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Help

This page gives you all the information you need to get started with Gay Dating Agency, including detailed walkthroughs of all the most common tasks. If there's any question that you find that is not answered on this page, please feel free to contact us.

Prices

What's free and what's not?

Most of our services are offered completely free of charge. Others are available at great-value low prices. There are two levels of membership:

Guest Membership is totally free
Club Membership is a paid-for service which gives you access to all our great features

Guest Membership

When you first join us you are given free Guest Membership. You can use your Guest Membership account for as long as you like. The idea is you can meet our members and try us out with no obligation. With Guest Membership you get:

Free messaging - read and reply to messages you get from other members.
Free conversations - get involved with the chat with other members with free Conversations - no better way to make new gay friends and show them what you're really like
Free area search - search in your local county or region
Free postcode search (UK only) - hone your search with laser-precision to find members who live within your neighbourhood
Free profile - your own personalised profile page, complete with it's own easy-to-remember web address - now you can have your own page on the web to point your friends to
Free profile updates - keep your profile reflecting the real you - update whenever and however often you like
Free photo gallery - let your personality shine through with up to ten free photos
Free photo updates - keep your photos bang up to date - no restrictions on updates here
Free favourites - keep track of the members you fancy and get back to their profiles with one mouse click
Free admirer information - find out who's got you on their list of favourites
Free profile viewing info - find out who's been looking at your profile - invaluable for the curious, this facility can reveal who thinks you're cute
Free winks, kisses, chocolates, and roses - flirt and seduce, then up the calorie intake - with virtual romantic gifts and gestures
Free help - unlimited personal help and assistance from our experienced and helpful customer care team
Oooh, free lots of things - there's simply too much to list - join and find out more!

Club Membership

When you upgrade your membership from Guest Membership to Club Membership, you can do everything Guest Members can, plus you get these great features:

Unlimited Messaging - contact as many members as you can! The more people you contact the more chance you have of finding a perfect date. Don't limit yourself to sending out a few messages per day.
GayDatingAgency WILD! - if you like explicit photos we have a huge gallery of wild photos to turn you on - all uploaded by our members and collected into one place for your viewing pleasure.
Advanced Search - search with razor-sharp precision for your perfect soulmate.
Saved Searches - save masses of time by recalling your most-used searches with one mouse-click.
Name Search - if a member you fancy moves location but stays on the site it can be agonising! Don't lose touch! Name Search lets you find them wherever they go.
Top of the Search Results - if you want to succeed you've got to be seen. Propel your profile to the top of the search results and your contact levels will go ballistic!
Priority Customer Service - as a Club Member you are our number one priority for help and assistance. Get VIP support and help. You deserve nothing less.

Prices

Our current prices are here. To see prices in Euros or US dollars, please log in and click "Upgrade". Always be on the lookout for special offers!

Service	Price	Description
Two weeks	£6.95	Dip your toe in the water at very low cost. Get a feel for the benefits of full membership. Hassle-free online cancellation.
Monthly	£9.95	One low payment for one month's fun and frolics. Seriously good value. Hassle-free self-service cancellation.
Six months	£39.95	A one-off payment for six months of frenzied dating activity!
One year	£49.95	Date till you drop with a whole year of online dating opportunity. Incomparable value.

We also accept payments in Euros and US dollars - log in and click "Upgrade" to see the equivalent prices in your currency.

Joining and logging in

I've forgotten my account name or password

We can send your account name and password to the email address you used when you joined us. Sorry, we can't send account details to any other email address.

Go icon Retrieve password »

I know my login name and password, but I still can't log in.

Remember that login names and passwords are case-sensitive, which means you must type them in exactly as they are written in the email we sent you when you joined, using the same combination of upper and lower case letters.

It is possible that you are unable to log in because your account has been suspended or deleted. This happens if you have broken the terms and conditions which you agreed to on joining. Unfortunately we are unable to reactivate suspended accounts and cannot enter into any correspondence with you if this should happen.

