Genealogy query rant.

[Gormy Cuss]

I'm one of the people who has received valuable leads and good data from other genealogists who were kind enough to respond to my queries on various genie boards. In turn, I read other queries and try to help when I can, but some people just don't get it.

Sample query: "I'm looking for any information about my gggrandfather Joe Blow who lived in East Nowhere, Indiana in 1870. Thanks"

My reply: "Joseph Blow and his wife Mary lived in Indianapolis in 1860 and 1870 with children Richard b.about 1855 and Lola b. 1858. Joe and Mary were enumerated in Indy in 1880 and 1900 but by 1910 Mary was a widow."

Reply from OP: "I know all that. I wanted to know where Joe was born."

:mad:

[Montauk6]

1. That is pretty obnoxious

I guess the best M.O. would be to do a feel-out with "I have some info you might be able to use; what specifically do you need?"

FWIW, my reply if I were the OP: "Hey, thanks for that; would you happen to know where Joe was born?" But then that's me.

[fudge stripe cookays]

2. My pet peeve.

I know some people are newbies, and I was guilty of some stupid stuff too when I first started, but geez people!

Never would I have been stupid enough to post "Looking for any information on my Smith family from Wisconsin." If you know anything, please respond. Thanks!

Some of these people post on the Genforum boards, and wonder why they never get any response! Like I'm going to spend my time clicking on every post that mentions this last name if I have no clue where they lived.

Oi. Details people, details!

[Gormy Cuss]

3. I give the newbies the 5-minutes- of- my- time reply.

The good thing about Genforum is that you can check to see if the poster is a newbie there or just someone who's unclear of the concept.

For a broad query by a newbie I will check the name in census and if I get hits, I post it and ask if they want to know more. I don't mind spending 5 minutes do something that may not be helpful.

It's the ones who both can't frame the query and then act peeved that the responders aren't mind readers.
I guess I just don't grok that mindset.

[fudge stripe cookays]

4. You're a kind soul.

I guess I just don't have the time anymore.

Too hurried, too much work to do, and not enough time to do it. I try to help out folks when I can, but lately it's all I can do to find my own stuff!

I did post a bunch of info on Genforum out of Canadian papers last year when I was unemployed and scanning the various Alberta papers online. And I gave $20 to the Wisconsin Historical Society the other night. That felt good.

:D

[Gormy Cuss]

5. I do know what you mean about time.

I don't answer newbies that often!