For any who have been interested in testing at 23andMe but found the cost prohibitive, the company has permanently reduced the cost to $99 this past month, and there is no longer a monthly subscription fee. This is a reduction from the previous price of $299, plus a $9 per month annual subscription for updates. I have had several inquiries about 23andMe in general. So for those who may be curious, I am including information sources in this message. But first, an absolute disclaimer: I am neither recommending nor disapproving this service. I have not become a customer at this time. Anyone interested should read through all the references I am providing at a minimum, then make your own decision about its value for you personally. More material on this company and genomic analysis is available on the Internet. This company also has competitors which can be researched on the Internet. 23andMe is a company in the field of personal genomics. The name is derived from the 23 pairs of chromosomes in each normal human cell. The company analyzes DNA to provide unique personal information for each customer. This includes personalized genetic analysis of diseases, conditions, and traits. Since every aspect of this company’s services are relatively complex, I will make no attempt to summarize them, but refer you to the articles below. This article is quite detailed about the testing process, including photos of all the materials a customer will receive from 23andMe (written about three years ago): http://paulstamatiou.com/review-23andme-dna-testing-for-health-disease-ancestry More articles by another 23andMe customer and reviewer, written a few months ago: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paul-knoepfler/personal-genomics_b_1943532.html http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paul-knoepfler/personal-genomics_b_1963776.html Reviews of 23andMe by various sources, all from 2012: http://www.theverge.com/2012/12/12/3759198/23andme-genetics-testing-50-million-data-mining http://www.yalescientific.org/2012/03/23andme-a-genetic-social-network/ http://livelonger.hubpages.com/hub/23andme On all the above, be sure to read the comments and responses to the articles. Also note most prices that may be indicated in the articles have been superseded by the current price. 23andMe also provides ancestry services, similar to those provided by Family Tree DNA, though more comprehensive. However, their tests are not directly compatible with FTDNA testing, though conversions are available from FTDNA. For any who have already tested with 23andMe or will in the future, I recommend that you visit the website of Gedmatch ( http://gedmatch.com/ ). This website accepts data from both FTDNA and 23andMe and provides amazing sets of comparisons. This is a free service. Here are two articles which explain more about Gedmatch and its tools for genetic genealogy research: http://www.legalgenealogist.com/blog/2012/08/12/gedmatch-a-dna-geeks-dream-site/ http://capeflier.com/wp/2011/08/01/gedmatch/ Comments and discussion may be valuable for other subscribers of this listserve, especially from those who may have experience with 23andMe and its services. A. J. Pate