Not a unit of currency, nor a candy bar, this is the new word in avatars, those pointless badges that you see in forums alongside usernames. Needless to say, the latest social network avatar idea will be all the rage for about three weeks, till the next must-have feature spams us into submission. Still not sure what the hell we are talking about? Get with the program.

With Zwinky, users create a visual representation of themselves online that can be customized to reflect their personality, fashion sense and current mood. Start with a compact "cuties" or more human-like "hotties" character and begin personalizing the Zwinky by choosing from hundreds of different hair styles, eye colors, skin tones, outfits, as well as makeup, accessories, scenes, and text greetings or symbols. Zwinkies can be changed or updated at any time to reflect how a user feels (and not necessarily how he or she looks in real life). And Zwinky creators can use their imaginations to try out a different persona or see how they'd look with pink hair, a Mohawk or trendy outfit.