Wow I got a surprise when I visited eHarmony.com today. The first thing I noticed was that they have changed the banner that use to say in all capitals "Check Your Matches Free" to "Now Free To Communicate". This changed seems to be only on the United States eHarmony dating site as the Canadian one still has the original message.

After doing a bit more investigating it looks like eHarmony.com now allows free communication all the time. It seems to work very similar to Free Communication Weekends (FCW). You can use the guided communication process for free which after 3 steps does lead to sending emails via eHarmony Mail. The 4 steps of the guided communication process are designed so that you can learn more about your match. The first step is quick questions, the second step moves onto any makes or breaks you may have for a relationship and the third step has you asking some deeper relationship questions. The final fourth step is mail.

Free memberships still do have their limits though. The top 4 restrictions would be:

• You cannot view your matches photos
• You cannot see who has viewed your profile
• You cannot see when your matches have last logged in
• You also cannot skip to email

This is very similar to the restrictions placed on free communication weekends. To remove these restrictions you would then have to purchase a membership plan. eHarmony has 3 plans called Basic, Total Connect and Premier which can be purchased in 1, 6 or 12 month terms with prices ranging from $18.95 to $41.95 per month.

This is a big change eHarmony has put into place. I am not sure if this change is permanent or if they are just testing things out. They also haven’t officially announced anything either but I would expect some sort of press release soon. I am sure if it is successful we will see eHarmony sites in other countries follow suit. In my opinion it also places them much closer to a free dating site like Plenty of fish (POF). While you cannot go straight to sending email to members like on POF, for people seeking a long-term relationship the guided communication is very helpful and you can send mail once it is complete. POF’s free members have very similar restrictions as eHarmony unless they choose to upgrade. The major difference being between the eHarmony and POF memberships is POF members can view member photos.

Update: April 2, 2013 - I just found out another restriction which isn't obvious at first and would have changed the tone of this post a bit if I had known about the restriction before writing. Apparently you can only send out an email message in step 4 of the guided communication process. If the match replies to this message you cannot see it until you pay for a membership. Getting to use the guided communication process is nice but it would be even better if we could view the replies once we are finished with it like during a FCW.

I guess we now need to update our eHarmony review to reflect this new information along with the other profile changes I notice.

Some things are so complex that most of us will probably never understand them. Nuclear physics, for one. Why anyone would eat fast food after seeing that dreadful pink slime stuff, for another. Why cats insist on trying to befriend me even though I'm seriously allergic to them, for a third.

Dating and relationships are top of that list for many people. Is there anything more impenetrable than the mind of the average single? What on earth is going on in there?

USA Today recently tried to answer that question by asking singles what their must-haves in a relationship are, and what would cause them to cancel a date.

Men and women, it turns out, value many of the same basic things in partners. At the top of the list are good teeth and good grammar, which are important considerations for both men and women. After that men place importance on hair and clothes, followed by tattoos, nails and hands, a date's accent, shoes, the car a date drives, and the electronic devices a date carries.

Women, on the other hand, put the emphasis on the same traits in the following order: clothing, hair, nails/hands, having/not having a tattoo, shoes, the car a date drives, a date's accent, and the electronic devices a date uses.

More differences can be found when men and women list their must-haves in a relationship. Men said their must-haves are: is someone I can trust and confide in (63%), treats me with respect (57%), is physically attractive to me (40%), has sense of humor/makes me laugh (37%), is comfortable with her own sexuality (36%).

Women say their relationship requirements are: treats me with respect (84%), is someone I can trust and confide in (77%), has sense of humor/makes me laugh (58%), shares the same values as I do (47%), is comfortable communicating his wants, needs, and desires (46%).

And if those are the things that are most important, what traits are least important to the success of a relationship? Men say:

• Is eager to marry (4%)
• Makes at least as much money as I do (6%)
• Eats similar foods (7%)
• Has a similar education level/Has successful career/Wants to have children/Shares my political beliefs (tied at 8%)
• Has the same ethnic background as me (9%)

For women, the least important factors in determining compatibility are:

• Is eager to marry (6%)
• Eats similar foods (9%)
• Wants to have children/Shares my political beliefs (tied at 11%)
• Has similar education level (12%)
• Has same ethnic background as me (14%)

Now if only someone would conduct a study on cats and my allergies...

These days, unless you literally live under a rock, technology is an integral part of your dating life. Maybe you used your smartphone to text the cutie you met last night at the bar. Maybe you've been looking for love on online dating sites. Maybe you keep in touch with your long-distance partner using Facebook. Maybe you've found an innovative way to incorporate technology into your love life that I haven't even thought of yet (in which case, give me a shout!).

For better or for worse, technology and online dating are entwined forever more. Match.com set out to determine exactly how singles use technology in dating, and put together an infographic that dishes all the details.

Let's start with the scandalous stuff:

• Singles in their 20s are nearly 4 times more likely to send sexy texts to their dates than singles in their 50s.
• 36% of singles say they've sent a sext, regardless of their age.
• And, age aside, 51% say they've received a sext from a partner.
• Sexting may be becoming increasingly common, but it isn't becoming any more private. Nearly 23% of those who have received sexy photos say they've shared the pictures with others.
• But some find that lack of privacy flattering: 42% of single men who sext say they would not be offended if the recipient shared the pic, though only 13% of women say the same.

Sharing private snaps isn't the only taboo tech move. Though mobile phones are now ubiquitous, more than 90% of singles agree that it's NOT ok to break up with someone via text.

And then there's that other ubiquitous bit of technology: Facebook. Almost ¾ of singles are on Facebook, making it a hotbed of new techno-dating etiquette rules:

• 65% of singles say they do not post their relationship status on Facebook.
• 38% say they would cancel a date over something they discovered about their date online.
• 48% of single women and 38% of men say they research someone on Facebook before going on the first date.
• 25% of single women use privacy settings on their Facebook profiles to limit access to pictures and posts for the people they date.

Facebook also comes along with a lot of dealbreakers. These are the most common ways the social networking site causes breakups:

• Men are most likely to breakup with a date due to: her pictures (55%), something she posted on someone else's wall (42%), or her status updates (21%).
• Women are most likely to split with a sweetie due to: a post on someone else's wall (s), his pictures (36%), who he was adding as friends (27%).

As always, technology is a double edged-sword. It's not without its drawbacks, but the benefits clearly win out.

Remember 6th grade? Remember how much you hated your grammar lessons? Remember when your teacher swore that knowledge would come in handy someday, even though it seemed pointless at the time?

This is that someday. It's right here, right now. It's your online dating profile.

Maybe being a writer makes me a little extra picky, but the spelling and grammar mistakes on dating sites are a total turn off, and there are tons of them. Is it really that difficult to use spell check or even - gasp! - proofread by hand?

The fine folks at eHarmony and the professional proofreaders over at Kibin teamed up to research the effects of bad grammar on your dating life. Here's what you need to know:

1. Women are more concerned with good grammar than men.
2. 43% of people say poor grammar is a turn off.
3. Over 80% of online daters publish their profiles without having someone else look them over for errors.

Grammar may seem insignificant, but even small mistakes can have surprisingly weighty consequences.

Of the 1,700 online daters polled, 22% said they're indifferent to grammar despite the fact that 43% said incorrect usage is a major turn off and 35% said correct usage is a major turn on.

Grammar usage may also tie in to a person's income. The poll found that those earning more than $100k per year care 10% more about good grammar than those earning less than $100k. If you're a sugar baby looking for a mommy or daddy, the profiles with the best grammar skills may be your best bet! And when you're on scammer alert, profiles that claim over $100k in income but are riddled with grammar errors may not be the real thing.

Like it or not, your writing reflects on you. It's not just the pictures you post and the boxes you tick for smoking, income, and education level. Your words are a chance for you to shine, an opportunity to stand out from the other millions of online daters...you don't want your incorrect use of their, there, and they're to be the most memorable part of your profile.

