As in real life, if you want to make good friends, real friends, you need to remember a few simple things. Making friends on the Internet is almost the same as making friends in the real world. If you are rude to people they won't play with you anymore. If you want them to be your friend, stay your friend, and even become a really good friend then you need to play nice. Here are some rules to live by.

Be Interested - People like it when you are interested in them. They tend to open up to you more if you ask them questions about themselves. Don't pry but be interested. They may then become interested in you.

Listen - When someone tries to tell you something, listen. Don't go off on another subject. Listen and give feedback when warranted.

Let Them Talk - People like to talk about themselves. When I was a kid my mom used to say I liked to hear my own voice. That's true about most people. You may not be able to hear their "voice" on the Net, but you can listen anyway.

What's Important to Them - Discuss things that are interesting to the other person first. You'll get your turn later. If you really want them to be interested in you then you need to find out about them and talk about things that they are interested in first.

Honest and Sincere - Be honest. Honesty can go a long way. If you don't agree with everything they have to say, tell them. Don't be rude about it though, that will turn them off. Be sincere and tell them why you don't agree. Then agree to disagree.