Admit it. You return again and again to the popular genealogy Web sites - FamilySearch, USGenWeb, RootsWeb and others - looking for clues about your ancestors. If you're repeating the same searches but not finding much, it's time to give your technique an overhaul.

We've taken a fresh look at seven familiar sites, examined their search options, and even figured out how to use Google <google.com> to probe them more efficiently. So get out of that rut - and finally find your ancestors - with these “hacks” for effectively mining the Internet's most-frequented family history stops.