Online introductions to Genealogy
I don't pretend to know whether these guides are good or not but they seem useful. You need to evaluate them for yourself (and don't spend any money!)
About.com: Introduction to Genealogy
Knol: Introduction to Genealogy ("Knol is a Google project that aims to include user-written articles on a range of topics.")
Guides to Family History (books)
Asian American genealogical sourcebook (1995)
Ethnic genealogy, a resource guide (1983)
Finding Oprah's roots: finding your own (2007)
Black genesis: a resource book for African American genealogy (2003)
Family pride: the complete guide to tracing African American genealogy (1997)
A student's guide to Mexican American genealogy (1996)
Mexican-American genealogical research: following the paper trail to Mexico (2002)
Native american genealogical sourcebook (1995)
Journal of American Indian family research (1980 - 1993)
For other titles, try an OskiCat search for keywords: genealogy handbooks
Libraries and Library web sites
Family Search - Free web resource for family history research. You can search by surname in death, birth SSI records
Oakland Regional Family History Center - Huge and very extensive genealogical research center that also includes access to HeritageQuest, Genealogy.com, Footnote. com, etc plus extensive collection of books, directories and local histories.
A few online resources, including how to prepare for a visit to the Family History Center.
National Archives - Pacific Region - Contains the records of the Western US (Northern & Central California, Hawaii, Nevada) and is especially good source for Asian Pacific immigration information
More about their genealogy resources
California State Library - Sutro - Hours and location (scroll down; always call first - State offices still on furlough)
This web page is a guide to the Genealogy resources of the California History room of the State Library - IN SACRAMENTO. However, it may give you an idea of the kinds of genealogy resources that are out there. You can call or e-mail Sutro to ask if they also have the same resources. (Indirect, I know)