A survey presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association said that more than 82 per cent of adults who have Internet access at home also had a spouse or romantic partner, compared to just less than 63 per cent of adults who did not have access to the Web.

“Our research suggests that Internet access has an important role to play in helping Americans find mates,” said Michael Rosenfeld, an associate professor of sociology at Stanford University, was quoted as saying in the Gulf Daily News.

Researchers also found that the Internet is gaining importance as a place where couples meet, and especially same-sex couples.

“It is possible that in the next several years the Internet could eclipse friends as the most influential way Americans meet their romantic partners, displacing friends out of the top position for the first time since the early 1940s,” Rosenfeld added.

Sixty-one per cent of the couples who met on the Internet were same-sex couples, the study found.

“Couples who meet online are much more likely to be same-sex couples, and somewhat more likely to be from different religious backgrounds,” Rosenfeld said.

“The Internet is not simply a new and more efficient way to keep in touch with our existing networks; rather the Internet is a new kind of social intermediary that may reshape the kinds of partners and relationships we have,” he said.

The study, headed by Rosenfeld, analyzed data from a national poll of more than 4,000 adults.

Virgin Gaming, a global leader in online console gaming, is planning to give away more than 1 million dollars in cash over the next 12 months through video game tournaments in which you can compete from home with your PS3 console.

“People have been playing competitively for a very long time, ever since a guy picked up a rock and said he could throw it further than the guy next to him,” said Richard Branson, best known for his Virgin brand of over 360 companies.

“In the videogame space, the competitive gaming landscape has only been open to pros and the elite players. At Virgin Gaming, our mission is similar to what Sony is doing with PlayStation Move and Microsoft is doing with Kinect — we’re broadening the scope for everyone.”

So, keep an eye open: Virgin Gaming will team up with major game companies and sponsors to launch tournaments where thousands can compete and prizes such as — so typical of Virgin Gaming — a trip to the bottom of the sea!

First off, it’s anonymous, and no one will interrogate you. Next, you can do it from the comfort of your living room. Thirdly, like most things are these days, it’s instant.

To top it all, interactive tools on some great insurance websites and portals let you compare rates, premium, benefits and different packages from a dozen companies — and you can see all of them in a tabular format, which significantly helps in decision-making.

Some of them even let you apply online, or you could email or call to arrange a meeting with a representative of the insurance company — the company of your choice. Better yet, many offer live chat facilities, which means you can get answers to most questions right away.

You may have a professionally SEO’d (search engine optimized) website, but with listings on web directories will get you some additional boost. For one thing, think of your listing on a directory as getting a free back link to your site. Folks in the search engine business will tell you back links are like votes to your site, which will give your an extra edge over similarly SEO’d websites.

Next, it becomes easier for people who browse the web directories (think of it like Yellow Pages) to reach your site. This is so because websites are categorized by content, and you even get a brief description through you can give a snapshot of your site to potential visitors. You could also think of it as your site getting indexed in a systematic way. I find that this is a much easier and more effective way to get ‘found.’

And then we want that data to be available to us from anywhere in the world — and we don’t have our good old standalone with us. That’s exactly where online backup comes into play and shows you who’s the boss (on the other side of the world). You just access a remote server which patiently stores all your valuable data — photos, files, software, you name it — and just download only what you need. You could also password-protect files and folders, while also share them with others by allowing them access.

The cost of online has fallen drastically lately — so much so that even some of the well-established companies give you up to 2GB of storage space absolutely free. This could be extremely useful not only as a backup system, but also as a way to store sensitive data away from your laptop or office computer. Medium and large companies may prefer larger storage space, especially if they have large amounts of data which their customers or sales force will need to access globally.

I remember reading that up to 70 per cent of disability claims are turned down during the initial scrutiny. One reason could be that the government is weed out, or discourage bogus claims, but it is still a time consuming process either way.

