I apologize.
Sometimes I choose the wrong words for an open forum.

What I meant and what I am stressing is that when I find something in a profile that makes no sense or contradicts what they have already said or indicated that I spend no more of my time considering that person as a possible match.
It reduces the amount of time I spend considering the ones that are ify.
Why waste my time when I have thousands more to look at?

Shut down was meant as click away or 'shut down' that profile feed.

We all have prefrences, we might not want to own up to it, after all the root of preference is prefer. But sometimes life is like a box of chocolates and the carmel candy you carefully selected turns out to be a nut cluster.

Oh hell no,

im a passenger, always have been love!

I have never said that I owned or drove a Harley..but someday I will!

And I gotta edit to say..you have not aged a day Marc!

Where do I find the log out for Mingle ?

When I was searching I didn't really study the profiles that didn't match.
Usually, the top line made me click away because I am extremely specific in my age and distance preferences.

The ones I don't care for are the ones within my age and preference range but are obviously liars in their profile.

When I view a pic(s) on a profile I not only look at her I also take note of what she wears and everything I can see in the picture background.

If I make it to the profile and there is actually interests listed, not only do I take note of her interests but I also consider how she wrote (worded) them.

If I get to her blurb, if I see her writing about things that counter act with what I see in her pic(s) or her interests, It shuts her down.

If she is negative in her blurb about scammers or fakes or gives some ultimatum, I shut her down.

If I read about how she just wants to be happy or loved I realize that she thinks those things come from outside and not within her, I shut her down.

If I manage to get to the bottom I note her statistics and compare them with what I found out above. If it doesn't match or no answer, I shut her down.

At the very end, I look at her mail preferences.
I look for preferences that match me.
If I can't message her to start a conversation, I shut her down.

I must stress that its the first line that eliminates most profiles for me.
But, I did find someone on this site, free, that had nearly nothing in her profile but her first line matched and she expressed and interest and we eventually met face to face.

The 'objective', for me, is to find one that matches my preferences.
If, for some reason she doesn't, I give her no further energy and move to the next.

It was that face-to-face meet that told me what I needed to know and so far its been almost 4 months and we're still 'good'.

Dating sites (apps) are tools.
When you use it as a tool, it works.
If you use the tool improperly you get wrong results.
Right now, I don't need to use that tool.
I come to the forums because I like the discussions.

I'll expand a lil:

If she has 4 pics and each pic has a different hair color - she can't make up her mind or she has a self-esteem issue.

If the picture background items don't match up with her proclaimed details.

Obvious signs of alcohol or drug use. Red-Nosed alcoholic, bloodshot eyes, bad hygiene, appearance of high stress or run down look in their faces.

Anything written that exhibits or implies she doesn't have control of herself. "I just want..."

Anything implying she is looking for a man to do...

A woman that puts her kids, pets or career as a personal priority.
This is a dating profile.
I'm looking to date her, not her kids or her dog or work with her.
The kids, dog and career is something I get with her so should only be mentioned once we get to know each other a bit.
Her profile needs to be about her and me(a match).
If its not all about finding me (potentially), she is looking for someone to use. Someone to raise her kids, walk her dog, take her to work if her car breaks down. All perfectly acceptable but not in a dating profile.
So, her priorities are messed up.

Obvious signs of narcissism.

What I believe is there are very few people (men or women) that know how to write a profile to find someone.
For me, what is important is accuracy and demonstration of intent to actually find someone.

Fill out the profile completely.
Its part of using the tool the right way.
Garbage In = Garbage Out

I got put off by no replies.

I read profiles, and worded my response according to what I read. I never expected a reply every time. My expectations lowered, the longer I was online. I started digging into how to respond. That went nowhere. Profile rewrites certainly didn't work. I tried the blanket response, no go. ( I didn't think it would) One word was a bust. New profiles, (Blowing up the old completely) bombed.

After a year and a half, I came to the conclusion that dating wasn't in cards for me, so I just dropped the whole mess, and became a forumite. And figure out how to make a go of a solo lifestyle.

I had to decide that the female occupants of this world were put here for taking up space. I let it bother me for too long. If they want to be friendly, I'll return the favor. But I won't let it go any farther than that. Old age made me smart. I'd rather just observe, and leave the grief to others.

I would shut you down in a heartbeat, hiding in the shadows! You write so much it shuts others away from you... I wouldn't even finish reading all that junk... oh by the way from the shadows you look like a woman! and write like a guy? what the...