As time and technology have progressed the ways of finding romance have changed. The Internet and World Wide Web have spawned growth and popularity in the world of online dating. It has become acceptable and even commonplace for one to say that they found their partner on a dating site. Let’s take a brief history course on the evolution of dating from the bar scene to the present day and age where it’s easier to find the love of your life in a virtual world than it is in the real world.
In the 1980’s and early 90’s the bar scene was the way to find love or lust. Dark smoky rooms echoing with thumping pop songs or techno were filled with sweaty, gyrating bodies smelling of Kouros all searching for spots on the dance floor. Your best game as a man was to have a great line and a prayer that you didn’t get slapped in the face. For the ladies, it was a lot easier due to the sheer ratio of men to women. Of course, if you could avoid the overly macho idiots, you were ten steps ahead of your competition.
If you were lucky enough to find a partner to dance with, you were blessed with the privilege of yelling over the music and the crowd in order to exchange names. When all was said and done, you knew nothing about your dance partner and there was a distinct possibility that he or she wouldn’t even give you their number. The meat market was open, but not everyone was buying.
In the mid-90’s we were given the World Wide Web. This virtual environment quickly spawned Web sites with chat rooms where written records of wanton lust were archived on servers that sat between lovers who were often on opposite sides of the globe. From the beginning, the Web has had a reputation for augmenting the idea that sex and love are two of the most important things in life. The better you were at creating lust-filled prose, the more response you would get. Unfortunately, many of these sites had no privacy. Eventually, if you spent enough time learning about a person, you might get the opportunity to meet them. This type of behaviour also raised the distinct possibility that you were on your way to meet a psycho, sex-crazed, serial killer.
As time went on, a more progressive form of online dating evolved around the world. Dating services that provided an online and secure environment began to pop-up. Most of the sites catered to single women and men though, and provided a more standard form of dating. If you were a married wife looking for a bit of love, good luck, the site would weed you out in a heartbeat, unless you lied on your profile. Even if you were accepted into the site, there was no guarantee that you would find what you were looking for. Most sites did not cater to gay men or women, nor did they promote casual meet ups for no-strings-attached sex. If dating sites were a sexual position in the late 90’s they would have been the “missionary position”.
The new millennium brought about a refreshed and invigorated view of relationships around the globe. Inhibitions began to fall away and dating Web sites began to cater to as many different orientations as possible. Obviously, taboos such as paedophilia and bestiality are still, thankfully, taboo and in most cases illegal. However, a new view of dating from many different standpoints has taken root. Web sites now cater to both straight and gay people and one that is growing fast is Dating Granny. They also provide services for those who are looking to fulfil fantasies that they might not be able to fulfil within their own marriage. Couples seeking singles or singles seeking couples have become commonplace and casual sex with an “f-buddy” have become a main draw for many of these sites.
The technology behind these sites has also become more sophisticated. Profiles are matched based not only on gender, but likes and dislikes, sexual orientation, casual encounters, fantasy and many other bits of data such as proximity. Safety has also become a major issue as well and age verification has become an important precaution with these sites.
Online dating is no longer a game of anonymity that hides behind a phosphorous screen in the middle of the night in mum or dad’s basement. The sites are legitimate and when used with common sense, safe. They work and have provided many people with an excellent outlet for their sexual needs.