I recently joined an online community called Orkut. It seems similar to Friendster, but cooler. You can set up a profile and use it to find dates, activity partners, or business connections. The personals section is very friendly about queer and "alternative" relationships. You can upload photos and they show up instantly rather than you having to wait for some censor admin to approve them. I also like that you use your real first and last name rather than a handle.
Orkut is free, doesn't have any ads (yet!), and still in beta so slightly flaky but seems to be getting more stable. It also seems to have a lot of crossover with LJ users. It's currently invite-only, so let me know if you want to join. (Or if you're already on it, give a shout.)
