I have only met one person online, so my sample size isn't very large to make a good assessment. However, I will say that it seems that if the person is honest about themselves, then you can figure out if someone is actually compatible with you before actually meeting them. I have never had a problem meeting women that are attractive in person, and I believe that is probably the case for most people, but the real hurdle is whether the person is someone you can talk to or associate yourself with. That is probably immediately determined whentalking to someone online.

You can trade pictures if you are worried that the person may not be attractive, but often if you like your conversation with the person, how the person looks tends not to matter as much because you would probably be willing to meet them anyway. Basically, I can see meeting someone online as getting past the most difficult part of new relationships, that is, actually finding out if you like the actual person. If you are not necessarily attracted to them, you can alwaysremain friendly acquaintances.