Feature request: DNA wanted "ad"?

Question

In the DNA project I'm working on, there are specific lines that I need DNA descendants willing to test, and I may even have some funds to pay for all or part of the test.   

I'd like to be able to place an "ad" or notification of some kind that shows up automatically on a profile that meets the criteria. That way when anyone adds a relevant profile, or even just reads the profile while searching the internet, I can let them know that they could really help out the project (and maybe get some financial help to pay).

For example, its disputed whether Abiel Wheelock married Joseph Ward, or Benjamin Albee.  The goal would be to place a notification on maternal descendants of both the lines as well as mtDNA relatives of Abiel's mother. Particularly, for mtDNA there's no surname connection, so its particularly difficult to reach possible donors.

Maybe there's a better way to do what I'm trying to accomplish...but thought I'd throw it out there. Since wikitree does a great job identifying the DNA descendant line, it could make this tool even more powerful.

Answer 1

Why not just put it on the profile?  A note, or a box on the profile itself.  You'd have to do it one by one but you could get going on it tomorrow as opposed to waiting for some vague possible future feature. :)

Comments

Oh, I intend to, but since the key is being able to get the mtDNA comparison from another daughter or an appropriate maternal cousin I think very few people who would be eligible would ever see it. My approach has been to try and proactively find donors, but its been very difficult.

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So how would your feature be any more helpful than just putting a note on the profile? Just curious.

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It would be kind of like how DNA Connections works. If I add a profile that is an mtDNA descendant to a line where someone has taken and added their test info to their profile, it will show up on the new profile.  So, this would be the same, except instead of letting me know a test has been taken, it would let me know a test is needed.

Answer 2

I really like the idea, could be a real help in certain situations.  It would be nice to be able to add a message to the DNA section of a profile that "Financial assistance may be available to qualified persons for a [specific] DNA test, see [link to note with all the details]".  Call it a "DNA FundMe".  In the note, you would need to specify what you are trying to accomplish, what specific test will be funded, and what type of descendant would qualify.  Then in the note, you could list the current commitments, by their profile names and money commitment.  Then if a prospective tester volunteers, probably with the remaining funds needed to take the test, the current committed persons can verify the tester as suitable, then PayPal the funds, perhaps directly to the testing company, earmarked for this test and tester.  This is a preliminary idea, I'm sure better methods can be worked out, with safety in mind.  Scammers are very clever at taking advantage of people, and this is a public forum.

I know of several brick walls and lineages where I would love to see a tester.  I'd probably start the FundMe with a $25 commitment, and see what happens.

Answer 3

To me it seems a PM to the profile manager would be the easiest approach. That gets in the email and even folks who don't check wiki tree very often would see it.

Comments

Profile Manager of which profile?

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Which ever profile meets the criteria you are looking for I think. I imagine you are only looking for living folks - so a profile manager could pass the message along by email if the individuals you seek do not have contact information.

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I agree with Kristina. A message to the profile manager should be adequate. A DNA wanted ad may actually deter some people who might be tempted to test if approached privately.

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I don't think it would need to appear on living profiles or private ones.  This is for the more common situation where there is no identified living individual.

Its interesting that you're focused on the profile managers, maybe because your thinking of a living person.  Most people who are related to a profile don't manage it, and most people who view it probably aren't even wikitree members.  WikiTree profiles do very well in search engine rankings, and theirs potential to reach a lot of interested people.

Think of it as trying to use a combination of nets and spears...finding a specific connection and asking them is a spear approach, advertising on the internet to people interested in a specific profile is more of a net approach.

Answer 4

Wouild it work to have your "ad" in the Public Comment section of a profile?      That is your offer to pay for a mtDNA test for a direct maternal line descendant of that woman. Or Y-DNA test for a direct paternal line descendant of that man (as the case may be).

Comments

I can do that now.  My suggestion is to automatically display it on all relevant profiles in the same way that DNA connections is displayed.  

Especially if you are trying to reach people who are just reading the profile because of an internet search, its difficult to know the "entry point," so its important that it be displayed on the entire line.

Answer 5

Perhaps it could be a new heading in G2G?  Like requests for genealogy help.  Maybe it could say - Requests for DNA Testers.  Similar to whats been proposed you could list a criteria to have the test funded, you could also include tags for the surnames and they would show up on the relevant surname page.  You could also link to the specific ancestors concerned and their DNA descendants views.  Hopefully if the headings were written in a standard way they should get picked up in Google searches too.

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