I have participated in Online dating since the 90s when one of the first sites(Love@aol.com) was available. Since than 100's of sites have been setup online. Hell.... I have even tried to cash in and start my own. I have met girlfriends from Online sites and friends. Some ended up being physical relationships and some more. I have also met and married a woman I met online. Online dating has become pretty popular these days. It use to be taboo and and was thought to be only for the shy, unattractive or introvert. Gone are the days when this is the case. There are many people who have used this method of dating at least once. This is mainly due to a busy career, a person that does not hang out at clubs or just because it is a little easier than walking up to someone in the street. Online dating can be a successful method for meeting someone.

Sites
There are many popular sites from Match.com, POF.com(Plenty of Fish), Eharmony, Okcupid, Afroromance.com(Interracial Dating), Blackpeoplemeet.com, Jdate.com(Jewish), Christian Dating sites, Mature sites and other sites that cater to specific people whether it's gender, culture, sex, fetish or race. There are also Sugar Daddy and Sugar Momma sites for those that may want a man or woman to take care of them. This is certainly another topic for debate and discussion. I have used a variety of sites (Definitely not the Gold Digger site). Although, you can run into any type in online dating. I have personally ran into  variety. I find that it was a viable method to meet professional women or someone that you had things in common with. This is not because I am unattractive and cannot meet someone offline its because it is a way to try to cut through all the possible formalities up front.

About Online Dating
Online dating means many things to many people. Some people use online dating as a tool for meeting someone for marriage, relationship, friends and even sex. It is a large world with many people compared to what was better known as typical dating. I like to call it old school dating because dating is just not the same these days. You will meet a variety of people(Especially women). If you are an attractive woman you will become bombarded with emails. It is best to weed out the individuals you wish to talk to and delete the others. Some people still view online dating as a negative. It is still thought of by some for desperate people. I totally disagree with this view and opinion. There are plenty of intelligent, attractive and extroverted people in the online dating community. However, there are areas that have begun to raise it's ugly head in online dating. There are opportunists, people that claim that they are something that they are not, people who want something that does not equal who they are. Than again these are things that come with dating in general. However, it seems that people really don't know what they really want. They claim they do but the action speak for themselves. Maybe it is because there are so many different people to choose from or maybe it is just that most people really don't know what they want. Another theory is that people are looking for perfection or someone to rescue them or sweep them off their feet. However, a person that is participating in online dating does have to be patient and pay attention to what the person says in their profile or during a phone conversation(If it gets to that point). A person should not be too critical but it is a good idea to pay attention so that you do not waste your time on someone who is not worth it.

What to look for
Know what you want before writing your profile. Be realistic with your wants and needs but you must also be realistic with yourself. Read the profile!!! You will find things in the profile so that you do not waste your time. A person may mention something about height, race, body type, etc. It is their right to do this. If you read you will not waste each others time and energy. You can tell if the person is bitter or angry. You can also tell what they are looking for. Words such as "Don't contact me if you are blank....." or "I'm Old Fashioned", "I like to be spoiled", All caps is another turn on. Certain pictures are also a dead giveaway. Some women also get turned off by guys with no shirt on. Turning up a liquor bottle can be another turnoff. Asking for sex quickly can be another turn off. Sending sexual pictures quickly is another potential turn off. I am not sure who does this but it happens a lot. I hear it from women ll the time. HINT: There are specific sites that cater to this. One that comes to mind is Friendfinder,com. It is one of the most legitimate sites for this.