StonePics CD's are designed in an HTML format so you can browse them with either Netscape or Microsoft Internet Explorer web browser. This provides the same look and feel of being on the internet, but rather than "browsing the web" you will be "browsing the CD". If you are already familiar with using the internet, then you will not have to learn how to use any new applications to view pictures and find information on the CD's. Everything is accessible by pointing and clicking. Since most computers come with a web browser (Netscape or Microsoft Internet Explorer) already installed, the average person will have no installation process. The CD does not require any space on your hard drive. Each one contains the following:

• An average of 1760 large color photographs organized with an assortment of indexes. These pictures are sized at 1024 x 768 pixels, large enough to completely cover the viewing area on most monitors. They can be displayed in three different sizes on your monitor: full-size for examining details, and two different reduced sizes for easier viewing on small monitors.

• The entire contents of this website so this information will be available even if you are not connected to the internet.

• An installation file for the Netscape web browser for those who do not already have a web browser on their computer.

• The entire StonePics database and search utility dig.exe.

There are three different types of indexes for locating names of interest on each CD:

1. An integrated name index for all cemeteries found on the CD - This is useful when the CD contains photos from many different cemeteries, and the user is unsure which cemetery the family of interest is buried in.
2. An alphabetically sorted index of names for each individual cemetery found on the CD - This index is used when the cemetery of interest has already been determined. The names are sorted alphabetically so that all individuals with the same surname are clustered. Each name is hyper-linked to the photo associated with it, and the photo is displayed in the space adjacent to the index. The layout is the same as this web page you are currently viewing: click on a link in the frame on the left side, and the linked contents are displayed in the frame on the right side.
3. A numerically sorted index of names for each individual cemetery found on the CD - This index is used when you want to view a series of pictures in the order in which they were photographed in the cemetery. This is a special copyrighted feature of StonePics CD's that in most cases allows you to determine what graves are adjacent to each other. It is particularly useful when there are many people with the same surname buried in a cemetery and you want clues about who is related.

There are four categories of photographs in each cemetery folder which are easily identified by naming convention:

1. Individuals as they appear in the bignames.txt file - The majority of the photos fall into this category. These are typically headstone photographs, but may include other objects with memorial inscriptions. A separate web page describes how these photographs were made and gives insight into the generation of name labels.
2. Group photos taken of plaques, monuments, and headstones with many names on them - These are primarily war memorials, but may include large family headstones with many names appearing on a single face of the stone.
3. View photos taken of the cemetery to show the layout of graves - The number of these pictures taken for each cemetery varies from one to many depending on cemetery organization, maintenance, age, historical significance, and other variables. In most cases researchers should be able to locate a given headstone in one or more of these photos, or be able to approximate its location in the cemetery based upon adjacent stones that are more recognizable. As cemeteries and headstones continue to deteriorate with the passage of time, these photographs should provide a useful tool for finding the "lost" graves of the future.
4. Vicinity photos taken somewhere near or in route to the cemetery - These may be scenery, buildings, or anything else that does not fit into the previous categories. The average CD has a relatively small number of this type of photograph. They are intended to give distant researchers a glimpse of things their ancestors were familiar with.