Joining projects

[GhostX]

After reading FTDNA's info about joining projects, I am still unclear what they mean when they say I can join a maximum of two projects. Do they mean a maximum of 2 surname projects, plus whatever mtNDA project(s) I'd like to join, or do they mean a combined total of 2 projects of any type?

[efgen]

You can join more than two projects. There might still be a limit, but I know you can join at least:

Y-DNA:
1 surname project
1 haplogroup project
1 geographical project

mtDNA:
1 haplogroup project
1 geographical project

There are also some heritage and lineage projects, and I don't think they count against the limit.

Don't worry, the system will let you know when you've tried to join too many projects

Elise

[GhostX]

Thanks for that info, Elise. I presume that once you've reached your limit, you can quit groups and rejoin others as many times as you want?

[efgen]

Yep, definitely.

[jablair]

Thanks for that info, Elise. I presume that once you've reached your limit, you can quit groups and rejoin others as many times as you want?

I'm just curious as to why someone would want to join so many projects and even jump from project to project. Most people join a project or projects that they have a connection to. You join a surname project because you have that surname or believe you descend from that surname. You join a haplogroup project because you share that haplogroup. You join a geographical project because you believe your ancestors came from that geographical area.

I realize there are many people who don't have any knowledge of their ancestry. They may not know their ancestrial surname or where their ancestors came from. For these people knowing which surname or geographical project to join might be impossible.

I suggest that before you start jumping from project to project you contact the project administrators and let them know what you are looking for. They may be able to provide answers or point you in the right direction without you having to join the project.

Also know that many project adminstrators, myself being one, require that those who wish to join their projects come through the adminstrator for aproval.

[FredSpringer]

I'm just curious as to why someone would want to join so many projects and even jump from project to project. Most people join a project or projects that they have a connection to. You join a surname project because you have that surname or believe you descend from that surname. You join a haplogroup project because you share that haplogroup. You join a geographical project because you believe your ancestors came from that geographical area.

I realize there are many people who don't have any knowledge of their ancestry. They may not know their ancestrial surname or where their ancestors came from. For these people knowing which surname or geographical project to join might be impossible.

I suggest that before you start jumping from project to project you contact the project administrators and let them know what you are looking for. They may be able to provide answers or point you in the right direction without you having to join the project.

Also know that many project adminstrators, myself being one, require that those who wish to join their projects come through the adminstrator for aproval.

I can understand joining a project just to have access to data from members who share their data with ONLY other project members. This might be the one and only way to make comaprisons.

[GhostX]

I'm just curious as to why someone would want to join so many projects and even jump from project to project. Most people join a project or projects that they have a connection to. You join a surname project because you have that surname or believe you descend from that surname. You join a haplogroup project because you share that haplogroup. You join a geographical project because you believe your ancestors came from that geographical area.

I realize there are many people who don't have any knowledge of their ancestry. They may not know their ancestrial surname or where their ancestors came from. For these people knowing which surname or geographical project to join might be impossible.

I suggest that before you start jumping from project to project you contact the project administrators and let them know what you are looking for. They may be able to provide answers or point you in the right direction without you having to join the project.

Also know that many project adminstrators, myself being one, require that those who wish to join their projects come through the adminstrator for aproval.

Just be to be clear, it is not my intention to jump from project from project--I was just trying to clarify how the rules worked.

That being said though, I do not know the surname of my paternal great grandfather. I have a suspicion as to what it is, and I have therefore joined that surname project. If that one turns out to be a dead end, or if I discover another lead that suggests another surname, then I need the freedom to quit it and join another so I can gain access to its resources.

People who have better knowledge of their ancestry have the luxury of just picking a project and sticking with it. For the rest of us, we need some flexibility (and I was happy to hear that I have it).

[jablair]

I can understand joining a project just to have access to data from members who share their data with ONLY other project members. This might be the one and only way to make comaprisons.

I seriously doubt that a project that is restricted to "members only" is going to let "just anyone" join without first verifying that they have something to offer the project.

I do not agree with restricting all data to project members only, though I can understand that some project administrators may wish to restrict certain information to members only. Either way, that is a PA's perogative.

A person's DNA test results are his/her personal property. He or she has the sole right to decide who to share their information with. If they are a member of a project that only shares information with other project members and they wish to share their information with others they have several options including posting their results to YSearch and other databases and forums/mailing lists. If they don't wish to share their information outside their project then you should respect their rights.

Joining a project simply to go on a "fishing expedition" is not a valid reason to me.

[efgen]

John,

He's not talking about the project admin running a closed project. He's talking about an individual choosing to only display matches within his own surname project. Unfortunately, this setting works both ways -- the individual is also hidden from the Y-DNA Matches page of any matches who are unlucky enough to not be in the same project. This hinders the usefulness of matching for someone who is adopted or has some other NPE and doesn't know what surname he might match. It also hinders the usefulness of matching for populations who haven't had surnames long enough to have huge surname projects and end up matching a myriad of different surnames (ie, Ashkenazi Jews).

That said, I agree with you that joining an unrelated project simply to see if you have any "hidden" matches is not a good idea. It often causes additional work for the already-overworked volunteer project admins. The better approach is to simply email the project admin, explain your situation, and ask for assistance in comparing you to his or her project members. Then you can also discuss with the project admin whether it's appropriate for you to join the project.

Elise

[jablair]

That being said though, I do not know the surname of my paternal great grandfather. I have a suspicion as to what it is, and I have therefore joined that surname project. If that one turns out to be a dead end, or if I discover another lead that suggests another surname, then I need the freedom to quit it and join another so I can gain access to its resources.

I agree that those in your situation may need to be able to leave one surname project and join another, depending on how things turn out.

Also keep in mind that many of the surname projects have public website where you can view most, if not all, of the information available to project members. You can use these websites to do preliminary reseach before joining a project.

Good luck in your research. If your path ever points to the Blair surname, please contact me.

[R2-D2]

Could someone explain this project to me? Does that A51 mean Area 51? Like the secret Air Force base that supposedly has UFOs and alien bodies from Roswell? Is this project only for people who think that they were abducted by aliens?

[jablair]

John,

He's not talking about the project admin running a closed project. He's talking about an individual choosing to only display matches within his own surname project.

Elise
You are right, I missed that one completely. But there are many valid reasons why someone wishes to limit matches to their surname only, particularily if they are R1b.

That said, I agree with you that joining an unrelated project simply to see if you have any "hidden" matches is not a good idea. It often causes additional work for the already-overworked volunteer project admins. The better approach is to simply email the project admin, explain your situation, and ask for assistance in comparing you to his or her project members. Then you can also discuss with the project admin whether it's appropriate for you to join the project.

I agree with you completely.