Happy Tuesday, true believers! Some of you may have noticed a slight change here at QJ.NET today. While this will be welcome (and long overdue) news to some, there's a strong chance that a lot of you hate our guts more than usual. Yes, we've finally disbanded the use of Anonymous Commenting, at least for the time being.

I hear the deafening cry of "Oh noes!" but this should be looked on as a positive step for the 'ol Q 'n J. For quite a while now, the comment section of this site has spiraled downward into chaos, filled with vulgarity, racist remarks, spam, and general knuckleheadedness that was impossible to moderate properly. The worthwhile and valid gaming discussions just got lost in the mess.

It's our goal to provide not only a source of 24/7 gaming news, but be a source of intelligent conversation as well. You all can be a smart and opinionated bunch and we want to encourage that sort of  behavior, not stifle it. 

So what do you have to do to comment? Just sign up and register. Its free, it only takes a couple of seconds, and there's a few added features that come along with being registered as well. You can select what kind of news to display on our "Blog of Blogs" page, you can choose to get daily email newsletters from your favorite section, and you can review your history of comments that you've made.

But since registration is a bit more mandatory, we would love to hear your input on what other kinds of features and abilities you'd like to have for your QJ profile, just leave a comment below or send us an email using the Contact Us form. Or you can just tell us how we've ruined your life by taking away the anonymous comments, it's up to you.

Now put down the chainsaw and go register. Just remember to set your email client (especially Gmail, Hotmail, AOL, etc.) to allow messages from "qj.net" otherwise you may not get the registration confirmation email!

*Article originally posted Sep 11, 2007 at 01:42PM

Hundreds of thousands of visitors flock to QJ.NET every day in search of the latest gaming news for your favorite consoles! No where else will you find a website more frequently updated with the latest PSP Updates, Xbox 360 screenshots, Nintendo DS news, MMORPG musings, breaking PS3 ponderings, and the latest word about the Wii. But let's face it - there's more to life than just video games!

Our goal here at QJ.NET is to provide you with up to the minute news and information on a variety of topics that might interest or entertain our readers - so here's your chance to get introduced to some of our newest blogs that you might not know about yet. So branch out with us and let us show you what you've been missing! Who knows, you might even learn something!

They're quirky, they're handy, they're revolutionary - and sometimes you just have no idea what they are. Everyone loves Gadgets, so everyone should love the new QJ.NET Gadget Blog!
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Aside from taking the world by storm, what has Steve and Co. been up to lately? Check out our Apple Blog to get the latest on the iPod, MacBook, and the latest love affair between Apple and Intel!

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Stop by our Mobile Blog to get the inside scoop on the latest phones, service plans, and accessories to make the most out of your mobile experience! The world just got a little smaller!
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Consoles can't have all the fun! True next-gen gaming is already here and it's on your PC! From real time strategy, to first person shooters, Games for Windows is where the future lies!

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The world of online gaming belongs to World of Warcraft - the indisputable leader of the MMORPG genre. Come see what over 7 million people would sell their firstborn child for!
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Not to be outdone by orcs and blood elves, there's another MMORPG in the works that could knock WoW off its throne. Set for a 2007 release, come find out why people are talking about Tabula Rasa and prepare for the invasion!

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We've saved the best for last - we love our Science Blog! Check out the latest space-faring news and get a glimpse of all the heavens have to offer. You can't branch out any further than the final frontier!
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We hope you will take a moment to explore all that QJ.NET has to offer, I'm almost positive you'll find something that'll keep you coming back - if so, remember to bookmark it, or you can always find the list of QJ.NET Blogs in the middle sidebar to the right. You can also take a look at our Blog of Blogs which contains every piece of news covered in all our blogs - there's guaranteed to be something new to read every time you visit! And we aren't stopping here - keep your eyes peeled for even more blogs that are in the works and on the way - not to mention our constant efforts to improve your experience here at QJ.NET!

Got a suggestion for a new blog? Be sure to let us know about it!

