Genealogy Chat

Well there are times when you do need to put living people in as disguised.

My tree starts with me but then has to go back via my living father on one side plus sideways via my living husband to get to his ancestry. My mother is dead so I have named her on GR (though I was tempted to keep her off as well). I've rather lost contact with some of my mother's cousins so I decided leaving her on GR might mean relations would recognise her name.
I've not added any other living people to my tree because with my grandparents and great aunts and uncles on GR their decendants and relations will presumably be able to get that far back in their genealogical research without needing any other hints.

Sue

But their name cannot show up on the name search bit if you have typed 'Living Living' in when entering them, can it? I have my daughter as ****** (Surname) and her children as 2 lots of *** so their names cant show up at all unless somebody in GR is clairvoyant. Of course if you import your tree from somewhere else to GR then that is a different matter, but this is the only place I have mine.
Huia.

It will take them out the Data

It's if you show someone as living on your tree their name shows up on the name search bit

I only open my tree after several messages back and forth confirming that we do have a genuine connection. Even then it would be someone who is pretty closely related to me because otherwise it is easier just to send them a few details in a message.

Sue

It should of been shouldn't...so have changed it

Julie,

Don't understand your comment "So what you saying then...cos some don't do the above we should be here"

It is just that I find all this nonsense about deleting names left right and centre or even entire trees trees all rather amusing, given the nature and purpose of the site in the first place.


So what you saying then...cos some don't do the above we shouldn't be here

Libby,

That is exactly what I do too.....! and I choose who I share my information with as well.

It is just that I find all this nonsense about deleting names left right and centre or even entire trees trees all rather amusing, given the nature and purpose of the site in the first place.

Thanks Bob,

However I am still not convinced that deleting my tree is the correct answer, at least not for me. With 2947 names on here already and several years of steadily adding and making well over 300 contacts, I am loathe to throw it all away at a stroke.

Ah well, back to the drawing board.

Peter...... read my notes page 2 in this thread, they maybe of use. Bob

Much of the personal enjoyment I get from being on this site is to make contacts with other researchers who have a common interest and share information with them.

The only way that I know of achieving this is to publish details of my tree on here so people know which names I am researching.

If I were to remove all the names in my tree so that they can not be stolen by one of the hundreds of name collectors or identity thieves which apparently prowl this site 24 hours a day, can someone suggest an alternative way of continuing to receive contacts regarding my names, or should I look at taking up a different hobby?

I agree with Libby about people being attached to wrong trees and other people copying. As I have mentioned before, quite a lot of trees on Ancestry have my sister m to a man b in 1723. They have all copied the misinformation from the same place. I contacted as many people as I could to point out the error, but some chose not to believe me. I find it utterly grotesque.
Huia.

I suppose if that is your experience Libby then you can only make decisions based on that.

However my research has uncovered several wrong lines on other people's trees and I was able to send them my version for them to decide which they think is correct.

I think on balance I'd rather send the version I believe to be correct as widely as possible so perhaps undermining already existing falsehoods.
There are two versions of one of the branches of my tree on this site. I've contacted museums and universities to discuss the ancestors concerned and come to my own conclusions which I then passed on to others sharing these ancestors.

I suppose it all comes down to at what point family history becomes the perhaps less emotive genealogy. How far back do you have to go before you don't really think of an ancestor as family? It would be interesting to know what others think.

Sue

I think if you read my comments again Gillian you will see I wasn't suggesting that anyone hands over their entire research to any Tom, Dick or Harry who asks for it. I did say that I tend to send relevant files to people who might find them useful.

But if someone copies my very basic GR tree it doesn't actually deprive me of anything and no-one living is on that tree to be upset, or to be added without permission onto another contact's tree. I've also got no sensitive information as notes on site.

I think this comes down to a very different way of seeing family history. I see myself as fitting into a vast and complicated interlinking network of relations and, whether or not I have discovered the mesh, the links exist.

I'd like as much of the whole pattern to be found and shared as possible. For me this is less of a hobby and more an obsession. I feel very attached to many of my ancestors, especially the ones whose memoirs I have read or who have left personal details of their lives. However it has never occurred to me to keep any details to myself if I find someone else who is also a descendant.

I have huge amounts of information on paper, on discs and on computer files and none of that is here on GR. My spare room is full of lever arch files full of detailed family history. I have written talks for Family History groups and I run several online groups. No-one seeing my GR tree would get any of that.

Some of my contacts have been sent copies of original documents or printouts of trees or photos of shared relations but if I let someone view my GR tree it is simply a basic framework with no details to speak of on it.

The only person who shares my exact tree is my sister but a huge number of people are descended from various of my ancestors. If I discover that you are someone who shares a fascinating piece of the jigsaw I am not going to say "Sorry go and do all your own hunting and I'm not even going to give you any clues where to look".

This whole business of "copying" of trees and regular complaints about people "stealing" ancestors only seems to happen on this site. The various other family history groups I belong to have people falling over themselves to share lineages they have found, which are then discussed at length and possibly disagreed with until a consensus is reached.
Possibly this is because people feel closer to the ancestors who only lived a hundred years or so ago.


