When Roy Rosalez exchanged phone numbers with a Tri-City woman he met online at MySpace.com, he decided to wait a couple of days before calling her. The 35-year-old Richland man didn't want to seem pushy by calling her right away.

But this gal was a little more eager. She called his cell phone five times within one day of getting his digits. "She was quicker to the button than I was at that time," Rosalez said. He decided to give her the benefit of the doubt and still went out on a date with her. There wasn't a second date because Rosalez didn't feel a romantic connection.

According to men's online magazine AskMen.com, the general rule is to wait three days before calling a potential love interest after exchanging phone numbers. Even the 1996 flick Swingers backs up the three-day rule. But half of men surveyed in the United Kingdom said they would wait a day before calling a woman they just met.

The rest of the single men said they'd wait three to five days before calling. James Irby, 19, of Kennewick, believes there is a definite standard on when to call. "You have to play by the rules," said Irby, whose Columbia Basin College sociology class recently tackled the subject. If a woman gives Irby a phone number, he'll wait two days before he calls her. If he asks for the number, he won't call for three days.

But relationship experts say singles don't have to follow any rules when it comes to calling. Marc H. Rudov, Silicon Valley, Calif., author of The Man's No-Nonsense Guide to Women, thinks it's ridiculous that singles worry about when to call and declares games are the wrong way to start a potential relationship. "By waiting, you could miss an opportunity with someone," Rudov said. If someone gets scared off by getting a phone call within a day of giving out his number, Rudov said it wasn't the right person to date.

April Masini, Los Angeles author of the Ask April column, says women shouldn't expect to hear from a man during any specific amount of time. But after a week, things may look grim for a future date."If a woman doesn't hear from a man after a week, he's either very busy with his career, tending to personal business or he's just not interested," Masini wrote in an e-mail.

Technology, specifically text messaging, is making it even easier for people to connect with potential dates without having to pick up the phone. Rosalez uses text messaging to send a note saying, "It was nice meeting you, hope to talk to you later" to someone he's interested in. If he's hears back from the woman, that's a sign that he can follow up with a call.

Text messaging allows singles like Rosalez to express interest in someone without an initial awkward phone conversation. Plus it eliminates the sting of rejection if the messager is turned down. "This way if you don't hear back from the person, no harm done," said Darci Hedden, director of sales for US Cellular in Yakima. Hedden suggests singles use text messaging to make the first followup contact with a potential love interest, but after at least a day has passed. She advises against sending a text message the same night to ask someone out on a date or to break up with someone.