T'was the night before Christmas and all through the site, all the banners were snowing and consoles alight! As a holiday gift to all our readers, I'll end the poetry abuse right there. On behalf of the entire QJ.NET staff, I'd like to wish all of our readers a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, a cheerful Kwanzaa and any other yuletide tradition you might practice.

It has been quite a year for the gaming industry with the rounding out of the next-gen console list, and here's hoping some of you are lucky enough to find your favorite gadgets in your stockings tomorrow. But even if you don't, you can count on our fantastic writing team to keep you up to date on all the latest news and happenings over the holidays. They're sacrificing quite a bit of their own holiday time to keep the articles flowing over the next few days, so be sure to drop them a line and let them know you appreciate their unwavering commitment to keeping you in the loop! There's no rest for the wicked, and we've got that covered in spades.

Aside from sparing everyone from my pathetic attempt at poetry parody, we do have one small present for you guys in the form of a new feature! As many of you probably know, the QJ.NET Blog of Blogs is a compilation of every news story posted across the entire network, making it a one stop shop for all your news needs. But since not everyone will be interested in everything we cover, you can now make the Blog of Blogs (or as we lovingly call it, "the BoB") display just the news you want to read about.

All you have to do is register an account (for free of course) and then click on Blog of Blogs Settings at the top of the right-hand column. From there, you can select which subjects you want displayed on the BoB and voila! - a custom front page chock full of all the news you want to see!

Happy Holidays!

Those of you who frequent PSP Updates have known about MyQJ for a while, and many of you have made use of it to contribute your own stories and thoughts about the PSP to the mecha-global blogosphere. But with all the PS3 and Wii madness this weekend, it's a perfect time to announce that MyQJ is now open to all the topics that we cover here at QJ.NET. Got a horror story about standing in line for days waiting for a PS3? Find out some neat trick to do with the Wii? Positive that the Xbox 360 is still the way to go and want to tell everyone why? MyQJ is the place to go!

But what is MyQJ? Pretty much what it sounds like! We've devoted a whole new section of the network to you, our incredible online community, to speak your mind about anything regarding gaming or technology that you can think of. From news, to reviews, to opinions, to releasing your first homebrew program, MyQJ is how you can share your thoughts with the rest of the QJ Community!

So, what's the big deal? MyQJ is a new type of hybrid when it comes to user generated content on the web and giving control to our readers. For one, it is an open blog pertaining to a specific subject - in this case, gaming! Add to that our Jump it Up feature and now you've got a way for readers to rate what they're reading. And then, any popular articles on MyQJ will be copied over to the appropriate QJ news site! Everyone loves to blog, and I'm sure many of you have your own blogs and sites, but it's not always easy to get your word out to the masses. With MyQJ you have the chance to get your thoughts posted on one of the most popular and most visited gaming news sites in the world. Our audience is now your audience!

But what about the other blogs? Those will come in time, but right now MyQJ is in it's beta stage and we need to put it to the test! Will there be bugs? You bet! Will there be things you don't like? We're counting on it! But since it is MyQJ, we want it to be what YOU want, so our maddening methods will change over the weeks as we get more input and find out exactly how you guys think MyQJ should work.

So how does it work, you ask? Pretty simple, really. First, sign up and register to blog on MyQJ (for free, of course). After you've confirmed your registration email, you can head on over to the Publisher Area and start writing! After you've submitted your article, a QJ Content Manager will quickly scan your post to ensure that it displays properly and conforms to the posting guidelines, and before you know it your post will be up on MyQJ! If it gets enough Jumps, it'll then appear on a QJ front page!

Speaking of guidelines, here are the rules you should try to follow to ensure that your article gets posted quickly:

1. No profanity, racism, pornography, vulgar, or other incendiary content
   
2. No illegal links, subject matter, downloads, or plagiarized material
   
3. Body text must be 75 words or more
   
4. Article must be readable (spelling, grammar, punctuation, capitalization)
   
5. Article Content must be accurate to the best of your knowledge
   
6. Source link must be accurate to the best of your knowledge
   
7. Article Content must be applicable for the Blog(s) you submitted it to
   
8. If the article has a related download that is to be obtained through the source link, the download must be readily available without the need to register at another site, or perform any other actions to gain access to the download.
9. Don't spam! Please make worthwhile submissions! :)
10. Please check for duplicate stories before posting

