6
votes
Surname origins and meaning: on-topic?
One-name studies exist to attempt to determine a surname's origins, and I suspect that even these rarely find anything concrete. Even reputable sources such as the Oxford Dictionary of Family Names ...
Harry V.Mod
- 18.9k
6
votes
Accepted
Is [onomastics] tag needed?
This tag is too obscure to be useful. If one is looking for questions about surname etymology, they are unlikely to think – it'll be under 'onomastics'.
Apart from surnames, with any genealogy-related ...
Harry V.Mod
- 18.9k
5
votes
Accepted
How many FindMyPast tags are needed?
I think we need only one FindMyPast tag, with an updated tag wiki as indicated below (with my bolding to indicate the change):
findmypast
A suite of genealogy websites operated by brightsolid ...
PolyGeoMod
- 11.2k
5
votes
Accepted
Should we comply with the Terms of Service/Policy Statements of all sites from which our users quote?
This response is about the headline question (other site's terms of service), and not about DNA issues.
A site's terms of service are a statement of the expectations for users of the site. They are ...
- 3,877
5
votes
Accepted
Do we want a tag for German language?
Yes, if it's used for questions about the German language as it relates to genealogy.
We have the latin tag – I believe the only language tag currently – which has usage guidance:
For questions ...
Harry V.Mod
- 18.9k
5
votes
Accepted
Should images be cropped and if so, how far?
In order to minimize chances of infringing any copyright that might apply, and to keep questions focused, I think images should normally be cropped as far as is sensible.
If only a single word in an ...
PolyGeoMod
- 11.2k
5
votes
Accepted
How to best dispose of question that adds information to another question?
On that question there is a comment by @bgwiehle that says:
The second image above confirmed the most likely reading of the word
already suggested by an earlier answer; so this question might be
...
PolyGeoMod
- 11.2k
5
votes
Adding Question and My Answer from Facebook
Genetic Genealogy Tips & Techniques is a Closed Group on Facebook. According to the Help Center's FAQ What are the privacy settings for groups?, only current members of a group can see the ...
Jan MurphyMod
- 25.8k
5
votes
Protecting questions with problematic opinion-based answers?
Absolutely!
Protecting questions only prevents answers by anonymous and very new users (which is exactly the group causing the problem in this case).
- 5,229
5
votes
Improving FreeBMD results
I think it could be helpful, especially in cases where FreeBMD users are researching common names, to have FreeBMD report the subdistrict as well as the district. This would allow researchers to ...
Jan MurphyMod
- 25.8k
5
votes
Shall we implement the "No AI" banner?
I think we should opt-in for:
Reminder: Answers generated by artificial intelligence tools are not allowed on G&FH SE.
PolyGeoMod
- 11.2k
4
votes
What makes a question (and its answers) worth sharing?
I'd like to offer for your consideration one of my recent favorites: What "hidden" clues are there in the GRO Indexes of births and deaths?
Online-only genealogists don't have the same ...
Jan MurphyMod
- 25.8k
4
votes
Tag cleanup: baptisms and marriages
For marriage-records add 'banns' to the list of types of marriage records.
I like this and think it will add more clarity.
Jan MurphyMod
- 25.8k
4
votes
Do we want hats? Announcing the 2016 Winter Bash!
Hats!
I rarely wear hats IRL - they make me look "weird", or "sort of like a murderer", at least according to my wife.
But virtual hats? Bring 'em on!
- 4,427
4
votes
On tags and places
I favour a simple set of guidelines where questions are tagged by geography as follows:
tag a country if the question and answer could be applied to anywhere in that country
tag a county/state/...
Harry V.Mod
- 18.9k
4
votes
Ads for G&FH on other SE sites
Unfortunately, no Community Adds at Photography SE Meta reached 6 in
their 2020 voting and so they are not part of the Community Ads initiative
in 2021 - see
The future of Community Promotion, Open ...
PolyGeoMod
- 11.2k
4
votes
Conventions for abbreviating great when describing ancestor relationships?
I love consistency and congruity. But in this case it really is inconsequential to the question or answer how many Gs there are. I say let the author of the question or answer decide on the convention ...
Harry V.Mod
- 18.9k
4
votes
Why is the Software tag being edited out?
I too was surprised when this tag was being removed from many questions, without alternative tags being added in some cases. Apparently there was discussion I had missed at: https://genealogy.meta....
Harry V.Mod
- 18.9k
4
votes
Why was this marked as unclear if they had said it was off-topic?
Your question is problematic because it doesn't say how this information will be helpful to you in answering a research question for your genealogy and family history. From What types of questions ...
Jan MurphyMod
- 25.8k
4
votes
What belongs on our beginner 'ask' page?
My first thoughts, which I may refine later, are below with some brief example text for a sample question (based on Where was Matthew Nettell, of Illogan, Cornwall, for the 1861 Census?):
Please ...
PolyGeoMod
- 11.2k
4
votes
Do we need an Acronyms tag?
I don't think we need a tag for it. What is the likelihood that someone would want to subscribe to a site to get all the new acronym questions?
Anyone looking for prior questions about acronyms can ...
Jan MurphyMod
- 25.8k
4
votes
Recruiting new members to G&FH.SE from Facebook?
One of the difficulties I see in getting people to come over from Facebook, especially for members of Closed Groups, is that people may not want to post here because the questions and answers are ...
Jan MurphyMod
- 25.8k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible