Bill and Ladies,
Have been reading these DNA posts.  I am so interested and
I must admit it all gives me a big headache.  I am so totally
uninformed and find it all very confusing when trying to learn
what to expect.  Some of you who have had the testing done
seem so excited and I wonder exactly what I will know, after I
have a test,  that I do not know now? I do not know of anyone
in my family that has been tested.
Subscribing to another site is not something I wish to do right
now.  Can anyone recommend a book that would help?
Thank you.
Joanne Yeager Thorne



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Bill Davidson" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Monday, February 27, 2012 5:49 PM
Subject: Re: [VA-ROOTS] Genealogy


> Doris,
>
> In addition to the "male Y chromosome test" that is "representative" of a 
> male (only) DNA donor, his father, his father's father, his father's 
> father's father, etc., there is also a "female test" (the mtDNA test) that 
> is "representative" of a male or a female donor, his/her mother, his/her 
> mother's mother, his/her mother's mother's mother, etc. (note: each of 
> those women will typically have had a different "birth last name" as well 
> as a different "married last name," so using this test presents an extra 
> "research challenge" for that reason).  There is now a third test that 
> anyone (male or female) can take, and it will show DNA "matches" to any 
> "biological cousins" who also took that test....male or female and 
> irrespective of their surnames....who share a common ancestor within about 
> 4 or so "generations back" (this test apparently gets a little unreliable 
> back beyond 4 generations or so).  Using this test also presents an extra 
> "research challenge," since you will probably get matches to some surnames 
> that you never knew had any connection to your family (the same could also 
> be true, of course, with the above mtDNA test).  As this third test 
> becomes more popular, the "odds" of finding many "matches" will continue 
> to increase.  Family Tree DNA calls this last/third test the "Family 
> Finder" test.  I used Family Tree DNA (FTDNA) for my Y chromosome test. 
> That is the same company that National Geographic uses for DNA testing, 
> and I can highly recommend them.
>
> Bill D.
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