Sending Test Money as a File

Digital money usually sits inside a wallet app, but Lightspark tried another approach. The team wanted digital money to feel more like physical money. They built dotmoney, a working prototype for Mac, iPhone, and the web. A prototype is an early product used to explore an idea. This one uses Spark wallets and a test version of USDB. It lets people move test money as a file instead of keeping every action inside a traditional wallet.

The idea starts with something that people already understand: computer files. People know how to move a file or attach it to a message. They also know how to send it to another person. Lightspark used these familiar actions to explore new ways of sharing money. Finder, email, Messages, AirDrop, and even an SD card could become parts of the experience. Money could travel with a conversation or on a physical object.

The native apps also let the team explore how these actions feel. Users can see the amount on a money file. They can drag the file out of the wallet. They can also flick it between two phones. These actions make the file idea visible through familiar movements. The team said it quickly built something that worked after pointing an agent at its documentation. Much of the work then focused on exploring the experience.

The prototype has important limits because the file carries access to money. Each money file holds the key to its own funded wallet. Anyone with an unclaimed file can access that amount. Lightspark's service can also access registered funds that remain unclaimed. It holds balances that people accept in the browser. The team has documented these tradeoffs and how the system works.

People can try the Mac and iPhone apps with test funds. They can also accept links in a browser. The project explores how existing tools might support a different money experience. Understanding its access rules is part of understanding the prototype.