RootsChat.Com
General => Technical Help => Reference Library => Topic started by: Indaloman on Friday 09 November 07 12:03 GMT (UK)
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I have had loads of help on look ups for which I am grateful and try to pay back by doing photo restoration, but I have never had a contact on my family names interests which I find strange and when (before I left them), GenesReunited used to produce lots of queries. Has anyone else blanked out?
Paul
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hi Paul
carnt help with your family names, but I stopped using GenesReunited ages ago, they kept telling me about new names, and none had nothing to do with my family or even came from where my family did ???
regards
ricky
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Hi Indaloman
I think part of the problem is that not many rootschatters have actually added their surnames to the table. If you look at the stats that Berlin Bob kindly puts together out of 50,000 RCs very few even use the table.
We must do more to encourage people to add their surnames. Tell everyone ;D ;D ;D ::) ::) ::)
I have had a handful of contacts through the surnames on the table and I think I have contacted a few people.
Kerry
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I have just renewed my membership of GR.
I have found various connections to my family, and the people there have been very generous with information. I also find their "hot matches" quite good as I do not have to do too much searching. Although lots of the matches do not fit the bill.
Maybe I have been lucky in that respect.
I must say, though, Rootschat has helped me enourmously with research, and I am very pleased to be a member.
Vivien
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This has come up before, and I would like to remind you all:
The Surname Interest Table is a database of members' surname interests.
Participation is purely voluntary, and there is no automatic contact facility,
- if you see someone in the table with similar research interests, then it is up to you, to contact them.
http://surname.rootschat.com/sit-help.php?lang=EN
Bob (still working to make the SIT even better)
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Can I have a word of advice?
As a recent Rootschatter I was inspired to add my names to the SIT and then found several people who might be connected.
I wrote three messages at the end of April to the people concerned, but have had nil response - surely they should have had an email saying they had a new message?
I don't want to be too pushy, but I thought my messages should be clear enough to produce either a "ooh, yes there may be a connection" or "thanks, no idea who you're talking about" quite swiftly.
Should I message again? and if so, how long should I leave it?
Surely we're all on here to make contact, so why no response?
Please advise! Thank you!!
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Hi Igor
It may be that these people have not been on rootschat for a while. You can check by clicking on their name and taking a look at the last time online on their profile.
Kerry :)
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Thank you, Kerry, they may not have visited for some time. But shouldn't they have received an email saying there was a new message? Isn't that how it works?
Have I got this wrong? Is there not an alert for a new PM?
Thanks for your help.
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I have recently contacted 3 people. Two of them replied very promptly - alas, there seemed to be no connection. The other person has not replied. No one has ever contacted me.
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Thank you, Kerry, they may not have visited for some time. But shouldn't they have received an email saying there was a new message? Isn't that how it works?
Have I got this wrong? Is there not an alert for a new PM?
Thanks for your help.
Unfortunately it also depends on whether they have their settings to send an email when a new PM is received. A lot of us don't and just rely on the little pop up box that appears when you log on the next time after the PM. However this box should then alert them to the PM.
Kerry
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Another consideration is that people change their email addresses frequently, so if they forgot to update their profile on RootsChat the message will be going to an old email address!
There are also people who turn off their notifications to avoid getting too many (aren't there, Bob?!?)
Genealogy is certainly a waiting game ...
;D
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There are also people who turn off their notifications to avoid getting too many (aren't there, Bob?!?)
Yep, there certainly are !
I even suggested it in a topic on Rootschat performance considerations ;D
Summing up, there are various reasons why people may not get an answer here:
- e-mail adress has changed
- the poster is someone who joined, entered their names, and then left - expecting some kind of automatic notification, like the "hot match" scheme from that well known "other place"
- If they do not have e-mail notifications for PMs and don't come on RootsChat often, then they may not even know that a PM has been sent
- Even in RootsChat there are the occasional impolite people, who don't bother to answer PMs
- Some have left RootsChat and have other interests now
- some may have died, may be ill, may be on holiday, working long periods away from Internet access, etc, etc
... and I'm sure there are many more reasons that haven't occured to me.
As in every list, forum, or just impulse contacts, some reply :) , some don't :( .
Bob