Match.com is more than just a website that helps people in finding each other. Match.com is a family of sites that also includes MatchLive.com that offers off line and in sight events for singles to meet and mingle.
Match Mobile-which turns your wireless phone into a matchmaking machine by letting you send and receive messages from potential meets.
Matchtravel.com which is like MatchLive but involves trips and not just social events
And Matchinternational.com so you can find someone in more than 240 countries on six continents.

Boasting a membership roll numbering in the millions since their start in 1995, match.com wants you to believe you need never be dateless again!

As soon as you sign onto Match.com you can begin to search or you can take all kinds of quizzes or the personality matching test. (I admit I took the quiz and it asked interesting questions about what I thought of myself and traits I was looking for in a partner.) after the test is completed, they will give you an analysis of who you are, your dating style, the kind of guy you are attracted to, and those attracted to you. For each analysis point, the survey will ask you to rate whether the analysis is right, wrong, or mostly right.

The quizzes aren’t always romance related or geared towards women. There’s one to test your professional football knowledge, the all about Elvis quiz, and one to tell you what kind of dog suits you best.

Also on the home page (which is very easy on the eye, I must say) you can start your search by telling the computer is you’re a male looking for another male or a female, and of course, the same options for women. You put in the age range of the person you want and then add your zip code, hit enter, and you’re on your way to seeing who’s out there.

You can also click over to advice articles to help you find a date for Valentine’s Day to telling you what pick up lines not to use.

Here’s a funny little thing about this site. If you click on the search button, you are directed to a page where you fill out specific information on the type of person you’re looking for. If you say you’re married, and looking to date, the system will shoot back a response saying dating is open only to single folks, but before you can say ‘prudes’, the next line say, ‘but you can find friends!’ So, married folks can still hook up for some behind the scenes action, but match.com has covered themselves by saying the section is just for finding friends.

It’s really easy to join match.com by asking very few non-invasive questions before being able to search and to send an icon called a wink to someone you find interesting. Joining is free and that gives you most of the benefits available on the site, but you will need to subscribe to send or reply to a message. Subscriptions start from $10.95 USD per month billed for 6 months to $24.95 USD for a single month.

FriendFinder.com was established in 1996 and now has over 18 million registered users, and you can use this site to find romance, love, or just a group of friends to hang out with.

They have an online magazine made up by the members for the members. (A pretty cool feature!) A Hotlist that can be used to track those folks you’re particularly interested in, and your own personal Cupid, who will notify you by email when someone fitting the description of who you’re looking for registers on the site.

You can sign up for the Social Network which is the just friends part or you can go over to the Dating and Romance network when looking for something a little more personal.

There are three categories of membership: Basic (which will allow you to browse the site) Silver and Gold which will allow access to members info, and will let you send and reply to messages, access the magazine, and access to members’ instant messenger ID’s.

The basic is free. It’s $100 USD annual for the silver membership and $150 USD for the gold membership. There’s also an option for a smaller membership: $22.94 to $34.94 for one month of the silver and gold respectively.

The site is part of a network that has over 18 million members so there’s plenty of people to hook up with no matter what you’re looking for.

I used to have a friend named Amy. If I needed anything - whether it was advice or a pink shirt to match my new pants - Amy was there for me. We went on shopping trips to New York City and Philadelphia at least once a month, gossiping about people we knew while we drove. We had "Girl's Night Out" dinners at our favorite Mexican restaurant, and many giddy times after a few too many margaritas. Every weekend we went to the local bars and clubs hoping to meet "Mr. Right". Even if we didn't meet him, we always had a good time dancing.

I had dated quite a few guys, but no one seriously in the three years Amy and I were friends. Going out with Amy was fun, and something I could count on to keep the boredom of single life away. She became like a sister to me. Then something happened.

I got a boyfriend.

