What value, if any, can be had from people posting only a surname with no other related information?

Question

I've noticed lately that several people have added just a surname and several are surnames that already exist; i.e., Johnson with no further information.  How does this fit into the purpose of WikiTree, or does it?  It seems to me that this simply clutters up the site for no reason.

Answer 1

Could you give an example of one of these profiles? I think you will find if you check the Changes tab that these profiles were part of a gedcom import from several years ago when requirements for imports were not so strict. Also sometimes during an import process a profile will get separated from the rest of the family because profiles intervening have been skipped

If the profile has a manager, you could send a note asking them to add more information. I run into this type of profile fairly often and it can be a difficult problem to resolve.

Comments

This latest example showed up at 9:00 a.m. this morning.

New Genealogists

Anonymous Baker added JOHNSON: Family trees

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This is not a profile that was added. The new member simply added the Johnson Tag for the family name he is following. So I am not sure what you are referring to.

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Just want to make sure I understand.  Anonymous Baker didn't really add the surname Johnson to a family tree (although that's what the message looks like)?  This message is simply telling me that Anonymous Baker is now following the Johnson surname that already exists?  And, by the way, thank you for taking time to answer my question. I appreciate it very much.

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You're quite welcome. And, yes, that is what Anonymous Baker is doing. That is the purpose of the Tags on every member's profile. I see that you have quite a few followed Tags yourself.

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I am, indeed, following several surnames.  I wasn't aware that WikiTree notifies everyone every time I decide to follow a surname.  Thank you!

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Actually WikiTree does not notify everyone about surnames being followed. I took a peek at your profile where all your Tags are listed :)

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Now I'm REALLY confused..............If WikiTree doesn't notify everyone about surnames being followed, why was I notified when Anonymous Baker added the Johnson tag to his profile?  And why would I care?

You've spent enough time on this and I don't mean to keep the discussion going.  I'll figure it out eventually.  Or maybe I'll decide it really doesn't matter.  :-)  Thank you for your patience, Shirley.  You're a gem.

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Tags are meant to allow people to follow activity on surnames or activities they are interested in. Everyone who is following the Johnson surname will be notified when some activity occurs on that name, but not everyone on WikiTree.

For example, several surnames I follow are Strutton, Luttrell, Stone -- so I get notified whenever anything happens on one of those names. This allows me to contact other researchers with common interests. Of course, many of those changes will not affect my family lines so you just have to tune those out and concentrate on the ones that are related.

WikiTree is a collaborative site. One of the things that helps us work together as a community is the ability to locate and work with those members who are working on the same families. Tags for followed surnames is one tool we can use.

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Wonderful and very clear explanation, Shirley.