Undoubtedly, you have questions! Not only on how things work on MyQJ, but how to use the Publisher interface and make the best articles possible! Given that we're still in beta form and things will change quickly over the coming weeks, there isn't any documentation available yet, but we do have a MyQJ Help Forum to answer any questions you might have! And our faithful QJ blogger Pranav T. has already created a short primer to help get you started! And look forward to regular tutorials on how to do things like insert hyperlinks, place images, or drop a YouTube video in. Until then, tinker to your heart's content!

It goes without saying, but even though QJ Staff will be manually scanning what goes on MyQJ, it is all about user submitted content, so who knows what will end up there. Just because something is posted on MyQJ does not mean that QJ.NET endorses the content - so user beware! This also goes for any linked downloads - if it doesn't come from DL.QJ.NET, use at your own risk!

So what are you waiting for? Get out there and start blogging! And remember, MyQJ is your QJ! It is what you make it, so make it the best it can be!

Here at QJ.NET we're proud to be a hotspot and favorite internet haunt for so many gamers, that's why we're dedicated to providing you fine folks with the latest news and tidbits of interest around the clock. No matter what part of the world you hail from, no matter what sleeping disorders plague you, you can always count on us to be updating our front pages 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. But its always been pretty obvious that there's been a feather missing from our cap, a big rock that we've left unturned.

It's an exciting time in the world of gaming as we all sit on the next-gen precipice, waiting to be dazzled by the new technology and innovations being brought to us by our good friends at Sony and Nintendo, as well as watching the Xbox 360 mature into its own powerhouse of a system. But there's another platform out there that is even more advanced than any of these consoles could ever hope to be. The Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 can duke it out all they want in the graphics war, but real gamers know that if you want the best graphics, physics, controls, and online gameplay that gaming can offer you don't have to wait until the end of Novemeber to get it.

That's why we're thrilled to announce the opening of QJ.NET's "Games for Windows" news site! Don't be fooled by the fancy branding (thank you, Microsoft), we're talking about PC Gaming - and it's bound to be the winner in the next-gen wars. These new consoles may try to emulate a powerful PC, but popular genres such as first person shooters and real time strategy games were born on a PC - it's their natural environment and where they play the best. Nintendo may be pushing the envelope with their unique pointing device, but any self-respecting gamer has been playing with a pointer for over a decade - it's called a mouse, people!

PC Gaming has it all - the best graphics, the best interface devices, and a huge selection of titles and the best known franchises. So how could we ignore the platform that the next-gen consoles are trying so hard to catch up to? We can't, and neither should you. So head on over to the Games for Windows site and see what's brewing on the winning platform of the next-gen gaming wars!

Yes, I know that you hardcore console folks (I'm looking at you, PSPeeps!) hate seeing this sort of stuff on your blogs, but I'm giving you warning - there's a shameless plug ahead! But we gotta get the word out on two of our newest blogs - and not just any blogs, our first game specific blogs! We all know that MMORPG's are big, and it's the nature of an online beast to have lots of news, updates, patches, mods and upgrades to talk about. These new blogs have been lurking around the QJ network all this week, but it's time to give them the proper introduction they deserve.

Okay, so that one doesn't need much of an introduction. Everyone's heard of a little game called World of Warcraft, right? Yeah, I thought so. It is the MMORPG of our times with millions upon millions of players wandering through the world of Azeroth every single minute of every single day. And that's just the beginning. With the upcoming release of the Burning Crusade expansion, things are about to get even bigger. So it's a perfect time to launch our own WoW blog to keep everyone on top of every single bit of info out there! There's no stopping World of Warcraft from dominating the globe...

...or is there? You see, there's this little gem of a game that's been in the works for over 4 years from the fine folks at NCSoft and Destination Games. At the helm is Ultima Online">Richard Garriott aka Lord British, the mastermind behind the grand-daddy of modern MMORPG's - Ultima Online. With experience and an award winning art team on their side, Tabula Rasa hopes to wipe the slate clean and knock WoW off its high horse. With a unique crossbreeding of 3rd person RPG action with alien-blasting FPS controls and tactics, it might do just that.