Suddenly, "Girls Night Out" turned into "Do You Mind If We Meet Up With Matt While We're Out Night?" You see, my new boyfriend and I wanted to get to know each other more, as expected. However, in the delirious excitement of having this new person in my life, I committed one of the worst dating sins a female can commit: I let my friendship with my best girlfriend slip.

At first it wasn't very noticeable to me. I still chatted on email and spoke on the phone with Amy almost every day. But the truth is that when she asked me to go out, I first considered if there was a chance I'd be doing something with Matt that night. As my relationship with Matt grew over the months, going out with Amy to bars and clubs became a bit boring - I wasn't looking for "Mr. Right" anymore. To top it off, my "Mr. Right" was not very happy at the prospect of me going to bars and clubs without him. "Clubs are dens of sin" he half-joked one day, when I mentioned how often I used to go. "They only exist because people go there to hook up with each other." So I stopped going to my dens of sin.

The last time I saw Amy was on the weekend after my 27th birthday. As a gift, she had bought me a ticket to go with her on a bus trip to shop in New York City. Just like old times, I thought as I stepped off the bus into the springtime New York sun. I had to hold that thought, though, because my cell phone began ringing. It was Matt, making his usual morning call. This time he asked if I got there safely and told me to have a fun day. I didn't think much of it until I looked over at Amy's disgusted frown.

"Can't you even go one day without talking to him?" she fumed. "This is OUR trip, it's a Girl's Day. Why does he need to call?"

Equally annoyed, I told her that I liked when he called, that it made me feel he cared and thought of me. It was the truth - I enjoyed the fact that he thought to call when he woke up every morning. But looking back on it now, I realize Amy wasn't angry that he'd called. She was angry that I appreciated how much he cared about me, while ignoring the fact that she, too, cared for me. For months she'd been asking me to go out, calling me, writing me email, and now taking me on a trip for my birthday. But I had not shown her any appreciation for being a good friend.

Amy and I haven't spoken much after that trip.

As the months passed and my relationship with Matt became more and more familiar, I started to notice something interesting. During our relationship, he had not given up any of his friends or hobbies that he had before we knew each other. He still played basketball every Sunday morning with his friends. He met his friends for dinner and drinks when I was busy and couldn't make it. He made it a point to find time for them, even if it meant saying no to making plans with me once in a while.

Slowly but surely, I thought back about how I had given up things to spend time with him. And from time to time, I threw those things in his face to make him feel guilty if he wasn't going to take me out on a Saturday night. I could be at my den of sin, I'd yell at him, but now I don't have a friend to go there with. Have fun tonight with Jim and Mike. I'll just be here reading a book.

Ironically, the less Amy was in my life, the more fights I had with Matt. Why, there was no one to call and vent to about my problems with him or with life in general. So who heard all of my complaints? He did. And like guys do, he tried to tell me how I should solve all of my dilemmas, which annoyed me to no end. A female, like Amy, would have just listened to me and consoled me while I had my personal pity party.

As much as I wanted to place the blame on Matt for the fact that I gave up so many things I used to enjoy, the truth is that all the blame lies on me. No one made me give anything up. I volunteered it to chase the fairy tale relationship that depicts man and woman alone, together against the world. I overlooked the friends beside, behind, and in front of man and woman, protecting them, helping them, and loving them.

Amy, check your email - an old friend is sending you an article she wrote.

So, you've decided to take a chance and try online dating. You've checked out the sites, posted a little bit of information about yourself and what you're looking for and possibly browsed the potential contacts that you would like to make. More than likely, a few people have piqued your interest and you think you're ready to make contact. Here are a few suggestions to get you started.

Read the profiles that interest you thoroughly. Pay attention to the ideals and interests that are important to you. Read the sections that are personally written and see if they touch you in any way. Sometimes the small details or what is not being said can be the most important.

Use the tools you are given on the dating site. Most support their own e-mail, chat or instant messaging services. Anonymity is important to most people these days when taking a chance with online dating. These tools enable a person to stay safely anonymous as long as they like and can usually block any offensive or undesired contact from specific members.

