News

Today marks the release of Phoenix Mozilla Firebird Firefox 0.8 (anyone else confused yet?) It has a new name, clearly, as well as a new icon and new branding stuff all over the place. We're assured that this name change is final, just like the Firebird one was. Let's hope some more open-source weirdos don't turn up to stymie this one with their complete lack of acceptance of two different software projects having the same name; especially since, after the initial shock and horror, the name is growing on me, and the new icons and logos are pretty neat.

But none of you care one little bit about all that, I'll wager. What might you care about? Well, when I announced the release of 0.7, one of the common questions was how to install Java and Flash. Here's the good news: version 0.8 for Windows comes with an installer, which means that, with any luck, both Flash and Java will recognise Firefox once it's been installed, and their installers/control panels will happily let you install them into the browser with no extra fuss. Another common problem has been downloading certain files from misconfigured Web sites, receiving a page of garbled text in the browser instead; this should now be resolved for the most part. Also included is a new download manager, which keeps all your downloads in a single window, and a new extension installer based on it. For Mac OS X users, the browser now also uses a more native-looking theme.

A bonus feature for me, and probably other Web developer types, is the inclusion of Document Object Model Inspector as an option in the installer. Previously it was necessary to compile it in yourself, with some modifications to the source code to make it work properly, or to find an unofficial build containing it.

I'm sure there's more exciting stuff in there I've forgotten about, as well, so head on down to the Mozilla Firefox product page today and grab a copy for yourself. I'll remind you of what I told you last time: it's a "technology preview", so don't expect it to be perfect, though in my and a great many others' experience, it's a lot safer and more stable than Microsoft's dated, insecure and generally lacking Internet Explorer. Still, if you're very concerned about using beta software, you might prefer the recently released Mozilla 1.6. Almost slipping under the radar with the excitement surrounding Firefox, its companion mail client, the non-renamed (as of yet, at least) Mozilla Thunderbird 0.5 was also released today, and is definitely worth picking up if you want a e-mail client in the Firefox style.

All are great products, and Mozilla browsers are strongly recommended for viewing CoN (hence my excuse for writing these non-Squenix-ish software release articles, you see), though I'm sure you can tell which our favourite is by the tone of this article. For more reasons to switch (probably), check the old news article about Firebird 0.7's release.

Josh and I have recently completed updating the CoN's fanart gallery, this time adding twenty new images total, with some from every game covered. We'd like to thank Narratorway, Kame, Rujuken, Figaro, Bluemonika, Gabe, Blackfauve, SilverMaduin, and Sethron, the artists of these awesome images. Please take the time to view the new fanart and also vote on them.

Have a great time viewing and voting!

In an apparent effort to get gamers to play in the great outdoors, Konami has released it's latest GBA title: "Boktai: The Sun is in Your Hand."
The Action/RPG title, designed by the creator of the Metal Gear series, requires players to expose their GBA unit to direct sunlight through a small solar sensor contained within the game cartridge. Sunlight both affects key events in the game and provides energy to the game's weapon, a pistol named the "Del Sol."

Boktai sells for about $35 USD, and is available for purchase.
Further information about the title can be found at Konami's Website.

---

Go! Outside! Expose your pale skin to the glory of the sun... and... continue your gaming out there!
Or you can sit next to a window as you play.
At least it's been programmed to only "accept" real sunlight: Desklamps, flashlights, and such don't affect the sensor.

Anyway, I'm surprised the technology for the sensor is so compact and cheap enough to warrant mass production on a video game cartridge. And furthermore, the gimmick behind the game is unique. While the game can be played in the absence of sunlight, Konami notes that it becomes significantly harder since players must be conservative in use of their gun's stored energy.

Another great short fic by SpacemanSpiff is now available for your reading pleasure in the FF4 section. Feel free to comment in this thread, or in the appropriate Site Submissions thread.

Please visit our FF4 fanfiction section to read "A Call to Darkness".

The past few months, Nintendo representatives have building up excitement about a radically new and innovative console that is neither the successor to the GameCube nor the Game Boy Advance. Originally Nintendo planned to keep the console a secret until the E3 Expo. It appears that the company has change its mind as it has revealed the console, tentatively named the Nintendo DS, in a recent press release.

This console truly is going to be different than any other previous console. It will feature not one, but two back-lit 3-inch TFT LCD screens and two separate 32-bit ARM microprocessors. It is thought the two screens will be used to give the gamer both an overview and a zoom-able close-up view.

As stated earlier, it is not the successor to the GCN or GBA and will not be marketed as such. Little is known about the software at the current time. It will not be backwards compatible with any previous Nintendo system though.

Source: Gamespot

*****

First off, let me say that I'm willing to give anything a chance. However, this whole console seems like a massive gimmick to me. I can't see my puny American mental capacities allowing me to focus on two screenes at the same time. I would imagine it is going to be difficult to even develop games for the machine.

It's good that Nintendo is trying to be innovative. Console gaming almost died in the early 80s (I'm looking at you Atari in particular [note my time period might be off]) because of lack of innovation. I just wish the innovation seemed like less of a gimmick. Hopefully it will do better than Virtual Boy, the other Nintendo console which was seen as nothing more than a gimmick by many.

We've upgraded some more parts of the page so you guys can have better data and more access to it. Here's a brief list.

• Added a link to i90's expert version of FF6. CoN created a small-download patch.
• There's a new CoN poll on the main site, too. It's not terribly exciting, but knowing what screen resolution you use is helpful to me in designing new features.
• We modified the maps sections. You now have a bigger map to use, and the locations with no shops are greyed out so you don't bother clicking them. You also get a pretty map that matches each site skin, and for FF4, the stores correctly display the difference between FF4PSX and FF2US stores. These changes apply to Final Fantasy IV, Final Fantasy V, and Final Fantasy VI.
• There's a big one that we're proud of, too. For the Final Fantasy VI section, we've developed an extensive crossreferencing ability that not only will show you all the places you can find each weapon, armor, relic, etc. in the game, it also links you directly to the enemy or location from which you get it. It uses the CoN-exclusive "W technology" to put more information at your fingertips than any other FF site. We plan to slowly roll these features out to every game we cover. To see an example, take a visit to the Final Fantasy VI weapons page.

Hope you enjoy the new stuff.