i disagree that online dating is useless. It's more about how you use it and how open you are.
I saw one or several comments on annoyances about "hey" and "what's up" on here. I think to have an expectation for someone to start off with so many details is asking for too much. You can simply respond back with hey, what's up, or you can even initiate a question and start a conversation. Remember, a conversation is TWO ways, not just one. I think many females prefer more detailed messages being initiated to them in general, or at least a quick one liner that makes a person sound more interested. For men, they generally like things short and sweet. So one word answers or one sentence is normally what you want to keep it to. Usually, you want to keep it positive too. I've had to learn all of this the hard way unfortunately, because I didn't always have people to lean on when I needed it the most.
Also, online gives you potential options to people that you may have otherwise not had an opportunity to meet. With online dating, don't use it as a barrier. Use it as a medium to try to make connections in-person. I personally prefer to try to meet people in-person sooner rather than later because people do play too many games. if they are beating around the bush or aren't makin a schedule with you at least, look for other(s) who will. Can still be open to people you reached out to before or vice versa, but it may be worth considering that they come only at your convenience to show you they are truly serious depending on the context of the situation.
