For an easier life Circulation: 191,224,933 Issue: 600 | 21st day of Relaxing, Y15
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Editorial


Hi, TNT. Since the 600th issue of The Neopian Times is coming out, I decided I just needed to say thank you. I've been playing Neopets on and off since I was 12, and now I'm almost graduating college. O_O In that span of time, though -- even when I was on a hiatus or super busy -- I was always able to go on Neopets if I needed something to do, whether it was to play a game or try to learn about Pet Pages, etc. However, the one thing that really meant a lot to me these past few years was The Neopian Times. Not only was it great to read every week, but after my very first submission (back in Issue 185), it made me realize how much I love writing, and frankly made me a better writer throughout the years. (I also made a lot of new friends in the process.) So, thank you, and happy 600th issue! ~vanessa1357924680
That's wonderful to hear! We absolutely love it when players discover their love of art, writing, or programming after spending time on our site. It's amazing to see just how many players over the years have written to us with similar stories. We wish each and every one of you success as you find your path in life. :)

Hi, TNT! Happy Premium anniversary! :D The new Premium scratchcard prizes are lovely, and today I scratched two books off of my hoarded scratchcards. Naturally, me and my someday-to-have-a-gold-Neopian-Book-Award Neopet were delighted, but when I went to my inventory to read them to him, there was no option to read them at all! I can only put them in my Safety Deposit Box, donate / discard / gift them, or put them in my shop / auctions. Are these books supposed to be unreadable? The two I had a problem with are Space Faerie vs. Dr. Sloth -- The Novel and Mira's Travels Through Space: An Autobiography. ~newenglandquizzer
It's been fixed, so read away! We've also corrected the rarity of the Space Faerie Doughnut from r1000 to r101. We're sorry, Space Faerie Doughnut, you're not that special.

Hey, TNT! So, I was thinking about getting Premium membership for the summer. You know how you get a fifth Neopet? Well, if I get membership for, like, a month, and then stop having membership, then get it again... will the fifth pet stay the same? (Sorry if I confused you there.) Thanks for the help! ~awesomeacrobat
If you get Premium and adopt a 5th Neopet, and then cancel, once your Premium has expired you will need to select any one of your Neopets to "abandon" before being able to access your account again. However, the Neopet you abandoned will remain in holding for 90 days. If you resubscribe to Premium during that time, your 5th Neopet will be waiting for you. :) If your Neopet remains abandoned for over 90 days, then they will be placed in the Pound for anyone to adopt.

Hi, TNT. Last week someone asked about the Rainbow Swirly Potion and how people said it could change your Neopet into any colour. I think that rumor probably came from mixing up the Rainbow Swirly Potion with the Flask of Rainbow Fountain Water. The names do sound pretty similar, at least to me. Both indicate drinkable potions (flask vs. potion), both contain rainbow, and both change your Neopet's colour randomly. I've actually seen people mix these two up a few times on the boards, and wouldn't be surprised if I did so myself at some point. ~pikakeet
We think you're quite right. To help make it clear, you can see it here:


Rainbow Swirly Potion
Grants two levels and changes your Neopet into
one of the four basic colours.




Flask of Rainbow Fountain Water
Changes your Neopet into any random colour
available to that species.

I was looking through one of the item databases and came across a Petpet species called the Sniffly. It looks like a Grey Snuffly, but Snufflies do not come in this color. Has the Sniffly been activated / released? It's so cute! ~chinchoi
Hahaha, yes. The Sniffly is the Grey Snuffly. On rare occasions we alter the names of Petpets slightly when it just seems to fit!

So, there's still no chance that getting this question answered will grant me that elusive avatar? I suppose now I have four years to figure out how to write or draw. ~chrisy_chan
Noooope. Sorry. Start practicing! Both are excellent skills that allow you to flex your creative muscles. :)

Hey, TNT. I was wondering: is it against the rules to pay someone in Neopoints to be your Neofriend? Also, please remove my username. ~username removed
x_____X That sounds like some kind of scam. Does it have to do with auctions? If so, please report them immediately. No, you may not trade Neopoints / items for Neofriending.

Hey, TNT! *hands doughnut* I'm just wondering: I recently created a side account and, with the Newbie Pack, there's 2,500 NP in it. Well, I'm curious: can I use this 2,500 NP to purchase items and ship them to my main, or did I break any rules in buying anything (I've donated everything I bought with that side out of fear). All I know so far is that you can only use your main's Neopoints to purchase and send back anything you buy... any chance you could enlighten me about how to use this 2,500 NP? (Please remove my username, thanks.) ~username removed
No, please leave the NP you receive for creating an account in that account. It can be used to put the Neopets in the lodge and care for them there. If we allowed players to send those NPs to their main, then they could abuse the system by repeatedly creating accounts to fund their main account. The NP and items you receive when you make your account are for the care of the Neopet on that account.