I keep getting a message about cookies when I log in

This can occur if you do not have "cookies" enabled on your computer, or if your computer is set to disallow cookies from this site. A cookie is a tiny, totally harmless file that we must place on your computer in order to keep you logged in to the site. The site cannot be used without cookies enabled.

To allow cookies, do this:

If you are using Internet Explorer 6

click the "Tools" menu
click "Internet Options"
click the "Privacy" tab
click the "Sites" button
type the web site address into the "Address of Web site" box. For example if you log on to GayDatingAgency.com you would type "www.gaydatingagency.com" (leaving out the quotes). box
click the "Allow" button
click "OK"
click "OK"
try to log in again

If you are using Mozilla Firefox

click the "Tools" menu
click "Options"
click the "Privacy" icon
click the "Cookies" tab
ensure "Allow sites to set cookies" is ticked
click "OK"
try to log in again

If you are using Opera

click the "Tools" menu
click "Preferences"
click the "Advanced" tab
click the "Cookies" menu item
select "Accept all cookies" in the "Normal cookies" list
click "OK"
try to log in again

Why should I confirm my email address?

We ask members to confirm their email addresses for several reasons. They include: to reduce the risk of people giving us non-existent email addresses, to increase your safety and security, to allow us to answer your customer service emails, to allow us to follow up complaints, to stop people opening up multiple accounts.

Confirming your address gives you bags of extra membership points, which in turn increases your kudos on the site, and will increase other members' confidence and trust in you. In online dating trust is the vital spark that separates the successful from the unsuccessful. Email confirmation is an easy way to gain trust.

How do I confirm my email address?

When you joined we sent an email to the email address you provided, asking you to confirm your email address. This email contains a special link which you must click. Once you've clicked this link, we will register your email address as confirmed.

I did not receive my confirmation email. What do I do?

If you didn't receive your confirmation email it is probably because you entered your email address incorrectly, or because your email account is not working. If so you can enter a new email address and we'll resend your confirmation email.

Go icon Click here to confirm your email address »

Profiles

How long does it take for my profile to appear?

Profiles are usually reviewed within 24 hours. Your profile will be live on-site instantly, but it is always hand-reviewed in person by one of our trained, experienced staff. They are on the lookout for abuses of the system, but also will alert you if something you have written compromises your safety, privacy or anonymity.

Do you really read every single profile?

We read and review every single profile by hand and always have done. It is part of our caring philosophy. We want you and all other members to feel safe and happy on GayDatingAgency.com. Hand-reviewing profiles is one way we can achieve this.

How can I change my profile?

Once you've created your profile you can change it as often as you like. To do this:

log in
click "my profile"
make any changes you need to
click "send"

How do I remove my profile?

There's no need to remove your profile completely, because if you want your profile to disappear from the site for a while, you can "hide" it temporarily. To do this:

log in
click "my profile"
untick the "show profile" box
click Send

I edited my profile - why has it been taken off the site?

When you edit your profile we must treat it as if it was a brand new entry. Therefore it stays hidden from others until we review it.

Photos

How many photos can I upload?

You can upload as many as ten photos at any one time.

Do they all have to be of me?

No, only the first photo you upload has to be of you. This is your portrait photo, which will be displayed in your profile, in search results and other lists on-site. After that you can upload anything, within reason! We review all photos before they go online, and those that breach our terms and conditions are deleted. We are happy to accept chest-shots but full-on nudity is not allowed at the present time.

How long does it take for my photo to appear?

Photos are usually reviewed within 24 hours but the average waiting time is about six hours. We will notify you by email when each photo has been reviewed.

Can I edit my photo after uploading it?

Yes, you can edit any photo before it has been reviewed. Our photo editor allows you to correct some of the more common problems with photos:

adjust the brightness and contrast of the image
flip the image
broaden or flatten the image
remove unwanted areas of the photo.

Click the edit photo link to load the photo into the photo editor.

Note: Photos cannot be edited after they have been reviewed.

Can I hide my photograph for a while?

Yes, you can do this at any time on the My Photos page. Just clear the check box marked Show and press the save changes button. This hides the photo without deleting it. If you want to show your photo again, tick the check box and press update again.

