How To Get Great Answers on G2G

Profile manager: Dennis Barton [send private message]

A great many G2G questions stall, flounder, or fail needlessly. Here are some tips especially for newcomers that produce awesome answers right away. You can also find tips by using the 'G2G Help' button on the upper right of the G2G page.

Log in. If you log in, you can get e-mail notifications of activity on your question. Also, logging in ensures that your question is tied to your member account, which makes it much easier to find later.

Review past questions. For general questions about WikiTree, check to see if the question has been raised and answered previously. When you create your question, some past questions will appear below the title box. Review them. Another way to search, before starting your question, is to use the 'Search G2G' box at the top of the page. Also, check out the G2G FAQ.

Write an interesting headline. "The question in one sentence" is all people will see when they peruse the list of current G2G questions. Make it interesting and informative. And look it over when you've posted it. There is an "edit" option. Use it to correct any typos.

Explain the issues. All but the simplest questions benefit from additional info. Don't try to put it all in the title - write something in the text box. Be clear and specific about the information you seek. Provide background info, dates, places, relatives, other things you've tried. Don't use obscure abbreviations.

Point us to the problem. Below the text box is a field for 'WikiTree ID/URL.' It refers to the WikiTree ID unique to every profile, e.g., Jennie-8675309. If your question concerns a person without a profile, provide as much detailed information as you can. Consider using the profile of a close relative if you can't create one for the person of interest.

Share your sources. You probably know more about the person than we do. The Honor Code requires you to put sources in the profile anyway, so do it before you ask the question. Nobody likes to jump in and dig up a pile of references, only to be told, 'Yeah, I already have that.'

Proofread your question. Fix confusing typos. Spell the relevant names correctly. After you post a question, you can edit it. Look for the little "edit" link at the bottom of your question.

Tag it. Put some tags in the field for 'Surnames/Tags.' This serves to attract the attention of people with similar interests. Consider using the 'Example tags' shown below the input box. Or put in a surname or two and a couple of keywords related to the issue.

Follow up. People trying to help often ask for more info or for confirmation of findings. Please watch for this, and respond. If you don't seem interested, others will lose interest quickly.

Use what you get. When all that great new info rolls in, add it to the profile. If the results don't show up in a profile in the form of narrative and sources, why did we do the work?

Say thank you. Remember that we are all volunteers. You may not get a perfect answer, but someone spent their time trying to help you. It is nice to up-vote the responses (unless you disagree with them; for example, on a policy matter). If someone has done a great job, award them the best answer star.

Close your question. If you have received the information you need, you can save readers some time by closing the question. The close button will appear at the bottom of your question.

Acknowledgement

Thanks to Herbert Tardy for his G2G post How To Get Great Answers on G2G (August 9, 2018), the original source of the tips above.