To me, this seems to be big news, but there has been no corresponding big announcement. Everyone in Utah and Idaho now should have access. Even though most of them can't edit at this point, there's a lot you can learn (and probably a lot of support needed from ward Family History Consultants) just in read-only mode.Ordinances are no longer being updated in the International Genealogical Index (IGI) by temples on the new system. Because of this, members should use the new FamilySearch site to view and verify the latest ordinance information.
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Members who have registered in the existing FamilySearch.org site will be given access to register in the new FamilySearch system.
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Some members living in Utah and Idaho temple districts will not be able to add or make changes to data in new FamilySearch for several months, but will be able to view the data.
So my wife tried to register for the site. Unfortunately, she got the standard message telling her that new FamilySearch is not available in our area. Undaunted, I emailed FamilySearch Support, which responded very promptly:
So my wife sent such an e-mail message, and we'll see what happens (it's been less than 10 hours so far). I don't have enough data to conclude whether most Utah/Idaho members (outside the few live temple districts) will be able to register without having to send the e-mail, or if this e-mail procedure will be the primary way access is granted.All members of the Church will be able to access New FamilySearch on a read-only basis, if their stake is not yet rolled out. If members of your stake are receiving the error message, they need to send an email to support@familysearch.org, with "NFS Read-Only Access" in the subject line, and their full name, temple district, and membership number in the body. They will be allowed read-only access within 24 hours.
It would be nice to know, so feel free to chime in with your experience with this, if you are in one of the not-yet-live Utah/Idaho temple districts. In any case, I'll report back when I learn more.