A couple questions about the Honor Code

Question

I have two questions about the Honor Code before signing it.

Regarding point #7, which says to give credit: Do I need to worry about giving credit to relatively close family members (mother, grandaunts, etc.) who have done research/compiled information and handed that down to me? Much of it is in the form of unmarked notes and random records. I've generally sourced it either as the record itself or as "Family genealogy notes" up to now, but I'm not sure if that is sufficiently specific.

Second, with point #9, what exactly am I committing to? Does "free and open" with information apply just to that information I share on the site, or am I committing to putting everything out there (with the obvious exception of private information)? My intent isn't necessarily to be stingy with info, but I would like to reserve the right to upload only the information I choose.

Sorry if I'm overthinking all this, but the Code seems to be taken pretty seriously here, and I'd like to understand what I'm signing. Thank you in advance.

Comments

Regarding point 7, yes give the credit. I used some internal family trees in the beginning but I have been replacing them with publically available sources where possible. As more and more people look at this data and your data, you will get some messages. Most are kind. But some will challenge you and occasionally they can be downright rude and demanding. The code is to protect you. Following it will make your experience better.

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In addition to Gurney's comment, also see Help:Sources. There is a format provided for both verbal types of second-hand information, as well as documented, such as in the case of a Family Bible. As long as your citing something, give the credit!

As an example:

[[WikiID-1|Person's Name who did the research]]. 'Surname' Family Research. Date (or Date unknown). Currently in possession of [[Example-6|John Example]]. Includes names, birth, and death dates of family members from 1878 to 1946.

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Thank you both for your comments. I appreciate the input.

Answer 1

Jared, hi and welcome. Point 9. I think free and open means whatever info you put up will either be open (for deceased relatives) or become open upon the death of living relatives. When you open a profile all living people connected to it remain private.

Point 7. Yes you should give credit. Even if the credit says ‘ info as told to xy by ab on this date’ or ‘writings of ab handed down to xy on this date. This allows others to see where it comes from and they might have more to add that would improve the profile.

Comments

That said, we prefer verifiable primary source details to "grandma told me so" or just saying "birth certificate", so if you can give reference number and repository details, someone else working on that surname can look and see if this person fits in their tree.

For example: England and Wales Births, Loughborough district, 1881, quarter 2, volume 7, page 345 would be better than "birth certificate".

On point 9, there are varying degrees of open privacy, so you don't have to worry about giving too much away on deceased individuals with living offspring as you can choose an appropriate level of openness by going to the privacy tab and selecting a privacy level.

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Thank you both for your comments. I do agree that primary sources are better than family stories. However, does point #7 require that I give credit to others who did the research before me, even if I'm not actually citing their writing? For example, I have a lot of written information from my grandaunts, some pointing explicitly to certain records and some giving information that can be used to locate original records. Is it enough to cite the records themselves on a profile, or is that a form of plagiarism? I don't want to be guilty of passing someone else's work off as my own. On the other hand, it seems like a monumental task in some cases to credit everyone whose work/information has led me to a given conclusion.

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You should always be willing to give credit because without the information given to you by others your research would probably not be as far along as it is.  Instead of listing all names state that numerous family members contributed and sources to specific information will be given on request.

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I would suggest you find the records on a website, in a book etc and cite them.

At the bottom of the bio you can mention family members that contributed under the heading Acknowledgments.

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@Carolyn

I certainly do not mind giving credit. I'm more just confused on how to go about it, although these comments have helped somewhat. I'm realizing sources and credit are distinct. Sources are fairly self-explanatory. As for credit, then, do you think it would suffice to leave a disclaimer/acknowledgment on my home profile, mentioning the people whose work I have either uploaded directly or built upon? Or would it be better to post a similar acknowledgement on each and every relevant profile?

And to everyone who has commented, thank you again. I realize how frustratingly uninformed I must seem.

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As Carolyn said , you can put an acknowledgment on the bio thanking family etc without naming individuals.

 You could add a link to one profile where you have a detailed explanation.

Answer 2

The prior answers seem adequate to me. I do want to say that it is admirable that you're taking the Honor Code seriously, and asking for clarification. Asking how to do the right thing is almost always a great idea.