In Web sites, Nevada abounds

Nevadans take pride in living in a state with its roots in the Wild West so it doesn't seem fitting that some of the best information for Nevada enthusiasts can be found on the Internet. In fact, it's downright disturbing.

But surprisingly, the Internet and Nevada thrive together. Hundreds of sites dedicated to our state and the people and places that make it unique abound.

Perhaps it's one of the positive things that we take from Silicon Valley - an outlet for Nevada enthusiasts to share their love of the Silver State, relate their experiences and guide others in their quests to learn more.

http://users.intercom.com/spike/Genweb/carson.htm This extremely long Web address is a good place for Nevadans to start their Web journeys. Amateur genealogists can search for family histories in the state and leave information for future searchers. At the moment, genealogical information on this site is scant, but if you have a long family history in Nevada it might be worth a visit.

And even people new to the state can get involved, planting their roots so to speak, and encouraging other family members to come online. With enough input, this site might become a valuable place to find lost relatives, through e-mail. Ten years ago, who would have imagined the possibilities?

In the same vein, family researchers can order government records over the Internet at a small cost. vitalrec.com/nv.html provides a link to information like birth certificates, death certificates, marriage records and divorce decrees. Here you might find the piece missing from your family puzzle.

Also check out rootsweb.com/roots-I/usa/nv.html for genealogical information.

These are just a few of the many sites dedicated to genealogical history in Nevada and all of the 50 states. Maybe it's time to put together a family tree.

Tahoe.com/Carson/index.html: Another shameless plug for Tahoe.com, an affiliate of the Nevada Appeal. But it is a really good site.

The site works like a searchable, interactive version of the yellow pages and provides some of the best links to information for Carson City's citizens. With a couple clicks, Tahoe.com reveals phone numbers and site addresses for city and state government agencies, museums and event calenders, schools and organizations.

Along with everything you might need in town, there are also links for North and South Lake Tahoe, Douglas County and Reno. Anybody planning a day trip within 100 miles is covered for everything from maps to sites along the way.

Nevada.com: This is not the official government site for the state, but like a government site its navigation is simple and undistracted by banner ads. Everybody could use a break from the sites that overdo it with flashy graphics and animated text.

The coolest thing I found on Nevada.com was a map link to "virtual Reno" (at renonet.net/vreno/index.html), which is basically a Reno/Sparks map with points of interest like casinos and museums represented with picture icons. Just point the mouse to a casino like the Nugget or the Hilton and you go there.

On the first try, it's worth a visit to the Nevada Museum of Art just to see the virtual Rodin exhibit. A panning camera effect gives the user a 360 degree view of the room by pointing left or right. The user can also zoom in and zoom out (without much resolution) to get a close-up. Computers that are not equipped with an updated Web browser and a streaming video plug-in (such as Quicktime) will not be able to access this feature.

For the official state Web page, go to State.nv.us for links to government offices and elected officials.

Ideas? Feedback? Please contact me at jimscripps@iqemail.com

Featured chats of the week:

-- Wednesday, March 22: Hip hop artists De La Soul at hob.com

The band that started a new era performs live, playing songs from their album Three Feet High and Rising at 6 p.m..

-- Wednesday, March 22: Screenwriters James Wong and Glen Morgan at scifi.com

From their work on the television series "X-Files" the pair has branched out to movies, including their recent release "Final Destination." Science fiction fans log on at 7 p.m.

-- Thursday, March 23: Former basketball coach John Wooden at home.att.net

A legendary career that made the UCLA name synonymous with championship college basketball. Wooden talks about his experience and the current crop in the NCAA playoffs at 4 p.m.

-- Thursday, march 23: Screenwriter Alan Ball at barnesandnoble.com

Ball talks about the success of his movie "American Beauty" and how he fared in the Oscar race at 4 p.m.