Hi, TNT! Could you perhaps arrange a Queen Fyora Doll smiley for the Neoboards? :) Thanks a lot! ~fjant
Sure, why not? *fyora* can now be used on the Neoboards. Happy 600th issue!

Just asking: is it possible to get frozen for transferring Neopoints to a side account to, for example, adopt Neopets from the Pound? Please remove my username. ~username removed
No, it's sending NPs that you acquired on your side accounts to your main account that's the no-no. Sending money from your main to maintain your sides is just fine. :)

Hi. Well, I have a Gallery, and I totally forgot I had it. I found out by clicking on it by accident. Anyway, I really don't want it anymore, so I took out the stuff. That's not technically deleting it, though. So, how do I delete it, if there is a way? Please help! ~jlw4candy
Sorry, once a Gallery is created it's there for good. Perhaps you can find something unique to do with the space. :)

In the Editorial where someone asked about Unis and Cybunnies throwing up... the picture you posted was of a Usul. :p Was that intended? ~sparkle6412
There are only so many images of Neopets about to hurl (thank goodness). If we had one handy of a Uni or Cybunny, we would have used it. Never mind. We found one. Lucky us? x_X


Sorry, everyone.

What up, TNT? Thanks for making my vacation even more enjoyable by doing all that you do! Anyway, I was wondering what real life things does TNT like to obsess / fangirl over? You know, TV shows, video games, stuff like that. We all know how fond you guys are of Doctor Who and Animal Crossing, but what else? ~wanderlustre
We are not Borg, and therefore have many different interests! So, we asked around. :)

  • Comastar: "Star Wars, Marvel Comics, John Steinbeck, Amicus films, Red Dwarf, and, of course, Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters."
  • Viola: "Anything pirate related, dragons, Shakespeare comedies, Star Wars, Star Trek, Ripper Street, and original dark faerie tales."
  • Droplet: "Building a castle in Minecraft. Very glad Neopets does not have creepers. *shudder*"
  • Dragona: "Studio Ghibli movies, various MMOs, Firefly, Star Trek: TNG, Babylon 5, Star Wars, Final Fantasy VII & VIII, and the upcoming WildStar MMO!
  • DJ Skellington: "The Addams Family, Star Wars, John Hughes 80's films, The Dark Crystal, classic horror films and literature (think Poe and Lovecraft, especially!), graphic novels (especially indie ones)... Gothic, Industrial, and 80's music are especially obsessions of mine. Also I would have to add cats, coffee, Britcoms, and the N.J. DEVILS!"
  • El Picklesaur: "Watching sports (my teams: Mets, Pistons, Canucks, Seahawks, North Carolina basketball, Nebraska football), hoarding Turner Classic Movies HD recordings on my DVR (especially the ones with Barbara Stanwyck); musically, I've been really into Michigan & Smiley, Big Youth, and Merle Haggard lately. As far as TV, I like Louie, Girls, Veep... Nathan For You was pretty funny. Most of all, I love going to the movies: multiplex, art house, repertory, film festivals, everything from Almodovar to Wong Kar-wai."
  • snarkie: "Let's see... Sherlock Holmes (the original canon 60 and pretty much any adaptation), BioWare games, Joss Whedon's brain, Jackles, MMOs, L.A. Kings hockey, Einstein and his face, the Bill Nye & Neil Degrasse Tyson buddy comedy that I wish would exist, Earth-199999, Superman, Star Wars, and Firefly... and, okay, any sci-fi... can I stop now?"
  • Weak_Burrito:"Arrested Development, MST3K, and biking." (But by "biking" he really means buying stretchy shirts and streamers for his handlebars.)

There is a lot of debate about a couple of house rules people use when playing Key Quest. As the only rules against them I have found are by users and not TNT, I wanted to ask for a little clarification. Assuming all players involved have agreed beforehand, is it okay for those with slow computers to agree not to play mini-games (sit them out and let luck choose a winner). Also, is it okay for all players involved to agree to play the game until a specific amount of Neopoints is earned before they attempt to make it to the door? Gotta run, my Ixi is grumbling about wasted time when we could be winning gold keys... ~angelicdevil20
The only enforceable Key Quest rules are the official rules we have. All others are cordial agreements between players. You are welcome to avoid playing with certain Neopians, but there will be no punishment from us if they break house rules. We do, however, encourage players to play cooperatively, because it makes the experience better for everyone, and if you have poor sportsmanship, you may eventually run out of people willing to play with you.

