Lesson plan
Tiny Tafel
The Tiny Tafel format [tye-nee tahf-uhl] provides a compact way of describing the main surnames found in a family genealogy, which can be read by humans and matched by computers using a Tafel Matching System. The Tiny Tafel lists the Soundex encoded representation of each surname (to allow for matching surnames with spelling variations), accompanied by a corresponding range of dates and locations associated with the surname. Many genealogy programs can produce Tiny Tafel reports. Tiny Tafels were traditionally posted to public forums, such as a BBS (Bulletin Board System) and are still regularly used today with a number of internet sites that provide a Tafel Matching System, in order to indicate whether two genealogical databases have a probable connection or overlap. Paul Andereck, former editor of Genealogical Computing magazine, proposed the idea and the specification was developed by Commsoft in 1986.
Article summary
The Tiny Tafel format [tye-nee tahf-uhl] provides a compact way of describing the main surnames found in a family genealogy, which can be read by humans and matched by computers using a Tafel Matching System. The Tiny Tafel lists the Soundex encoded representation of each surname (to allow for matching surnames with spelling variations), accompanied by a corresponding range of dates and locations associated with the surname. Many genealogy programs can produce Tiny Tafel reports. Tiny Tafels were traditionally posted to public forums, such as a BBS (Bulletin Board System) and are still regularly used today with a number of internet sites that provide a Tafel Matching System, in order to indicate whether two genealogical databases have a probable connection or overlap. Paul Andereck, former editor of Genealogical Computing magazine, proposed the idea and the specification was developed by Commsoft in 1986.
Key claims
No claims recorded.
Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
Bibliography
No sources recorded.
Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.