kudos lily,

well said and i agree about meeting early if there is any intention at all to become more than friends - that third dimension adds a lot to knowing, looking in another's eyes has much merit indeed

beyond that first meeting, then yes SLOW is the go and always have some safety net, whether it's close or a call from hundreds of miles away, let someone know

many people don't always have a friend that they can share 'this' with and find in forums such as these, real friends that they can confide in - i've safe-called for g/f's online where i have all of their personal info, friends and family, and if she didn't answer correctly when checked on, then i would alert her vanilla friends to back her up.

risky, for sure - but you make sure of everything stated above:

daytime
crowds
don't give your personal info
let as many ppl know as possible

but also, don't underestimate the community you have met them in
ask other's who they are, what kind of reputation they have