Internet Dating Services

  Everyone is in search for their soul mate so the internet steps in by providing internet dating services. With the boom of the internet before the 21st century, a majority of individuals of any gender are logging on to look for Mr. or Ms. Right.

But not everyone is what they seem - especially online. For example, the 1998 movie “You’ve Got Mail.” Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan’s characters may be compatible online but offline, their bookstores are head to head. Internet dating is so easy because it’s just a PC away. Just last year, 2005, another movie was released about online dating - “Must Love Dogs” with Diane Lane and John Cusack. It tells the story of two busy people who try to find for “the One” on the Internet dating services.

When considering online dating, worry no more because the resources are abundant. There are a lot of chat rooms, web pages and discussion boards. Some of them are free, others have membership fees. Sites like these have thousands of members but  by simply utilizing the search engine and entering the preferred age, gender or location, the people who fit up the description are narrowed down. Pictures are uploaded and information is laid out.

It is possible to make friends on the net from these internet dating services. Since a majority of them are free, a lot of people sign up and the interconnectedness increase. Other additional features include webcast chat (wherein visual feed and audio images are transmitted) and forum board (discussions on everything under the sun.) From there, a friendship begins and the dating waters are tested. Most of them meet up and check to see if there is chemistry offline, just as much as there are sparks online.

Judging from this, it won’t be long when couples are asked, “How did you meet?” and their reply would be “On the net.”

However, be very wary if you are to engage in this online networking. It is so easy to lie in cyberland. Studies show that 30% of chatters are actually in a committed relationship. They resort to the pretense of singlehood so that they can add excitement to their love lives (sex lives even) but at the expense of the other person who unwittingly has no idea what he or she has gotten into.

Therefore, maturity should come in. Be mature enough to put in correct information and also the right picture. You don’t have to lie to impress those who will check out your profile. You don’t have to upload a different picture other than your own. Picture this, what if it turned out you did hit it off with your chatmate and he or she finally suggests you meet. How can you show your real face when his or her idea of what you look like is a lie.

It is also necessary to be open-minded on internet dating. Don’t be too gullible and fooled easily,

Pushing the envelope further, it is also possible that two people from different countries meet online. With the help of chatting and these internet dating sites, an Irish lad can converse with a Japanese woman just by chatting. There are some cases where these people actually fall in love and tie the knot.

Some of these marriages end in happily ever after, while others are less lucky. We have often been given this outlook that meeting someone from the net cannot be trusted. There’s truth to that as seen from the traumatic stories of people who experienced deception from the hands of others they met online.

Wherever the meeting place and whatever the ending, internet dating stories have either been an inspiration or a forewarning for the singles out there. But because of the natural need to look for a mate, we still take the risk.

Just like love.