TR will soon be hitting the beta stage, and we here at QJ want to be in on the ground floor of what will most likely be the next big thing in the MMORPG universe. This is the place to be if you want to keep up on all the latest news, art renders, screenshots, and developments.

So there you have it - two new blogs to check out, with some pretty snazzy sneak peaks and exclusive content on the way. And a third new blog isn't far behind, and hopefully it will fill the obvious hole in the QJ Network when it comes to gaming news!

Well, after a rough and tumble debut yesterday, we've managed to get most of the issues and problems with the new comment system sorted out. Just so everyone is in the loop, here's the changes that were made today:

• Accurate Votes: When you leave a positive vote on a comment, the stars actually increase instead of going down, and vice versa.
• New Comments start with 2.5 stars: To keep brand new comments from being hidden because they had a zero star rating, all new comments will begin with two and a half stars.
• Sort Chronologically: The default setting for comments is to view them in order of when they were posted - oldest first, newest last. If you want the comments to rank in order of rating, change the Sort By option to "highest rated".
  
• 2 Star Filter: The default threshold for hiding comments is now 2 stars. This will automatically hide comments with a rating below that of a new post. This can be adjusted or turned off by choosing an option from the drop down menu.
  
• Readable Text: Many of you complained that the comment text was hard to read - it has been sharpened and darkened to hopefully correct that problem.

It's advised that you clear your cache and QJ related cookies in order for these changes and corrections to take full effect. Additionally, a few more tweaks and requests will roll out next week, such as:

• Leaving fields unfilled will NOT make you lose everything you've typed - until then, be sure to enter a name, topic title, and comment.
• The color palette will be darkened and adjust to make things not as bright and to match the rest of the site better.
• The ability to vote for your own comment will be disabled

Thanks for all your input and patience with our new comment system. We can already tell that it's had a positive impact on the quality of comments being made and we hope you enjoy it as well. If you have more comments or suggestions on how to improve the system, let us know below!

Here at QJ we've always wanted to make sure everyone has the chance to speak their mind and share their opinion - that's what a community is all about! But if you're a regular here, undoubtedly you've been a bit frustrated with out comments (or our commenters) from time to time. That's natural, but it's even more unbearable when you can't do anything about it. But times are a changin'!

Today we've unveiled a whole new comment system designed to give the community control of how comments are displayed! So how's it work? Check out the image below and I'll walk you through it!

Aside from the slick look, you'll notice that comments are threaded now. You can add a "parent level" comment just by adding a comment the old fashioned way, nothing has changed there. But in the bottom corner of each parent comment you'll see a "Reply" link. Clicking that will open up a comment entry box, and your reply will show up below the parent comment. This will make it much easier to keep related discussions grouped together. You can also choose to "Hide Replies" for any parent comment.

See the little smiley faces? They are your new best friends! See a post you like? Click the smiling face! Want to give a "1st!" commenter the boot? Click the frowning face! But what's the point? If you've chosen to have comments sorted by "highest rated" than the parent comments with the most stars will be at the top of the comment list, and the lowest rated comments will be bumped to the bottom. Take that, annoying commenters!

If you want the comments to sort like you're used to, just choose "Sort by last added" and they'll display chronologically. But you can still get rid of annoying commenters by setting your filter! By choosing a star ranking from the drop down box, it will "hide" all comments that don't have a high enough rating for your tastes. But you can still view any hidden comments by clicking the yellow arrow on the left side of the status bar.

So there you have it - power to the people! We hope that this new comment system will not only let everyone out there to take control of what they want to see, but will also encourage a positive posting atmosphere. We love hearing your thoughts, but sometimes its best to think before you type! There are bound to be a few bugs or issues, so if you see anything misbehaving or have an idea on how to improve the new comment system even further, drop us a line.

Also, for those of you who have signed up for our free Newsletter / Alert System, you'll find that you now have the ability to change your email address for your account. You can find that option in the Newsletter Settings screen!