Okay, so I'm a little late, but I found out today about the "glitch" that happened the other day. You know what I mean. Anyway, I never realized before how much you guys really do to protect users from not so nice people. I started playing on this site at a young age and now I'm 25 and a mom who hopes to pass this site on to my daughter someday. I just wanted to say thank you to everyone that keeps this site safe for users of all ages. :) ~hotpinkfishfood
Thanks to you and everyone else who wrote in about it. :) (To ease the curiosity of others: It was a log of the notices that get sent out to the Monitoring team.) You guys are really important to us, and we know sometimes we can be a bit strict, but we fight hard to keep Neopia a safe and pleasant place where you can relax and have fun. Our poor shield-bearers have seen and read a lot of truly awful things, but thanks to their tireless efforts, most of you will never have to witness that darker side of the Internet during your time in Neopia.

Oh my goodness... this is killing me, TNT! Does an Angelpuss have a tail or not? I've looked through everything on Dr. Sloth's Image Emporium that's tagged Angelpuss and have found some with (like the "Return of Dr. Sloth" trading card Angelpuss) and some without (like the "Mystery Island" trading card Island Angelpuss). I'm really losing my mind over this; you guys have GOT to help me! It is absolutely necessary for this to be cleared up in order for me to complete my Petpet comic! ~cute_and_pie
After 14 minutes of spirited discussion, we finally decided that Angelpi do, indeed, have tails. However, they are short, rounded nubs; not long, cat-like ones such as the one displayed in the recent Caption Contest. That artist shall be sent to the Meepit Center for correction.


We then spent three minutes arguing about exactly how many minutes the previous conversation had lasted.

Say I bought a Neocash card but wanted to give a friend of mine the code. Am I allowed to do that? ~lovinlife2008
As long as it's a gift and not an exchange (for Neopoints, Neopets, etc.), then that is just fine. :)

Hey, TNT. :) Will you get frozen if two people use one account at the same time? If yes, are two people allowed to restock on one account at the same time? Just curious. :/ ~username removed
Two people may not share an account at all. Doing so is a freezable offence.

TNT, I was just wondering: how come it seems like the staff doesn't provide an area for players to give their feedback and provide suggestions? I've played other games that have forums for that, but as long as I have been playing Neopets, I've always felt that it wasn't "our game." We don't really have a say in anything (and most suggestions I see in the Editorial are always shut down because "We can't do that"). It just seems like the staff is not too open to other people's great suggestions. ~frostygrunt
We actually have staff that gather and send in both daily and weekly feedback to us. If you've posted on one of those long boards that discuss your Neopian likes or dislikes, or what improvements you'd like to see, chances are that we've read it. We do read our suggestions board, and you can also send your feedback directly to us through the help page. All those fan sites and communities you have out there? We watch them, too. Many of your suggestions, comments, and thoughts are sent to all departments. The majority of you weren't quite thrilled with how that newest Maractite Neopet looked? The Art Department has been alerted. You wished a site event would have done X differently? Our Content Department will know. Something isn't quite working right? We've put in a ticket to our programmers.

That said, the biggest issue is time and resources. Also, much of our content is planned months to a year in advance, which makes it hard to work in suggestions that suddenly crop up. While we don't like to shoot down suggestions, sometimes it just isn't feasible or high priority enough to work into our schedules. Some ideas are fantastic, or ones we've been dying to implement, and we do try to make those happen, though it doesn't always happen quickly.

Hi! Just a quick question: how often is the Art Gallery updated? I know it's updated when it's a special day, but other than that? Is it updated daily, every other day, when our Meepit overlords feel like it, etc.? ~shine_rabbit
New Art Gallery pages are posted every Tuesday and Thursday. Also, on any days that are themed (assuming we get enough entries) and, of course, Pet Days. If a Pet Day falls on a Tuesday or Thursday, the standard Art Gallery for that day is replaced by the themed one.

ERMAHGERD. 600TH EDITION. END THE EDITORIAL WITH THE MOST AWESOME PICTURE OF NEOPETS EVAR. ~gregoentre
You've got it!


We think we can all agree this will always be the
most awesome picture ever.

***HAPPY THOUGHTS***

May I just say, thank you TNT for creating Neopia. Some of my fondest memories as a child were made here on Neopets... playing on my old account, shopping with my sister... I've had my current account for three years now, and I must say, my life has been very good since then. Regardless of whether or not this gets shown in the Happy Thoughts section, thanks a million. :3 ~moonbunny__60

Hi, TNT. I've been reading the Editorials for SOO LONG, and I just wanted to add my love in for you guys as well. :) I've been here since I was 14 and now I am 26! I will most likely always be here, too! I can't wait for my (almost here) newborn daughter to play with me, either! Lol... love you guys and what you have made of Neopets!!! Please always be around. *heart* ~ashleigh21

***WUT***

Hello, TNT. This has been bugging me for a while. Does Sophie the Swamp Witch have solar panels on her swamp house? ~username removed


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