Sue

Sue, I am not 'possessive' about my Tree and am more than willing to share what information I have on any particular 'line'.

Unfortunately, I'm not very good with computers I don't know how to send 'a file' with just the relevant details - it's view all my Tree or nothing at all.

The people that have contacted me recently don't ask for information, they just want to view my Tree.

A few months ago someone contacted me saying that they had 'Fred Bloggs' in their Tree, were we related? I could view their Tree. I replied saying that Fred Bloggs was my 2 x Gt.Grandfather, what was their relationship to him - I've never received a reply (probably because I didn't give them access to my Tree).

As for Hot Matches!......

M. Steer

I don’t wish to hijack Margaret’s thread, but will add to it... this was posted as a thread but now deleted!

Having read the follow on comments regarding Margaret’s decision to delete her tree. I am pleased that the polite consensus is that it is her choice, regardless of the restrictions it may have or have not on her further research.

Having deleted my tree some time ago for several reasons, it maybe worthwhile reminding members of pros and cons and a couple of suggested alternative search and contact methods.

If you leave GR without deleting your tree, the names remain on site and when are searched for people may then not only be looking for ancestors but ghosts to send a private message to.

The other side of this is even without a tree you may search others, although the same predicament may befall you. GR’s data base is jam packed full of redundant, duplicated and spoof names along with out of date information.
For instance...you find a name, place and date match..... and the person who registered the name is no longer a member.

GR generated “hot matches” will no longer be taking up any time to filter and delete.

List a “trying to find” message or even more than one, give dates and details of the ancestor or the family you are attempting to trace, these are easily searched by surname and you never know .....you may get lucky.

Build a basic tree on a free network site like tribalpages, if you open a useful dialogue with a fellow reseacher, then you can still share that tree...but always with caution.

If you are attempting to find a living or recently missing relative, try using one of the networking sites like Myspace or Facebook, many successes have been reported of late. It has been mooted that GR may have to rework its site to provide a similar free service to compete nationally, especially as its key role is as an introducer for the Pay Site Ancestry.

Please continue to use the free look up and generous help and tip offers proffered by the GR community, I for one will be forever in the debt of many past and present members and hope that on rare occasions my reply offerings are of use to those just beginning, in the middle or experienced.

This message has been posted with the best of and polite intentions and is in no way meant to offend or generate disharmony.

Best regards and happy hunting,

Bob

I still can't quite understand the reason for totally deleting the GR tree.

No-one has access to your tree unless you let them and nobody forces anyone to open their tree to a contact. If your tree is just the bare branches (and only the dead ones) then I can't understand the need to be quite so possessive about it.

If I get a connection to a distant relation I normally just send them a file with only the relevant details of any shared ancestry. It's not easy browsing GR trees anyway.

If you don't have a tree on GR then you won't get any Hot Matches. You also won't have anybody finding any of your relations on a search.
From time to time I pick a name on my tree and do a search on GR to see if anyone shares that relation. I am also doing an unofficial one name study and at various times I have contacted everyone on GR who has that surname.

I know that on several of my branches I have done totally original research which has discovered links and facts not realised before. I spent several years working them out over many hundreds of hours in the local Records Office.
If anyone on GR turns out to be related to those branches I am totally happy to share it with them. I have been helped in a similar fashion by the kind researchers who showed me how one of my lines goes back to the Middle Ages. I double checked that myself but have to trust some medieval genealogists who've researched some of the lines using original documents in Latin.

Sue

I would just like to say. The peaple on Gr
have been a great help, i could not have got this far, without them. I do try & help
other's. that what is all about?

Hot Hatches have been good, Just befor christmas i had a Hot match from some-one who's just five min away from me. That was wonderful, we have had dinner together & we are in contact with each other now.

I do think Gr is great way to start your family tree, but you always get that????????????

Dont offten take part, but i had to on this one, & a member for the last three years.

Cheers.

libra.

Hello all,

Someone said in an earlier posting that GR was about sharing. I agree. Countless GR Members have shared their 'wit & wisdom' with me and I've tried to do the same for others. Hints, tips and local knowledge have been invaluable.

When I first joined GR I was new to genealogy and computers. I made contact with a very distant relative she helped enormously, sent me copies of Census Returns, web sites etc., but the best thing - she told me to check the information for myself and not just accept what someone else had said. I've stuck to that criteria ever since. That's why my Tree is still only a sapling. There are two other Contacts with whom I share a relative but we each have different versions of the same person!

Sharing a Tree isn't the same as sharing information.

From my experience, in the last few years, 'Contacts' have just wanted access to my
Tree nothing more but my Tree doesn't tell the full story.

I shall continue seeking 'tips' from GR Members and hopefully be able to 'return the compliment' sometime. My Tree, though, has been deleted.

M. Steer

Hear Hear Meercat

If it wasn't for the fact that a couple of the people i have my tree open to are closely related and not a spin off from a twig i would take mine off here too.

And if Margaret S has taken her tree off then we should repsect her wish to do so