Can I give my photo a caption?

Yes, you can do this at any time on the My Photos page. Type your caption text into the Caption box and press the save changes button. We review captions before they are allowed online, so your photo will not appear in your profile until this happens. Inappropriate captions are deleted. Please see our terms and conditions for more details.

What formats can I upload a photo in?

Digital photos can be uploaded in most popular formats, including:

.JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group)
.BMP (Windows Bitmap)
.GIF (Graphics Interchange Format)
.PNG (Portable Network Graphics)
.TIFF (Tagged Image File Format)

We recommend the JPEG format, which generally gives the best results for most types of photos.

I don't have a digital photo? Can I send you one in the post?

Yes - details of how to do this are given when you click "my photos" after you've logged in.

Why did you reject my photo?

All photos are reviewed before they go online and we reserve the right to reject any photo that is submitted to us. Generally we reject photos for the following reasons:

We couldn't open the file. Sometimes files become damaged or corrupted during the upload process. When this occurs we have to reject the photo.
The file was not in a format that we support. See our list of supported graphics formats.
The photo contained content that was deemed unsuitable including, but not restricted to, nudity.
The photo was too small to display and could not be enlarged without reducing the quality of the image to an unacceptable level.
The photo was of too poor quality to display in the first place.
There was a child or children in the photo. For your own peace of mind we advise against submitting photos of children.
Portrait photos only: We couldn't clearly identify you in the photo; for example if it was a group photograph.
Portrait photos only: Your face was not completely visible in the photo. Portrait photos must clearly show who you are!
Portrait photos only: The photo was clearly not of you.

This list is not exclusive, but chances are that if a photo you've uploaded is rejected, you will find it was for one of the reasons given above. Note that there are special rules for the portrait photo, so it may be that a picture we rejected as your portrait would be accepted as an additional photo. The rule to remember is always upload your portrait photo first!

If your photo is rejected we will send an email to the email address that you have registered with us to notify you. Photos that we reject are deleted from our system.

Some people have their photos on the home page and on the welcome page. Can I get mine there?

The photos on the home page and the welcome page are randomly selected and change every hour. Keep checking back to see if you are being featured!

Photo Editor

Using the photo editor

Adjusting the brightness and contrast

Drag the brightness and contrast slider controls to raise or lower the brightness and contrast.

Rotating

Use the rotate controls to tilt the photo left or right. The buttons rotate the picture by 90° clockwise or anti-clockwise, the slider rotates the picture by a variable value.

Squishing

Drag the squish slider control to the left to lengthen the image, to the right to widen the image.

Cropping

Highlight an area on the photo by dragging the mouse across it. Press the crop button. All the image outside the selection is deleted.

Saving your changes

When you have finished editing your picture, press the save button to save the edited image.
At any time you can press the undo button to go back to the original version of the image.

Searching

How do I find someone I like?

To find potential partners you have to do a search. Click here to start.

How does postcode searching work?

If you are a member living in the UK, you can search for someone in your neighbourhood. Using our postcode search page, you can easily find members who live nearest to you! Simply go to the postcode search page, enter your postcode and search. In fact if you've already registered your postcode, it's even easier because we fill in the postcode directly.

To protect your privacy we do not disclose your postcode or any other details about you except those you have entered in your public profile.

Note: At the moment this service only applies to members living in the UK. The distances we display give the direct, "as the crow flies", distance. It's not therefore an exact indication of how far you'll have to travel to meet your date!

Blocking another member

What is a block?

If you wish to limit your contact with another member, you can block them. Blocking has the following effects:

prevents the blocked member from seeing your profile
prevents the blocked member from making you a favorite, sending you winks or kisses, or voting you funny, clever or attractive
leaves the blocked member out of your Who's Looking? list
leaves the blocked member out of your list of admirers
prevents new messages sent by the blocked member from being displayed to you
removes existing messages from the blocked member from your list of messages

How do I block another member?

You will see a link to block the member on their profile, and on each message you receive from them. You can remove the block at any time. Removing a block reverses all the effects above.

Will they know I have blocked them?

