The Worst Genealogy Blogs of 2012

01/10/2013

48 Comments

 
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January is the month when many genealogy and family history bloggers announce what they think are the best blogs of the previous year. I have read about a dozen such lists so far this month. And I agree with some choices and disagree with others. But we all have our opinions of what is good (and not so good).

So based on the title of this post, I suspect that you are anxiously waiting for me to list about a dozen lousy blogs. Hey, I may be dumb, but not stupid. I like to think that this blog has a bit of an edge to it, so I hate to disappoint you, but there will be no such list. But below is a list of what I consider to be the characteristics of a lousy blog or blog post:

  1. Your page has two sidebars full of so much extraneous garbage, that it distracts me from your posts and stories.
  2. You have so much stuff that you are trying to sell, that it is obvious that you are not really interested in telling a story, but are more interested in making a few pennies from affiliate ads and/or Google ads, etc.
  3. Your blog posts about your family history are so full of dates and facts presented in a non understandable sequence that I am lost after the second paragraph.
  4. You use the word "I" at least twice in every sentence.
  5. You include no photos.
  6. You have spelling and grammar errors all over your posts.
  7. There is no flow to your writing.
  8. You write for yourself and not for your audience and that is obvious.
  9. You leave the reader puzzled at the end of the post as to why they just expended 3 to 5 minutes reading it.
  10. You use so many different colors and fonts that it distracts from the flow of the article.
  11. You don't respond/reply to comments or worse - you don't allow comments.
  12. You write in a condescending way about how all genealogy researchers should conduct themselves.

I am sure that there are many more, but these are the characteristics that turn me off.

And finally, since this blog is only 3 months old, I didn't expect it to show up on any best list, but it is certainly not on the "Worst" list either. And this I know to be true!
 


Comments

Cheri link
01/10/2013 11:08am

Whew! I am a blogging newbie and was worried that there would be a list and I would be on it!!! Did I use too many I's in that sentence?!? Will take your list seriously! Thanks :)

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/10/2013 12:23pm

Cheri - you're good. This was meant as a piece of fun mostly, but we all have things that we don't like in blogs and these are just some of the ones that I don't particularly like.

Kenneth

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Devon Lee link
01/10/2013 3:24pm

I felt the same way Cheri. I use the I pronoun a lot! My grammar isn't always the best, but as I practice, I become better. At least, that's my hope.

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Philip Weiss link
01/10/2013 11:52am

You have no photos in this blog post.

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/10/2013 12:24pm

Well gee thanks Philip for pointing that out.

I ACTUALLY meant "Images" but I didn't write it - so shame on me.

Thanks for your input.

Kenneth

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Susan Bankhead
01/10/2013 11:58am

Great post! I would add that it's impossible to determine who the blogger is and what their background is. I want to know WHO's opinions I'm reading.

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/10/2013 12:25pm

Thanks Susan - that would have been a good one to add - for sure. I agree with you on that.

Kenneth

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Cheryl Palmer link
01/10/2013 11:59am

I was expecting my blog to be listed, for many other reasons you haven't listed yet! lol Love the post!

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/10/2013 12:28pm

Cheryl - you're safe. I wouldn't list anyone in public - that wouldn't be very nice. Besides your blog looks pretty good to me.

Kenneth

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Pam Schaffner link
01/10/2013 12:00pm

Looks like I made the cut....whew!

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/10/2013 12:30pm

Thanks Pam for reading - just a bit of fun with a few good hints for folks. Heck someone just pointed out that I didn't have a photo so I violated my own list!

Kenneth

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Jenny Lanctot link
01/10/2013 12:01pm

... and a typo.

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/10/2013 12:31pm

Jenny,

Yes typos (or spelling errors) are not attractive. Do I have a typo in this post?

Kenneth

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Jenny Lanctot link
01/10/2013 12:36pm

Yes, but just one (see #9). And it's still technically a word, so spellcheck wouldn't have caught it either.

Incidentally, I agree with a lot of what you're saying - but some folks aren't interested in getting more readers. They are blogging strictly for themselves (like keeping a research journal type thing), in which case it really doesn't matter what their blog looks like. On the other hand, those that DO write for others to read should definitely be mindful of all of these!

Celia Lewis link
01/10/2013 12:11pm

:) Good one, Kenneth... I also don't like it if I can't see the person's photo and their name on the blog post page. Cheers.

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/10/2013 12:33pm

Thanks, Celia. I agree - in fact I was trying to find the author of a new blog this morning and had to do some outside research to find out!

Kenneth

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Kathleen Reed link
01/10/2013 12:22pm

You just used one of the best devices for getting a lot of readers -- a catchy title. I certainly enjoyed reading your post. Keep up the good work.

