DNA Discuss
Genealogy Sunshine Coast holds a regular discussion group for anyone researching their ancestry and family using DNA testing.
You are welcome to come along for our monthly discussion group on the 3rd Monday of each month. Cost is $2.00 per session.
DNA Interest Group will be held on the following dates:
Monday 19 February
Monday 18 March
Monday 15 April
Monday 20 May
Monday 17 June
Monday 15 July
Monday 19 August
Monday 16 September
Monday 21 October
Monday 18 November
Monday 9 December
On the third Monday of the month in the morning, Bob May is available for 1 on 1 sessions to help you interpret your DNA results. You can book him for either a half hour or a full hour. The cost is $8 for the half hour session and $15 for the hour. You will need to phone the centre to make a booking.
Which DNA test is right for my research?
As there are several major testing companies, each has a different database of DNA and your situation may require you to test with more than one company to research your family.
There are 3 major types of DNA test you can do -
Autosomal DNA ( males and females)
Y DNA ( males only)
mtDNA ( mitochondrial DNA) - male and female can test
We suggest you begin with an Autosomal DNA test and if you can attend one of our DNA Discuss sessions before you test, you may find useful tips as to who to test as a priority.
We use and recommend FTDNA and we have kits available for you to purchase online. FTDNA offers all three tests as an add on option if you wish to research in more detail.
FTDNA also has many project groups which research surnames, places and ethnicity groups which you can join if you have Ftdna data.
Tests are also available with Ancestry.com - 23andme - My Heritage and Living DNA; look out for specials!
DNA Painter
One of our favourite sites to examine DNA matches and work out possible relationships between matches.
If you have a single DNA test, you can try out the profile for free.
However, there are many additional options and features available to you with the paid version of this program. Certainly worth trying out for a year and especially useful if you are analysing multiple kits as you can have a profile for each kit.
A very informative video -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyjcJxywTZI
https://dnapainter.com/example
Check this webpage for a sample of a DNA painter profile.
https://dnapainter.com/tools/sharedcmv4
The Shared cM Project has several versions and is an excellent tool developed by Blaine Bettinger.
The Genetic Genealogist has much more information from Blaine Bettinger regarding the project.
GEDMATCH
If you wish to compare results with other matches and family members who have tested with various DNA testing companies, Gedmatch is a useful option to gain more detail and make use of the additional Tier 1 tools on a monthly basis.
Genetic Genealogy Ireland
If you want to catch up on the latest in Irish genealogy and DNA research, this is an excellent website to add to your favourites.
Looking for a cousin
Download this excellent chart for calculating which cousin relationship you have found in your DNA results
Another useful chart from Familysearch.org
https://www.familysearch.org/blog/en/cousin-chart/