I like to read. I find myself reading everything, including much to my wife's dismay, paper on the ground. She routinely chastises me for reading things on the ground.

But a few weeks ago, my keen eye spied a treasure trove on the ground. On the way into the local Target store, I saw bunch of index cards scattered on the ground. Michele saw me see the cards and said, "Don't even think about it." I told her, "If they're there on our way out, I'm grabbing them." Sure enough, after our shopping, the cards were still there and I grabbed them.

They are a bit dirty and stepped upon, but they are better than I could have hoped for. What I picked up appears to be a labor of love by a child about something called iNet Beta.

There were three types of cards, with several copies of each.

One type of card appeared to represent an electronic device of some sort, the iBadge. Note the merging of iPod style control with joypad style controls. I especially like what appears to be an infrared port on the back. There were three of these cards, identical.

Next is the member badge. I assume that large box is for a photo and the lines below it represent a barcode. There were two of these cards, identical.

These cards were two index cards taped together. Looking at the outside, I think this card is called the iPass. I think it is the iPass into iNet Beta. There were three of these cards, identical, expect for the member number.

Note the member number in pencil. Of the three cards, I have numbers 6380001, 6380002, and 6380003. I like the use of icons and that the replication of design on all three versions was good. Why do they start at 6380001? What is the significance?

The best of all was the inside of the iPass. I have so many questions for the creator. What is a GMC number? What are the differences between the currencies of Luccii, i-Tokens, and Net-Cash? How is Basic Info different than Data Info?

On the design aspect, I love the gender icons, and the icons to represent the new currencies. I like that there is even a new character to represent the currencies similar to ¢, $, €, and £. Brilliant stuff.

Note the concept of Level and HP (hit points) on the card, denoting a game that includes both combat and economics. Clearly the creator has been exposed to newer styles of gaming.

I'm not sure how the cards came to be on the ground in front of Target. I hope it was an accident and not from a bad situation. I dearly wish to return the cards to their creator if possible. If you are the creator, please contact me, I will send them to you.

Posted by michael at January 21, 2008 11:50 AM