Absolute Beginner's Guide to Online Dating

Curious about online dating but worried that it might not be safe? Not even sure where to start and which site to try first? Now there is a one-stop reference guide to teach you everything you need to know to enter the world of online dating — safely. The Absolute Beginner's Guide to Online Dating will help you acquire the skills to attract a future mate based on personality, values and interests using e-mail, chat and the Web. From a site-by-site comparison of features and costs to exercises that will help you assess what kind of person you are looking for, you will learn how to begin dating online. You will also learn how to:

• Build an online profile
• Establish a personal connection through exchanging chat messages
• Fill out forms that inform and attract potential dates
• Conduct background checks on people you are interested in meeting

Whether you are among the estimated 40 to 50 million Americans who have already tried cyber-dating or new to the adventure, this book will make your jump into the online dating pool quick and easy. Greg Holden will teach you how to build an online profile that gets noticed, and then how to establish a personal and safe connection to possible love matches through instant messaging. You will also learn how to find Mr. Or Mrs. Right based on compatible desires, interests, values, and attitudes. Absolute Beginner's Guide to Online Dating provides detailed reviews of the various online dating sites with price and feature comparisons, helping you find the best site for your needs. Instead of a one-size-fits-all assessment, this book provides exercises and examples so that you can narrow the wide-open field of potential matches and find the person you seek quickly and safely.

Greg Holden is the owner of Stylus Media, which creates Web pages for other small businesses. Greg has written extensively about the Internet and the social implications of technology. He has personal experience with online dating sites, and his strength lies in knowing people who have married as a result of meeting online, and friends and colleagues who run Web sites and write columns on related topics. Greg is a former newspaper reporter and University of Chicago publications manager, who writes his own fiction and poetry, as well as contributing articles to publications such as the Chicago Tribute Magazine, Wired Magazine and C-Net. He has authored over a dozen books about the Web.