Keep an eye out for these 10 common grammatical mistakes:

1. Your vs. You're
2. It's vs. Its
3. There vs. Their vs. They're
4. Affect vs. Effect
5. Then vs. Than
6. Loose vs. Lose
7. Me vs. Myself vs. I
8. Fewer vs. Less
9. "Could of, would of, should of" instead of "Could have, would have, should have"
10. Complement vs. Compliment

Next time you're about to hi "Post," take the time to do a double check or find a second set of eyes to review your profile.

For more information on the site which brought us this survey you can take a look at our eHarmony review page.

A free communication weekend (FCW) is happening at eHarmony for the United States and Canada starting Match 14th until the evening on March 18th. This five day event allows all members to receive matches and communicate with them at no charge and with no credit card required.

Free communication weekends are ideal for new members of eHarmony to figure out if it is the right online dating site for them. How it works is, you first need to fill in your profile and answer the personality questionnaire. After you have finished the questionnaire and the membership is finalized you will then receive your first round of quality matches. Matches are generated by eHarmony's in-depth matching algorithm which uses the 29 dimensions of compatibility. The matches you receive have the best chances at creating a long-term meaningful relationship. Once you have reviewed your matches you can then pick your favorite ones that spark your interest and then start the guided communication process which includes email. As always photos, skip straight to mail and Secure Call are not included with FCW.

The Valentine's Day weekend in February was the last time eHarmony had a free communication weekend (see Story). By our count this free communication weekend will be number 45. To find out more about this popular matchmaking service which helps members find long-term relationships you can take a look at our eHarmony information page.

Seniors are only interested in marriage, right?

Seniors don't care about sex, right?

And seniors definitely don't online date, right?

Wrong, wrong, and - you guessed it - wrong.

Matchmaker.com knows exactly what mature singles are up to, and it turns out they're not that much different from their younger counterparts.

First, let's clear up a few common misconceptions. Singles over the age of 55 represent 25% of Matchmaker.com's member base, so seniors definitely aren't shy about giving online dating a shot. And their attitudes toward dating, serious relationships, marriage, and sex might not be what you think.

On Marriage:

• Most senior singles don't want to get married again. 80% of women and 75% of men are only in it for a serious relationship.
• Children are sometimes the reason senior singles prefer to steer clear of new marriages. 30% of women are worried that a second marriage would hurt their kids. On the other hand, only 4% of male seniors are concerned about the same thing.
• Men who don't want to get married again also say they don't think they could fall in love again (52%), are only interested in companionship (37%), and don't want to share their finances (7%).
• Women's reasons for wanting to stay unmarried tend to be different. Most are only looking for an activity partner, others have fears regarding children, apprehensions around finances, and concerns that they can't fall in love again.

On Sex:

• Sex doesn't fall by the wayside as singles get older. In fact, for many, it becomes more important than ever. The majority of single senior men (65%) say they are much more sexually active now than when they were married. A significant portion of single senior women (45%) agree.
• 95% of senior men rank sex as "Very important" in their lives, followed by 5% who say it's "Somewhat important" and 0% who say it's "Not at all important."
• Most senior women also consider sex "Very important" (85%), though some think it's "Not at all important" (10%) and others say it's "Somewhat important" (5%).

On Relationships:

• Senior men are primarily looking for a serious relationship (75%). Marriage (15%), meeting a sexual partner (7%), and finding a companion for activities (3%) are less important goals.
• Senior women are generally in agreement. Most want a serious relationship (80%), but some are looking for marriage (11%), companionship (7%), or a sexual partner (2%).

On Love:

• Senior men are more romantic than senior women. 55% of men who want to get married are hoping to fall in love again. Comparatively, only 25% of mature female singles hope to fall in love with a new partner.
• Companionship is also a powerful motivator for new relationships. 25% of men and 60% of women say it's what led them to online dating.

To find out more about the dating site which borught you this service you can read our Matchmaker review.