Online dating didn’t really begin with the advent of the internet.

Englishwoman Helen Morrison, who placed an innocent personal ad in 1727 in the local newspaper, was sent to an asylum for four weeks, as it was insane at the time for women to seek companionship.

LGBT communities took to the discreet personal ads, as homosexuality was banned in the UK till as late as 1967.

Newsgroups and Bulletin Board Services (BBS) gave rise to the second wave of personal ads, with America Online (AOL), Prodigy and later Craigslist providing avenues to singles looking to find companionship.

• It is ubiquitous and many social media sites are personal ads in disguise.
• Specialized dating sites exist for every orientation, religion, place and race.
• This also makes stumbling upon someone who exists outside the preference bubble harder than before.

With the advent of the modern newspaper in 1690, it took a mere five years for the first personal ads to appear in Britain.

• Aristocrats caught on the personal ad trend and started broadcasting their often bizarre desires to the general public.
• The matrimonial ad, where a potential husband or wife was sought, was looked down upon initially, but as specific magazines and periodicals focusing on matrimony ...