When Kevin Macomber grew frustrated with the duplicated genealogy research he found on the Internet, he decided to do something about it: Why not use the Internet to pool family data? His Macomber Project <www.macomberproject.com> has evolved into a Web site with more than 160 active researchers. The site boasts databases of military records, photos and close to 2,000 family burial sites. As new researchers come on board, Macomber identifies which branch of the family they belong to, then connects them with their own mini-research group.

You too can use the Internet to divide research tasks, share findings, upload documents and post family photos. Your shared family history Web site may not gather researchers by the hundreds (well, at least not right away!), but it can definitely bolster your research. Here's a behind-the-scenes peek at what's involved in a successful collaborative site.