I'm liking the ingenuity of dating sites recently. With new ones popping up faster than kids at Brad and Angelina's house, developers have had to come up with new twists to grab the attention of online mate-seeking singles. (Please, no more "winking" and "poking".) One site with a couple of innovative features I like is IamFreeTonght.com.

Born out of the idea that chatting with someone online for a week or so just to get comfortable enough to meet isn't an effective use of dating time, IamFreeTonight lets you post when you are free, where you plan on going, and what friends will be joining you. A Dating Alert email with your preferences goes out. Then girls who are also free that night can decide if they want to join you. The informality (and friends who have your back in case of a "psycho" situation), lends itself to a higher comfort level. And hopefully a much quicker "getting to know you" period. It also makes it more likely you'll date more, because of the casualness of the situation. There's not that one on one, "well here we are", awkwardness of a typical first dating-site date. It's you and your boys out for some drinks, and she and her girls happen to meet you there. Everyone's just having a good time.

And if you're traveling and don't want to be stuck in a hotel room watching pay-per-view porn every night you're in town, you can use their "Date Now" feature. Enter when and where you'll be and it'll be posted on your profile. People in that city will get Dating Alert emails with your info on it and can "show you around" if they like. Beats "winking" for a week.

Free to register
www.iamfreetonight.com