Jeff Tarr created the first online dating service in the early 1960s, an invention his wife Patsy detailed in a short, recent book, Operation Match, which I reviewed for the Free Beacon this Valentine’s Day:

A math and statistics whiz, Tarr knew that if he bought computer services from IBM, all he would need was “a way to collect data and enter it onto punch cards.” Operation Match was so born with a simple goal: “meet women and make money.” Tarr and his associates, one of whom was Douglas Ginsburg, later appointed to the D.C. Circuit by Ronald Reagan and floated as a Supreme Court pick, sent out personality questionnaires to interested participants. They input the results of the questionnaire into a computer, received for each participant five “ideal” matches, and mailed the contact information of those five individuals back to the original participant — all for the price of $3. It was up to the participant after that to decide whether to ring his matches.
Whereas Tarr’s lengthy questionnaire asked participants a wide range of personality questions, the best today’s dating services do to determine if a match is “ideal” is ask basic questions about religion, politics, substance use, and desired frequency of sexual intimacy. Tarr sought more data than that before making a match. For example, on his questionnaire, Tarr asked participants to rank their interests, such as folk music, jazz, creative writing, agriculture, skiing, and television.

The apps are wretched places to build real relationships. It’s difficult moving conversations off of the apps — but it’s also difficult to imagine online dating going away altogether. In a dream world, app developers would revert back to Tarr’s intent for online dating: to use the virtual realm as a tool, not a crutch.