Ever since the proliferation of Internet chat facilities, blind dates have taken on a whole new meaning. At first there was irc, then icq and finally, the ubiquitous msn.

The magic of dating off the Internet is obvious. Anonymity and freedom of expression without the restrictive pressures of physical social interaction are the catalysts behind the push.

After all, it's definitely easier to tell someone "you don't sound like my type - Buzz off!" online, than it is to deliver the same phrase in person, face-to-face isn't it?

In fact, so many have taken to online dating that numerous match-making websites have sprung up to cash in on the trend.

AsiaOne spoke to Tracy (not her real name), a 20-something graphic designer who can be considered a "veteran" in the online dating scene. She started surfing the Internet regularly when she was 16, after her 'O' Levels as there was "plenty of time to waste and bum around."

"My good friend invited a few of us to her house and we would be chatting on the IRC under one nickname, talking to various people," recalled Tracy.

"Initially, there were only casual conversations, random, and nothing more. Soon, the thrill of meeting them got to us, so we met these people we were talking to online."

Tracy says in the beginning there wasn't any intention on her part to date or find a partner. They did it out of boredom and for fun.

When asked what first attracted her to such online chat sites, she explains: "In school, I tended to stick to my own group and the only way to meet people out there is through other activities like ECA, hobbies, or through mutual friends. But that social circle is still very limited."

"With the Internet, there are just so many more possibilities," she continues.

When she progressed to online dating services, her rational was that it is an interesting experience because her social circle is no longer confined to just her immediate friends. The lure of meeting people from all over the world was an attractive prospect.

Tracy names popular site Match.com as one of the sites she frequents. "I shall not reveal too many but as long as it's popular locally, I might have been on it!" she says.

Although a fanatic, Tracy does have her precautions. She is aware that there are numerous shady characters out there and a large number of men on such sites are on the prowl for sex. She admits that it is hard to judge whether a person is reliable or sincere and most of the time, she will stretch her chat with the other party to ascertain their motives.

She also acknowledges that meeting straightaway is a risk and an option she does not like to take.

So does online dating work?

"I met my last few boyfriends online," says Tracy. But she also realises that such rendezvous are usually a hit or miss situation.

She says that she has friends who are also into online dating but have broken off "many unsuccessful online relationships". Singling out one, she says: "Because they are all virtual, she wasn't living in reality. She naively fell hard for the wrong guys."

But both girls are not giving up on cyber dating yet.

Perhaps, due to her cautiousness and pragmatic approach, Tracy thankfully has not encountered any of the horror stories we hear so frequently.

But she has had a few misses that are part and parcel of online dating.

Guys who want to give it a shot could take a leaf from her experience:

"I once met this bloke, he was such an introvert! On the first date I did much more talking than him. I thought it was because he was just shy, so we went out the second time. But he turned out to be the same. When we were choosing a place for dinner, all he could say was 'Depends on you. Up to you.' I was thinking: Hey, you're a man, can't you even suggest or say something! That was such a turn-off."

To Tracy, making friends online is a much more liberating experience as judgment on a person is based more on how well you can communicate with one another rather than on physical appearances.

She feels that online dating, when managed properly and not abused by pranksters or sex fiends, works anywhere and not just in Singapore.

Tracy says that if she counts the number of online people she has already met so far, it would be somewhere in the "hundreds".

Skeptics of the online dating experience might beg to differ from people like Tracy. It isn't hard to see why.

On the Internet, the element of anonymity is easily exploited.

Critics cite numerous examples. Some sites expect members to sign up "blind" with no preview of the type of profiles they can see. Even if there are profiles on display, no one knows if they are profiles that are actually advertisements, or real persons. The site's credibility is often called into question. Some sites also keep profiles online for months or even years since the last log-in to give the impression that they have thousands of members.

There is also the issue of numerous clauses in membership. Some sites allow free sign-ups but such members cannot make any contact with profiles of others. They may only reply to paying members.

Match.com mentioned by Tracy is one of the more popular and mainstream dating sites around. It touts itself as "The World's Largest" in the Guiness Book of Records. The site has easy-to-use tools and navigation for users. Benefits vary across paying and non-paying members.

Seductive as it may sound, the prospect of meeting or even making contact with someone is not as easy as it seems. A paying Match.com user who only wants to be known as Simon, says it is easier for females to elicit a response from profiles they contact, than for a male.

No immediate gender figures are available.

Screen capture of website

Are you hot enough?

More intriguingly, there is even a website that accepts members only if they are attractive. HotEnough.com prides itself on being "not for the average single".

Reports on the exclusive website last month quoted the site's 33-year old founder, Jason Pellegrino as saying that the problem with online dating is that there aren't enough hot people. The website says it is "filling that long-standing void" in the industry.

The site works very much like an exclusive disco club only for the gorgeous, where prospective guests are 'screened' before granting access.

In an audition-like manner, interested parties have to send pictures of themselves to the site's producers where they will be screened and rated by members on a scale of 1 to 10. Those who make the cut are allowed entry and subscription to its full services.

Obviously, HotEnough.com has met with much criticism online.

Detractors call it lame and elitist. But Pellegrino has shrugged it off. His stance is that online dating is ultimately a shallow process so there is no need for pretense in the first place.

Others on Internet forums see the loopholes though.

"Even though I'm married, I think I'll whip myself up to a 10 in Photoshop and see if I can get on this site," says one user.

"As a photo restorationist and retoucher, I could make a killing off this! I'd like to see what happens when these well rounded individuals find out the hottie they chose is a nottie by nature," another posted.

In Singapore

The ethereal nature of the Internet where things are not always what they seem, is perhaps the greatest thorn in the hide of online dating.

Just last month, a Singaporean woman was jailed for cheating an Indian engineer over the Internet with pictures of a young actress.

Beauty certainly can charm.

The two of them - both married to other partners - met in an Internet chatroom where the woman befriended the US-based Indian man. She started asking for money over the course of a few months, making the man transfer almost US $45,000 to her account.

She was caught only after he became suspicious and alerted the police.

Also last month, The New Paper went online and created a profile of a 47-year-old divorced man looking for a partner. It got a response from a maid who used her employers' computer in secret. She had heard of the dating website through a friend.

The New Paper story revealed an interesting trend - that of maids using the Internet to find love. Some actually succeed and get married.

Worldwide, whatever the case for online dating, you can be sure the fad is here to stay simply because it is easy, no frills and convenient. According to a study conducted by the Online Publishers Association (OPA) and ComScore Networks, US residents spent $469.5 million on online dating and personals in 2004, the largest segement of "paid content" on the web.

Just remember to ensure that the person in that picture is the one you are meeting.