Genealogy Chat

I am quite new to this site and have a query. When adding a name I have to enter a place and date even if I do not know them. Have tried putting a query but it isn't accepted. I am puzzled when searching the names in general that lots just have the name but no indication of date or place,(which seems pointless to me). Is this something that was allowed before the changes made recently? This was just about when I joined the site. Is this the answer or is there a way round it? All help gratefully appreciated, Thanks

Jean, yes there are unfortunately lots of 'unknowns' etc on the site. I have a few of them but know enough to add them on to my tree. I get round the '?' thing by putting an approximate date (there's a little box you can tick when entering details) and for place I either put the county or if I have no idea, I'm afraid I just put England! Then once you find out a bit more, you can go back in and edit. Good luck! Mandy :)

Hi Jean, If I don't know where someone was born I put England, if I'm not sure even of that, UK. If I don't know the surname of someone I used to put unknown. Recently I have put O. To my amusement this has brought me to a site with names that start with O such as O'Blimey! Re those that don't have anything next to them, I believe that's when people download a file from another source but I may be wrong. Regards Jeanie

Thanks to you both, I didn't make myself clear I think. I have been doing as you suggest with dates etc. But what I didn't understand was how there are a lot of names without either place or date ( or even christian name in places). Is this something that changed when the site was re-organised a few weeks back as it seems it just isn't allowed now? Not that I want to do that, its just one of the many things I don't understand about this site. Perhaps I am just a bit 'thick'? Having said all that I am very pleased to have found it, I have made some family contacts already! Jean

Hello Jean, Welcome to the Big Family. If you upload your Tree as a Gedcom File the baptismal dates and places don't transfer. Unfortunately that means that every ancestor you have born before 1837 comes up with no details. I have had to start the laborious task of going through all my names and manually adding the missing info. So far I have just finished the Ds. I can well understand why many do not bother. Jim

I believe that this is one of the recent changes. When I first started in January it wasn't compulsory to write in a date or place. I think this change is probably a good thing as there are so many names on this site that have no useful information about them whatsoever. They just frustrate the hell out of me, especially when those names coincide with some of mine. I just comes across as lazy research when you see them. My own personal opinion is that if people don't know anything about them (or can't make a decent guess)they shouldn't put them on. Other may disagree. Jonathan

Grampa Jim, I'm no where near doing gedcom files yet! But thanks for the tip, as I said I'm VERY new at this but becoming obsessed with it! Jonathan, You have made the point I was trying to get at, i.e. the system has changed. I find it odd when starting and going through the names that might be the same as mine that it is pointless opening the envelope to see the contact if all it gives is a surname. (Unless its very unusual) But then what do I know!! :-). Only a few weeks into the site so forgive the confusion. LOL Jean

It is nothing to do with recent changes but purely the fact that uploading gedcom files bypasses the compulsory fields restrictions. And for those searching is d****d annoying!

Don't think I will be guilty of adding surnames with no further information as I haven't even got a gedcom file! Its still a very helpful site :-)