Why can't we have multiple trees?
Why can't we have the option for multiple trees? And if there is a way, how do we go about making them? Hitting road blocks on both sides of the family tree, and finding that some of the individuals might not actually be related. Multiple trees might help some people weed out some of the individuals who don't belong.
Answers
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There are a number of other sites where you can build multiple, independent trees. Many of them have free options.
The FamilySearch FamilyTree is designed to be a single tree with one profile for each person who ever lived. https://www.familysearch.org/tree/overview
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Family Tree is the mashing together of multiple tree contexts.
Additionally you can have other personal trees (select Search> Genealogies from the FamilySearch homepage) - upload and compare them to Family Tree.
https://www.familysearch.org/search/genealogies
After Compare you can write once (profile by profile) - but there is no other/alternate residual expression into the one world one profile Family Tree. This write once process can potentially do damage to Family Tree state/Tree context - which is not good - so you have to Compare and write once very carefully - profile by profile.
These personal trees are not in a dynamic state - meaning you cannot edit them as you would Family Tree (At least that is what I recall from visiting Genealogies last. Thus the preference of many to work in Family Tree - it does make sense. But working in your own personal tree - 'My Tree' also makes sense - it's just a different tree context). A recent Idea I have proposed would make your personal/individual tree (My Tree) - a dynamic space (for your 'research state' - editable only for yourself - read-only for all others excepting possibly Family Group(s) - that could communicate agreement, disagreement or provisional research status to/from Family Tree - essentially increasing the potential collaborative value of 'My Tree' (as you also stated) - and would hopefully help you 'save time' in collaboratively communicating to Family Tree - since your work is in 'current research state') - instead of the write once option (again which could damage Family Tree).
Without a dynamic state for 'My Tree' - you would need to update your research in an offline 3rd party tree management application (or online personal tree solution), delete your previously uploaded tree from Genealogies, then upload your current state of research, then run the Compare process again ... Do you see the difficulty? (Thus my Idea) FamilySearch I think actually discourages the process of multiple personal trees - they would rather you have just one and compare it just once. Some 3rd party tree management applications do have Family Tree sync capability - but again this is a sync (essentially working in Family Tree context or 'pick and choose' process) which does not contain the explicit residual agreement state of 'My Tree' versus Family Tree - the collaboration between the two trees is obscured (the results look like you were just editing in Family Tree context).
I've also had another Idea which may be able to accomplish a similar state of agree, disagree or provisional - without referencing 'My Tree' (in other words it might work in the mashed-up context of Family Tree) ... Stay tuned for more Ideas.
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It's rather difficult to have more than one One World Tree.
As genthusiast wrote, FamilySearch does have a place where people can upload their individual genealogy files. However, it's best to stop at the upload, because the "compare" process is badly flawed and results in damage to the shared tree regardless of the user's best intentions. The upload puts the file in Genealogies, which is publicly searchable/viewable, but is static: the uploader can delete the file (and/or upload a new one), but no changes can be made.
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It's rather difficult to have more than one One World Tree.
I think there are several? at least one other from searching.
But it's comparatively so easy to have duplicate profiles of one person - or one profile conflating more than one person. So it is difficult to reach the goal one profile for every person that has/will live on planet Earth.
... but is static ...
I wish it weren't static ... oh well, maybe the 3rd party tree managements apps will consider the Idea. Static trees have value in witnessing to the accuracy of the one world Family Tree (especially so for nearer generations).
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