By: Danny Wirken

Have a date this Saturday? Better check if Fate is on your side, with a quick look at your online dating horoscope. There are different kinds of horoscopes. The Western Zodiac (Aries, Taurus, Gemini, etc.) is based on your birthday. The Chinese Zodiac (Snake, Dragon, Horse, etc.) is based on your birth year. There is also numerology, which gives a number equivalent to the letters of your name, and the date, place and hour of your birth. You can also get online tarot card readings and rune readings. Depending on how detailed your horoscope is, you can find out about your personal fortune or your compatibility with your date. A personal fortune just looks at the kind of "universal forces" you need to consider during any particular time.

For example, some days you'll have a higher tendency to get into conflicts, while there are other days when everything just effortlessly falls into place. This doesn't mean you're predestined to fight by dinnertime. It just reminds you to watch out and be more conscious--sort of like the weatherman predicting rain, and saying you might as well bring an umbrella.You can also find compatibility charts. Let's say you were born in the Year of the Dragon: can you get along with someone born in the year of the Rabbit? In Ancient China, no marriage was allowed if their horoscopes weren't "auspiciously aligned".

Even if you choose to take their advice with a grain of salt, it doesn't hurt (and it's even kind of fun) to check. Some online dating horoscopes are free. Others give a free trial, then offer more personalized or detailed charts for a small fee. It depends on what you're looking for. Some will actually go so far as to tell you which days are best for seeing people, which days you should stay in and watch reruns, what kind of lucky charms you may need to bring with you. Others give very general advice, like "It's a good month for meeting new people."

Other dating horoscopes don't focus on making predictions, but are tools for self-awareness and reflection. This is especially true for tarot or rune readings. Many of these sites believe that what the "cards" (or any other tool) tell you isn't the future, but the things going on in your life right now that may need addressing. Their philosophy is that your thoughts or emotions attract certain kinds of situations, and when you ask for a horoscope you're taking a kind of "spiritual check up" so you can correct whatever's blocking true love.

Whether you choose to get a general reading or a detailed chart, a year's predictions or a chance to reflect and assess where you are right now, online horoscopes can be an important tool for dating.