Today, we're introducing a new feature on the Gamesville Blog: The Gamesville Poetry Corner! Today's poem was sent in by Kalcan4 of Chesapeake, VA (pictured below).

View Kalcan4's Profile

 Kalcan4's piece is titled, "I Love Java Games". Take it away, Kalcan4...

I play online Gamesvilles Java games hours on end

Laborious these Gamesville Java games are not,

  but they're free

One, two, three thousound GVs, I win

Victorious, I be

Endless brain thinking restores the stress

Joyful card games, checkers, math games, more

Always thinking the math games are the best

Vigor proclaims more tokens galore

Again to choose a card game

Glory be, I won more GVs

A family member thinks my Gamesville games are lame but

My Gamesville Java Games make me feel unbroken

Everyone will soon see

Satisfaction in playing Gamesville Java Games is a need

  so, please, let me be 

  
Do you write poetry?

Send us your poetry (about Gamesville or anything at all), and send your verse and your Gamesville member name to: members@gamesville.com

If we publish your poem here, we'll give you 500 GV Rewards.

(Like the avatar art that accompanies this poem? Then you've got good taste. Create your own FREE Gamesville Avatar today!)

Thanks to players such as svetislavmi, jengrz1222, and others who sent us their Java logs, we were able to diagnose and solve a key complaint about games not loading.

The particular issue that these players were facing related to Java version 1.6.0_03 which contained new code that made it incompatible with Gamesville.

We've put in a fix to address it, and several people with that version of Java, who could not play before, now say that they are able to play again. If you've had trouble recently playing at Gamesville, please try again now.

If you still cannot play, then you may be experiencing a different issue--and to solve it, we'll need your help.

If you're having trouble playing Gamesville games, please send answers to the following questions to customer service via a customer support ticket:

• Which browser are you using (eg, Internet Explorer 7, Firefox 2, Safari, etc.)?
• Do you have security software on your computer that acts as a pop-up blocker or a firewall (e.g., Norton, McAfee, etc.)?
• What operating system are you using? For example, Microsoft Vista, Microsoft XP Home Edition, Macintosh, etc.
• What is your Gamesville member name?
• What game are you trying to play?
• What version of Java are you using?

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please do not post information about your computer here! Instead, send it to customer service through the link above.

Once customer service has this information, we'll be able to diagnose the issue and help fix it.

This week's Best Gamesville Avatar was created by Etsu_mom of Kingsport, TN (pictured at left).

Etsu_mom says: "My avatar represents myself as a child that actually dressed and looked much like my avatar that I have on Gamesville. I have been a member for quite some time and love most of the games. My favorites are Bubble Popper, Magic 21, and Mah Jongg. I am a stay at home mom and love chatting and have made some friends online playing these wonderful games. Thanks!"

Think you have the Best Gamesville Avatar?

Shine up your Gamesville Avatar, then send your Gamesville member name to: members@gamesville.com We'll check out your avatar and see if it has was it takes to be Best Gamesville Avatar.

Be sure to include a little bit about yourself and your Gamesville Avatar with your entry, so we can understand that special connection between you and your Gamesville Avatar.

If we publish you as "Best Gamesville Avatar", we'll give you 500 GV Rewards.

Don't have a Gamesville Avatar yet? Create your FREE Gamesville Avatar now!

This week's Best Pet is from Calgary, AB, Canada.

Useless Fact: Colonel James F. Macleod named Calgary after a Gaelic word thought to mean "Clear Running Water." However, during the 1975 centennial celebration, historian Dr. George F. G. Stanley discovered that the city's namesake actually meant "Cove Garden". At any rate, "Calgary" is a much better name than the original choice, "Fort Brisebois". Thanks, calgary-convention.com!

Pet Name:
Tika

Pet Owner:
Gamesviller "Stowaway"

View Stowaway's Profile
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Distinguishing Personality Traits:
Stowaway says: "Our little girl, Tika, was sound asleep on her first day to her new home at our house. Her favorite toy was larger than she was. She is now 9 months old and when she is away from her "pack" (a Golden Retriever and two papillion chihuahua crosses), she howls like a wolf--you would think she was a huge dog if you heard her, but she weighs under 3 lbs."

Want to share photos of your own favorite pet with the Gamesville community?

