As genealogists, we have wide-ranging options in the production of our research notes so wide that many are baffled as to what these options actually represent and when one is the most appropriate. Photocopies Photocopies are the ideal choice, when working onsite at a distant repository. Yet, the ideal is not always practical. Duplicating machines are not always available. Oversized or fragile materials often cannot be copied.
Some repositories impose prohibitive costs or limit the number of pages.
Depending upon memory, such a camera can capture dozens of images in a single session, then download them into our computers as graphics. Transcriptions Transcriptions are verbatim copies that exactly duplicate spelling, punctuation, and all other aspects of the original. They are also time-consuming and, thus, are not a popular option for researchers with limited time onsite. Two situations compel the careful genealogist to invest the time. The rigamarole we skip over can have critical implications for our research, a point recently explored in a pair of articles in the National Genealogical Society Quarterly .