Location: [unknown]
Surnames/tags: unconnected suggestions
This page is designed to answer Frequently Asked Questions about unconnected profiles:
Why are profiles listed as "unconnected" when they are connected to other family members?
In the context of suggestions and lists on WikiTree, the words "connected" and "unconnected" have a very specific meaning: a profile is "connected" if it's possible to trace out relationships from that profile to three other profiles on WikiTree. Those profiles are called "Connection Anchors".
For example, if you look at the profile for Sir John Slade, First Baronet Slade, down at the bottom of the page, it says:
John is 20 degrees from George Eastman, 28 degrees from Hilary Gadsby and 12 degrees from Henry VIII of England on our single family tree. Check your connections or find your genealogical relationship with John.
Those three profiles1, in a sense, define being "connected": if a profile has a connection, however long and winding, to any of those profiles, then it is also connected to 17,472,282 other profiles. This is what we call "the main tree". Any profiles which don't have that connection are "unconnected". (In this context, the term for having family members on WikiTree is "linked": if a profile has one of more links to parents, siblings, spouses, or children, then it is "linked", and a profile which has no relationships at all is "unlinked".)
There is a list of the largest unconnected branches on the Connectors Chat page. As you can see, the largest unconnected branch is several orders of magnitude smaller than the main tree.
Why is there no connection anchors block at the bottom of this profile, or why is it still showing up in the unconnected list, when I've connected it?
The scripts that check connection paths and list them at the bottom of profiles run only once per day, because they take a long time to run. So if you connect a profile today, it should get the connection anchors block at the bottom (and come off the unconnected list) tomorrow.
Why is this profile still showing up in the unconnected reports on WikiTree+ when I connected it several days ago?
The scripts that generate the reports on WikiTree+ only run once per week (on Mondays), because they take a long time to run. So if you have connected a profile, it should come off the unconnected report on Monday. If it doesn't, please contact Aleš Trtnik so he can take a look.
How do I connect an unconnected profile or branch?
There are Hints and Tips on connecting unconnected profiles on the Connectors Chat page.
Why does it matter if a profile or branch is connected to the main tree?
Wikitree's mission is "to grow an accurate single family tree that connects us all and is freely available to us all." There are many places where people can build or store family trees that only they can access or edit, but the goal here is to build one, single, worldwide family tree for everybody in the world. That doesn't mean that there is anything "wrong" with profiles or branches that aren't connected to the main tree yet, but we always strive to connect those profiles and branches to the main tree so that everybody can see how they're related to one another.
Footnotes
- Actually, only Henry VIII stays the same from week to week. George Eastman is this week's profile of the week, and Hilary Gadsby is this week's member of the week. Those change from week to week, but since all 17,472,282 profiles in the main tree are connected to one another, it pretty much doesn't matter who the defining profiles are.
Resources
- Connectors Project
- G2G Thread: Can someone explain unconnected profiles and trees
- Help Page: Unconnected
- Hints and Tips on connecting unconnected profiles from the Connectors Chat page
- Places to find unconnected profiles page
- Login to edit this profile and add images.
- Private Messages: Contact the Profile Managers privately: Abby Glann and Greg Slade. (Best when privacy is an issue.)
- Public Comments: Login to post. (Best for messages specifically directed to those editing this profile. Limit 20 per day.)