Preparing for GRIP 2019: Part 6

 I have been working on many of the tasks outlined in my first several posts about preparing for the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh (GRIP). The course I will be attending is "Advanced DNA Evidence," coordinated by Blaine Bettinger.

I have finished reviewing the first two books mentioned in Preparing for GRIP 2019: Part 1. I am now just beginning to study the newest book mentioned in my last post, "Advanced Genetic Genealogy: Techniques and Case Studies," edited by Debbie Parker Wayne. I am so looking forward to each chapter as they all promise new learning for me.

I have also been reviewing the webinars previously mentioned and watching new ones that have been made available. I have also been spending quite a lot of time investigating the new tools made available by some of the DNA companies. And I am having some great successes if I do say so myself!  I am starting to feel less intimidated by the word "Advanced" in the course title! But there is still a lot of work to be done.

My next set of tasks has to do with DNA tests organization. I manage the tests of many family members and monitor a few more. I have tested with five different DNA companies and have one or more other family members in each company as well. Almost all of the tests have been uploaded to Gedmatch or the newer Genesis. So there are a lot of logins, passwords, test IDs, and permissions to keep track of. I have a spreadsheet with this information that I will update. I will also need to double-check the logins and passwords to be sure they all work.

Some of the third-party tools require paid subscriptions so I will also want to be sure those are kept updated as well.

I also plan to create a set of ancestor fan charts, one for each person whose family I am researching. Each set will consist of a color chart similar to the one seen here, a basic ancestor chart. I'll also add a chart that will indicate which of those ancestors I have connected to through another descendant - a genetic ancestor chart. Another chart I like is an ancestor chart that shows which ancestors would have contributed to the X-DNA of the subject of the chart. My chart is on the right.

Oh my gosh, I just realized that GRIP is only 2 months away. I have a lot of work to do yet!