Blocking a member does not alert that member to the fact you have blocked them. You cannot get a list of who has blocked you.

How do I remove a block?

Did you block someone by mistake, or maybe you want someone you've been blocking to see your profile again? Go to "My Favorites" and click on the "Blocked list" link, or click on the "Blocked" link on your Home page. You will see a list containing the names of all the people you are currently blocking. To remove someone from this list, just click on the "Remove" link next to their name.

Private messages

How do I send a message?

Once you've found someone you like by searching you can send them a message. As a Guest Member you can send up to five private messages per day (a day is any 24 hour period). As a Club Member you can send unlimited messages. (Go crazy, upgrade!). To send a private message, do this:

run a search
in the search results list, click the name or photo of the person you want to send a message to
you are then taken to their profile page
locate the message box near the bottom of the page. Note: you must be logged in and a Club Member to see this
fill in the message box
click "send"
the message is sent instantly, and we also send the recipient an email to tell them there is a message waiting for them

If you have Guest Membership and would like to upgrade to being a Club Member, click here.

I got an email from you telling me there is a message waiting for me. What do I do?

We notify you by email when you have a message from another member. To read your message, do this:

log in
click "my messages"
click the message you would like to read
the message is displayed

I got a message from you telling me there's a message waiting for me, but I can't see it when I log in. Why?

One reason this can happen is if you have two accounts with us. Make sure you are checking the correct account. You can tell which account the message has been sent to by looking at the username which is given on the email alert we sent you.

However, it more commonly happens when you have blocked the person who sent you the message. To check who you have blocked and delete a block, do this:

log in
click "my admirers"
click the "Blocked list" link
click the "Remove" link next to the block you wish to remove
click "my messages" again to see your message

How do I reply to a message?

To reply to a message you have received, do this:

log in
click "my messages"
find the message you want to reply to
click on the message title
click "Reply"
type your message in the box
click "send"

I have received an upsetting message - what can I do?

If you receive a message from another member that you consider to be upsetting, or think breaks our terms and conditions, you can report it to us. To do this, please use our complaints form.

Mobile text alerts

What are mobile text alerts?

Mobile text alerts are notifications that keep you up-to-date with interest in your profile even when you are away from your computer. Text alerts are sent to your mobile phone in the standard message format (also known as Short Messaging Service or SMS) used by all UK mobile networks. You'll know when you've received an alert because a message from "DatingAlert" will appear in your mobile phone inbox. Just open the message to see what's going on!

Who can use them?

Currently mobile text alerts are only available to members living in the United Kingdom.

What do I get for free?

You will receive 5 free mobile text alerts when you register your mobile phone. You can register your phone now (requires you to be logged in). If you change your mobile phone number you can register another number, but it won't get you any more free alerts!

How do I start receiving alerts?

To receive mobile text alerts, you must first register. Go to the Mobile text alerts page, enter your mobile phone number and select from the options on offer. You can receive an alert in response to any of the following events:

A member sends you a message.
A member reads a message you have sent them.
A member adds your profile to their list of favourites.
A member votes you intelligent.
A member votes you funny.
A member votes you attractive.
A member winks at you.
A member blows you a kiss.
A member sends you roses.
A member sends you chocolates.

You can receive alerts for any member on the site or only from people on your list of favourites.

When you register with us, you receive 5 free mobile text alerts. If you want to go on receiving texts after you have used your free alerts, you need to buy additional credits.

How do I buy mobile text alerts?

You can buy mobile text alerts on the site from this page. Payments are made through WorldPay, part of the Royal Bank of Scotland group, and are charged to your credit or debit card. For your peace of mind, we do not charge your mobile phone bill.

Will other people see my phone number?

No. Your phone number is kept confidential. We only use it to send you mobile alerts, it is not made available to other members.

Conversations

What are conversations?

Our conversations rooms allow members to really get to know each other by starting or participating in public discussions with each other.

How do I read the conversations?