Send photos to: members@gamesville.com

In addition to your pet's picture, please include:

• your member name
• your pet's most distinguishing personality trait

Please note: All submissions become the sole property of Gamesville, which reserves the right to hold, reject and/or edit submissions without notice and without limitation in perpetuity.

If you're having trouble playing Gamesville games on Microsoft Vista (and even some models of Windows XP) and you've tried installing/reinstalling Sun Java and clearing your Java cache, then you may want to consider using Microsoft Java instead of Sun Java.

Below are instructions on how to install Microsoft Java if your computer does not already come equipped with it, or if your version of Microsoft Java has become corrupted.

To use Microsoft Java, you first need to disable Sun Java.

1. Open up Internet Explorer and go to the Tools menu.
2. Select "Internet Options". Go to the "Advanced" tab and scroll down until you see "Java (Sun)" or something similar. Uncheck the box. Click the "Apply" button. Then press "OK".
3. Now you're ready to install your new Microsoft Java.

To install Microsoft Java...

1. ... you need to first download the Microsoft Java VM. Try downloading and installing it from one of the following links--but please be advised, we are in no way affiliated with, nor responsible for, the content on the following sites and strongly advise scanning this software to be safe:
   • http://www.abxair.com/software/msjavx86.exe
   • http://www.hi-teach.com/infohub/help.htm
   • http://java-virtual-machine.net/download.html
2. Download the MS Java file to your desktop and scan the file for malware.
3. Double click the file, named "msjavx86.exe", and click "Install" when prompted.
4. After the file is installed, your computer will ask you to restart. Click "Yes".
5. After your computer restarts, start Internet Explorer and go to the Tools menu.
6. Select "Internet Options". Go to the "Advanced" tab and scroll down until you see "Microsoft VM". Make sure all three boxes are checked. You can see a preview of how your options should look here:



7. Click the "Apply" button, then click the "OK" button.
8. Close all your Internet Explorer windows, then open Internet Explorer back up.
9. Go to Gamesville.com and select any of our Free Games to play.

You're now using the Microsoft Java VM. If you still experience problems after doing this, please contact customer service and be sure to reference this article.

Please be advised: We are currently experiencing technical difficulties that are preventing many of you from connecting to the free online games. Download games and Cash Competitions are not affected by this outage.

Our top people are working on this issue, and hope to have it resolved soon. We thank you for your patience, and apologize for the inconvenience.

Update (6:48PM EST): The issues related to this outage have been resolved, and connectivity should now be restored for everyone. If you're still experiencing issues, please let us know. Thank you again for your patience, and for your patronage. 

This week's Best Gamesville Avatar was created by Icefiresm of Fairbanks, AK (pictured at left).

Icefiresm says: "My avatar shows several sides of my personality. My upper body features, along with the white hair, represent my age (a young 52). My schoolgirl outfit is representive of my job (school) and my playful side. The ball and chain doesn't represent marriage; if anything, I'm pretty much dedicated to my job(the kids and long hours) ... which is the reason I have no "real" social life and the reason why I can be found most of the time playing "Frantic Fish" or popping bubbles on "Bubble Popper". The fire background represents my mischievous side and the angel halo is representive of my passionate nature towards my charity, my family, my work, my friends, and life in general."

Think you have the Best Gamesville Avatar?

Shine up your Gamesville Avatar, then send your Gamesville member name to: members@gamesville.com We'll check out your avatar and see if it has was it takes to be Best Gamesville Avatar.

Be sure to include a little bit about yourself and your Gamesville Avatar with your entry, so we can understand that special connection between you and your Gamesville Avatar.

If we publish you as "Best Gamesville Avatar", we'll give you 500 GV Rewards.

Don't have a Gamesville Avatar yet? Create your FREE Gamesville Avatar now!

Congratulations are in order: Yesterday, auricman of Niagara Falls, NY, won a whopping $3,249 playing Magic 21. Nicely done!

Useless Fact: The famed Niagara Falls are actually composed of three distinct waterfalls: the American Falls (between Prospect Point and Luna Island); the Bridal Veil Falls (between Luna Island and Goat Island); and Canadian/Horseshoe Falls (between Goat Island and Table Rock). Check out some pictures.

Bonus Useless Fact:  Today is the 50th anniversary of Leave It To Beaver. Perhaps tonight we'll have some squab for dinner to celebrate the occasion!