The graveyard-a nice spot for information

Maybe you like to research your ancestry. Perhaps you've discovered a long-lost rum-running uncle or a charismatic suffragette aunt. It's exciting to see what the past holds, especially when it's tied to you in some sort of way! There's places to go to get this sort of info. Here are a few resources to try:
Your public library-public libraries will have not only resources, but usually a guide on how to search for genealogical information.
Your local genealogical society-you may or may not have this in your community. I'm lucky to live somewhere that has one-the Seattle Genealogical Society
Ancestry.com  You will hit a pay wall pretty quickly on this site.
Cindy's List free, various categories
RootsWeb free, unless you decide to search through Ancestry.com
Genealogy.com free , but you will need to create an account
Ancestor Hunt  free, listing of search engines by category
Public Domain Genealogy -requires you set up an account (but free)

My personal favorite-Find A Grave! This website lets you search "over 47 million grave records". Try the "Famous Grave" search. It's fun!

This is a very basic list. There are lots of ways to find genealogical information. Talk with you local librarian to find out more. Genealogical research is complex and exciting. You never know what you'll find.

Market research, you're my hero!

Market research is amazing. Why? Because it is so strange. There's marketing info out there on everything. Everything. Who collects this stuff? Generally companies and governments are the places where the market research comes from (and goes to). The big player in market research is (of course) Market Research.com. This company lives to get data and put it together in palatable formats. And these reports are expensive. Just take a look at the price listed for the 2003-2008 World Outlook for Child-Oriented Mini Pizzas, Pizza Squares, and Pizza Novelties. (Did you even know that there was such a thing as child-oriented mini pizzas?) That $795 price tag is not a typo.

So what can you do if you need market research and you don't have a connection? Remember, governments also collect this type of data. In the U.S., that means it should be available to the public, for free. Take a look at the Market Research Library on the U.S. Commercial Service site.

Trade associations are another great place to find free info. They're promoting an industry so they'll have great data to share. For example, take a look at the Pet Food Institute. This site has a section just for researchers and media. You know what that means? That's right, data!

Now let's go back to pizza for just a moment. I did a Google search on "pizza industry" (w/o quotes) and I found this trade publication, Pizza Today. I found some interesting industry news here. There isn't much hard data, but there is some trending info within this industry, which can also be very helpful.

The thing to remember about market research is this-it's out there. Somewhere.

data, data, data!

This week I was reminded about the American Community Survey on the US Census Bureau home page. You'll find it under the American Fact Finder links. It's cool and you should take a look at it. Why? Because it's free demographic information! Who would need such a thing?
Let's see...

• Students!
• Job seekers
• Business owners
• Entrepreneurs
• Non-profit organization
• Grassroots campaign workers and volunteers
• Social services
• Retirees trying to find the best place to live
• Architects 
• Anyone who wants to see data on their communities!

Try it out! Play around with the categories and see what you can find out about where you live.