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Update: If you are having problems using the comments, try clearing you browser's cache and clearing out any QJ-related cookies. This should fix things up.

Also, there appears to be a glitch with the star ranking - so the number of stars showing may not be accurate and may go up or down when they shouldn't. This will be fixed as quickly as possible - but the sorting of the comments is accurate based on positive/negative votes, it's the graphical display of the stars that is incorrect.

And a few criticisms have already arisen, and we agree. You can expect the following fixes soon:

• Not allowed to vote for your own comment
• Text will be sharpened and darkened for easier reading
• Sorting chronologically will put oldest messages first, newest messages last
• If you have not filled all fields, you won't lose all the text you've typed
• Comments will start at a 2.5 or 3 star rating

Thanks for you patience as we work out the kinks - consider it a beta!

Update: We're thrilled to tell you that everything is back to normal here at QJ Headquarters! Our thanks to all of you for your patience during the last few days, and even more thanks to all our remote bloggers who helped keep things afloat! We now return you to your regularly scheduled (and frequent) updates! :)

Hello QJ Readers! Some of you may have noticed that the QJ Blogs haven't been being updated as frequently as you're probably used to in the past few days. We pride ourselves on having the most updated and current Blog Network on the web, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Due to circumstances far outside of our control involving power in our main offices, much of our blogging force has been incapacitated for the last 36 hours.

But even though we're temporarily crippled, we will still be posting the hottest news of the day as a few of our faithful bloggers still have access. (A big thanks to them for holding down the fort!) Rest assured that this situation will resolve itself before long and we'll be back in full force before you know it. It could be in a few hours, it could be later this weekend.

And for our PSP Community, this would be a good opportunity to check out MyPSPUpdates where users are submitting their own PSP news and articles - and you can too! We would definitely appreciate the help!

Thank you for your patience!

Interactive entertainment publisher Mastiff LLC announced today that they will be bringing Nihon Falcom’s beautiful 3D action-RPG, Gurumin: A Monstrous Adventure, to North America for the PSP(R) (PlayStation(R)Portable) system in the first quarter of 2007. Developed entirely in house by Nihon Falcom, Gurumin earned a coveted Silver award from Famitsu magazine in Japan.

Gurumin immerses gamers in a vivid fantasy world filled with a colorful cast of characters. Real-time combat and stunning 3D graphics combine with a spirited soundtrack to make Gurumin a fast-paced, immersive, magical adventure.

Gurumin stars a strong-willed girl named Parin, who is sent to live with her grandfather in a small mining town while her parents are off excavating an ancient ruin. With no other children living in this town, Parin is surprised one day to encounter a young girl being tormented by a stray dog. After Parin drives off the mongrel, she is shocked to discover the young girl is actually a monster, and like all monsters, invisible to adults. Parin is soon invited to pass through a crack in the wall behind her home and enter Monster Village. Parin has just started making monster friends when evil spirits, known as the Phantoms, invade the village and monsternap most of the inhabitants. Parin soon learns of the Legendary Drill, a weapon hidden underneath the village and, in the right hands, powerful enough to destroy the Phantoms. Thus begins Parin’s quest to reclaim the Legendary Drill and set the world right.

Non-linear game play set in vast world with a variety of stages in different environments, 23 non-player characters, 48 unique enemies, and over 90 items to collect. Destroy everything in your path with your legendary drill: almost all objects are destructible, and many hide money and valuable items.

Shinji Yamazaki, president of Nihon Falcom, commented, “All of us at Nihon Falcom are absolutely delighted to see Gurumin released in the US. We’re especially pleased to be working with Mastiff, as we know their localization will capture all the things that make the game great. Gurumin is our first internally developed console game to be released in the US, and we hope that it will bring pleasure to many people there. “

Bill Swartz, Head Woof of Mastiff, said, “We are incredibly happy to partner with Nihon Falcom for the release of Gurumin, Gurumin offers a wonderfully immersive, highly replayable and satisfying action RPG experience. Beyond this, its beautiful animation, funky music and engaging characters give it a unique warmth and charm.”