Carrie Ann Cook
Select Lecture Summaries

Maximizing photo handling in MS Word (7+) | Your World According to Google: A whirlwind tour of "What's in it for me?" | Photos are worth 1,000 words, but captions are important too | School publications - a valuable printed resource | Social media is a way to share history freely | Don't let the light go out on your history | Family History: Scout Badge of Honor | PowerPoint | Dress for Success... | Barnstorming with Brainstorming | Organized Blogs | Earth, Wind, Fire (& Water) | Publishing: Paper or Plastic? | Publishing for Pennies Electronically | Recording the Family Jewels | Are PC’s contagious and do I want to catch one? | What’s in a name? Vanity Publisher | Format: Backbone of a Book – What to Use? | What's in a name? Self Publishing | Clips & Tips Cutting the book size without cutting quality | Hybrid Books | Be Prepared! Manuscript Mechanics | Selecting a Long Term Publisher | Meat & Potatoes Websites | PR 101 | Money for Nothing: Making Money with Volunteers | Basic Branding | Hunting the Female Ancestor | Mining IPH | OK Land Run: Lockhart | Family history applied to the classroom | Okie Self Publishing | Celebrate Oklahoma History Today and Tomorrow

Maximizing Photo Handling in MS Word (choose version 7 through 2016)

Newer versions of Microsoft Office allow for basic "tweaks" without ever leaving your program of choice. Many basic users never stray beyond their word processing program (Word), but may be surprised that these techniques apply to most Office programs. Demonstrations include how to lighten, darken, position, recolor, crop and resize that can be used on any graphic (photos, documents, maps, etc.). If time allows, newer Word options such as basic artistic touches such as creating duotone photos and adding borders will be shown.

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Your World According to Google: A whirlwind tour of "What's in it for me?"

Google goes beyond "I'm feeling lucky" and toolbar searches: This tour stops at Scholar, Books, Maps, Gmail, Drive (Docs), etc. and provides a thumbnail of how they can help you (and your organizations).

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Family history applied to the classroom

Family history is a great way to make learning personal. Besides drawing the student into what their family would have been like in the past, it’s a great way to continue creating popular interest in Oklahoma’s past. An all-encompassing subject, family history lends itself to all subjects, standards, and learning levels. This lecture will outline the basics, show examples of multi-media and cross-subject ideas, provide further ideas for parent and community outreach, and identify some roadblocks possible in execution.

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Okie Self Publishing

Great states should encourage great literature. From family and civic history to cookbooks and fiction, Oklahomans have proven to be popular authors. Whether sold to a traditional Oklahoma publisher, or self-published (vanity press), publishing is an initiative that should not be discarded if a road block is encountered. Many authors don’t take the time to develop the network or skills needed to easily handle self-publishing.  This lecture addresses specific needs of an author, such as location, degree of service, type of materials and services, etc. as well as providing various Oklahoma publishers.

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Celebrate Oklahoma History Today & Tomorrow

Looking back at history, Oklahoman’s know how to get together and have a great time. Special events are a great way to increase popular interest and awareness in the community while having fun in the process. Planning for an event can seem like a huge task, but by breaking it down and organizing a great event can be accomplished with little “heavy lifting”. Planning from start to finish will be discussed, as well as a few examples of Oklahoma annual events as well as special “one of” gatherings.

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Photos are worth 1,000 words, but captions are important too

Is a box full of photographs the best legacy we can give the future? We should preserve photographs through proper storage and estate planning, but also consider the value of identification. A few ideas for informational captions, as well as other temporary ideas to make the job less daunting (when a photographer can spare the time to properly caption), will be noted. Who can honestly say they can identify all people in every group photo they are a part of? So, what’s the best time to caption photos? When the “whys and wherefores” are still fresh is a great solution.

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School publications - a valuable printed resource

Educational publications, especially in less settled areas, may be a community’s only printed publication: Newspapers that feature high school or cover an entire system, yearbooks, programs and more. While not as comprehensive as actual records, publications may be more accessible due to their production and the distance material may have spread. Many times these are overlooked as childish activities, while publications may provide further information than documented in records (if available). Many publications are, at best, surviving as keepsakes: They should be celebrated and preserved. Examples will be used to illustrate types of information that may be found.

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Social media is a way to share history freely

Because researchers realize that social media should not be considered an archival alternative – they may be the last to join the party. Given the availability and ease of use, social media can be a vital augmentation to sharing knowledge, images, and requests “with the masses”. User friendly interfaces have contributed to a large “customer base” that access social media with high historical content. Samples from Facebook and other internet sources will be used to show how this medium has increased participation and interest in both popular history as well Oklahoma history of interest to today’s participants.

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Don't let the light go out on your history

Do we do all we can to preserve history? Many people don’t realize this includes personal knowledge base as well as collections, and should extend beyond a given lifetime. Even historians need to step back and realize the extent they can contribute to history. This lecture will use examples of the wealth of information historians seek to learn over a lifetime. Too much of this information, not to mention valuable artifacts, are simply discarded, if not horded by those who inherit. Suggestions will be discussed for when “keeping it in the family” is not the best option.

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Family History: Scout Badge of Honor

Most scout badge work now includes genealogy. Even if not a scout leader, help children achieve success through your guidance. Information on various badges, fun ideas and what’s beyond will be presented.

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Hunting the Female Ancestor

Equality of the sexes has come a long way throughout history. However, researchers often lose the record trail of female ancestors quickly, as research extends back in time. The majority of evidence resources used first mainly record commonly accepted male activity and statistics, if not precluding females altogether. This makes the hunt for females more challenging. Resources for secondary proofs to build strong pedigrees, as well as reasoning with an "feminine eye" will be addressed.

