Note/Comment Adding Capability on Records Page
On the Records Transcript Page there is the ability to make edits to existing fields. One feature that would be of benefit is a comments/note section where one can add a note regarding a record.
On occasion a record will contain more information than is currently recorded. Additional details could include grandparents, other relatives, and further details that may prove of benefit in finding more details regarding the family.
It is felt that by adding this feature: the overall research experience can be enhanced, doors to new discoveries become achievable, and data in records that does not conform to standard fields is then able to be taken note of.
Ancestry.com already supports something like this - its the public comments section and is accessible on any record transcript page.
Comments
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My Opinion: Rather than add Notes on the record/page FamilySearch allows Notes when attaching the record to a Tree profile. There could be duplication of Noted in both places - but should not be necessary. The record transcript should contain only the contents of the record - not the conclusions of the researcher.
There are indications of profiles to which the record is connected. That will lead to the researcher Notes.
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Interesting opinion - yes you are correct - the feature would open the door for researcher conclusions to be listed, that would definitely be a plausible risk of a feature like this. The intention of the feature though at its core is to record what is not listed on the transcript. Lets take a transcript for example that says John Smith is the son of John Smith and Mary Howards. That is a great transcript. But the record actually contains more, it says that John Smith's paternal grandfather is Henry Jones Smith and paternal grandmother is Herrietta Flinch. It further states that his maternal grandfather is Steve Howards and maternal grandmother is Elizabeth Waters. Also great details that may have not been included in the original transcript.
The alternative to this is Family Search offers the ability to suggest record correction to certain elements of a transcript. This already exists, but only for certain fields, not recommending new fields. Here is another example of something I have come across (also in this instance random names are used):
Jose Ferreira was baptized 14 Jul 1870. His father is Marie de d'Oliviera and mother is Joao Ferreira.
A closer examination of the record shows that the individual is Joao Ferreira - he was baptized 14 Jul 1920. His father is Mauricio Ferreira and mother is Rosa Martins. His paternal grandfather is Jose Ferreira and paternal grandmother is Theresa. His maternal grandfather is Joao d'Oliviera and maternal grandmother is Marie.
There is no real resemblance to the transcript that currently is and the actual record. Right now the method to be able to correct a transcript would be far too involved to undertake in order to correct the transcript. I am not positive what the correct solution for this is, but it is evident to me that a solution must eventually be determined. The original suggestion I provided here is a band-aid when put up against this second example and I feel may only resolve the concerns of what is not listed in the record.
In all actuality what I feel will be necessary in the end is a way for someone to submit an entirely new transcript - not one that is accepted right away - but one that can be approved by administrator. It would be similar to the process that exists when indexing. It would also require custom fields, things that could be manually entered.
I am not sure what the solution should be, I just know that a solution needs to be found. As things stand currently - it is not working to the fullest extent.
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Interesting thoughts and certainly brings up things that could be improvements to the record indexes.
A lot of the concerns here could be addressed rather simply by putting at prominent notice at the top of every record along the lines of:
Attention: this is not a historical record and it is not a source. This is an index and record finding aid. It is incomplete and likely contains transcription errors. Please base all research conclusions on the original record which is linked to below and not on this partial transcript.
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I wouldn't use the word "transcript" at all in reference to an index. That's not what it is, and not the purpose it is meant for.
Sources on FamilySearch all have a notes/description field, along with a reason box for attaching them, and a different reason box for editing them. (The latter is mostly invisible, but it exists.) I use the notes/description field All The Time, the reason boxes almost never. (I see no need to say that I'm attaching a source because I believe it to apply to the person.)
When something is badly misindexed, I make what corrections I can, if I can, but mostly I end up simply consoling myself that I found the record anyway. Then I add my transcription or translation in the notes/description field.
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