Welcome to dating’s new frontier – the world’s biggest singles’ party, a seven-days-a-week, 24–hours-a-day chatfest that just might replace blind dates, singles’ bars, and the gym as the prime place to flirt, date, and sometimes, even discover love.
Power up your computer, log on to the Internet, and suddenly, you’ll find yourself in a world where the men outnumbered the women by more than two to one. Enter a chatroom or place an online personal ad, and you may encounter dozens of men eager to make your acquaintance. Problem is, they’re all total strangers – and possibly dangerous. As in the real world, the world of cyber-dating has its share of geeks, Don Juans, jerks, and nerds – and even the occasional stalker!
In addition, online romance has its own puzzles: You can’t easily tell, for example, whether the person typing those torrid love notes is the single, well-built, curly-haired professional guy he says he is.
So, if you’re considering this route, or perhaps you’re in it already, proceed very cautiously, or not at all. Statistically, the odds of really connecting with a suitable person online are only slightly better than “if you’re just out meeting people in public.” You have a slight edge because you can meet a lot of men/women online, find those you like, and then become friends before you meet in person.
What’s the world of cyber-dating like?
It is like a masked ball, where we can hide our true identities, take on new personalities, and act in new ways because conventional social rules are suspended. The result? A freewheeling, anything-goes atmosphere that can be liberating, yet confusing. It’s a place where we can make new connections, yet could hide dangers.
Thanks to online anonymity, a person can develop intense relationships. People who’ve had positive experiences with Internet relationships say that it’s great getting to know someone from the inside and out, through a true soul-to-soul meeting. But if both people haven’t been completely honest, or if you discover that there’s more to this person that you really don’t like, it can be wrenching or even dangerous.
Emotional relationships can form quickly via chatting or email because real-world clues can’t intrude. Is he lazy? Ambitious? Rude? Sensitive? A genuinely nice guy? A con artist? You may never find out for certain until you meet in person. As a result, you’re free to form a fantasy and then have an emotional connection to that fantasy person. This freedom is one of the best aspects of, and the biggest problems with, Internet relationships. Online, you can create and re-create yourself – no one has preconceived notions based on your voice, your appearance, your age, or your gender.
So, be prepared.
Remember, you are perfectly within your rights to end any chat or email conversation that gets too awkward, too fast – or to tell your cyber acquaintance the he better slow down. Don’t move into a serious relationship if you don’t feel ready. And don’t do anything that you won’t feel good about later on.
Ok here’s a twofer! You already read the blog, now please enjoy this video. Let’s fast forward into how it could look like when two cyber lovers meet for the first time, which in IRC (Internet Relay Chat) terms is called EB (eye balling).
