It depends on the online friend, but an online friend can be just as valuable to me as a real life friend, depending on the person and how close we are. I have met online friends, including one where I was involved in an online relationship. You obviously have to be more careful with friends online, as they may not always be who they say they are. I have had those experiences as well, but there are usually signs you can read in that case. I would say that the majority of the time, people online are more/less who they say they are.