Ancestry's new messaging system

Hermy · 28-05-2020 12:23pm #1

Anyone else been looking at Ancestry's new messaging system?

I've just been looking at it and discovered that every message I've every sent has been reinstated even though over time I would have deleted all but the most recent ones.

Been on the phone to customer service and they suggested I email head office.

pinkypinky · 28-05-2020 5:41pm

I still don't have it! Stamps little foot.

I actually want to see all the messages I've ever sent.

VirginiaB · 28-05-2020 8:13pm

Me too. Sometimes I'll have a question for someone I emailed years ago and I can find them easily. It would be a disaster to lose all those old emails. Just my two cents.

Hermy · 28-05-2020 9:32pm

I save all my messages - the useful ones - to word documents before deleting my inbox.

Earnest · 29-05-2020 10:56am

I'm frequently wanting to look up old messages: Did that person ever reply? Have I discussed this problem before? Why did I come tot that conclusion? And if Ancestry is kind enough to keep the messages, good for them!

Hermy · 29-05-2020 1:42pm

But messages I deleted because I no longer need them are back in my inbox.

And messages I've previously read are now marked as unread.

Hermy · 20-06-2020 1:38pm

One other thing I've just noticed with the messaging system - there's no option to delete received messages.

pinkypinky · 20-06-2020 3:02pm

I still don't have it.

Hermy · 20-06-2020 3:11pm

Have you cleared your browser history recently?

Sometimes these things - especially with Ancestry - only kick in after a refresh.

pinkypinky · 20-06-2020 9:46pm

Yes.

Hermy · 22-06-2020 11:16am

Just spoke to a very helpful person at Ancestry support who explained that this is now the way the messaging system works.

Pity none of the three previous phone calls I made on this issue could have been dealt with by this person.

Anyway, at least I now know my old received messages reappearing is not a fault but I hope in time they change this.

Having a cluttered message box is akin to an untidy desk.

pinkypinky · 14-07-2020 7:51pm

Got an email today saying the new messaging system is live in my account. Also told me to download folders as I'd lose them by end of August. Decided to move the messages back to the inbox instead as there weren't that many.

Excitedly cleared cache then.

No new messaging system! #rage

Hermy · 14-07-2020 10:51pm

That's weird.

Earnest · 15-07-2020 11:21am

I can't follow this discussion. I never tried to delete anything as I might want to come back to them, as I said on 29-05-2020. But now we have a discussion on "Folders". Do I have folders or the ability to create them? I have a list of correspondents. If by Inbox you mean the menu that opens on clicking the icon envelope, then that is in reverse chronological order, while the list of correspondents neatly groups the messages by correspondent, including my replies, which is exactly as I would wish.

Weirdly, some of them are in bold and some not, and when I re-read them the bold disappears.

How could I move messages back to the Inbox if they are going to disappear?

pinkypinky · 15-07-2020 12:11pm

I agree it does not make sense!

Ancestry's email said items in folders would be lost. So I still have the old messaging system - see attached image.
Until yesterday, I had folders named after various ancestral families and had put messages in them, but it was never great because searching was a challenge and I stopped using them. So I've now moved all the messages (one by one) back to the inbox and deleted the folders.

The new system is a more modern interface like this. Sounds like you have the new system already, and I agree, I don't want to delete old messages either.

Hermy · 15-07-2020 12:45pm

Earnest wrote: »

Weirdly, some of them are in bold and some not, and when I re-read them the bold disappears.

The messages in bold are supposedly ones that have not yet been read.

I say supposedly because when all of my messages reappeared, some were in bold even though they had been read some time ago, and had since been cut and pasted to their relevant Word document and then deleted from the site.

Given their resources Ancestry's attempt at a new messaging service is woefully poor and the lack of an option to delete messages, or at least to be able to archive them away from the main message box, is pathetic.

pinkypinky · 15-07-2020 10:21pm

After moaning about this on twitter, I finally have the new system. There was something wrong on my account. Observations after I play with it, but I see immediately that everything is marked as unread.

pinkypinky · 15-07-2020 10:34pm

Multiple messages that I was never notified about, going back over the past month/6 weeks. Some very significant.

pinkypinky · 16-07-2020 10:30am

I've had a chance to go through now.

One message has cracked a massive brickwall for me! I'm like a child at Christmas. This will be going in my next newsletter.

Hermy · 16-07-2020 10:32am

pinkypinky wrote: »

I've had a chance to go through now.

One message has cracked a massive brickwall for me! I'm like a child at Christmas. This will be going in my next newsletter.

No, you're wrong Pinky - it's a terrible messaging system!!:o

pinkypinky · 16-07-2020 11:02am

I may be coloured by the names of 3 new direct ancestors received via a message that I hadn't got on the old one!

Earnest · 16-07-2020 11:05am

pinkypinky wrote: »

I agree it does not make sense!

Ancestry's email said items in folders would be lost. So I still have the old messaging system - see attached image.
Until yesterday, I had folders named after various ancestral families and had put messages in them, but it was never great because searching was a challenge and I stopped using them. So I've now moved all the messages (one by one) back to the inbox and deleted the folders.

The new system is a more modern interface like this. Sounds like you have the new system already, and I agree, I don't want to delete old messages either.

Maybe I simply ignored the old 'Folders' option.

Earnest · 16-07-2020 11:07am

pinkypinky wrote: »

Multiple messages that I was never notified about, going back over the past month/6 weeks. Some very significant.

I checked through the first dozen or so correspondents and can't find anything that I had not been notified about.

pinkypinky · 16-07-2020 11:18am

I have been chatting to people on twitter and other people have experienced it too. What's weird is that I did get email about some messages.

Hermy · 16-07-2020 11:20am

pinkypinky wrote: »

Multiple messages that I was never notified about, going back over the past month/6 weeks. Some very significant.

It's something I've often seen mentioned in comments on social media in the past where people were aware that messages they had sent hadn't been received.

pinkypinky wrote: »

I have been chatting to people on twitter and other people have experienced it too. What's weird is that I did get email about some messages.

Now that you mention the emails about messages that brings up another minor issue.

Since the update when I click the link in emails I receive telling me I have a new message it brings me to ancestry.com rather than ancestry.co.uk so I can't view the message.

pinkypinky · 16-07-2020 11:27am

Interesting.

I never think about which version I'm on - there should be no difference.

Hermy · 16-07-2020 11:38am

There probably isn't but when I end up on the 'dot com' site I'm not logged in.

When I arrive there via a Google search it usually gives me the option to change over to 'co dot uk' but not on the message link described above.

Ancestry's new messaging system

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