Tag Archives: smartphone

Group Effort

Our records continue to grow, and we couldn’t be more appreciative of our volunteers! We hope you’re having a great month capturing and transcribing images.

Have you gone out to the cemetery with a group yet? As you know, we highly recommend it. Not only does the picture-taking go faster, but it’s great to spend time with others in a worthy cause.

One BillionGraves user, Michael McCormick, headed up an event with his university church group. He tells us that at the end of each school year, the group likes to have some kind of gathering to celebrate. “Traditionally, we get together and have a BBQ,” he says. “Someone mentioned that we should do a service project as part of the closing social. A few people suggested ideas, and I suggested BillionGraves.”

A bit of training before the group gets started.

So the group, excited for this unique service project, headed to the cemetery on April 9.

Mobile Records Search is now FREE

From your Android or iPhone app, you can now access the Mobile Records Search for free.

The Mobile Records Search feature enables you to search for headstones on the go. While you are at a cemetery taking photos, you can search for specific names to find ancestors. When you find a headstone you want to view, tap on it, and you can view both the image of the headstone and a map of its location in the cemetery.

We hope you enjoy this great feature. To unlock this feature, tap on Records on the BillionGraves Home screen on your app. If you are having any problems accessing the Mobile Records Search, check your dashboard in the app to be sure you are signed in, then return to the Records view to begin your search. If you have any questions, feel free to contact support.

Users who purchased the records search (for $2.99) before it became free have been given a notifications package as a replacement for their purchase (a $4.99 value).

Linking Images

What if one of the headstones you come across has important information on the back? Or what if it’s an obelisk and has information on all four sides of the memorial? Remember, you can link images of the same headstone together while you are taking pictures with the BillionGraves app. Tap the link icon in the corner of the camera view in between each shot of the headstone you want linked together. So if you take a picture of all four sides of an obelisk, you will tap the link icon three times—in between each picture you take. Then, when the images are transcribed, all four images will be available on one screen for the transcriber to see. That way all the information for one headstone can stay together.

Android Compatibility

We’ve created BillionGraves with the intention that it would work on any Android device; however, not all devices support the BillionGraves app. Certain hardware and software combinations do not support the app, and some carriers cause certain phones to lose functionality as well. We’ve compiled a list of devices that we are certain support BillionGraves, and we’ve also created a list of devices that users have reported issues with. Please let us know in the comments your experience with your device—good or bad—so we can share that information with our users. Thank you for your comments.

Devices known to function correctly:

Devices that do not always function correctly (as reported by users):

Teamwork in Action

This weekend, a few of us here at BillionGraves were able to participate in an Eagle Scout Project hosted at a local cemetery.

The project was a huge success. Each volunteer had a great time providing service to their community. With everyone involved, the whole cemetery was recorded in less than an hour. Kind of inspires you to get a team going in your area, doesn’t it. (It should!)

This beautifully manicured cemetery was easy to navigate, and the volunteers worked diligently to collect headstone images.

The group was sure dedicated to their smartphones. It’s fun to come across unique headstones like these while taking pictures.

This young man put together a team of volunteers and organized an event all on his own, and the team knocked out an entire cemetery in a day. Like I said, you should feel inspired!

Recruit your friends and family and get your community involved in recording family history for others around the world. Teams can help each member feel motivated, share the burden of recording an entire cemetery, and make an afternoon at the cemetery more fun. Organize an event to record a cemetery together. You can refer your friends to our site to help them get registered and oriented.

We have an Eagle Scout reference packet as well as other reference guides on our site. Feel free to contact us with any questions you may have with regards to Eagle Scout Projects or organizing events—we would love to help you out.