tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-434701420960162731.post7938803540776238957..comments2024-03-19T11:37:07.200+00:00Comments on The GENES Blog: British Newspaper Archive's 3rd anniversaryChris Patonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05073425769475523109noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-434701420960162731.post-58223807683205898442014-12-04T08:18:04.119+00:002014-12-04T08:18:04.119+00:00If I too were a cynic I would agree wholeheartedly...If I too were a cynic I would agree wholeheartedly :)Len Huttonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-434701420960162731.post-59123807213687360752014-12-04T00:00:22.723+00:002014-12-04T00:00:22.723+00:00Thanks Len. If I was a cynic, I would say that put...Thanks Len. If I was a cynic, I would say that putting the first year and the last year up as an apparent range would suggest having more online than is actually there. But of course, I would only suggest that if I was a cynic....Chris Patonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05073425769475523109noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-434701420960162731.post-30703205496809265632014-12-02T15:03:04.287+00:002014-12-02T15:03:04.287+00:00I took this matter up with the BNA on Twitter and ...I took this matter up with the BNA on Twitter and to precis the conversation, I asked why this situation was the case.<br /><br />Their reply: ""Hi Len, the titles page shows the earliest year and latest year we have online for each title. We add years as soon as digitisation is complete as we feel this is more useful for customers than holding back an entire title. We’re working on a way to highlight current coverage gaps as we realise this can be frustrating. Thanks for flagging it, Len. "<br /><br />I suggested they add a line to their titles page explaining the situation in the interim. Their reply: "Great idea, Len. We'll pass your suggestion on to our technical team."<br /><br />No idea why they have not done this from the start. I hope they surprise me by at least adding some explanatory text soon but I shall not be holding my breath.Len Huttonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-434701420960162731.post-16057127916517327302014-11-30T07:54:22.669+00:002014-11-30T07:54:22.669+00:00It is a wonderful resource but the implication by ...It is a wonderful resource but the implication by BNA/FMP that the coverage is significantly more than the actuality is disingenuous and very misleading.<br /><br />Following Chris's remarks I digged deeper.<br /><br />For example, on BNA according to this page: <br />http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/home/NewspaperTitles<br />The Falkirk Herald has coverage 1845 - 1918 (and it was these dates yesterday)<br /><br />Yet in the last 48 hours according to this page:<br />http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/home/LatestAdditions<br />BNA have added the years 1875 and 1885. Just those two years.<br /><br />By looking at the latest additions page you can see the extent to which they are adding single years or smaller groups of years to the overall index.<br /><br />I do not understand BNA's logic for doing it this way as it does not help the researcher and is potentially very misleading. <br /><br />A brilliant resource spoiled considerably by implementation that is less than competent and where a company appears not to have its customers at the forefront of its mind.<br />Len Huttonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-434701420960162731.post-52227948495077426372014-11-29T11:14:36.551+00:002014-11-29T11:14:36.551+00:00A couple of years ago I noticed a gap in the '...A couple of years ago I noticed a gap in the 'actual' coverage for the Hull Daily Mail. When I asked them when it would be filled I was sent an answer to the effect that it would happen at some time in the future (no estimate of time was given). Similarly with the parent website at Find My Past I have suggested that they keep people informed of the progress of new record digitisation as a means of a) informing interested customers b) keeping customer loyalty. The reply I received was to the effect that such matters are commercial in confidence. They totally missed the point and this is what is happening with the British Newspaper Archive. The only glimmer of hope was earlier this year when Find My Past had upset its customers with a badly planned website change, but we are now getting back to the usual pattern. They (and most other online Genealogy companies) need to wake up and understand that their customers are interested and committed. Therefore many would feel more loyalty to these providers if they treated them not just as customers, but valued partners.Justinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07446665912244645771noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-434701420960162731.post-81911616739477299552014-11-29T09:59:57.713+00:002014-11-29T09:59:57.713+00:00Using the search engine is a bit frustrating, alth...Using the search engine is a bit frustrating, although it seems to have improved recently.<br />I agree with your comment about the site appearing to offer more than it delivers, but this is true of Ancestry and Findmypast as well. <br />Users should be aware that there is a lot of duplication. This is not BNA's faulty because newspapers constantly picked up the same stories, which can be tedious to plough through, but does mean that if the you are looking for hasn't been copied you may be able to find the story anyway.<br />Even so this is a key genealogical resource which every family and local historian should use.History Manhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05957731800013301004noreply@blogger.com