Author Topic: Ancestry's DNA match surname search flaky?  (Read 803 times)

Offline melba_schmelba

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Ancestry's DNA match surname search flaky?
« on: Saturday 29 September 18 17:36 BST (UK) »
I assumed that when doing a surname search on the AncestryDNA Results page, you would bring up matches who have that surname at least in a direct line, if not anywhere in their tree. But in the case of at least two fairly close matches who I have identified as a relative through looking at their trees, if I search for the surname of our common ancestors, it does not bring them up as a match. The frustrating thing is not knowing how often this is happening, and whether it is also happening for the shared hints? A lot of people could be missing out on specific leads if this indexing of Ancestry DNA tester's tree surnames is quite unreliable.

Offline sugarfizzle

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Re: Ancestry's DNA match surname search flaky?
« Reply #1 on: Saturday 29 September 18 18:03 BST (UK) »
It is totally unreliable and has been so for some time. Place name search is also totally unreliable.

I tried to contact support desk about this matter last year, but they didn't even know what I was talking about.

Search for my maiden name brings up very few results, yet there are many more to be found when individual trees are searched.

If they won't provide a chromosome browser, they should make what tools they do have fully workable.

Regards Margaret
STEER, mainly Surrey, Kent; PINNOCKS/HAINES, Gosport, Hants; BARKER, mainly Broadwater, Sussex; Gosport, Hampshire; LAVERSUCH, Micheldever, Hampshire; WESTALL, London, Reading, Berks; HYDE, Croydon, Surrey; BRIGDEN, Hadlow, Kent and London; TUTHILL/STEPHENS, London
WILKINSON, Leeds, Yorkshire and Liverpool; WILLIAMSON, Liverpool; BEARE, Yeovil, Somerset; ALLEN, Kent and London; GORST, Liverpool; HOYLE, mainly Leeds, Yorkshire

Census Information is Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.go

Offline melba_schmelba

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Re: Ancestry's DNA match surname search flaky?
« Reply #2 on: Saturday 29 September 18 18:51 BST (UK) »
Hi Margaret. That's not very encouraging! It does seem almost impossible to get hold of anyone at Ancestry who has any influence to fix things, one wonders if they'll only take notice if some prominent org like the SOG or FFHS, or a well known genealogy blogger brings the issue to them.

Offline melba_schmelba

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Re: Ancestry's DNA match surname search flaky?
« Reply #3 on: Monday 15 October 18 16:16 BST (UK) »
This is getting really frustrating now  >:(. Previous likely matches that I have found through a surname search, have now disappeared, and there seems no way to find them again, absolutely shocking how useless this surname search for DNA matches seems to be!!


Offline sugarfizzle

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Re: Ancestry's DNA match surname search flaky?
« Reply #4 on: Monday 15 October 18 16:28 BST (UK) »
Any potentially useful matches that you find by place or surname search, or by any other means, have to be recorded in some way by you.

Either by yellow starring them, or taking a note of them away from ancestry.

They are happy enough to take our money, just wish they had reliable tools.

Regards Margaret
STEER, mainly Surrey, Kent; PINNOCKS/HAINES, Gosport, Hants; BARKER, mainly Broadwater, Sussex; Gosport, Hampshire; LAVERSUCH, Micheldever, Hampshire; WESTALL, London, Reading, Berks; HYDE, Croydon, Surrey; BRIGDEN, Hadlow, Kent and London; TUTHILL/STEPHENS, London
WILKINSON, Leeds, Yorkshire and Liverpool; WILLIAMSON, Liverpool; BEARE, Yeovil, Somerset; ALLEN, Kent and London; GORST, Liverpool; HOYLE, mainly Leeds, Yorkshire

Census Information is Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.go

Offline melba_schmelba

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Re: Ancestry's DNA match surname search flaky?
« Reply #5 on: Monday 15 October 18 16:57 BST (UK) »
Any potentially useful matches that you find by place or surname search, or by any other means, have to be recorded in some way by you.

Either by yellow starring them, or taking a note of them away from ancestry.

They are happy enough to take our money, just wish they had reliable tools.

Regards Margaret
Thanks Margaret, good suggestions. I was aware of the star and note facility, but of course I didn't use them and now they are gone. I suppose I could try and find them on ancestry's public member trees search, assuming they haven't gone missing from there too!