I'm a novice at this, but according to my sister, the family expert on the subject, you should do your own research and get official documentation when available - undocumented genealogy is mythology! Do not rely on info obtained from the internet unless your research is done through official sites.

Be sure to evaluate the source of your information.

And remember, most everyone has two family names: your father's, but also your mother's. Don't feel you must restrict your research to just your paternal family tree.

And then there's Murphy's Law: The records you need for your family history were in the court house that burned. ~ The 4 vol., 4,800 pg. history of the county where your great-grandfather lived is not indexed. ~ When you find the obituary for your grandmother, her name is exchanged with her daughter's, the whereabouts of her sons is unknown, the date for her father's birth indicates he was younger than she was. ~ Brittle old newspapers with names, dates & places you need have fallen apart ~ Your grandmother's maiden name for which you've searched for years was on an old letter in a box in the attic all the time. ~ The public ceremony in which your distinguished ancestor participated when the platform collapsed turned out to be a hanging!

- Author Unknown

For beginner's info; forms, charts & supplies; surname search; languages & translation; vital records; city directories; adoption resources; Native American resources; Acadian, Cajun & Creole; France; European American Resources Worldwide; Ships & passenger lists; migration routes, roads & trails, Census related sites worldwide; Military resources worldwide; diaries & letters; and many more links -

http://www.cyndislist.com

For FREE Family Tree Software, visit -

http://www.ancestry.com

To access the National Genealogical Society -

http://www.ngsgenealogy.org/

To research National Archives & Records Administration -

http://www.nara.gov/genealogy

For GEDCOM viewers, html conversion & resources -

http://www.cyndislist.com/gedcom.htm#General

And when you hit that brickwall and all else fails -

http://www.cyndislist.com/hitbrick.htm