data straight through

As we all know, the field of genealogy is changing at lightening speed, especially in respect to technology. Along with these many changes and innovations come new and often unfamiliar terms. One term that has come into use that may rather difficult to intuit, is data straight through, a way of managing data to dramatically increase efficiency and the speed of delivery.

Data straight through is a process utilized by FamilySearch in digitizing the LDS genealogical archives stored in the Granite Mountain Vault. As opposed to the time-intensive task of indexing, the process of describing the records up front and then associating those description with images as they are digitized, allows images to be published and made usable immediately. Waypointing is the method used to help users navigate these unindexed records. Indexing, of course, will continue, and not all records will utilize the data straight through method, but it does provide a shorter turn-around time, allowing more collections to be made available sooner.