To read the conversations, do this:

log in
click "Conversations" on the main menu
click one of the conversations rooms links
you see a list of current conversations
click one of the conversations
you see the conversation, complete with photos of those who have contributed

You can sort the conversations in a room in various ways, to make it easier to find interesting conversations.

to show the most recently started conversations, click the "Sort by newest conversations" link
to show the conversations with the most contributions, click the "Sort by hottest topics" link
to show the conversations that have been most recently added to, click the "Sort by latest messages" link
if you are in a meetups conversation room, you can click "Sort by meetup date" to show the meetups in date order

How do I participate in conversations?

To participate in the conversations, do this:

log in
click "Conversations" on the main menu
click through to a conversations room
click "Reply" on the message you would like to respond to
fill in the message box
click "Preview" to see how your message will look when sent
correct spelling mistakes (if any!)
click "Send"
providing the message is appropriate for immediate publication, it will go online straight away
click "Return to conversation"

If you want to start your own conversation, click the "Start a new conversation" link. New conversations are always pre-reviewed before publication, so they do not go online straight away.

Why does my reply not appear where I thought it would in the conversation?

Where your reply appears depends on which message you replied to. If you replied to the very first message in the thread, it would appear under that message, but after all the previous replies to that message.

If you replied to a message in the middle of the thread, your reply will appear after that message and after and previous replies. This technique is called threading.

How can I see all the conversations I have contributed to?

You can get a list of all the conversations you've taken part in. To do this:

log in
click "My conversations" on the main menu

How can I see only conversations I am interested in?

You can bookmark a conversation so you can easily get back to it later, even if you haven't taken part in the conversation. To do this:

log in
click "Bookmark conversation" at the top-right of the conversation you want to bookmark

To see a list of your bookmarked conversations, click "My conversations" on your left-hand menu when logged in.

To remove a bookmark from a conversation, do this:

log in
click "My conversations" on the main menu
click the conversation you want to un-bookmark
click the "Remove bookmark" link at the top-right of the conversation page

What do some of the terms people use in the conversations rooms mean?

Sometimes it can be hard to understand what people are saying in the conversations rooms, because they may use acronyms or jargon. Here is a short list of very common jargon you might see:

forum or room or board: a collection of conversations around a certain theme or style
thread or conversation: a conversation, a list of contributions. Many conversations make up a room or a forum.
message or contribution or posting: a contribution to a conversation
OP: Original Poster - a reference to the person who posted the message which started the thread
off-topic: a contribution that does not have anything to do with the topic of the thread. Some rooms welcome off-topic contributions but in other rooms it is preferred that conversations stay on-topic
pulled: a thread or contribution that has been removed by the moderators
moderators or mods: staff here who oversee the conversations and remove postings the go against the guidelines
PM: private message - a private message between two members (see Private messaging)
LOL: laughing out loud
ROFL: rolling on the floor laughing

Can I remove something I said in the conversations?

Because your contribution forms a part of the conversation, it does not make sense to remove individual contributions to the conversations after publication. So we regret we are unable to remove messages unless they go against our conversations guidelines.

I just found something I wrote in the conversations on a search engine! Why is this?

Anything you publish on the Internet in a public web site (such as this) can be picked up by search engines, and kept for all to see, pretty much forever. You should never commit anything to writing on the Internet, including this site, if you don't want your friends, your neighbours, your employer, your employees, your husbands/wives/girlfriends/boyfriends, ex-lovers, parents, grandparents, children or anybody else to see. This applies to both forum contributions, profile details, photographs and everything else you publish online.

If you don't want others to see it on the Internet, please don't publish it on the Internet. If it does appear in a search engine, please don't write in asking us to remove it because we do not own the search engines and we cannot control what they index and republish. We ask all members to take responsibility for what they publish to this public web site.

What are the rules for conversations?

