Ancestry.com...worth it?

[CollinMacD]

Many people are introduced to Ancestor.com through TV programs, with just a few keystrokes you have a family tree going back centuries. Doesn't work like that not even close. I highly suggest, if you are serious about your family's Genealogy, attending a seminar, and registering for several classes to understand the ground rules and what to expect when you start. Many of the records are wrong, you have many issues from misspelled names in census reports, but most of all, to do this correctly you as the researcher will need help and seminars provide you many of the resources you need and who to talk to and HOW to get the information. The green leaf does not always provide you the correct information. I use it for a tool, one of many that I have learned to use over the years. Eventually you will need to travel to the area of your ancestors and research local records, as so many are still not digitized and on line. Remember the TV programs have an army of professional genealogists, historians, and research staff, to make sure when they do a celebrity, they do it right and are accurate. Well, most of us are not celebrities, and we must do most of this ourselves and me totally involved. This is much harder then just typing in a name and getting results... you need to know the history of the period, the area, religion and politics of the time period, and much more. There are many resources and books available, I would go there first before I purchases the subscription for ancestor.com... Just my experience, I have been researching my family for well over 20 years, and still run into roadblocks.....but when you overcome the roadblock, it feels to good....best of luck. GO TO A SEMINAR, worth it....