52 Weeks to Better Genealogy, Week 18

Here's the latest installment in a series of weekly tips to help you stretch your genealogy research skills, brought to you by Amy Coffin at the WeTree blog, and hosted by Geneabloggers. As part of this exercise, be sure to check out the Topeka Genealogical Society's Facebook page!

Dip your toe in the social networking pool. Genealogists are some of the friendliest people on the block. Networking with them by using “social” web sites will help your research and provide you with new friends. If you’ve never used social networking tools, this Social Networking in Plain English video by Common Craft is a good place to start. Picture the ways you can use social networking to meet and collaborate with other genealogists. Some of the more popular social networking sites are Facebook, Twitter and even Linked-In (though this site is more business-like in its purpose). You do not have to join these sites if you do not feel comfortable doing so, but you should at least know they exist and that they can benefit genealogy research. Those that are well-versed in social networking can refer others to the video. Bloggers are encouraged to discuss how they use various social networking sites in their own research.
This challenge runs from Saturday, 1 May 2010 through Friday, 7 May 2010.