Non-responders? Stop complaining!

[diplodicus]

Rather than spend free time following promising avenues of research, why spend your time complaining about the people who have failed to respond to your [unsolicited] enquiry? There are many reasons why people have family tees and/or DNA tests in the public domain. I suspect that when first submitting their tree, many people haven't realised that others may then invite themselves into a dialogue.

By all means try to get in touch, but if no result is forthcoming...

Find something else to do. There are always many items on my "to do" list Including that apple tree asking to be pruned.

Happy new year.

[Mart 'n' Al]

I'm sure there are more reasons for not replying then I'm about to come up with, but I can think of lapsed email addresses, people who bought DNA tests purely for the ethnicity, people who were given test kits and only completed the test to placate the present giver, and some people probably just find the whole thing rather complex. And some people have probably died.

I'm sure there is some data protection rule that says that nobody could start a massive index of people who don't respond.

Martin

[Ruskie]

..... you are complaining about people complaining? 

I think that most people are only interested their ethnicity results as promoted in the Ancestry ads rather than having any contact with DNA matches. Frustrating for any of us interested in family history, especially when there is a chance of finding a useful connection and filling in a few gaps. It's only human to have a little whinge about it.

Thanks for the advice though - logging off now - I've got some other stuff to do.

[pharmaT]

I stopped trying to contact people a while ago.  Mostly no replies and a couple of rude replies out of the small numbers I did get.

[louisa maud]

I have never done my DNA but pharma you are right, once the novelty wears off  the interest goes with it and people don't keep in touch, so I am careful what information about my family tree I give out

Louisa Maud

[Ayashi]

Some people don't respond. I've had this happens a few times. On one occasion I waited quite a while and tried again. I got a reply the second time round.

There's another occasion where I contacted someone (private tree), told them how I thought they might be related and who my ancestors were, asked if they were willing to confirm their side, and then they came online, apparently updated their tree so that a green leaf match appeared, then left again. I think the biggest whinge is when you've tried to be nice and polite and then you suspect they've probably read it and not given a hoot.

Either way, as you say, not much you can do about it but move on. Sometimes you can work things out with a bit of bendy thinking.

[Ruskie]

I'm not complaining. 

Just checked my in box and someone has emailed me about a DNA match!

Logging off now - I've got some DNA matches to investigate.

[Jackiemh]

I just find it annoying, having spent the time to write and send a message, not to get a reply but as previously mentioned there may be many reasons why someone does not respond. Although it would be nice to know the reason why - at least with the post you may get a letter returned with 'not known at this address' or other comment.
Jackie

[Ruskie]

I think all the serious researchers hang out on Gedmatch so anyone who hasn't already done so might like to upload their raw data to Gedmatch. Nothing to lose.

All this talk of non-responders has inspired me to chase up some of the people I contacted over Christmas who haven't bothered to reply yet. Off to do that now.