Hello all.


I'm reading various posts, and people are lamenting the fact that they can't order Dark Avatar online because they don't have a credit card. I have a possible solution if you live in the U.S. or Canada- the Visa Gift Card.

You buy these in a store for the face value of the card plus $5.95 for activation. They are NOT Smart Cards. (If you don't know what these are, don't worry about it.) They work exactly like a standard Visa, except that you cannot refill the card's value. So when the money is gone, that's it. They can be used online as well. (I've used them to buy things on Amazon, and Amazon is alot pickier than most online retailers.)And best of all, they are NOT linked to any bank account. But they will charge a fee of $5.95 monthly for maintenance.

Here's what you do:
1. Buy the card.
2. Get online and go to www.allaccessgift.com.
3. Follow the directions to log on to your personal account and activate the card. (Much faster to do this online rather than calling.)
4. While you are still logged on to your account, you MUST enter personal information before you can order anything online with the card. (Just like a regular Visa.)

When you use the card, make sure that there is more than the value of what you're buying still on the card. Why? Because many retailers will charge $1.00 to the card just to make sure that the card isn't a fake and funds are available. Then they charge the actual amount of the purchase. Then they cancel the initial charge of $1.00.

Example- You want to buy something from Amazon for $100 exactly, the face value of the particular card you have. Problem- you can't. Because Amazon will first charge your card $1.00, then the $100. If the card only has a value of $100, then Amazon is trying to charge $101, which will of course fail.

I may be mistaken, but I think that the lowest value is $50.

Go to www.allaccessgift.com and enter your zip code to find a retailer. Many convenience stores and supermarkets will carry them. In my area- Food Lion.


Leslie