I feel you can only get to know someone so much online and that you have to be very weary, but i also think that posting on here gives you good advice from different points of view from people that aren't biased as they don't know you
I think that friends on here are slightly different from real life friends.
Here is fab though - I keep my horse at home & only do private lessons, so it's hard to chat to other riders.
My o/h is a bit bemused by the amount of time I spend on here - it's the initial excitement of finding other horsey people & having access to such an enormous span of expertise.
Yes my OH is the same but I find it a great way to relax of an evening after a hard days work. I first came om here because I needed advice and I got it with a few variations it helped to confirm my own opinion. I sometimes totally agree with people I sometimes find people too sensitive, I find them funny but we all have one thing in common - horses!
I see it kinda differently in that i meet some real nice 'friendly' people on here, but i count my 'friends' as the ones who i know in person if you get what i mean