So what is that thing?

[charmian]

On LJ news, someone posted that there was a $100 Virtual Gift. It seems to have something to do with this comm, which appears to be about making a model city or something? Someone else suggested that this was a bulk gift of a sort or had something to do with mobile usage of LJ. In any case, I don't read Russian, so I have no idea.

I've often wondered about virtual gifts... like who buys these things? Why? Why not just make a picture on your own and send it to people? There are free e-greeting cards and all. Is it just the gesture of "I spend money on you, even if it's to buy you a little picture that is of no practical use and that probably no one else will even see"? It would make more sense to like... buy them paid time or something, or buy them something on their Amazon wishlist or whatever. I suppose these things aren't aimed at me?

Comments

[potted_music]

I do read Russian, but that still doesn't make any sense. From what little I've gleaned from the community's FAQ, it's a sort of SIMS thing (which I don't get too) - the users who buy this gift get their own room in a toy city, complete with a toy figure representing them. And then they can run for a mayor.

[charmian]

Weird, so what do the toy figures have to do with SIMS? Who's the current mayor? Well, at least for the $100 they get a real tangible thing: even if it is just a toy. I'm wondering how this is related to SUP, and who came up with the idea. We certainly haven't seen anything like this on the English language side of LJ.

[potted_music]

They claim that they are not linked to SUP directly, except for the fact that this toy city is being built in the SUP office.

so what do the toy figures have to do with SIMS? Who's the current mayor?

To me, it seems that it's basically built on the same model, ie, recreating real-life social interactions, complete with elections, policing, making families, etc., in the virtual surroundings. Except that here said surroundings are represented not in graphics but in pictures of this model city.

yustas is the current mayor, but what said mayorship entails I don't know.

[charmian]

How very weird. I wonder how many people signed up and actually paid money for this.

[potted_music]

Looks like only 37 have signed up so far :)

[charmian]

That's 3700! 0_o

[azurelunatic]

Virtual gifts fill much of the same role, in my mind, that holiday fundraiser candy does.

a) you can get the same sort of thing elsewhere
b) cheaper
c) possibly better
d) but it gives money to a cause you support
e) it's delivered in public
f) which is a status symbol

[charmian]

Yeah, but at least you can eat the candy? On the other hand, I don't see when people on my friends list receive virtual gifts, so how can that be "delivered in public"?

Huh, I had no idea that they were supposed to be akin to a fundraiser for LJ. Nor did I know that you could receive paid time for them (why don't they publicize that?)

[synecdochic]

You can, actually; there's a subscription that will tell you when your friends get vgifts.

[charmian]

Huh, I didn't know about that. Thanks for the info.

[azurelunatic]

There are the subscriptions, and then it's right there on your profile where anyone wandering by can see it, which is a little more exposed than, say, in comments somewhere, and definitely more exposed than e-mail.

Oooh, now that would be a fun thing, an element that could be included in the style, to show the most recent n vgifts in a little box if they were still active, so someone who gets them often could showcase them.

When LJ implemented them, there were a lot of people grumpy because it was a fairly transparent shameless moneygrubbing stunt, except that LJ didn't exactly own up and say it was shameless moneygrubbing.

[charmian]

Ah... I rarely ever see them when I look at people's profiles (people in my LJ social circle don't use them at all).

Eh, they seem fairly unobjectionable. No one is being forced to buy those things, and people can display whatever stuff they want to on their profiles already. I wonder if it was worth the effort (programmer-hours) of creating them though. (Since of course, like all LJ users I think my use of the site is typical of everyone's, from my perspective it seems like no one uses them)

[azurelunatic]

Also, a little-known thing with virtual gifts: if you get enough of them in a certain time period, you get a bit of paid time. So they're somewhat useful if you're popular.

[sub_divided]

Chrissie bought me one (the box of tissues) when I was sick, and it did make me feel better and the effects did last a while - during the few months it was up I would feel a little burst of happiness every time I looked at my profile - so even though they are technically useless, I understand the appeal. It's not the thing itself, but that it represents of someone else's regard for you. IRL, you'd buy flowers.