Online help for findmypast.com, Ancestry.com and MyHeritage.com

A fellow blogger, John D. Reid, of the Canada' Anglo-Celtic Connections blog, pointed out a link to another blog entitled, "An Introduction to Findmypast's search tools." This got me thinking that the members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will shortly all have access to not only, findmypast.com, but also both Ancestry.com and MyHeritage.com. I figured it would be a good idea to provide some links to support and help pages for each of these programs.

findmypast.com
This is likely the least known of the three programs, depending on your prior genealogical experience and also depending on where you live. If you are from the United Kingdom, it is likely that you have heard of the program, even if you are not familiar with it. It is U.K. based and has million upon millions of records relating to the U.K. and more records all the time from the U.S.

Once you sign in to the program and try to begin using it, you may well need some assistance in understanding how it works. I would suggestion beginning with the step-by-step getting started guide. It may seem elemental to some, but it important to follow through each step so you can see how the program works. You will find that some of the suggested records are not included in your LDS Account access to the program. You may also wish to utilize over 75 videos on the findmypast YouTube.com channel. These tutorials and videos should give you a basic idea how the program operates.

MyHeritage.com
In order to get started with MyHeritage.com you will need to begin a family tree. Yes, this is in addition to your family tree on FamilySearch.org. If you have a program that synchronizes with Family Tree, such as Rootsmagic, Ancestral Quest or Legacy Family Tree, you can create a GEDCOM file and upload that file to MyHeritage.com. Once you have a family tree on the program and log in with your LDS Account, you should start receiving Smart Matches to other family trees with the same individuals and Record Matches to sources from the millions of records MyHeritage.com has online.

Links to MyHeritage's video tutorials and other resources are located at the bottom of the startup (home) page. There is a long list of video tutorials and articles from the MyHeritage.com Help Center. Just as findmypast.com has a series of YouTube.com videos, MyHertitage.com also has a sizable online library of videos. It also has its own YouTube channel.

Ancestry.com 
Although most experienced genealogists in the United States have had some experience with Ancestry.com, there is always a lot to learn about the website and its resources. Fortunately, Ancestry.com has an equally impressive number of online helps. With an LDS Account access to the program will include access to the Learning Center. In addition, Ancestry.com has a free download of over 33 Reference Guides. In addition to the impressive resources on the website, Ancestry.com has a YouTube.com channel with over 590 videos.

Please do not forget to ask for help from your local Family History Consultants. If they cannot help, you might want to let them know about all the help centers and videos available. You can also get help in a FamilySearch center around the world.