California Genealogical Society blog: New Website Launched

The CGS Website Development Team has launched the new CGS website, with a new look and several new user-friendly features. Here is what you will see the next time you visit the site.

The menu bar across the top should be familiar. You can use the pull-down menus to access the content you are used to finding on our website. The SEARCH box at the top right has been improved to search our entire site–much more than it used to. Members can also LOGIN from the top menu bar.

We are pleased to prominently feature several ancestor photos on the new website home page. To see more ancestor photos, just click on any of these images; that will take you to the Members’ Ancestors photos page, where you can hover over an image to see the name of the person and/or who submitted it.

To the right of the three Ancestor Photos you will see a list of upcoming events. These will be updated regularly. You can scroll through the list and click on an image to go to the Eventbrite listing where you can register for an upcoming event.

Just below the photos you will see three large boxes: CLASSES & EVENTS, VISIT OUR LIBRARY, and SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS, each with a short description and links to the pages where you can read more details. Below that are three more large boxes.

From here you can view photos of CGS PAST EVENTS, go directly to the BLOG, or DISCOVER what’s new in downtown Oakland near our library, including a list of places to eat within one block.

Beneath that are three small GOLD boxes that link to CGS videos, let you sign up for our free E-news, or hire a researcher.

There is lots more, including some new features at the bottom of the home page. The SHOP page has been expanded to include the swag items that are for sale at the library. SUPPORT CGS/DONATE is new and explains different the ways you can help our society thrive. LEAVE US A SUGGESTION is also new. Feel free to make comments about the new website or any other topic. Your suggestions will go directly to the website team and be addressed. You will also find a link to our entire CALENDAR at the lower left.

You should find that the new site works much better than the old site did on phones. To report technical problems with the website look for the message at the very bottom and click on the link to the Webmaster. Also, note that in the lower right corner there is a link to our Sitemap. Clicking on this link will show you an outline of everything that is on the site.

The website team has worked very hard to complete this update. We thank everyone who has reviewed our content and offered suggestions and ideas for improvement. We hope you find what you are looking for easily and like the new look.