Did the man make the dinner reservations? Whose idea was it to go out? Did the man ask the woman, or vice-versa? Is it really a date? What exactly is a date nowadays?

With the playing fields of love leveled by the sexual attitudes, dating is more confusing than ever.

Dressing to impress was crucial; women dressed in jeans and midriff tops, while guys often sported the look of permed hair and thick sideburns. Men boasted their "fanzy cars" such as lancer, maruti and opel, as they pulled into their date's driveway to take them out.

As for "happening" date locations, couples followed the trend of going to movies, pizza parlors and discos. For the most part, men were more apt to pay, regardless of who initiated the date.

Nowadays, though, dating has turned over a new leaf. In many cases, men are willing to let women be assertive and make the first move. On top of that, a larger group of men would no longer feel uncomfortable allowing women to pay for the night's activities.

With the "introduction of a more night clubs and joints," as deepti roy, associate professor of woman studies, put it, dating has "taken on a new meaning."

According to sheela pal, a teaching assistant in psychology, "Things are a lot more modern now in terms of communication," allowing for a wider range of ways to meet prospective dates, such as the Internet.

	For those die-hard, old-fashioned types though, the idea of a woman asking out a man remains absurd.

Dating today "means less than what it did a long time ago," according to vivek, final engineering student. To some, a date can consist of a way out to a nice restaurant followed by a movie. Although "fancy" dates still exist, people today are just as willing to go for a dancing in a night club.

What makes this so-called "dating game" such a mystery is that there are no rules and regulations, not to mention no set system to abide by. More and more people feel that how you interpret dating plainly depends on how you see it. Other terms besides dating are also used, like "seeing" someone and "going out."

shruthi, a college fresher said she thinks that "seeing someone sounds more serious than dating." However, some people beg to differ. Although some regard dating as a higher level on the multi-step process in general, the only terms which shout exclusive are "boyfriend" and "girlfriend."

For those die-hard, old-fashioned types though, the idea of a woman asking out a man remains absurd. There are also girls like anitha, freshman in commerce, who say "I'd personally never ask a guy out, but I don't have a problem with other people doing it." This opinion is common. Some girls do not feel that they have the "guts" to ask out a guy