Make sure you know what you are looking for whether it is friendship or a long-term relationship. Contact or reply to like minded people and there won't be any misunderstood intentions on either side. The way most profiles read give you an idea of what someone is really looking for. Some sites even include that information as part of the profile process.

Have a list of question you would like to ask. They don't have to read like an application, but the idea is to get to know the person and see if there is compatibility. If a picture is not posted with the profile, you will probably want to ask for one. A good question to ask is if the picture was taken recently. Not everyone wants to post his or her receding hairline or bad haircut and will post an older picture! Another good question to ask is if the person is in an existing relationship or how long ago their last relationship was. You aren't guaranteed the truth, but sometimes a reaction will let you know that this is not a person you want to pursue something with.

Take your time with the process. Don't let anyone rush you. You are not committed to meeting anyone based on a specific timeline. Be thorough in your research- you have the tools right at your fingertips! The right person will make the connection with you and you will be ready to personally take matters into your own hands.

Remember these suggestions are merely ideas on how to safely and comfortably explore the world of online dating. You know yourself, what you are looking for and your personal boundaries. Be as safe as possible but above all, have fun!

Just let me say this: I want to find the person who created directdating.com and kiss them on the mouth. I’m straight and I don’t care if they’re the same sex I am – I would have a baby with this person.

What a wonderfully refreshing, simple, straightforward site!

You do a quick search when you get to the site and you’re immediately brought to a page with potential matches. You’ll only get to view one page before you have to sign up, but it was so refreshing not to jump through hoops at the very beginning. The membership form is short and sweet as well, letting your forego the deep questions. You’ll get to answer those later after you’ve joined and that’s a very quick form to fill out as well.

You won’t be able to respond to members or contact members unless you upgrade to premiere status, but directdating.com is as economical as it is easy to use:
12 months for just $69.95 down to a three day trial for $4.95. For that price you get to send unlimited messages to members, you can read messages you’ve received from other members, can look at member photo portfolios, use the premier search for specialized matching, and receive invitations to offline functions.

Along with the mentioned benefits, you can also keep a listing of your favorite searches, and you can see who has added you to their favorite list: imagine how giddy you’ll feel if you like someone who likes you, too. Kinda like your girlfriend passing you a note in school telling you that the guy in back of you likes you.

You also have a place to view messages both current, past, and sent.

Cupid – a service that lets you know when new folks in your area have signed up.

An events calendar telling of functions in your area, along with a place for your photos, and an account manager page.

It’s a nice looking, nicely managed, easily navigated site that brings you quickly to the search for that special someone. I’ll bet the 1.1 million members of this site are happy to have it, and many of them will tell you that themselves in the success stories they’ll let you see. If you want simple, effective, and a more than reasonable price, check out directdating.com

A common question among friends these days is whether or not singles should try to meet their ideal partner through online dating. The first answer usually comes from the cautious individuals who warn against predators and seemingly demented individuals. Next you have the handful of people who know "so and so" who just got married to the person that they met online. When it is my turn, I always point out that there is no commitment by simply looking and discovering how it all works. What has someone got to lose by setting up a simple profile and seeing what happens?

It's important to remember to be cautious at first, be yourself, and be aware of potential problems with any person that might contact you and follow your own instincts. But most importantly, be yourself and have fun! It might be different for you, but you are now in charge of your dating life through your computer!

Looking for a good time? You’ve come to right place. Whether you’re looking for a friendly encounter, or something a little or a lot more serious, Singlesdating247 is your source for finding someone to spend some time with. We have some of the best resources available on line to get you out of the house and into some dating action!

Being single doesn’t have to be a bad thing. There are advantages to the single life and we’ll help you explore them. On the other hand, if you don’t want to be single, but you don’t want to be married, you can get that too.

Singlesdating247.com – for when being single is a lifestyle not a sentence!