Some advice for everyone, from the Acadians Project (repeating vital stats in the bio)

+30 votes
254 views

Having just cleaned up after another case of mistaken identity (all too common amongst the Acadians, what with them naming all their children the same), I just wanted to share a tip based on what I've learned from doing this all the time: repeat all vital stats in the bio!

I know some people don't like doing this, as they find it redundant. But let me tell you, when someone comes along and mixes up two families, connects and disconnects a bunch of family members, and alters the vitals, it is SO HELPFUL to have that stuff in the biography! I find that the people who too quickly alter the profile don't tend to alter the biography as much, so this is often left intact and makes cleanup so much easier.

Some examples of what to include that will help with cleanup if something goes wrong:

  • A warning note about someone with the same name (eg. "Don't confuse this person with her sister of the same name", linked to the sister's profile)
  • A list of children, with links to their profiles (this is so helpful for figuring things out when a child is added or removed)
  • Links to parents and spouses in the bio
  • Other vital stats like dates and places repeated in the bio

Seriously, even if you don't have time to write a fully developed bio, having these basics in there will not only decrease the amount of mixups, but make it infinitely easier to clean up afterwards when they do happen.

in The Tree House by Liander Lavoie G2G6 Pilot (454k points)
edited by Liander Lavoie
Hi Liane,

thanks for the advice! I can think of a few people in my tree that this might apply to off the top of my head! With that being said, is there a possibility that might be a good use for a template? I could work on it but just have never even looked into them at all.

 

Anyway, thanks for the advice.

Mike
To use a template for this purpose, you'd still have to enter all the info manually, so it wouldn't be any easier than just writing a bio. Besides, ideally this info is incorporated into a fuller biography.
Hi Lianne,  I agree with you ,  I have been putting the DOB, DOD, place born and if known of Death as well as children I find whether I have a DOB for them all along into the biography.   I think it helps flesh out the biography as well.   It may be rather same info, but I feel it helps the biography.

mary
If this redunancy becomes the standard then I hope that we can also add a 'hide' directitve, ala:

hide

so and so's biithdate and mom and dad, etc.

/hide

and that the 'hide' can be turned on and off by a simple click on a link in the biography.

Right now, the only thing that this redundant information does for me, when I'm looking at a profile, is raise my blood pressure ... lol
I honestly don't understand the view that this is redundant. It's a biography. How can a biography not include the basic information? Obviously it should ideally be fleshed out to include a lot more context than the top of the profile.
Sorry ... let me be a bit more specific ... those profiles with lots of information should have all that 'redundant' data.  What I don't like is the profile with a biography with just a re-statement of the b-date/place, parents and spouse, etc.  no new information.

This does not seem to be redundant at all.  I am not part on the Acadians project.  I try to do this on all profiles I work on.  I feel the information should be included not only as finger strokes, but a person might  have done a typo in the upper portion.  It does also need good sourced info as well.  

2 Answers

+15 votes
 
Best answer
This is good advice for all profiles. Plus repeating the stats in the bio gives you a place to "hang" your source citations.
by Anne B G2G Astronaut (1.3m points)
selected by Mags Gaulden
+5 votes
Lianne, your advice is good for ALL profiles, not just Acadians.

One important option that putting vital statistics in the biography gives us is that we can then set a footnote to each vital, showing exactly which source the statistic came from. This can be very important if there is a dispute on the date or location, because knowing the source can help decide which date is correct.

It is NOT redundant, and if included in a well written biography, can put the vital stats into a perspective.
by April Dauenhauer G2G6 Pilot (125k points)
I'm realising my grammar was ambiguous. The phrasing of my question was meant to say that the advice was for everyone, and from the Acadian Project. But rereading it that's not clear at all lol. :)

I completely agree that it's important to have sources attached to specific facts, and that including this info in the biography encourages that.
Well, you already knew about attaching sources to vital facts, Lianne. I was just sort of shouting at everyone who might not know it, hoping we'd all be on the same page and using sources, attaching footnotes. Sorry for shouting, I just always get sort of excited about sources...

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