I've had the ambition to run an online dating site for many many years.

Late last year I figured it was now or never, and that I should really get started.

So over the past few months I've signed up to multiple online dating sites, to see what I liked, and what I didn't. Talking various options over with local people, and Meg.

After lots of chats with people, and a fair amount of planning I have a prototype site ready to launch.

The hard part? Well there are four particularly difficult parts:

• Attracting enough members such that a newcomer who joined would have a reasonably large chance of having at least one member of the appropriate gender in the same city as them
  • Because otherwise they'll leave and never return.
• Making it pretty.
  • People are shallow.
• Making the matching facilities reasonably good
  • And allowing you to easily block people you are unlike. eg. You say your ideal range is 21-25 - nobody outside those ages should even see your profile; let alone be able to contact you.
• Picking a name ..

I've made progress in most of those areas, except for the last. Until yesterday.

Yesterday I was given the perfect name, bearing in mind the site audience:

• ctrl-alt-date.com

It makes me grin just to read it!

OK so a little geeky, but it works.

PS. I'm still very happy with my girlfriend, who has recently agreed to come live with me - this is just something I've always wanted to do. I even setup a few temporary matching sites for small audiences (3000-6000 users from Feb 1st - Feb 14th) around Valentines day which you can google for if you're curious. I don't often mention my lovely girl here because it isn't the place for it, but it seemed relevant ;)