We don't have any rules over the subject matter of what can be discussed. However, we do have firm rules over how subjects can be discussed. In short, all conversations must be friendly and must obey our terms and conditions. Additionally we have the following guidelines:

Don't be unfriendly, offensive, or potentially offensive.
You are responsible for what you write. Nobody else can make you break the site rules.
Don't get personal or write about another member in a way that may identify them.
Don't be reliant on inside information or write stuff that would baffle new members.
Don't "troll", that is, annoy other members or deliberately try to provoke a negative reaction. This applies to trolling the site moderators as well.
The moderators are here to help, so please don't make our lives difficult.
Don't present legal, technical or medical opinions stated as "fact".
Don't copy and paste private messages you've received. Whether or not you've received permission to do so.
If your posting privileges are revoked, permanently or temporarily, it's because you broke the rules.

Please note that if you say anything unfriendly in the conversations your account may be removed without notice and you would not be entitled to any refunds.

How are the conversations moderated?

Conversations are moderated by members with backup from staff. All new messages are scanned for obviously offensive content, and those which contain such material are held back for review prior to publication.

Messages which receive a high number of "Inappropriate" ratings from other members will be manually reviewed by the moderators and compared with the guidelines. If they break the guidelines they may be removed.

Why has my contribution not been posted?

If your contribution has not been immediately posted it has been held back for reviewing by our staff. It probably contains words or phrases which are frequently used in an unfriendly context. Please wait whilst we review your contribution.

Why do I see 'Cannot display conversation' when I click on a conversation?

There are three main reasons why you may see this message:

You need to be logged in - some conversations can be viewed by non-members and members alike. If the conversation you have clicked on is reserved for members only, please log in to view it.
You are the wrong sex! - we have private conversations rooms for gay men only and lesbians only. You are the wrong sex - sorry!
The conversation has been removed - occasionally we remove an entire thread if it drops below our standards for friendliness

How do I report an unfriendly message?

If you find a message which offends you or you think breaks our guidelines, you must tell us straight away. Click the "Rate: Inappopriate" link by each message to make your report. If a particular message receives a large number of inappropriate report we will manually review it and take the necessary action. You can only rate each message once, and you cannot rate your own messages.

This system works well because it is a distributed system - no one person can get your postings removed, so the potential for bullying or one on one grudges is minimised.

How do I report an excellent message?

If you find a message which is particularly insightful, informative, interesting or just extremely well written, we encourage you to rate it "Excellent". Click the "Rate: Excellent" link by the message to make your report. This will enable us to flag up particularly brilliant messages and give membership points to those who write them. You can only rate each message once, and you cannot rate your own messages.

Payments and cancellations

Are payments secure?

Yes, all payments are taken either through our partners WorldPay (part of the Royal Bank of Scotland), or PayPal (which is owned by eBay). So you can be confident that your payment information is fully encrypted and protected.

Are payments secure?

How do I cancel my subscription?

You can cancel your payments at any time. You'll still be able to enjoy your full Club Membership services up until the last day of your current subscription period.

WorldPay users only: If you pay by WorldPay you can cancel online via this web site. To cancel now, please go to the cancellation page.

PayPal users only: If you pay by PayPal we cannot stop your PayPal subscription for you - you must cancel your PayPal subscription yourself. This is because we do not have the username and password required to break into your PayPal account and start or stop subscriptions on your behalf, and PayPal provides no automatic way for us to cancel your subscription. Here is the information taken from PayPal's help pages to help you stop your PayPal subscription:

Log in to your PayPal account.
Click History at the top of the page.
Select Subscriptions from the Show menu.
Check the From box and change the date back 2 years.
Click Search.
Click Details to view the details of a specific Subscription Creation.
Click Cancel Subscription.
Click Cancel Subscription again.

Please note that closing your account with us does not stop your PayPal subscription - for the reasons stated above. No refunds will be given on PayPal overpayments that occur due to your failure to stop your own PayPal subscription.

Messenger

What is the chat Messenger?

Our chat Messenger enables you to chat in real time directly with other members. It's like an online date! It's great fun to use, and really helps you to get to know people quickly.

What do I need to chat online?

Online chat is available to Club Members and you need to be logged on. You must also have the Adobe Flash Player version 6.0 or above installed, which you can get from the Adobe web site at http://www.adobe.com/go/getflashplayer

You can find more information about our Club Membership here.

I have a pop-up window blocker installed on my machine and cannot receive messages from other members. How can I see who has sent me a message?

