Truth, Lies, and Online Dating: Secrets to Finding Romance on the Internet

Contents......Page 7
Introduction......Page 16
Part I: How Online Dating Services Really Work......Page 20
1 First You Find the Site, Then You Find the Love......Page 22
The Name Brands of Online Dating......Page 23
Affinity Dating Sites......Page 26
Lifestyle Sites to Match Your Lifestyle......Page 28
Very Special Friends Await......Page 29
Old School Personals......Page 30
Things to Expect on All Dating Sites......Page 32
Site Specific......Page 33
2 Searching for Love, or Knowing What You\'re Looking For......Page 36
Using Online Dating Search Engines......Page 37
Thinking about How Your Profile Will Be Searched......Page 40
Working the Hot List......Page 43
Summary......Page 45
Using Winks and Icebreakers......Page 48
E-mail Communications: Say It Loud—I Subscribe and I\'m Proud......Page 51
Mastering the E-mail Process......Page 56
Summary......Page 59
4 Subscribing and Taking Advantage of Free Trial Subscription Offers......Page 62
Understanding the Free Trial Period......Page 63
Using the Service after You Cancel the Trial Offer......Page 64
Subscribing and Canceling......Page 65
Summary......Page 67
Part II: Presenting Yourself Online......Page 70
5 Putting Your Best Face Forward......Page 72
…It\'s All about How You Look......Page 73
Photos That Work Best......Page 75
Image Editing Can Help Your Pictures......Page 79
Photos to Avoid......Page 80
Summary......Page 82
Starting with a Digital Camera......Page 84
Getting Ready to Take Your Picture......Page 89
Taking Good Pictures of Yourself......Page 96
Working with a Film Camera......Page 101
Summary......Page 102
7 Using (Not Abusing) Photo Editing Software......Page 104
Cropping and File Format Changes with Windows Paint......Page 105
Making Masterpieces with Picasa2......Page 107
Going All the Way with Photoshop......Page 112
Summary......Page 116
8 Truth in Advertising: Reviewing Your Message......Page 118
Turning Up Your Amp to Eleven......Page 119
Using a Current Photo Is Essential......Page 123
Changing Your Looks......Page 124
Looking Like You Do Everyday......Page 125
Revealing Details......Page 126
Summary......Page 127
Say What You Want, Just Spell It Right......Page 130
Online Writing Rules......Page 133
Bad Profile/Good Profile......Page 137
How and When to Write That First E-mail......Page 139
E-mail Etiquette......Page 141
How to Say No......Page 142
Everything Seems So Perfect......Page 143
Summary......Page 144
Part III: Learning about Others You Meet Online......Page 146
Understanding Image Editing......Page 148
Making Old Photos Look New......Page 149
Spotting Retouching......Page 151
Reserving Judgment on Editing Photos......Page 156
Summary......Page 157
11 Reading Photos: Clues to Age and Locations......Page 160
Learning to Read Photos to Read People......Page 161
Looking at the Environment......Page 167
Summary......Page 168
Assess the Overall Writing Style......Page 170
Education and Writing Skills......Page 172
Life Experience......Page 173
Does Their Picture Match What They Say?......Page 174
Summary......Page 177
Things You Should Always Ask a Potential Date......Page 180
Things We Suggest You Ask a Potential Date......Page 184
Asking the Tough Questions......Page 190
Summary......Page 192
14 Background Checks: Additional Peace of Mind......Page 194
Checking the Facts......Page 195
Digging for Dirt......Page 200
Using What You Find......Page 201
Summary......Page 203
Part IV: Power Dating: Getting the Word Out......Page 206
15 Creating Template E-mails Using Your Word Processor......Page 208
Writing Template Letters......Page 209
Writing Templates That Work......Page 214
Summary......Page 216
Making Small, Quick Changes to Template Letters......Page 218
Adding More Detailed Hooks......Page 222
Creating More Complex Template Letters......Page 224
Summary......Page 226
17 Taking Advantage of Free Trial Periods......Page 228
Getting the Most from the Free Trial Period.......Page 229
Crafting Your \"Contact Me\" E-mail......Page 233
Tracking Your E-mails......Page 235
Summary......Page 238
Part V: Finding the Real Deal......Page 240
If Someone Sounds Too Good to Be True......Page 242
How to Tell if They\'re Truthful When E-mailing......Page 245
Seeing the Truth......Page 248
Summary......Page 250
Take Security Precautions at Each Stage of Contact......Page 252
Meeting Live and In Person......Page 254
Setting Up the Date—Safety Strategies......Page 256
During the Date—How to Be Both Flirty and Cautious......Page 259
Where Do We Go from Coffee?......Page 262
Summary......Page 263
The Testing Process......Page 266
Using Home HIV Tests......Page 268
Summary......Page 270
Telling the Truth Is Easy......Page 272
Shopping......Page 274
Hiding Your Love......Page 275
Looking for Friends Who Understand......Page 276
Summary......Page 277
Embracing the Truth......Page 280
Avoiding the Lies......Page 281
The Road Ahead......Page 282
C......Page 284
E......Page 285
F......Page 286
J......Page 287
P......Page 288
Q......Page 290
S......Page 291
T......Page 292
W......Page 293
Z......Page 294