14 New Rules of Digital and Online Dating

It’s a universally acknowledged truth that texting during a first date will ensure that you don’t get a second, and that picking up your smart phone post-coitus could lead to you sleeping on the couch. If Jane Austen had lived long enough to experience the 21st Century, she would have a field day with all the etiquette and rituals that have developed around technology and dating.

And it isn’t just the obvious gaffes that keep us in line. For everything from tagged photos to virtual gifts, there are loose rules and exceptions. People young enough to have started dating after Facebook launched in 2004 (texting took off in earnest some time after) know this as second nature. But for anyone older, current trends can be nebulous—if not contradictory. We asked three relationship gurus, including a blogger, a digital anthropologist, and an etiquette expert to tell us when technology can help—or kill—a relationship.