Margaret O'Brien 
You can create a free Ancestry guest account that gives you limited access to their features and record collections. This article will run through exactly what you can and can’t do with the free access. We’ll also give you tips on making the most of the free tier. Registered Guest Accounts On Ancestry The company … Read more
I see a repeated conversation on the genealogy forums that starts with someone asking when Ancestry will improve the Shoebox. Usually, a reply mentions a rumor that the feature will be dropped. And there’s bound to be at least one person wondering…what on earth is the Shoebox? This article aims to be a complete guide. … Read more
The 23andMe website says that they typically take 6 to 8 weeks to produce your DNA results from your kit arrives at the lab. Last year, some happy customers reported that their results took only two weeks to be ready. I’ve checked the genealogy forums to see what 23andMe customers are saying this year. Read … Read more
You probably know that Ancestry updates your ethnicity estimates from time to time. But how often does this happen? And what kind of changes do they make to your results? The most recent change was in September 2021. This article looks at updates in the last few years to predict when the next change will … Read more
This article will show you that Ancestry DNA results are not the same for siblings. Indeed, you may be surprised at the differences. Three families who took multiple DNA tests with Ancestry.com kindly shared their results with me. This lets me show you lots of pictures from the Ancestry displays. (The tester names are altered … Read more
I surveyed over forty people to estimate the average number of DNA matches on Ancestry. The company hasn’t published recent statistics, and I was curious about what the numbers would look like in 2021. The total counts range from five thousand matches to over 150 thousand. But the very low and very high numbers aren’t … Read more
If you’re hoping for that one new match that could tear down a brick wall, you’re probably wondering how often does Ancestry update your DNA matches. Ancestry provides an instant count of your total matches, but it doesn’t show you a history of how your numbers have grown. To figure out how often your DNA … Read more
There is a common misconception that MyHeritage is owned by Ancestry. These two rivals are not connected, and MyHeritage is an independent company. So, who actually owns MyHeritage? This article will give the short answer, and also explores the major investors and influencers in MyHeritage. Who Owns MyHeritage? MyHeritage was purchased in 2021 by U.S. … Read more
GEDmatch released the Surname Search tool at the end of January 2021. This is part of the paid set of tools. It lets you search for any combination of surnames across the GEDCOM trees of your DNA matches. I’ve got two thumbs up with how it integrates with the One-To-One GEDCOM comparison tool. Used together, … Read more
You can remove any DNA match from your match list page by “hiding” them. It’s important to understand that hiding a DNA match does not remove you from their list. You can’t see them, but they can still see you! If you actually want to be hidden from your DNA matches, you can opt out … Read more