Now that you're online and connected to the world via email, don't you wish that you could reconnect with old friends who have moved away, school classmates, or people you used to know from previous towns or jobs?

Well, don't just wish! The Internet is so widespread now that there's a good chance that they're online, too! So get out those old address books -- in just minutes with some of the people-finding sites, you just might get back to an old friendship! Even if you don't find their email address, you'll turn up phone numbers and, with calls so cheap these days... why not reach out and surprise someone?

People Finders (with Email)

First stop is the "people finder sites." If you know the first and last name, you might find them with their email address. If you've got a town to go with them, you've got an even better chance!

Lycos (HotBot/WhoWhere) People Finder
Find A Person:	HotBot and Lycos WhoWhere are powered by the same engine (and both are owned by Lycos), so if your friend is in one service, you'll likely find them in the other. Once you find them, you can also look up their email address. You can also search for web pages and other information from Lycos.

AnyWho People Finder
	Another alternative is AnyWho, with phone lookup, email lookup, and even a web page finder. This is a good place to start if you're looking for someone who you think (hope) might already be online.

Infospace People Finder
ALAKABAZ ARBCCACOCT DCDEFLGAHI IDILINIAKS KYLAMEMBMD MAMIMNMSMO MTNENVNBNH NJNMNYNFNC NDNTNSOHOK ONORPAPEPQ RISKSCSDTN TXUTVTVAWA WVWIWYYT	InfoSpace is a big index, and even finding the "people finder" section of their site can be a bit daunting. Once you're there, though, you'll not only find US listings but a Canadian people-finder as well, along with white and yellow pages.

BigFoot

search example: john smith white pages email addresses

One of my personal favorites for years has been BigFoot... somehow, I just seem to have more luck with them finding friends online than with any of the others.

Yahoo People Search

This is also one of the places that I go first -- often, I don't need to go any farther! If you're not finding what you're looking for after using all of the sources here, you can also use Yahoo to find more sources (this article is NOT an exhaustive list).

Affinity Searches

One place to find friends is at places that feature something you've got in common. The Internet is full of communities centered around interests... and also interests or participations you used to have.

High School and College Classmates

Classmates.com can put you in touch with people who went to high school or college with you, and can also let you know about upcoming reunions and events.

Military Buddies

These two sites can reconnect you with your military buddies, or help you find your friends who are still in the service. There's LOTS more at these sites than just people-finders, so if you're a vet, check them out for some great resources about your VA benefits, current military issues, and other information of interest to vets and their families.

Find Your Family at Ancestry.com

If you're looking for family members you didn't know you had, Ancestry.com is a great place to start. I've had a lot of fun learning about the various branches of my family from cousins I met online. There are boards that help you find them. This is also the place if you're interested in getting started researching your family roots.

Searching at AltaVista

Find this:    any language EnglishChineseCzechDanishDutchEstonianFinnishFrenchGermanGreekHebrewHungarianIcelandicItalianJapaneseKoreanLatvianLithuanianNorwegianPolishPortugueseRomanianRussianSpanishSwedish

I find this to be more useful sometimes that just using a people finder -- you see the name in context, and it help you distinguish the Jeremy Johnson who used to be on that chuch committee with you, for example, from all of the others if you find him on another committee page or related to something about the church.

Another reason this is a good way to find people is that a lot of people don't enter themselves in WhoWhere or other people finders. You might find their telephone number, if it's listed, but not their email address. Often, the web pages that have been spidered by AltaVista will have email addresses, or other clues if you want to get in contact.

White Pages

These are basically online phone books. You can find just about anyone with a listed phone number, in the US or Canada.

Switchboard People Finder

Last Name (required)   First Name   City   State ChooseAK ALARAZCA COCTDCDE FLGAHIIA IDILINKS KYLAMAMD MEMIMNMO MSMTNCND NENHNJNM NVNYOHOK ORPARISC SDTNTXUT VAVTWAWI WVWY    Yellow Pages

Switchboard is another alternative, run by CBS, that has both a White Pages and a Yellow Pages online. It probably won't turn up an email address, but it will turn up the current phone numbers of people you've lost contact with.

SuperPages

Paid Searches

What if you're not just exploring for fun to see who you can find, but really need to locate someone specific -- and maybe find out just what kind of a past this person has? These services charge a fee, but if you've met someone online and you want to find out who you're really dealing with, this can truly be worth it for the peace of mind.

People-Finder ($$)

People-Finder searches public records, not just phone books. They'll charge you for it, but they guarantee results.

USSearch ($$)

If you're really looking for information about someone specific, USSearch can get you a lot of answers from searches of public databases for litigation, criminal records, judgements, professional licenses, and lots of other information.