New Matches Coming In

[Javelin]

Thanks for the tip-off, PD. I found another Scottish fourth cousin in this batch.

It seems to me that we're hitting a critical mass where FF matches are becoming much more useful because enough of them are starting to overlap with each other.

[mixedkid]

This week my dad was the winner with 7 matches. My mom got 4 and I received 5. I share a French-Canadian/Acadian match and a Norwegian descendant match with my dad. I share a U.S. southern colonial match with my mom, as well as one match with the ancestral name of my great-great grandmother, who immigrated from Germany in the 19th century. I'm glad my dad got the most matches this time.

[Oshri]

another 92 matches for me

[nwgen]

Nice batch for me and the 6 other kits I manage. 7 new matches each on average. Biggest news is results now in for my mothers paternal 2nd cousin. Now have cousins from all four of my maternal great grandparents in system. Other big news was a new unconfirmed 3rd with 88 cM total and a single segment of 69 cm!!!

[PDHOTLEN]

One of my new ten matches already asked to confirm "distant cousin". I mean, if they are matches on FF, they all are cousins.

Another one looked interesting. But when I went to check an old huge unwieldy research tree on Ancestry (that my old browser kept crashing from), that name was elusive. I have it way back in tidewater Virginia in the earliest colony. But this match is centuries later (of course). So I really don't know how it is connected to me.

I know I must be connected to that tidewater Virginia bunch in my research tree from back there, because names involved pop up in FF matches. But I just can't seem to bridge a gap of a century or so.

[JDP1144]

26 More matches.

but only 3 that I have any hope of making a match. I don't know what some people are expecting when they have no surnames and no tree information to compare against. I don't want to hear about helping the helpless. I now have 546 matches and probably 500 of them will never be matched because of the lack of information.

[swimmingly]

Me too!

On this Monday morning I see 7 new matches, mostly low level. But one of them has a hefty 20.79 cm segment. However, she doesn't give any information, even the email address is "unknown.com"

I have a match with a person with email "None" at "unknown.com." That's fine--plenty of work to do on other matches and info!

[swimmingly]

One of my new ten matches already asked to confirm "distant cousin". I mean, if they are matches on FF, they all are cousins.

Another one looked interesting. But when I went to check an old huge unwieldy research tree on Ancestry (that my old browser kept crashing from), that name was elusive. I have it way back in tidewater Virginia in the earliest colony. But this match is centuries later (of course). So I really don't know how it is connected to me.

If they are like me, they aren't really asking you to confirm "distant cousin." It is just a utility for using the "in common" tool. The request to confirm is automatic when the utility is used, but the person asking doesn't necessarily want any response. I punch "distant cousin" for almost all matches.

[PDHOTLEN]

If they are like me, they aren't really asking you to confirm "distant cousin." It is just a utility for using the "in common" tool. The request to confirm is automatic when the utility is used, but the person asking doesn't necessarily want any response. I punch "distant cousin" for almost all matches.

Yeah, that's all I usually do; click on "distant cousin". I'm rather stuck on my maternal 1/4 of my tree. The rest is mostly German/Norwegian/Austrian, which I don't pursue much. Many of that maternal 1/4 remained down south, and did not follow my most direct maternal ancestors up to Indiana and then on into the West. I suspect that the more prosperous of those Southerners were slave holders. Hmm...

[ragnar]

I got 11 matches. My nephew got 15 and my son got 3.

[Svein]

Personally I find it rather irritating with people who push the "Distant cousin" button for me if they haven't found a connection beforehand. Yes, there are many "Distant cousins", but I never push any button until I find a conection in the paper trail. And so the connections I have are real connections and not just "noise".

[NYMark]

Designating allows you to see which matches are in common and not in common with the designated person. This can be incredibly useful in breaking through brick walls, for adoptees who have no paper trail, identifying countries of ancestry, etc., etc. It has been invaluable for me, and it's a feature that sets FTDNA apart from the competition.

Personally I find it rather irritating with people who push the "Distant cousin" button for me if they haven't found a connection beforehand. Yes, there are many "Distant cousins", but I never push any button until I find a conection in the paper trail. And so the connections I have are real connections and not just "noise".

[PDHOTLEN]

Yeah, that's all I usually do; click on "distant cousin". I'm rather stuck on my maternal 1/4 of my tree. The rest is mostly German/Norwegian/Austrian, which I don't pursue much. Many of that maternal 1/4 remained down south, and did not follow my most direct maternal ancestors up to Indiana and then on into the West. I suspect that the more prosperous of those Southerners were slave holders. Hmm...

Hmm... again. I may have misread the tea leaves. I was distracted by a name (sea captain) who doesn't seem to have had any children of his own, down there in tidewater Virginia. His Welsh name is found in Pennsylvania, where my matches are probably really from. The southern match of a name connected to the early tidewater Virginia group probably is a downstream match (more recent), since it is a relatively strong 14+ cm match (and not having a common ancestor in 1600s VA). But I could change my mind about this in the future.

[MerryB]

Personally I find it rather irritating with people who push the "Distant cousin" button for me if they haven't found a connection beforehand. Yes, there are many "Distant cousins", but I never push any button until I find a conection in the paper trail. And so the connections I have are real connections and not just "noise".

Hopefully ftdna will add a 'research' category to the list of relationships, so 'research' might be used rather than 'distant cousins'. Then the In Common With function could be used without designating any specific relationship. I understand why Svein is irritated about people pushing 'distant cousins' before they know what the paper trail is. On the other hand, I set 'distant cousins' for a great many of my kits' matches, precisely to see the 'in common' matches specifically.

All of my kits got new matches this week. It is exciting! It is also aggravating, because they are all 'distant cousins'!

[madman]

I Totally agree

Personally I find it rather irritating with people who push the "Distant cousin" button for me if they haven't found a connection beforehand. Yes, there are many "Distant cousins", but I never push any button until I find a conection in the paper trail. And so the connections I have are real connections and not just "noise".

This is exactly why were here to find real connections and not goof off and press relationship buttons without trying to even look for a common ancestor.

I never push any button until I find a conection in the paper trail. And so the connections I have are real connections and not just "noise