Online dating services purport to have been helping adult singles find dates, practically since the internet became commercialized. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of free and paid dating services on the web. These range from large, popular sites like Match.com, to small, more personal, niche websites like sciconnect.com (for singles interested in science). At least one large online dating service really straddles the line between dating and pornography; the true.com ads on social networking sites show sexy, nearly naked women with sexy come-hither tags. The best dating sites do a little of everything.

No matter which online dating service single men and women try, a photo is key. Scientific American cites a survey indicating that profiles without photos (preferably, sexy photos) get only one fourth to one sixth the responses than the responses gotten by men's and women's profiles with photos. Of course, it's well known that the hot photos of nearly naked women - some of whom look like barely legal post-adolescent girls - may not be the photo of the girl or woman trying to find a date. Sex sells, after all. Similarly, men lie online about their income and height, and more than ten percent of men on dating service sites are married. With all this online deception, it's no wonder that many mature singles are growing dissatisfied with the chances of finding a long-term relationship online. Sex, yes. But marriage? Not so much.