You've heard the story before. You've witnessed it on the big screen. In Hollywood flicks, like You've Got Mail and Must Love Dogs, the leading man and his female counterpart meet online and they fall in love. Virtual romance blossoms everywhere.
If you think about it, it's easy to trace the evolution of the whole online dating phenomenon. It's a consequence of email, instant messaging, and social networking. The internet has brought humans together in a way that never was possible before. The natural extension, of course, is online dating. And more now than ever before, people are using the internet to find romance.
At the beginning, online personals seemed just plain odd. It was something reserved for, misfits, losers and cranks. But today, that stigma has been shrugged off and legions of people are taking to the net with the hopes of finding companionship and the ever elusive true love.
The whole system is a work of genius. Charging a membership fee to allow singles to browse personal profiles is pure gold. Today the online personals industry is booming.
Online personals, like Match.com and relative newcomer Plenty of Fish have more members now than ever before. However, the internet dating phenomenon first became a hit around 2003-04. Monthly traffic hit 40 million in late August of 2003.
For those who aren't familiar with online personals, here's a short rundown. An online personal is basically a profile, similar to your Facebook or Myspace profile. Usually people include information about their personal interests, their physical attributes (height, weight, eye color, etc), race, religion, smoking and drinking habits, a short blurb or description of themselves, and a sentence or two about what they are looking for in a mate or partner.
Online daters communicate using private on site messaging. They can also send virtual hugs, winks, kisses, etc. Essentially, the gist is that users can look through different profiles, find the lucky lady or lad that sparks an interest, contact them and then eventually meet them in an offline setting, for a date.
Online daters are gung ho about the idea that they can find their soul mate online. It's much more precise than regular dating. Going to a bar, for instance, is basically like walking blindfolded into a minefield. It's hit or miss. Online, however, you can pick and choose; you narrow down the candidates and aim for the bull's eye.
And perhaps true love waits just beyond the flickering computer screen. That's the hope, after all.
Of course the online dating scene isn't without its pitfalls. Many people tend to fib. They exaggerate their physical characteristics. They put down phony birth dates, they lower their weight, they make themselves taller, blonder, tanner than they really are. Some people even post fake pictures.
Still, you can find romance if you look in the right places. It's easy to separate the bad eggs from the good ones and find your one true love. - 31368
If you think about it, it's easy to trace the evolution of the whole online dating phenomenon. It's a consequence of email, instant messaging, and social networking. The internet has brought humans together in a way that never was possible before. The natural extension, of course, is online dating. And more now than ever before, people are using the internet to find romance.
At the beginning, online personals seemed just plain odd. It was something reserved for, misfits, losers and cranks. But today, that stigma has been shrugged off and legions of people are taking to the net with the hopes of finding companionship and the ever elusive true love.
The whole system is a work of genius. Charging a membership fee to allow singles to browse personal profiles is pure gold. Today the online personals industry is booming.
Online personals, like Match.com and relative newcomer Plenty of Fish have more members now than ever before. However, the internet dating phenomenon first became a hit around 2003-04. Monthly traffic hit 40 million in late August of 2003.
For those who aren't familiar with online personals, here's a short rundown. An online personal is basically a profile, similar to your Facebook or Myspace profile. Usually people include information about their personal interests, their physical attributes (height, weight, eye color, etc), race, religion, smoking and drinking habits, a short blurb or description of themselves, and a sentence or two about what they are looking for in a mate or partner.
Online daters communicate using private on site messaging. They can also send virtual hugs, winks, kisses, etc. Essentially, the gist is that users can look through different profiles, find the lucky lady or lad that sparks an interest, contact them and then eventually meet them in an offline setting, for a date.
Online daters are gung ho about the idea that they can find their soul mate online. It's much more precise than regular dating. Going to a bar, for instance, is basically like walking blindfolded into a minefield. It's hit or miss. Online, however, you can pick and choose; you narrow down the candidates and aim for the bull's eye.
And perhaps true love waits just beyond the flickering computer screen. That's the hope, after all.
Of course the online dating scene isn't without its pitfalls. Many people tend to fib. They exaggerate their physical characteristics. They put down phony birth dates, they lower their weight, they make themselves taller, blonder, tanner than they really are. Some people even post fake pictures.
Still, you can find romance if you look in the right places. It's easy to separate the bad eggs from the good ones and find your one true love. - 31368
About the Author:
With online personals on the rise, it pays for everyone to familiarise themselves with the industry before jumping in. Jayde Johanssen offers free online dating advice to help everyone on their way.
