I think there is sometimes a thought is that ‘online friends’ are not ‘real friends’. Every single online person I have then met in real life has indeed been real, and far more real than people I meet first in real life. I think the wall of anonymity helps people be more themselves, and I have had FAR fewer surprises with “online friends” I later know in person, than friends met first in person.
People say “you wouldn’t say it to a stranger why would you write it online!?”…but honestly all of my experience says they want to say it in person, but socially they cannot in person so it is kept to themselves and not verbally spoken in person. Online when they write it where there is ‘no consequence’ - they are showing their inner self. I’ve never been surprised meeting someone in person that I first ‘met online’. I have been surprised many times by people I met in person and then found online when they ‘friend request’!
All of my long term friendships (10+ years) to this day started as “online friendships”, including my partner. Some are over the 20 year mark now.
So while I answered the question of ‘how many iNatters do you know are real - defined as having met face to face’…I also find it…lacking in any pertinent info in regards to the overall topic to be honest.
To me, I wouldn’t delineate online vs in person as only the later being real.