FamilySearch has completed digitizing its 2.4 million rolls of microfilm

aguilar david 1

If FamilySearch has completed digitizing its 2.4 million rolls of microfilm do we still need the machines in FamilySearch Centers? should we keep the machines even that no one is using ? Is there any PFD Documents to show us how to get rid off the machines ?

does not make any sense to keep machines and microfilms in FamilySearch Centers

Please answer, thanks

Julia Szent-Györgyi

If you have any films that still have the film-reel icon in the catalog (which now indicates "not online"), then I think it makes sense to hang on to those films and the machine for viewing them. (It would be good to have an inventory for your center's film holdings somewhere online; perhaps you could add one to your center's page on the research wiki?)

Áine Ní Donnghaile

In addition to Julia's excellent suggestion, do you have any patrons who use the machines to view their own microfilm reels? Some newspapers and other entities have/had the option to BUY a copy of a year or years of films. Not everyone can afford a personal machine.

Paul W

My local Affiliate Library inherited over 57,000 rolls of microfilm when the local FHC no longer wished to maintain readers. They can prove especially useful when digitized material is restricted - e.g., only available at Salt Lake, or (relevant to us "non-LDS") if the digitized versions are restricted to viewing by LDS Church members only.

(Relating article at https://www.family-tree.co.uk/news/london-family-search-centre-microfilm-collection-moving-to-a-new-home/. A little out of date, though, since the SoG has since moved premises and there isn't any availability to the microfilm material until their new library becomes fully operational.)

Chas Howell

@aguilar david 1, here are couple of Groups you may be interest in joining

https://community.familysearch.org/en/group/76-familysearch-center-technical-support-for-leaders-and-staff

https://community.familysearch.org/en/group/58-familysearch-center-consultants

MaureenE123

I fully agree with the comments above.

However from a practical point of view, the Center needs to have a functioning microfilm reader, which may be difficult to repair in the future as this equipment becomes more obsolete, and also staff who are experienced with the microfilm reader who can give assistance to researchers who want to use the reader.

Years ago, when I was looking at microfilms regularly for months, I often had problems loading the microfilms (clumsy fingers) and frequently needed assistance from the staff.