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Hello, my dear friends. It is I, LimeGreenFlix, who had arrived to Gaia Online--the second time. You may be wondering how I arrived here the first time, so I will tell you just in case.
The first time I had, well, it is a long, long story. It's all based from my memory, and I will be presise if I can. It all started back when I was surfing the internet, age 8. I was an inexperienced internet surfer back then, when I usually scan the text that appears on the screen monitor, instead of reading the whole thing. (I usually do that sometimes.) I usually went to the website called "dress up" (I think it's nowadays called "Dress up games", but I'm not sure). I used to go there almost every day since I was six years old, but today I don't play that anymore. But since we don't want to be much off topic, let's get back to the story...
So, It all started when I checked on the Dress up site one day. On the main page, there was the newest released section on the top of the site where the newest dress up sites appear. And what I saw on the secion is this:
Gaia Online Dream Maker
And you know what? That is the first time I have heard of Gaia Online. Seriously. And it seemed so... interesting. It kinda sounds like some game that enables you to make your own dreams, but it sounds so... cool. That's like calling The Legend of Zelda "Legend of Zelda Wind Maker" or calling Nights "Dream Weaver Night." Or something like that. I sounded so interesting, I was like "Ooh, what a nice name. Let's click on it to see what's it about beside making your own dreams!" And so I did.
And yes, I was led to Tektek's Gaia Online Dream Maker. And in front of me, there was a button between the two people who are avatars. And so I clicked on the button, and then I began to visit it for a few days so I can make my own avatars.
And, while I made my avatars, I saw some kind of small button every time I finished my avatar. I wondered, "Where does that button take me to?" And so, I clicked the button. And that was the beginning of my first time on Gaia Online.
In my first time, I made my own account. Within weeks, I explored around Gaia Online. I explored the forums and visited other websites. I played games, but most of the time I had some difficulty with the fishing game. I bought some clothes for myself, but I don't even know how to put them on. And I don't even know how to fully customize my profile. I do know how to post entries for my journal, but I didn't publish much entries. Yes, I was still an inexperienced internet surfer when I was younger.
But while I played Gaia Online, I noticed the profanity and the content not suitable for people under the age of 13. Even worse, I even got 2 computer crashes and a computer worm while I was playing Gaia Online. I was not very aware on that site, and it was a virus that appeared every time I clicked on some kind of ad. I was not a wise surfer because of my lack of experience. And so, my parents told me not to play Gaia Online anymore because of the virus-related incident and its 13+ content.
And, to make a long story short but not too short, I never bothered to play Gaia Online ever again.
Ever, ever again.
Ever, ever, ever again.
Ever, ever, ever, EVER again.
Because of that incident caused by that dreaded virus. Yes. A virus that popped up EVERY TIME YOU CLICK ON AN AD. In Gaia Online.
And since I never played it ever, ever again, the virus never popped up ever again, unless you click on an advertisment that turns out to be a scam.
Not only the reason why is because of the virus, but the fact that I am not old enough to play. All this happened... started out with the click of a link... at an early age... with a lack of experience at avoiding hacks, scams, and the ability to avoid advertisments that can scam people... I have shouldn't done this. Ever. In fact, it was the biggest mistake I have ever made in my own Internet-surfing experience, so big, that I shouldn't done this at all. However, that giant mistake taught me a lesson... on what happens when you aren't careful when surfing the Web.
This concludes my first, ill-fated visit to Gaia Online. Now, you may be still wondering why I played Gaia Online the second time. But first, let's flash forward in time, when I became aware of viruses and scams when I started reading resources on websites and surfed the Net more often, becoming an experienced Internet user in who I am today...
Five years later...
I was surfing the net when I found a website. I can't remember which website I was on, but I do remember an advertisment. There was a sea horse staring at me, promoting the fact that you can raise fish in aquariums, while I stared at the logo below it...
GAIA ONLINE?!?!?
That was the site my parents told me not to go when I was young! But I wondered if all that dreaded virus was still here, so I decided to investigate. During my long investigation, I found comments by people who got scammed or hacked on Gaia Online, and I even found a comment that involved two rogue programs that could attack your files! Now I know the fact that these bad things could happen to your computer if you are not careful enough! I continued to invesigate how safe Gaia Online currently is when I decided to start playing a game from Facebook: Monster Galaxy. While I was playing the game, I clicked on a link while I was playing the game when it led me to a Monster Galaxy-related webpage--that is part of Gaia Online! Now I know that Monster Galaxy is part of Gaia Online!
I continued my investigation until recently, when I read the rules of Gaia Online on the Privacy Policy section. I also read the last three sources from the WEB that contain the answers to the question that asks if Gaia Online is safe. I shared the three sources to my mum, and she granted me permission to sign up for Gaia Online not only because I am now aware of avoiding hacks and scams that could cause viruses and mess with your account, but because I am old enough to play it.
Nevertheless, I better prepare for myself. I need to prepare to be the avatar I want to start out as, I need to prepare to reach the goal I want to reach on Gaia Online, and to prepare to see if my second visit is worth taking, and last but not least, prepare for the worst...
...avoiding hacks and scams to prevent any further troubles.
Well, at least avoiding hacks and scams would be a piece of cake for me, thanks to my awareness.
And to make a long story short as possible, this is just the beginning of my second experience of Gaia Online.
I bet you enjoyed my story. My first visit was a true cautinary tale. Let's hope my second visit be better and more improved than the first. And remember, be careful and safe!
P.S. Don't worry, I am more aware on the Internet now. All this about the first visit has happened in the past, just in case you still don't know.
LimeGreenFlix · Sat Sep 17, 2011 @ 03:36pm · 0 Comments |
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