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Archiver > APG > 2009-01 > 1232178602


From: Langdon <>
Subject: Re: [APG] "Fun" with ancestry.com
Date: Fri, 16 Jan 2009 23:50:02 -0800 (PST)
In-Reply-To: <589E02758F15403EA07D5BD1F1DED59D@YOUR58BA15CF1B>


 
I think the point is being missed. If Ancestry.com has any interest in creating accurate data bases, there is no possible way something like South Carolina Death Records could be posted for public viewing.  When the errors from legible material are so obvious and numerous, it is not possible the data is double checked for errors.  These aren’t anecdotal tales of errors, but an entire database of clear records turned into one with numerous errors on nearly every page for all to see. The point is not to complain about Ancestry.com, but rather, to warn about trusting something so utterly unworthy of trust, lest public records are destroyed.
 
When the same situation goes on for years, I think we can safely judge that nothing is going to change, no matter how often we ask. When errors are made, they should be owned and corrected.  There seems to be a built-in denial system here, which is the most disturbing thing to me. Personally, I don’t trust Ancestry.com data bases anyway, and shudder to think that any records might be destroyed once they are digitalized.  I believe it could be disastrous to believe promises, when it comes to destroying records based on promises by a company with such a poor record. If anyone wants to ask Ancestry to cooperate with standards, or develop quality control, more power to them. I have no confidence that Ancestry will suddenly want to turn commercial genealogy into professional genealogy. It might be more productive to help others realize that Ancestry's work is too poor to rely on, and nothing should be destroyed on the belief that adequate copies have been
made.
 
Langdon Hagen-Long
 


 
 

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