuse, NY, on 17-19 September 2015.

o The FGS Alaska Cruise sails from Seattle, WA, for its voyage on 28 August through 4 September 2015.

o The Call for Presentation Proposals for the 2016 FGS Conference in Springfield, IL, has been released. Proposals are due by 10 April 2015.

· Findmypast has made a number of important announcements recently:

o Listen to the podcast for specifics about Findmypast’s fee access to all records this coming weekend.

o They have released 2.5 million new British newspaper articles to their collection; British Army Bond of Sacrifice records; East London Marriages; Derby Railway Servant’s Orphanage Registers; Irish Poverty Relief Loan records; British Merchant Navy WW1 Medal Index Cards; Dorset BMDs; and another 101 million US, UK, and Australian records.

o The company has partnered with the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society to bring wider access to New York records.

o They have announced a partnership with BillionGraves to bring more than 12 million grave marker indexes available.

o The company has begun offering DNA testing to its customers through a new partnership with FamilyTreeDNA.

· The British Library has opened its new National Newspaper Building for long-term archival storage and retrieval at Boston Spa, West Yorkshire.

· The National Library of Ireland ahs announced that it will give free online access this summer to its Catholic Church Records collection, the earliest of which dates back to the early 1700s.

· Ancestry.com has announced major developments for 2015:

o The website will receive a new and easier to use look.

o It’s iOS mobile app will introduce a full search feature to access their more than 15 billion records online.

o The company will launch Ancestry Academy in April 2015 with excellent educational videos on a wide array of topics.

o AncestryDNA is being improved in the US and UK markets, and AncestryDNA is being launched in Australia and Canada soon.

o Later this year, Ancestry will announce resources for users in Germany and Mexico.

o Many new record collections are planned for launch later this year for the US, Australia, and the UK.

• FamilySearch has made many announcements recently:

o The FamilySearch Discovery Center was recently opened in Salt Lake City, and others are planned for around the US.

o FamilySearch ahs announced a multi-year collaboration agreement with the New England Historic Genealogical Society

o Drew highlights the millions of new records added in the last month to FamilySearch.

o The Family History Library has announced its free on-site classes for March. You will want to check the schedule each month if you plan to visit the library in Salt Lake City.

Listener email includes:

· Kari has a question about ships’ passenger records for her 2X-grandmother whose ship sank coming from Denmark in 1889 and whose passengers were rescued by another ship, then sailing to Philadelphia.

• Timo shares links to:

o Bremen Passenger List at http://passagierlisten.de

o Oldenburg [Germany] Emigrants at http://www.auswanderer-oldenburg.de

o Both sites can be translated to English using Google Translate.

· Jim and Timothy share information about new genealogy mystery books/stories/novellas available.

· Jenny asks why there are no Greek records at the FamilySearch.org website.

· Several listeners responded with comments about Find a Grave and the ability to add records for persons who were cremated.

· Connie comments about cemetery photographs, Find A Grave, and copyright.

The next episode of the podcast will focus on the theme of Using Newspapers for Your Genealogical Research.