Is ancestry.com the best genealogy site and is it worth the money?

Question:

Is ancestry.com the best genealogy site and is it worth the money?

Is it the most informative, and does it have birth, death, marriage liscenses on file? If so, how far do they date back?

I'm trying to find out my great-grandparents names on my real dads side. My mother doesn't know them, and I have no contact with that side of the family-no acceptions, so how would I go upward from my grandparents on that side?

TIA!
-Newby to the family tree scene. :P

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: it is an okay site but if you want to look you can find free information. http://www.ahgp.org is a great site (The Great American History and Genealogy Project) and it is free. You can post and find links to help you on your search.

I have been working on my genealogy for a few years now and there are books you can get or borrow from the library that will help you on your search. I have learned a lot on my journey of finding my past roots. I have also met some distant cousins along the way.

Start small and look in area newspapers of obits and they give great information about who people are and who is relatied to them. Then you can order their death certificate and it will tell you much more then back track from there.

Contact a historical society near where you are looking and maybe for a small donation they can help you find what you are looking for. I know that the libraries near us have ancestry.com available for free at the libraries. I don't know if it is a national thing for libraries but you can ask.
Good Luck with your search!