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/10/2013 12:35pm

Thanks Kathleen. Yes I agree with your point. But it can't be a totally fake title all the time because readers will catch on to that ploy.

Kenneth

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Rorey Cathcart link
01/10/2013 1:00pm

Love the list. I like Celia's suggestion too. I'm not the least bit tech savvy but I've been trying to figure out how to add this to my sidebar on all three of my sites.

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/10/2013 1:22pm

Thanks Rorey.

I do not know who your blog host is, but I am certain that it should be fairly easy to add an image and a text box to the top of your sidebar as Celia suggested.

Kenneth

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Ginger Smith link
01/10/2013 1:04pm

Hi Ken, this is my first visit to your blog. Thanks for the laugh, but also for the reminder of the things I need to change in my blog. Although I do try to include photos, pictures, or images, whatever you want to call them - in my blog posts, I do not yet have a header image at the top of my blog, simply for the reason that I don't know how to do it. I don't subscribe to ads, so that's not an issue. I had to turn my comment moderation on because I nailed with a bunch of spam late last year, probably because I had stopped writing for a while. But I really hate comment moderation. I'm about to find out if you have it turned on your blog. I like that you respond to the comments left on your blog. That pleases me :-) So what is your secret? I see you get lots of comments...Is it your glowing personality? By the way, it's nice to meet you =)

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/10/2013 1:18pm

Thanks, Ginger.

Adding a header image kinda depends on who your blog host is. You are using blogger I see, so it should be easy. Just go to your blog in Blogger; choose "Layout" on the left menu and then find near the top the box that has (Header) in it. That will bring up a dialog box that allows you to upload an image. You may need to play with it some in order to have your image and the text displayed. But it can be done quite easily. I do not have comment moderation. If I get spammed, I just ignore it as long as it is just once or twice.

Nice to meet you also.

And I can assure you it is not because of my glowing personality. My personality certainly has little glow to it. :)

Kenneth

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Elizabeth Banas link
01/10/2013 1:58pm

Great post! I always linger on FB to see your messages. Wish I could add a smiley face to this comment.

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/10/2013 2:02pm

Gee thanks Elizabeth - what a nice thing to say. Compliments are truly appreciated.

Kenneth

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Loretta link
01/10/2013 3:59pm

(sigh of relief)
Thoroughly amusing but then mine is a genealogy blog, one of the few probably, that thrives on dark humor and sarcasm ;-) It did make me think of a gen blog I had been reading out of morbid curiosity. Thankfully that person got bored a month ago and stopped writing. I love that the genealogy world is big enough for each of us to find our own little niche and express ourselves.

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/10/2013 4:05pm

Loretta,

Thanks for your comment. I just checked out your blog and you do have a different way of looking at things, which is certainly welcome. My view is that we can't take this stuff too seriously. It's not brain surgery.

Kenneth

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Claudia link
01/10/2013 4:18pm

What bothers me sometimes are that the letters are too small to read without causing eye strain. Also sometime the color of the post and background class and that makes it too hard to read too.

You sure stirred up a lot of comments.

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/10/2013 4:26pm

Thanks Claudia for your comments. I guess people have many opinions about this also. Small type and bad color choices sure make it difficult - I agree. Sometimes bloggers don't put their "readers" hat on when creating blogs. And that's too bad, because they may have something important or interesting to say, but readability turns off the potential reader.

Kenneth

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Amy Coffin link
01/10/2013 4:49pm

Is it wrong that I'm guilty of at least three of these and kind of proud of that?

Thanks for the laugh.

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/10/2013 4:59pm

Thanks Amy - Heck I am guilty also, sometimes. Even when I published this - I had a typo and no photo, so even in this post (meant for fun) I was guilty of two of them.

Thanks for "getting it." Even a bit of attempted humor might teach a few folks some things to be cognizant of.

After your post about the SLA this week, you can be proud of anything that you want. That was an outstanding message.

Kenneth

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Kathleen link
01/10/2013 5:54pm

Hmmmm, some of that might describe some of my posts. I am not a writer for sure. I will keep that list close by so I can check myself!

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/11/2013 9:39am

Thanks Kathleen for reading. And I just checked out your blog and your writing looks fine to me. And you are brave enough to share your research as it flows. Lots of folks won't do that in fear of being criticized - so good for you!

Kenneth

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Deborah Sweeney link
01/10/2013 6:03pm

Thank you so much for that list! I may not have been blogging for long but I do know what works. As an elementary school teacher, poor writing, bad grammar and lots of typos turn me away quickly. Over crowded and busy pages are also a turn off as well as blogs that just regurgitate dates.