The majority of us, who would be in a situation to claim to social security disability would be baby boomers. In other words, the Internet filing, reprocessing, fighting denials, etc., don’t work very well for us. What I’d do in such a situation would be to talk to someone who knows what it’s all about and how to go about it. Good and sincere professional help is available on the Web these days.

And since then, the good ole’ www has grown exponentially and is still growing. So fast and so so wide and far that unless you’re a heavyweight like NY Times or MTV, chances of your site being discovered are quite slim. Almost nil, in fact… that is, if you don’t promote them. Not everyone has a fortune stashed away as advertising budget, so one of the extremely effective solution to being found lies in the all powerful web directory.

As the name indicates, it’s nothing but a directory, with planned categories and sub-categories, brief descriptions of the websites and, of course, the address, i.e., the URL. By submitting your site to a number of web directories, you make sure your site gets a place in huge databases of websites, and, subsequently, can be discovered by anyone who look at these directories, browsing/searching on keywords.

The web directory process can be automated in many cases (sometimes with dedicated software), or you could choose which directories you’d like your site to be listed. However, not all submissions may be free of charge. Some may ask for a nominal fee for manually reviewing and listing your site, while others may request a reciprocal link from your site, which, in my opinion, is quite fair.

Either way, you only stand to benefit — the more places your website URL is found, higher the chances of being discovered. This is a straight forward, ‘white hat’ method to get back links to your site, which are crucial to get ranked on Google and other top search engines.

Reuters has reported that online education saw a growth of 13 per cent in 2008. While the favorable inclination for online programs in various disciplines among job-seekers as well as employers is fast increasing, some still nurture a mindset that online education is ’shallow’.

Now, I’m not saying every website that offers an online course is commendable, but if you do some research on what makes a university remarkable based on accreditation, the range of degree courses, founders, tuition fees and affordability, you’ll arrive at some top-notch online universities such as the Western Governors University (WGU).

For one thing, WGU started about the same time as when Internet really took off — way back in 1997, as a non-profit online university founded and supported by 19 US governors. It offers convenient and flexible online degree programs (designed for “busy adults”) in disciplines ranging from teacher licensure in a number of areas and business management to IT and health care.

Students complete as much as they can during their allotted six-month term, without paying extra and thus have an opportunity to complete a degree quicker.

WGU online programs are nationally and regionally accredited, which means you’re assured of a basic level of quality in education as well as transfer of credits to other accredited institutions.

Whether you enroll for a masters degree online or a baccalaureate program with WGU, you can rest assured that the tuition fee is totally affordable. This low cost is party attributable to the fact that you don’t have to pay for an expensive campus and associated amenities that are the norm with regular universities.

Of course, the tree is your website, and you want it to be found. Again, any self-respectin’ trekker wouldn’t step into a jungle without a compass and a map (besides water, cheese, flashlight, etc.) Now that you’re reading this post, you’re similar to an Internet trekker, and you found my site (my tree).

How did you get here? Surely most of you must have been pointed here by a search engine or a social networking site (the map). So simply put, you got to be there in the map to be found out. How do you get into the map, and, more importantly, get noticed? By making sure your site ranks well, of course. (The map says, “Hey, look for this tree. Many have recommended it.”) You could do that by having more links point to your site. And how in the wide jungle do you do that?

One way do that would be try and get back links, one way or the other. Now, let’s say that your tree is bearing some exotic fruit, found nowhere else. Folks who are looking for your exotic fruit will find it easily in their map, because your tree is just one of a handful of trees bearing that fruit. And your tree tops the map listing for that fruit.

What if your tree was an orange tree? Surrounded by a million orange trees, how would the trekker see your tree in the top few? That’s where the directories come in. Have your site listed in as many directories as possible, both free and paid, and get one-way non-reciprocal links that search engines love to rank. But if you’re really looking to hit that big bunch of trekkers, paid web directories can give your tree the extra decoration it needs. What makes it all even more attractive is that it is possible to submit to the best paid web directories for free.

Stay in the jungle. But get found.