Questions and answers

In a living area, in the dark, away from radiators, windows and exterior walls. A basement, balcony, attic or a closet next to the bathroom won't work: temperature and humidity swing widely there, and it's precisely these swings that harm paper and photographs the most.

Not necessarily. If the album is intact and the pages aren't crumbling, leave the prints where they are: the order the compiler chose is part of the story too. Remove only photos held down with adhesive tape that is damaging them, and only if they come away without any force.

Remove them carefully: metal rusts over time and leaves stains, and rubber bands dry out and stick to the paper. Use paper envelopes, folders or clean sheets between documents instead.

If the paper is flexible, you can carefully unfold the letter and store it flat in a folder. If the sheet is cracking along the folds or crumbling, leave it as it is and don't reach for an iron: it's better to photograph the letter folded than to tear it.

A scanner gives even light and doesn't distort the shape of the print, so it's more convenient for loose photos and documents. A phone comes in handy when photos are glued into an album or when you simply don't have a scanner. Either way, what matters is clean glass or a clean lens, even light and no glare.

No. A digital copy depends on the storage media and on whether the files themselves survive, while an original that's stored with care lasts for decades. Paper also holds things a copy can't fully convey: handwriting, stamps, writing pressed into the page.

Come up with one rule and use it for the whole archive: for example, an approximate date, a surname and a couple of words about the subject. Don't keep the names the camera generates; they tell you nothing about what's in the photo. Name the back the same as the front, with a note added.

At least two, on different drives and in different places. Ideally one of them is kept outside your home, for example with relatives. Once a season, open the copies and check that the files still open, and when you replace your devices, move the archive over right away.

Start with yourself, your parents and their brothers and sisters, then your grandparents. Write down what you know for sure, and then ask your relatives: full names, approximate dates, where people lived and what they did for a living. Next to each piece of information, note who it came from.

Write the information down as you have it and add a note next to it: “approximately,” “according to my aunt,” “needs checking.” If two relatives tell you different things, record both versions and note who said what. Notes like these don't spoil the tree; they make it honest.

Yes, archives accept requests from the public. In Russia, their work is governed by Federal Law No. 125-FZ of 22 October 2004 “On Archival Affairs in the Russian Federation”; other countries have their own archive rules. Before you make a request, gather everything you know: the person's full name, approximate years and place of residence. Check the procedure and terms directly with the archive.

Information about ancestors who have passed away is usually shared freely, but information about living people only with their consent. In Russia, the processing of personal data is governed by Federal Law No. 152-FZ of 27 July 2006 “On Personal Data”; other countries have their own data protection rules, and in the EU personal data is covered by the GDPR. A simple rule: keep the names, birth dates, addresses and photos of living relatives in the family version of the tree, and prepare a shortened one for everyone else.