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/10/2013 6:09pm

Thank you Deborah for the kind words. I checked out your blog and I really like the WWII letter series. I am doing something similar in my family history blog, for 80 and 90 year old letters from Germany (but they have to be translated first and that is taking some time).

Kenneth.

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Deborah Sweeney link
01/10/2013 6:25pm

Thank you. I do not envy you the added step of translating the letters. But it sounds very exciting!
I also wanted to add that I got that you were being humorous. :) I think I came off sounding rather like the grammar police!

Wendy link
01/10/2013 7:07pm

Whew! I thought you might be naming names, so I was a bit worried, being a newbie. :)

(I do understand it was in jest)

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/11/2013 9:35am

Thanks Wendy - I had no intention of naming names. And wouldn't want to be criticized as the "genealogy police" - that's for sure. Thanks for reading.

Kenneth

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tanya
01/10/2013 7:34pm

Well Kenneth
We need a post on how blogs look different on each computer. Your numbers that someone commented about show up as single digits on my Firefox (0 instead of 10, 1 instead of 11) I'm sure it is a setting for my computer that is messed up but I'm not fixing it.
Anyway, my worst blogs:
Huge paragraphs with no breaks and in small print. Then when I try to enlarge it I have to tab back and forth sideways to read the Blog.
Blogs that only repeat what other Blogs are talking about and never have any original content.
And I would follow more blogs but I prefer "Follow by Email" instead of RSS, iCloud, or whatever as an option.
Usually the blogs with Links to Facebook, Twitter and several others are trying to sell something.
My grammar is not the best and my writings are scattered but I think it is more important to get it written down somewhere.
You did great with your post, got my attention and has useful content in my opinion.
Keep up the good work.


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Kenneth R Marks link
01/10/2013 7:42pm

Thanks Tanya for your ideas. I have investigated IE, Chrome and FF and they all act the same although you are the second person who as commented on the leading "1s" not displaying in FF. Strange.

And I agree with you - the most important thing is to "get it written down"

Kenneth

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Tanya
01/10/2013 8:01pm

Computer settings are all different it seems. That is why I go to the library and check out my blog without signing in so I can see how it looks on another computer.
I had to change the colors a couple times as my computer had different shades then the library computer.

Deborah Ruth
01/11/2013 2:52am

Must admit to being a wee bit hesitant about clicking on the post. Curiosity overcame caution! The comments are just as entertaining. Lots of food for thought. See not an "I" thus far! Thanks for another great read.

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/11/2013 9:33am

Thanks Deb for reading and complimenting the post. I appreciate it.

Kenneth

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Donna Peterson link
01/11/2013 8:54am

Great post Kenneth! Really made me laugh. Wandered around your site for a while and love your links page, Could I borrow your idea of describing the links for our group's website at scvagschertz.weebly.com?

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/11/2013 9:32am

Thanks Donna for the compliment. Of course you can use the same idea for describing your links in your site. And thanks for asking.

Kenneth

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Mariann Regan link
01/11/2013 10:17am

Wow! Kenneth, you surely did get a lot of comments on this one! I agree with you on all these points, some more than others, This is an insightful "admonishment" to blog writers, although as a writing teacher I've found that people listen more fully if you point out what's good about their writing first. Many,many people seem to be terrified of writing! Putting themselves out there on paper.

I especially agree about #2 and #12, which make the reader feel like a third wheel instead of an interactive responder. Your #1 point is interesting. The sidebars have always puzzled me, and I don't know what I'm supposed to put there. People seem to put blogrolls, their certification logos, prizes, all sorts of things. Every time I see a full sidebar, I think, "Oh, I should do something that." But haven't even got around to figuring out how to do that yet, which must be absurdly simple in the blog software. Your comments give me pause -- maybe the most important things about a blog are that it flows, that is smooth to read and understand, and that you're writing to an audience. Your blog made me think!

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/11/2013 7:49pm

Thank you Mariann. Actually if I had written something like "Points to Consider when Laying Out and Writing Your Blog" hardly anyone would have read it. But the title got the attention. There are several ways to get people to read things I think.

Actually this was meant in fun - with a few hints and tips to think about - that is all that it is. Nothing profound or serious - that is not my style.

I have no problem with sidebars - I have them in all my blogs - but I think when you have your writing/posts surrounded by very busy sidebars - it diverts attention form the "meat" of the site and that is the writing. But to each his/her own.

And your second to the last sentence is THE most important in my view.

Thanks again.

Kenneth

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Mary
01/12/2013 7:03am

Just want to say that your writing is a pleasure to read.

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Kenneth R Marks link
01/12/2013 7:07am

Gee thanks Mary. What a nice thing to say.

Thank you,

Kenneth

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