The inside scoop on Jelly W-argh! *choke* Circulation: 192,587,388 Issue: 653 | 11th day of Swimming, Y16
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Editorial


Hey, TNT. *throws White Weewoo* ADMIT IT EXISTS. Anyway, last week I submitted my latest Neopian Times entry, and while reading the draft over again a few days later I realized that I had made a big mistake! I quickly fixed the mistake and resubmitted the entry (although I had to change the title slightly) and it was able to go through. Was that the right way to handle a problem like this, or is there a better way that the world should know about? Please remove my username. Ba-bye! ~username removed
White Weewoos? We don't think they exist. Anyway, yes, that is the best way to edit a submission currently in the system. You have done well!

I love the new Altador Cup shields, but there appears to be a glitch with the wearable part. It is a right arm item, but it restricts the left arm zone. The result is that you cannot put a sword or anything in the left hand, but you can put two things on the right arm. Will you be fixing the glitch, as my 'pet really wants to wear a sword in his left hand and the shield in his right hand, since it makes him look great in the Battledome! ~nickyrach
Ahh, yes... that was unintended. Sometimes, when they're being set up it gets mixed up if left and right are supposed to be the Neopets' hands or how they appear onscreen to us. Unfortunately, since there are 18 shields and 54 Neopets, it's going to take a while to change... (eep!) 972 shields. :X

Last week, you gave a controversial but much-appreciated comment regarding the Battledome. Even though it's not the answer we wanted, we battlers are glad that you were finally honest about where you are in the process. I have a few follow-up questions that we are all dying to know the answers to. First, when you conducted your survey, did you take into consideration the account age of those who responded? It seems, based on what I've seen on the boards, that those asking for more games and dailies are likely those who only play casually, while those who have been around for longer and spend hours on the site every day would probably have asked for improvements to the great site features that already exist. Secondly, if you don't have the manpower to fix the current Battledome, then would it be possible to give us a copy of the old Battledome to play in the interim? I know it's outdated, but it worked much more smoothly.

Sincerely,
A Heartbroken Battler ~dafinsrock​

We sorted our data by account age, time spent on the site, Premium players, age of players, NC spenders, gender... every possible way we could think of, we sorted it. There were some changes depending on account age when you got lower down in the rankings, but the top ranked stuff was pretty much the same regardless of how we sorted the players.

With regard to your second question, the new Battledome uses new code, but it is built on top of the foundation that was already there to make sure certain things carried over. That foundation was modified a bit for what the new BD needed, so the old BD code wouldn't work even if we wanted to put it back up.

As for the new Battledome itself, we'd like to reiterate that we have no intention of abandoning it and still intend on getting back to it. It just isn't at the top of the list of things that players requested most. :/

Hello, TNT. I was wondering if it was at all possible to NOT have a Neopet's Pet Page erased if they're transferred. I had some game guides on a few of my Pet Pages that got lost when I transferred a Neopet between my accounts. Thank you, and I'd appreciate my username being left anonymous. ~username removed
The reason why they're cleared is so that players can't use inappropriate content to "frame" other players by sending them a Neopet, or claiming the Neopet's Pet Page content as their own. We urge everyone to keep backup files of their Pet Page coding.

Hey, TNT. Last week's Editorial was so short. You should make this Editorial an extended edition. C: Thanks. ~dizzydarling
Sure! It is now one question longer! *high-fives self*


"Did you just waste an Editorial question?!?"

We kid! Actually, the NT Editorial does not work that way. Silly questions or responses do not replace more serious ones. They just get added in for entertainment value and our sanity. :)

Hi, TNT. I understand that you make a lot of the items via Adobe Flash. There looks to be a lot of frame-by-frame animation going on in a lot of wearables, but I can also see a lot of tweens. Can I ask what type of animation you use the most (or the ones you prefer)? A lot of the animated items look super painful to do, so I was wondering if you guys have any special things you like to do in the program (or in real life) to make your life easier. c: ~p1sideshow
Our artists are insanely busy at the moment, so we're going to do our best to answer your question on their behalf. For simple animations, tweening is easier, but if it's a more complex animation, they prefer to use keyframes to make sure it's done just right and looks awesome. :) If we corner one of the artists in the restroom or some other inescapable location, we'll try to pick their brain about nifty tricks for you. Our hunch, though, is that they've animated so many things since customisation first launched that they're super pro at it and it's (hopefully) no longer a huge pain.

Hey, TNT! *throws cookie* I've noticed a glitch with the Gallery Spotlight link on the Community Central page. If you click on the picture of the gallery, a broken page will come up saying that this gallery does not exist, but if you click on the link to their User Lookup, you can find the gallery with no problem! Thank you for your time. Oh, and please remove my username! GOOD DAY! ~username removed
It's amazing how much one little space bar tap or apostrophe and the like can throw off code! It's all fixed now. Thanks for letting us know!

