David, I understand what you are saying. I am just beginning, and have yet to do any searches "across the pond," as the saying goes. I would be interested in others sharing how they got off the ground. Thanks for being the brave one and starting this conversation. David Wallis St. Charles, MO, USA -----Original Message----- From: David Thomson [mailto:orkboyz@lineone.net] Sent: Wednesday, February 02, 2005 10:21 AM To: WALLACE-L@rootsweb.com Subject: [WALLACE-L] Genealogy search question!?! Hello all lists, I have no wish to tread on any toes, nor to offend the very many people who have invested years of, and money on, research on their family lines, and I am very thankful to those who have contributed. If there was not so much interest I would not have been able to progress my searches so quickly and so accurately. While I do enjoy the 'almost personal' contact (and I have found distant 'cousins' round the world), I have wondered why there seems to be no central repository for genealogy. There are many sites doing their business - but, not to my mind, helping genealogists doing theirs. I started my research in about March last year, and probably appear as a mere whippersnapper, but I would appreciate some feedback. This is not meant as a flame. One of my most important thoughts was that should/could there be a genealogy site where beginners could gain access to a portal covering "all" the basics? I could go on, but, hopefully, you get the gist of my message. David Thomson, Surrey, England