Is Name Research an Art or a Service?

[ches]

There seems to be so many responses on this subject that it would be
a disservice to reprint it all.  My response is simply that research is 
fun!  When I first joined 10 or so years ago Athilian taught me the 
importance of research.  So I painstakenly researched my name and 
device.  When I was done I found out so much about the period my names 
were used in, making it easier to choose a time frame, and the area of 
Italy my persona could have originated.  I became more involved in my 
persona than I thought I could.  When I sent my research in I copied the 
entries from the books with the best examples and listed 6 other sources for 
the names.  I did the same for the heraldry.  The name passed 
immediatly.  The device did not.  A rule had changed by the time I had 
finished my research.  That was 9 years ago.  But I will try again soon....

Thus to me it is a science, a personal service, (in a small way a 
service to the person who has to look it up to confirm the research), but an 
art in the sence that it enlighted me to be more creative with my persona.