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DNA results on LostCousins
- Thread starter AnitaCM
- Start date
Provided you update your My Details page to indicate that you have taken an autosomal DNA test, as Tim has already suggested, your cousins will know. If they have already tested you can collaborate with them; if they haven't, knowing that you have tested may encourage them to do so.
A
At home in NZ
Guest
Am I missing something? The My Details page is only accessible to me on entering my password, so how can anybody else see it?
Bryman
LostCousins Megastar
Yes you are. Other members cannot see your My Details page but if you update your (private) My Details page to indicate that you have taken a DNA test then that fact will be displayed against your name in the Cousins section of My Cousins page for any member that is matched with you.
A
At home in NZ
Guest
I still don't get it because there isn't anywhere I can see if any of the people in the list of my relatives has taken a DNA test.
Maybe it's because I haven't taken a DNA test myself??
Bryman
LostCousins Megastar
No, I was able to see who had indicated that they had taken a test before I updated My Details page. The default value is a blank so probably none of your cousins has taken a DNA test, or at least indicated such. Perhaps you could update your page with a value of No (or even Maybe) to get things started. Unfortunately, you will still not see your value, just values of your cousins, if entered.
Suggestion for Peter . . .
1. Make the default value in the DNA column "?", so that something gets displayed for each cousin. Also add item in Help to request each member to update the "?", and how to do that.
2. Display the member's value, possibly above the column heading? (If any cousins are listed.)
It doesn't make any difference whether you have tested - the information is still displayed, provided your cousins have recorded it on their My Details page.
However, you don't have a Cousins section on your My Cousins page. DNA information is not shown for other contacts since it is only relevant where there is a blood relationship. If there are cousins amongst your Relatives you can almost always upgrade them to Cousins either by adding to your own My Ancestors page, or encouraging your cousins to add to theirs.
It's unusual not to have any Cousins at all as most active members have invited known cousins to join. Indeed, keeping track of whether your known cousins have tested their DNA is one of the many reasons to encourage them to join.
I don't think adding a ? will make much difference as there is already a heading for the DNA column, but next time I'm editing the code I'll see how easy it would be to implement. I'm not sure what the intent of your suggested Help item is - the person who sees the ? won't be the person who can edit it.
What do you mean by the member's value?
Last edited by a moderator:
See above.
A
At home in NZ
Guest
This is what's above:
I never even thought about asking any of my Matched people to join, I didn't know I should and in any case how do I know whether they aren't already a member? (I had assumed they all are).
I have one 'Other Contact', I invited that person to join but don't know if they did. That person is one of my third cousins who I 'met' through Ancestry.
I don't know who you're referring to when you talk about 'Matched people' but I'll assume you're referring to DNA matches. What I was primarily suggesting was inviting cousins you already know from previous records-based research to join LostCousins, but by all means invite your DNA cousins to join as well, provided they're keen researchers (there's no point inviting someone who tested their DNA just for a bit of fun, as many people seem to have done).
If a cousin of yours was already a LostCousins member and had completed their My Ancestors page you'd be matched to them already - so we can rule out that possibility. If they've joined LostCousins but not completed their My Ancestors page you can connect to them using the Connect to a cousin you already know link at the top right of your My Cousins page (you'll need to know their email address).
Otherwise use Refer a Relative (on your My Referrals page) to invite them to join - you don't need to know their email address. If someone is already a member it could provide the impetus they need to complete their My Ancestors page.
Bryman
LostCousins Megastar
That is why I suggested the possibility of showing that member's field value above the column heading. My value would be "Y" but anyone who might see a value of "?" should update their My Details page to a different value. I agree that a blank value is a neater initial display but then one doesn't know if that is the system default or just a missing value. This is not a carefully thought out request, just an initial suggestion to hopefully make things easier and clearer for At Home in NZ, and anyone else in a similar state of confusion. I would love for another member to offer a neater alternative. Displaying one's own value above the column heading is not at all neat but I could not think of anything better immediately. I was also trying to keep any such change to be as cheap and easy to implement as possible.
The field value for DNA testing that the member entered on their My Details page. Currently, the various cousins may have a value displayed but not the member who is related to those cousins. I was trying to think of how the member could be reminded of their value that was held in the LC system.
Whether or not someone has taken a DNA test is one of several fields that many members need to update, so I will handle this through a newsletter email rather than by making a change on the website (which most people won't notice, and people who haven't yet found any cousins wouldn't be able to see). I also have to bear in mind that most members haven't logged-in to their account for more than a year, so it's easier to reach them through the emails.