Beginners

In this brief tutorial, we are going to introduce you to some very basic concepts about DNA. Mostly, this part is a biology lesson. In order to analyze data, we need to understand how DNA functions on a basic level. Once we understand the basic properties of DNA, we can start to make hypotheses about our matches and who they could be. Please keep this vocabulary list handy as well. It opens up in a new tab for easy reference!

Prerequisites for Getting Started

While there are no formal requirements to use this segment mapping software, you will get the most out of this software if you already are comfortable with the following things before you work with your own data.

Genetic Genealogy Basics

1. How autosomal DNA is inherited
2. How X-DNA is inherited
3. What ICW (in common with) means and how to use shared matches
4. What “cM” and “SNP” mean, and what they mean regarding the quality and closeness of a match
5. What segment triangulation is, and what the difference is between triangulation and ICW
6. What a pile-up region is
7. What a recombination/crossover point is

Testing Site-Specific Basics

1. How to get segment data (chromosome number, start, and stop points for a match)
2. Can you use triangulation on the site? If so, make sure you know how it works on that testing site.
3. How to pull all of your match data in one spreadsheet if available (GEDMatch doesn’t do this)

DNA Painter Software

1. Watch the video from Blaine Bettinger to make sure that you understand the purpose of DNA Painter and understand some basic screens.
2. I have made a video (on Vimeo) to demonstrate the software and also introduce you to some helpful spreadsheet tricks.
3. Load the example profile that DNA Painter provides on the front page; we will use this to practice certain ideas.
4. Complete the following “workbook” assignments to learn the mechanics of the software.