How can I search for other yahoo messenger users that have the same interests as me and ideally live near me?

Question

How can I search for other yahoo messenger users that have the same interests as me and ideally live near me?

Answer 1

Ideally, you should be able to go to Yahoo's own Member Directory and use the search functions there.

In practice, however, that option is pretty much toast.  To elaborate:

--Webcammers have ruined it.  Simply put, *every* grouping of Profiles, By Interest, whether that interest is innocent or prurient, has anywhere from *one to a dozen* full first pages of computer-generated, "a000000..." types of profiles that *only* serve to get the webcammers up there first, last and always (since the search function limits you to the first 500 profiles, on some Searches By Interest, this can make it impossible to get past the "A" profiles).

--Yahoo's own 360 Profile revamp (and *Its* own revamp into a Mash Profile, coming soon to a screen near you) renders much of the Member Directory pointless.  Simply put, most of the real, non-spammer, non-webcammer people have moved up to 360 profiles...the only real people left on the Member Directory, are people who have either left behind inactive Profiles (which never truly go away), or who are *NOT* into blogging, as the Yahoo 360 *format* is that of a weblog, and not a simple *profile*.

--And let's *talk* about those Inactive Profiles for a moment.  Yahoo's Member Directory is the *last* place on Yahoo to update itself.  Yahoo's idea of an "update" is to abandon the thing and hype up 360, to the point that you can't even click on and *see* some profiles without getting *redirected* to Yahoo's Official Spam and Hype Page for "Start Your New Yahoo 360 Profile!"

Meaning?  Many Profiles that are in the Member Directory are *several years* old, and show every sign of having been gutted out and abandoned--all pictures, links, personal/identifying info have been removed to as large a degree as possible.  Which is fine.  Some of these profiles have even been *deleted* over time, which is also fine, that's Yahoo's own prerogative here.  But...

The deleted and abandoned profiles *still show up* in Member Directory in their *original, unedited* format.  Which is a right royal pain if you are looking for Profiles with *pictures only* and well....half of what you get no longer has pictures, because of the *total* lack of upkeep and updating.

So yeah.  If you're sticking to Yahoo Messenger Users, and Yahoo Services, you're screwed when it comes to a simple Member Search.  As often as not, Yahoo itself will sooner refer you to Yahoo Personals (where you have to PAY for contact at some point) or to Yahoo 360 (did I mention it's going to be replaced soon by Mash?) before it sends you to the Member Directory.

And it's too bad really.  Even a couple of years ago the Member Directory had its *legitimate uses* for real, non-spammer, non-cammer types of people.  ^_^

Sorry to let you down but that's the truth of it.

Answer 2

WELL, WHAT'S YOR INTEREST, AND WHERE IS YOUR LOCATION?