Hi, TNT! *waves* I'm sure this is something that you thought you were done explaining, but unfortunately quite a few users (including myself) would like some clarification with regard to getting Random Events on your birthday. I've seen some users say that it was just an old joke on your behalf, but one gets an increased amount of RE's on their birthday, yes? Please remove my username. Thank you. :3 ~username removed
The fact that you get an increased chance for Random Events on your birthday is completely true. :) It's even been carried over to the new system. So, enjoy your special day!

In the Editorial last week, it was stated that any format of art was acceptable for the Art Gallery. If I was able to make Neopets in Garry's Mod (provided that hasn't already been done), would I be allowed to submit it? ~generalguy64x
Any art you submit must be done yourself and not contain complete items created by a third party. Here's some examples:

Accepted:
*Almost any traditional art form
*Neopets made out of yarn or other crafting material
*Exceptionally well done builds out of blocks that do not display a trademarked name.

Not accepted:
*Official Neopet plushies arranged in front of a backdrop
*Unfinished pieces such as rough sketches (Completed drawings are fine! Colour is not required.)
*Physical objects that are created with printed out official art

Accepted:
*Digital painting
*3D models

Not accepted:
*Glitch art or other art forms created by altering existing Neopets art
*Art containing non-Neopian copyrighted characters, scenes, or textures (such as the mod you mentioned or a certain popular mining game...)

However, if you did make something awesome and Neopets-related with the aforementioned programs and want to share it with us, that's just fine. We'll squeal over it in the office, but please understand that we may not spotlight it on the site. :)

Hey, TNT. I noticed that the captions for entry 1365 went up very late, and then there wasn't a new contest this past week. Was that due to the short week last week? ~dr_tomoe
That would be correct. :)

Hai thar, TNT! I was wondering about what is and what is not okay to enter into The Neopian Times. Is it alright to describe when a warrior character is wounded, as long as you do not go too far into detail? My Aisha is a pretty awesome warrior and I would really like it if I could describe an epic battle of hers in a story of mine. ~username removed
Yes, that should be fine. We'd like to avoid gory scenes and violence, but it's all right to mention a wound.

Hi, TNT. So, I have a question regarding the Trading Post & auctions. After a transaction has been finalized and the buyer wants a refund, are you obligated to make the return? Thanks (please remove my username). ~username removed
Once a trade or auction is finalised as agreed upon, you are not obligated to reverse the transaction. It's up to you to decide how you want to handle the situation. However, if you've scammed the person or only completed a partial amount of the agreed trade, then you can be justifiably reported.

Quick question, TNT. Are we allowed to collect and use the 7th Birthday Cake Slice #1 item on our sides? I realize that the item given is NC, but it is also reported to give out stat increases, so I wanted to double-check before using it. Thank you! ~creativemonster9
It's not an item, so hesitantly yes, but please only use it in the spirit that the gift was given and do not transfer your Neopets around to abuse the gift. This would give players with multiple accounts an unfair advantage that would be considered side account abuse.

Hi, TNT! ^^ I would just like to inform you that toenail clipping art does, indeed, exist. I Googled it. ~melody5697
*searches "toenail clipping art"* So it does. o_O By golly, though, those links are staying blue. Yech!

Now that you guys have switched to JumpStart, will you do another Facebook game? I do miss the old one. ~roadkillrose
You're not alone; Dragona often collapses in a corner wailing about her lost Treasure Keepers shop. The good news is that we are working on the super-early stages of a mobile / Facebook game design right now. It's not a Treasure Keepers remake, but hopefully you guys will enjoy it once it's done. :)




Until then, please enjoy this lovely array
of Neopets with their faces in books.

**HAPPY THOUGHTS**

Hey, TNT! I just wanted to thank you guys for everything. Neopets has done so much for me, more than I could have ever imagined. It really made me who I am today. I've met so many cool people who I'm still in contact with years later. I learned how to use HTML coding and found that I really enjoy graphic design. Roleplaying made me realize how much I truly love writing, and ever since I joined, I've written three (unpublished) novels. Neopets is still fun nine years after I originally joined, and it continues to allow me to escape the real world when I need it. So... thank you. You guys are the best. ~smilie99

Veteran players are here because we love this game; we love that there are many aspects of it and different things for different people. We are passionate about the game we love and sometimes we can seem... contrary, but understand that we know how hard you all work, even though we sometimes don't act like it. Like I said, we are passionate about this game. Looking forward to many more years. ~ouachita

I just wanted to thank you guys and Neopets since I went from failing my computer class to getting an A+ because I roleplayed so much. I am now typing faster than I ever have before. Thank you guys for having such a great site! ~baby_bear1924


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