The FamilySearch site is actually fairly simple to use for beginners.  When you first enter the FamilySearch Web site, you will see a screen with three main options: Search for Ancestors, Share Information and Family History Library System.  The Search for Ancestors section is where most people begin their search. 

Once you select the Search for Ancestors option, a new page will come up. Here you simply enter your ancestor's name.  Only the surname is required, but this can often result in too many hits.  If you try a search on your surname and get too many results, then go back to the search screen and try entering your ancestor's first name or some other field to help narrow down the search.  The results screen will only display the first 25 results from each source, but there are links on the results page to each individual source where the remaining results from that source will be displayed.

Lets use my CRISP ancestors as an example:

When I type in CRISP in the Search screen, the results screen shows 213 matches.  Note the "Sources Searched" in the right hand column.  Several of these sources show 'over 25' for the number or matches, indicating that my total number of matches on the surname CRISP is actually greater than 213 (since only the first 25 matches are displayed on the results screen). If I select "Ancestral File" from this list, I will find that there are actually 1734 matches in Ancestral File alone.  These results are usually listed about 150 per screen. You will know there are still more matches beyond this because the search results will include a '+' symbol (i.e. 150+ matches).

Now, what if I don't have the time to wade through all of these matches?  I click on "Refine Search" at the top of the results page, which will take me back to the search screen.   I add "William M." as the first name and again click Search.  This time there are 110 matches in the results list.  Note the various spellings of CRISP showing up (CRISPE, CHRISP).  This search is smart and automatically looks for alternate spellings of your surname for you.

Again, I am getting to many extraneous results.  I am looking for a William M. CRISP and it is returning William Edward CRISP.  Why?  This is because the search algorithm ignores middle names unless "Use Exact Spelling" is checked.  So I go back to the search screen and select "Use Exact Spelling."  Voila!  The search results display 13 matches for a William M. CRISP.  

Keep in mind, however, that many people may not have his name listed exactly as William M. CRISP.  It could be listed as W. CRISP, William CRISP, William CHRISP, William Mansel CRISP, etc.  The best way to make sure that I don't miss any of these variations would be to wade through the 211 search results for the surname CRISP (with exact spelling turned off).  But can you imagine doing this with the surname SMITH?  You can also narrow down your search results by specifying an event, year range, year, or country.

Next page > What do these different results mean? > Page 1, 2, 3, 4

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