I thought I would propose a hopefully intresting topic for debate. I have been on this site for a little while now and have had some conversations with various people through it. For some reason I have reached a brick wall and any conversations I was having has dried up due to lack of response. I do try not to be boring or predictable. Im far from an arrogant person but I do know I do have a lot to offer. So Im just wondering if this approach is still useful to me and weither people have benifited romantically on free sites obviously mainly this one.

My main point is that do you think people and I guess in particullary women take a free dating sites seriously over say a payed one. Clearly it stands to reason that there is more of casualness and less insentive to be serious. Any response or ideas would be helpful. This is just a thought I had recently. Answers on a postcard please lol. John

Like anything in life there will be different answers but I do take this site seriously which is why, when I'm not looking, I say so on my profile.
However, I've met between 10-15 people from here, and have quite a few who I class as on-line friends with whom I've got to know a bit from these forums or from private messaging, and may or may not meet them in the future.
Does it work romantically? well there are many that will tell you it does, and bearing in mind that people are also looking for different things from a relationship and I can say that it works for me.

i dont think im actually gonna find anyone on here for me so i dont take it seriously. i would find it difficult to introduce anyone to my family that i met on the internet, we are all kinda old fashioned and think this stuff is not quite normal yet lol.
its great for letting off abit of steam after a long day, getting some good advice and having some fun. also youll probably not meet most of the people from here but they are like good friends

Personally I think some women do take this site seriously, as its maybe the only way they can meet people. Especially if they have a family.

Personally I dont take it that serious as I cant do distance dating, bit too shallow for me, and it isnt working for me. In saying that I wouldn't have any problems with the concept of net dating if I did find someone.

There will be a different response from most people on this one, but my own opinion is, NO most people dont take the dating side of it seriously, give or take a few success stories. I would say most men and women for that matter are looking for a 'quick fix' whether that it be a casual liason or attention from guys/girls on the forums or MSN.

When i first joined, a few years ago (yes i have changed my name a couple of times), i was serious about finding a committed relationship, still am actually .... just not from the web. I met a few guys, most 'after one thing' a couple i had short relationships with, to be honest i dont thing i could trust anyone that used a dating site in future, there is just too much temptation for them to meet someone else, maybe that sounds a little off, but it has happened to me

So the short answer is if you have to pay to get a date your more likely to be a little bit more serious about it

Anyway its all good though thanks to FBX i now have the best 2 friends in the world xxx I think i feel one of well documented meets, aka funkychick, coming on, just so Earth Worm can meet all those elusive women he wants to finally meet

http://www.flirtbox.net/flirtbox_dates_meetups/midlands-meet-saturday-28th-february-2009_21.html

there will be a few that will take it seriously but more that wont.
Personally i will take this site seriously but i am not wearing blinkers i know there are a lot of people just on for a laugh and to fill a Temporary void in there life.
i dont come on here and expect to meet someone and i dont think i will ever log on and find my in box full but i would never rule out the posibility that one day i could find someone on here it could take months or years.
so far sites like this over the last year or so have helped me to overcome my shyness a little.
though i am still not that good writing about myself

If i'm honest, i take the .co.uk side of the site a lot more seriously than the .net side of it, the forum is where i can actually be myself, where i can show off my warped sense of humour and, where need be my serious side.

I try to be myself whenever / where-ever, which is probably why even though i've found 2 people on the site that i would like to know more about, i can't actually send them a message without feeling like a school boy and just deleting it and giving up. Sad i know, but that's just me.
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I've known relationships, marriages and babies being born due to people meeting on the net. So it does work for some, and some do take it seriously.

I think sometimes people have to look beyond internet persona's [mainly pictures], which is what can happen if you go to site meets. There's a few people I've changed my views on since meeting them over a weekend.

Also I think people should look at things a bit more realistically.

Sometimes what you're looking for could be right underneath your nose

As it happens. Today I've been invited to a wedding for next year. Two people that met on a free dating site 3/4 years ago and have fallen for each other.

Also someone's told me she is having a baby with someone she met on the net. So it does work for some.

My friend has had her boyfriend for about 3 to 4 years now........ and they met on line.

honestly neither one females dont get down an wild no more when they should take advantage of these amazing sites that give those opportunity to meet and chat with others yup thats what I think