Cyber secrets of Monika, aged 9

MONIKA BARTON, the daughter of IT editor Chris Barton, finds a site that is sooo cool.

Neopets can be quite like children. Sometimes if your pet doesn't like the toy you give it, the words: "Jutali is not enjoying this toy and has hurled it across the ground. Maybe she has broken it," appear on the screen. Sure enough, she has.

Such things happen on Neopets, a mega-cool site where you raise and care for your own virtual pets in a wonderful world called Neopia.

More than 10 million people have accounts there - even some sad over-21-year-olds. Though you can see why they like it. It's a challenge.

Neopets isn't all feeding and frolicking with your pets. You must earn your keep. There are thousands of ways to earn money, which in Neopia is called neopoints - something you need to buy food and toys for your pets.

Occasionally, if you're lucky, you find neopoints on the floor. Another way to earn them is to open a shop - where people can buy items such as orange fuzzles and radioactive snow!

The most common way to earn neopoints is from playing games like Kiko Match and Alpine Challenge.

If you have any trouble and you know someone with a more advanced account, you can neomail them. You can also make neofriends to share ideas about your pets or just to chat.

Another great place on neopets is the Island Trading Post, where you can browse lots and trade items.

Some neopets are easier to handle than others. Ugly-looking pets will eat anything - like towels, which makes things a lot less expensive. But the pets on my account are gentle-looking, big-eyed creatures that are exceedingly grateful towards their loving, caring owner. Most neopets are ultra sweet looking, but one of them, Buzz, looks like a demented, contorted, angry bumblebee.

But Buzz looked even worse when only half of it came up on the screen when we had our old internet connection. I am sooo glad we got the new fat pipe! Now I am on Neopets virtually 24x7! Dad says I'm getting obsessed.

Dad: Monika, you need to get ready for school, please.

Mon: Yeah, hold on ...

Five minutes later.

Dad: Come on please.

Mon: I just need to do this ...

Dad: I said now, I'm going to shut the computer down.

Mon: One minute ...

Dad: I mean it with every fibre of my being, I WILL shut down the computer.

Mon: But Katizi and Jutali have a bad case of neopox! I have to cure them with neopox pizza.

Dad: Monika, you must come to terms with reality! It's just an image on a screen.

Mon: They're going to die, and it's all your fault!

He just doesn't understand.

Links:

Neopets