Geni.com frequently appears in 'best website' lists and for good reason. The site allows you to plot your own family tree, starting with a simple entry of your name, surname and email. From here, you can go wild — adding family members, inviting relatives to assist you in filling in the family tree and posting family news for all members to see.

A noteworthy feature is the ability to invite your family from Facebook to the site. It's also possible to publish wall posts from Facebook onto your family page.

The site seems to have taken the Apple route that so many web pages and devices take by displaying a 'clean' look — with a white background and few advertisements.

For those who were wondering, only your relatives are allowed to see your family tree — a questionable move. Though it does give one's family a sense of privacy — after all, we don't need the world to know that Dan Plato or Julius Malema are our relatives!

While geni.com is a free site, there is the option of using a pay service called Geni Pro. With subscriptions ranging from $4.95 for a year, up to a lifetime subscription at $95, it’s certainly easy on the wallet. One of the advantages to this is that you get a comprehensive list of statistics on your family tree, such as oldest and youngest (cool) to most common surnames (really now?). Another advantage is the obligatory removal of the few advertising banners that are on the site.

Geni.com might just be your new lunchtime destination, so hop on over and give it a try!