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Mining for Rare Gems in the Oklahoma Indian Pioneer Histories

A valuable secondary source for history was produced in Oklahoma as a WPA project. This wonderful body of work has a full, free, online index and is at least partially available in a few places - freely - online. This presentation will explain what this data is, how to access it in Oklahoma repositories as well as online, and offer examples of the treasure.

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Oklahoma Land Run: Lockhart Case Study

This "in character" presentation is a personal chitaqua from a genealogist. The presentation is based on the Gregath ancestor Dora Bell Alexander Lockhart who was born in Cherry Valley, Illinois  1871 and went to Nebraska in 1878 with her family, before her husband, Joseph Josiah Lockhart ran  the Cherokee Strip September 16, 1893.

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Barnstorming with Brainstorming

Very few people today take the time to brainstorm.  Of the few that do, many don’t follow all the rules that make brainstorming work well.  This lecture will outline those rules and why they are important. Depending on questions, if time allows, the attendees may experience some practices. The summary will be an audience participation section determining if certain behavior is productive brainstorming or not – and why not.

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Earth, Wind, Fire (& Water)

Not all natural disasters can be planned for.  This lecture will explain basic techniques and materials used in disaster recovery, focusing on water damage.

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Publishing for Pennies Electronically

Many genealogists and family historians choose not to publish because they feel it would cost too much. This lecture explores how publishing electronically can be very cost-effective while being able to include non-traditional book items such as audio and video.

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Publishing: Paper or Plastic?

Genealogists and family historians realize the need to preserve their vital work as well as verified lineage and stories passed down through generations.  This lecture will compare and contrast emerging digital methods of preserving through publication with traditional book publishing.

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Recording the Family Jewels:
Organized Oral History Approach

Recording oral family information is often overlooked in the rush to get “hard data”.  Enrich your family genealogical information with an organized approach to recording stories and personal account information while mining for research road signs.

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Are PC’s contagious and do I want to catch one?

Does the personal computer (and Windows) phenomena seem like the spread of a virus?  Examine if you should “infect” yourself or your organization. Advantages and disadvantages for the individual as well as for groups or collections are examined.

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What’s in a name? Vanity Publisher
A Case Study: Gregath Company

Today’s vanity publisher can be a wonderful aid to the self-publishing author.  This topic covers all aspects of working with a publisher using Gregath Company, Inc. as an example.

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Format
Backbone of a Book – What to Use?

Producing a body of work:  Regardless of whether you sell or self publish, the work won't write itself.  This lecture is a general overview of what is involved.  We will also briefly discuss elements that may be skipped or combined.

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What’s in a name?
Self Publishing

Genealogists and family historians should already realize the need to preserve their vital work as well as verified lineage and stories passed down through generations.  This lecture will concern those who prefer to work through all areas of that publication rather than having someone else produce the publication.

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Clips & Tips
Cutting the book size without cutting quality

Many authors find their magnum opus to be too large.  This lecture discusses ways to cut the total size without losing focus.

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Hybrid Books
Offer (almost) everything you always wanted to in your book

This lecture will explain several different options on including material that one may not wish to place in a printed book.

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Be Prepared! Manuscript Mechanics

Many genealogists, who have been at work for years, assume a manuscript can be compiled in their sleep. Others are not sure where to start or proceed.  This seminar defines and discusses manuscript elements and preparation.

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Dress for Success & Your Audience

Some speakers overlook the power of their presence.  While a high school class may distrust a speaker in a suit, Friday casual may put one at a disadvantage to a group of senior citizens.  In today’s world where modes of dress differ more than ever before, this topic will discuss being a professional speaker, and when to cross the line and blend in.  Types of audience, venue, and subjects all play a roll in preparing ones image.  Basic differences and how to use them will be covered.

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Selecting a Long Term Publisher

Although all professionals publish, many don’t take the time to develop the network or skills needed to handle their own publishing.  We will address specific needs of an author, such as geographical location, degree of customer service, publisher focus and beliefs, type of materials and services, cost, marketing, etc.  While it may be easier now to search for the lowest bid for your current book, it will be easier in the long run to develop a good relationship with a single quality publisher for your future needs.

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Making PowerPoint Unique not Distracting - 2011 FGS/GSG Lecture

Don’t make a presentation hard to use, or hard to understand. Tips to use features sparingly: be known for your quality, smooth, and uncluttered presentation.

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Meat and Potatoes Websites

Whether a beginning researcher, an author, speaker, or other business person, websites are becoming as common as telephone listings. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to make or maintain a website. What all basic websites need, suggestions on how to get it done, and places to host it online are included. No bells and whistles here, just basic technique and resources for good site design and production.

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PR 101

This lecture is geared to inform beginners and reinforce with experienced people the power of basic promotion.  It works in direct correlation to how much effort is involved, however some time savers are included.

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Money for Nothing: Making Money with Volunteers

Volunteers are the backbone of any good work non profit groups do. Stalled on ways to use them as money makers? Several fund raisers, as well as volunteer management are presented. Presented in a straight forward and truthful manner. Click here to order companion book.

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Organized Blogs - Be a Standout!

Blog organization before your post will pay dividends for years to come. This lecture takes you from the basic outline of what a blog is, through areas of organization, illustrating with examples – both good and bad. Organizational elements begin with topic, extend through the server and software as well as overall format, posting frequency and length, and should even be concerned with blog related correspondence. From Original verses using recycled content, to monitoring and other elements with an eye toward organization are all touched on.

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Basic Branding - 2010 FGS/GSG Lecture

Branding is a basic often overlooked in today's marketing plan. Be it for a professional, business, book, or beyond, branding is an easy way to be recognized. What is branding and some specific suggestions will be given. Arm yourself with the tools to help others remember you.

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