Here are some tips for you to do research and how to use this site.

Before asking

1. Before posting use the "search" option on the forums to see if anyone posted something on the surname that you are looking for,
2. Check the article section for articles that can answer your questions,

By following these points you will rule out double posts and asking questions that people asked before.

The big ask

1. Give your post an apropiate title. Something descriptive that helps other to recognize what you are posting. Titles that are not suitable include : "Help, I have a problem", "Quick, urgent help needed" ,
2. Explain what you want. Questions like: " I need all information on the origins of the Djordjevic family" are questions that we can't answer. Think about refrasing it into: " I need information on the Djordjevic family that I traced back to Kragujevac in e.g. 1816".
3. Provide as much information as possible: surname, first name, date and place of birth, family saint and religion. This will enable us to help you better.
4. Please do not ask questions through the Private Message option. These are public forums where people help each other out. If you're not sure where to post, then choose the forum that you think most suitable; if needed, a moderator can move the thread to the area deemed most suitable, no harm done.
5. Double posts will be deleted straight away without notice and can be marked as SPAM by the system!
6. Please try and avoid hijacking a thread because the original question closely matches yours. It's always far better to start a new topic than cut into someone elses and start to take it away on a tangent - this is confusing for all and makes replying difficult.
7. Be patient and polite; no one here is paid to help and we all have other lives to live.

Please act with courtesy towards all members of the forum - it will pay dividends in the quality of the help that you receive, and a little thankyou for problems solved never hurts.

After Your Ask:

1. If you don't get a response in 48 hrs or so, then it's possible that others can't see or understand the problem. Think about rewording the post or offering more information.
2. If you find a solution to your problem, let us know so that others can learn from your knowledge .
3. Help others. You don't need to have the solution, sometimes just suggesting something else to try will help.

After the answer

The SGS runs this site and offers most services for free to the public. However we do need to pay for running this site and that is why we ask membership fee's for our membership action. If you don't feel you are capable of doing research all by yourself you should become a member of the SGS. Membership is cheap and lasts a year. We can help you with:
* small translations,
* letters to the archives,
* phone help,
* you can upload files on the forum,
* you can post more detailed information that you don't want to post in our secure member forum,
* and we develop new items each month to make research easier,