Online Dating

It has often been said that the Internet would be nothing without funny pictures of cats.

It sounds ridiculous, but as far as I'm concerned, it isn't far from the truth (or should I say "teh truth?"). Cats have become such an integral part of the World Wide Web experience that they can now determine your next date.

Yep, that's right...lolcats, and your other favorite Internet phenomena, can now be responsible for the future of your love life. Allow me to introduce you to your new favorite dating sites, all of which base your dates on your favorite subreddits and taste in Internet humor.

Reddit has spawned a wealth of redditor-created dating sites, like LaughMatch.com and 4.EverAlone.com. On LaughMatch, users watch a series of funny videos upon registering. After giving their reviews of humorous clips like a bad lip read of Twilight, the site matches members with dates based on where they placed the slider to rate the videos. A similar sense of humor is a solid foundation for any relationship, right?

4.everalone promises to match users based on their favorite subreddits. All new members provide an e-mail address, their reddit login info, and a list of their 5 favorite subreddits. The site's creator then searches the database to find another redditor with the same subreddit interests.

Another great idea came from yet another redditor, though the site is now no more. TalkOverTea eliminated one of online dating's biggest problems by implementing a very simple solution. The dating profile formula means that we all judge our dates long before we've ever even spoken to them - often solely by their pictures, because we never make it to the text.

TalkOverTea eradicated harmful and unfair prejudgments by turning the typical online dating process on its head. Instead of viewing a profile first and messaging later, TalkOverTea members began communicating first. The site engaged two users in conversation and then, over time, revealed tidbits of their profiles as the conversation continued. It's a refreshing approach to online dating that I wish had stuck around...perhaps one day it will return.

So far, it seems that the giant online dating sites are winning the battle for Web dominance, but I still hold out hope for the smaller, niche sites. In some ways they do a better job of replicating the way we connect in real life, since we often meet new people in locations or during activities based around a specific, shared interest.

What has your experience been? Have you had more success on small sites like these, or big sites like Match?

I think I speak for all of us when I say that the good old days of the OkTrends blog are sorely missed. We all looked forward to a new post from Christian Rudder on something button-pushing and scandalous, like race or attractivenesss. Like many who mourn the loss of the infamous blog, James Taranto, a writer for WSJ.com, returned to a 2009 OkTrends post to illuminate a present conundrum.

The conundrum in question was the WSJ's Valentine's Day survey on attraction and the sexes. The OkTrends post offered this bit of obvious advice: an attractive photo is essential to a successful online dating profile. To figure out exactly how much of an edge beautiful people had, OkCupid asked users to rate the attractiveness of members of the opposite sex on a six-point scale (with 0 as the lowest).

A chart shows that the distribution of female attractiveness as rated by men is close to the normal distribution known as the bell curve (or, as Taranto calls it, the "belle curve"). In other words, the average woman's looks are rated "medium," and an equal number of women are rated on either side of that with the numbers declining relatively evenly until they approach zero.

After a way too long dry stint of no dates and even less prospects it can be all too thrilling to finally score a first date with someone. It doesn't matter if it's with a work crush, blind date, or someone you met through an online dating service, you're exciting that this date could be the first of many. Not to be a wet blanket, but this sense of elation and nerves can often push aside some basic safety precautions that you should take before going on a first date with anyone you don't know well.

Perform a Background Check This might sound like overkill to a lot of you, but a simple background check can pull up a lot of red flags that may have you rethinking a date with someone. Background checks can show you information like marriage licenses (How many exes are too many? What if they're currently married?), not to mention any legal altercations. While every girl likes a bad boy, everybody has a line. Is cancelling a date based off of what you find on a background check fair? Maybe, maybe not. But at the least it will give you things to watch out for and will let you know if they're being honest with you.

Go to a Public Place Never, ever, ever-ever-ever-ever-ever meet for a first date with someone at their private residence or somewhere that's very removed. Meet at a neutral location where plenty of people are sure to be like a restaurant, bar, coffee house, sporting event, or something else along those lines. Along the same lines, don't get in a private vehicle with your date either - even if it's yours.

Let Someone Know Whenever I go on an extended walk or hike I am sure to let someone know where I'm going and what time I'm expecting to be back, and first dates aren't much different. This is doubly true if you've never met your date in person. Let a friend know what you're doing, where you're going, and when you expect to be back. Check in with them afterwards to let them know how the date went and that you're okay.

Have an Out First dates are always iffy and you don't want to be stuck there all night if it turns out to be a big disappointment, for either of you. That being said, it's best to schedule something that won't take too long. But even with short dates, be prepared to excuse yourself from the date. While you don't need an excuse (if you're uncomfortable, just leave!), it can be less awkward for both of you if you have a believable out. I don't mean fake a call from the hospital about your aunt you just got in a car accident.

First dates are fun and exciting, but they can potentially be dangerous if you're meeting up with someone you've only ever interacted with online, or not at all. Take some basic precautions before the date to insure your safety. That way you can relax for real when everything goes smoothly.

Kristen Bright is a blogger living in San Diego who tries to promote safe online interactions by using background checks on people before moving forward.

A eHarmony free communication weekend (FCW) is happening right now in the U.S. and Canada. It started today and runs to 11:59pm PST on Tuesday April 16th. No credit card is required and all members can communicate with their matches for free during this 5 day event.

If you want to take eHarmony for a test drive this 5 day FCW is worth checking out. You get to create a profile, review your matches and communicate with them all for free. This allows you to try out most of eHarmony’s services for no cost and it will give you a good idea of the type of matches you will receive and how the whole online dating process works at eHarmony. This dating site calculates your highly-compatible matches based on their algorithm which has years of research invested into it. The only things not included during this event is viewing photos, skip straight to mail and Secure Call.

eHarmony’s last free communication weekend happened in March (see Story). For further facts on this dating site you can read our detailed eHarmony review. Comments and user reviews are also available from this page.

Christian Mingle has partnered with a Dallas, Texas ministry called H.I.S. BridgeBuilders. This ministry helps restore low-income urban communities through economic means, education, health and spiritual development. With this new collaboration Christian Mingle's first project will be to help plant gardens in underprivileged communities located in south Dallas. These gardens will offer healthy food options to people who need it.

Christian Mingle and H.I.S. BridgeBuilders also plan to host charitable events to raise money for this and other projects. For more on this story you can read the press release and to find out how Christian Mingle works as a dating site you can read our review.

I found out the other day that eHarmony is offering a new feature called “eHarmony Access”. It is just in the test phase at the moment so it is not available to all members yet. When you are canceling your eHarmony membership you now will have the option to choose to become an eHarmony Access member. As part of eHarmony Access once your full eHarmony subscription expires you still will be able to receive matches and most importantly view all photos of those matches. Sending Icebreakers will also be available to you as well as the guided communication (at least on eHarmony.com). Being an eHarmony Access member does require a monthly fee but it is much less than the cost of a full membership. This feature is a great way for people who do not have the time to be a full fledge member of a dating site but still wish to see what their matches offer just in case you see one that really sparks some chemistry.

To find out more about this dating site you can read our eHarmony review.