DNA Group News and Topics of Interest 

1. The next meeting will be on Thursday, Oct 18, 2018 at 7 pm at the LDS Church.

In the first part of the meeting we will again have an open forum where members will be able to ask questions and share their stories of successes or difficulties that they have encountered while pursuing Genetic Genealogy. Come prepared to participate.

We have members with a range of experience levels and we want to accommodate everyone, so come and ask your questions or share your experiences no matter what level you are at.

If you have something that you would like explained, do not be afraid to ask. We encourage everyone to speak out, no matter what level of experience they have. Those with more experience love the opportunity to discuss these issues, and we all learn something.

In the second half of the meeting, Anita McPherson will lead a discussion about using the What Are The Odds tool at the website DNA Painter, which uses the shared cM of several matches to figure out how a particular match may be related to the others.

If you think that you might want to use this tool, it is a good idea to become a member of the What Are The Odds Facebook group. You will find tips and advice on using the tool.

The following links discuss the recent updates released by AncestryDNA and MyHeritage, and the opportunities they afford to us, and the utility of MyHeritage tools to determine how your matches are related.

AncestryDNA links
Ancestry 2018 Ethnicity Update
Finally, Ancestry's New Ethnicity Estimates
Major Enhancement to AncestryDNA's Ethnicity Estimates

MyHeritage links
MyHeritage Now Accepts LivingDNA and 23andMe V5 Transfer Results and Partners with European Retailer
MyHeritage now Supports 23andMe version 5 and LivingDNA Uploads
MyHeritage now accepts transfers from LivingDNA and 23andMe but will soon start charging for some features
MyHeritage DNA announces a new results filtering – how does it work?
MyHeritage DNA Matching: Excellent Enhancement
Major Upgrade to the MyHeritage Chromosome Browser for Better Exploration of DNA Matches

Please contact Vernon Smith if you would like to request a topic for this or any other meeting.

2. We have a number of Handouts covering various topics of interest to this group which can be accessed here.

    A Y DNA Testing Links Handout is now available.

3. Useful DNA Video Lectures
a)  Videos from lectures given at  "Who Do You Think You Are" conferences held in Birmingham, England.
b)  Videos from Genetic Genealogy Ireland conferences.

4. Blog Spot

Latest suggestions (updated 9/14/2018)
Posts for previous months, click here.

5. DNA Tools

a) AncestryDNA Helper App for chrome browser

b) MedBetterDNA App for chrome browser

c) Autosomal DNA Analysis Tools by Tim Janzen

6. Resources
a) A good resource has been provided by Kitty Cooper as 'DNA Newbie FAQ'

b) Stream a video on "DNA for Beginners: The Three Tests" by Debbie Kennett.

c) Kelly Wheaton offers a "Beginners Guide to Genetic Genealogy"

d) CeCe Moore has a four part series on "DNA Testing for Genealogy"

e) FTDNA eBook "Interpreting Genetic Genealogy Results"

f) John A. Blair provides a basic discussion with "DNA 101"

g) Donna Rutherford provides "DNA - What, when, how, why - FAQ's for beginners"

h) Discussion of "ICW vs. Triangulation" (download)

i) Which DNA tests to take - “Which DNA testing company should I use?”,
      “Sorting out the DNA Tests Available for Genealogy” , and
      "The Best DNA Ancestry Testing Kit"

j) Tips for Using GEDmatch

k) A video on GEDmatch basics from Angie Bush

l) A beginners guide to "DNA Genealogy Using GEDmatch"

m) Basics of DNA "Focus University: Understand DNA in 10 Minutes".

n) This has recommendations that some would argue with, "A Practical Guide to Using Autosomal DNA (atDNA) for Genealogical Purposes"

o) Guide to "How to Download Your AncestryDNA Data and Upload It to FTDNA"

p) Guide to "How to Download Your 23andMe DNA Data"

q) Guide to "How to Transfer Your DNA Data to FTDNA"

r) Visual Phasing by Blaine Bettinger

s) Links to "Finding Biological Family With DNA Testing" (download)

t) References for X-DNA Testing and Matching (download)

u) Links to "Finding Lisa" story (download)

v) Lots of information, courtesy of NIH, on Genetics

w) Lots of useful links on "ISOGG Wiki" This has an interesting discussion of "Identical by Descent"

Please send comments or suggestions to Vernon Smith

Note that I am available to answer your questions when I volunteer at the Family History Center (LDS Church) on the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays of the month from 6 pm to 9 pm.