You must configure your pop-up blocker to allow popups from DatingAgency.com and GayDatingAgency.com. Please consult the blocker instructions on how to do this. If this option is unavailable, you must disable the pop-up window blocker. If it is not disabled, you will not be able to receive incoming messages from other members.

How do I start a conversation with someone?

You start a conversation by clicking on Fancy a chat? chat link . This opens the Messenger and you're ready to start chatting!

It's important to remember that the conversation does not start until you send a message (see below for how). If you don't send the first message, the other person won't know you're there.

How do I send a message?

Type your message in the light blue box in the Messenger window. Express yourself with smileys, bold, underline or italics, then either press the Enter or Return key, or click the Send button to send the message.

If you are typing a long message, you can make the text area bigger by dragging the resize button in the left hand column just above the light blue box.

How do I know when someone is trying to chat to me?

A small browser window will open on your screen. This is the Messenger: it shows the name of the person who is chatting and what they are saying. If they have a photo, that also displays. If you click on the caller's name then their profile page will open, so you can see a bit more about the person you are chatting to.

Can I turn off the sound that plays when I send or receive a message?

Yes. You can mute all incoming audio by clicking on the Mute audio button in the message window.

Can I decide who can chat to me?

Yes. By default, all current Club Members can chat to you when you are online provided that each of you is of the gender that the other is looking for, or that the other member is in your list of favourites. People you have blocked cannot chat to you.

You also have the option to restrict this further by specifying that only members in your favourites list can chat to you. Lastly, you have the option to opt out of online chat altogether and specify that no-one can chat to you.

Set your chat preferences now!

Troubleshooting chat problems

Be active

The best way to let us know when you're on the site is to use it. If you stay on one page for too long, we'll think you've gone away and then after a while we'll stop sending chat requests to your browser. So stay active when you're logged on: read your messages, check a few profiles, buy some more mobile text alerts - anything.

Chat to yourself

Log in and then click the Preview link on the home page under My profile. If your profile has a chat link, try clicking on it and see what happens. You should see the chat window appear and you can try it out by typing in some text in the message field and pressing the Send button. Yes you will be talking to yourself, but you'll have proved that your chat system is working. So it's not like you're going crazy or anything.

Check your browser settings

Browsers nowadays all come with features designed to stop unwanted windows popping up on your screen. That's great but it means you might have to tell your browser to allow the chat Messenger window to open. How you do that depends on the type of browser you're using.

Internet Explorer (IE) users

click Tools
click Internet Options
click the Privacy tab
if the Block pop-ups box is ticked, click the Settings button to display the Pop up Blocker Settings window.
select the Address of web site field and type "www.gaydatingagency.com" (without the quotes). If you are using one of our other sites, type the address for that site instead.
click Add
click Close
click OK

Note: Different versions of IE may differ slightly in how they present these options.

Mozilla Firefox users

click Tools
click Options
click the Content tab
if Block Popup Windows is ticked, click Allowed Sites to display the Popups window.
select the Address of web site field and type "www.gaydatingagency.com" (without the quotes). If you are using one of our other sites, type the address for that site instead.
click Allow
click Close
make sure the Enable JavaScript box is ticked
click OK

Opera users

click Tools
click Quick Preferences
make sure Block all pop-ups is not selected
make sure Enable JavaScript is selected

Check Flash is installed

Just about everyone has Flash these days, but if you do see a message telling you that you need to install Flash, you can download it for free from: http://www.adobe.com/go/getflashplayer. Just follow the installation instructions on the Adobe site.

General

What are membership points?

Membership points are our way of saying "thanks" to members who really participate. You can earn membership points in many ways. Here is just a small selection:

logging in frequently
adding photos to your profile
becoming a Club Member
keeping your profile up to date
contributing to our Conversations
being voted funny, clever or attractive by other members
being made a favourite of other members

As a reward, we'll make sure your profile stays right at the top of the search results on all the most popular searches. This way you will increase the numbers of people looking at your profile, and therefore increase your chances of somebody you like seeing your profile.