Around Gamesville HQ, we believe in five very important things: Mom, baseball, apple pie, free games for cash prizes, and Joss Whedon. So when we got the news that all five seasons of Joss Whedon's cult television series, Angel, were being collected into a 30-disc DVD set, we got pretty excited. When the fine folks at Fox Home Entertainment sent us a preview copy, we popped in our fake fangs and sank our teeth into it--and loved every minute of it.

Angel (played by David Boreanaz, now of Bones fame) is a centuries-old vampire cursed with a conscience, who leaves the only woman he ever loved to take up residence in Los Angeles. Between the pervasive evil and countless temptations lurking beneath the city’s glittering façade, Los Angeles proves to be the ideal location for a fallen vampire who has the mission to save lost souls and in turn redeem his own by restoring hope to those locked in a losing battle with their own demons.

The 30-disc DVD Set features all 110 episodes, a signed letter to fans from creator Joss Whedon, and a collectible companion booklet. The box set goes on sale October 30, 2007, for a suggested retail price of $139.98, but can probably be found cheaper if you shop around.

If you're a fan of supernatural dramas and you haven't seen Angel, you should really check this set out. A highlight reel of some of the scenes from season two is below:

This week's Best Gamesville Avatar was created by Test.Anxiety of Collegeville, PA (pictured at left).

Test.Anxiety says: "I'm a writer, artist, metal smith, and part-time English professor with kids in college, and three Betta-Max (Siamese Fighting) fish. During the summer, I grow a small organic vegetable and herb garden, sharing the crops with my neighbors who think I'm crazy for doing all that work when I could just buy the same stuff at the supermarket!

"My avatar represents me, coming in from my garden after discovering that the insects have tried to feast on almost everything but the wildflowers. My expression suggests that I am not pleased that summer is over, and my garden is ghosting away under the autumn leaves, until next year.

"Although my hair is really very long and dark brown, sometimes (kids, classes, presentations, studio!) it feels as if it must have all turned gray-- and it's fun to create a "me" that looks the way I feel. (Aren't avatars great?) I am fairly new to Gamesville, and love being able to play and just not think. :) I really am addicted to Addiction Solitaire, and I really do have test anxiety! If you see me around and need a hand with some English matter, let me know-- I'm always glad to lend a hand. "

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 duo hails from Lander, WY.

Useless Fact: Lander, WY, holds many festivals year-yound, including the International Climbers Festival, Gold Rush Days, and the Chokecherry Festival which sounds vaguely disturbing but is actually a wonderful chance to celebrate the abundance of our earth's harvest.

Pet Names:
Kona & Clancy

Pet Owner:
Gamesviller "Jerrysgirl8"

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Distinguishing Personality Traits:
Jerrysgirl8 says: "Kona is a great big brother who is very protective of his younger brother Clancy. Both are rescue cats that are very well-behaved and sit up for dinner and treats. Their previous owners do not know what they have given up!"

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.

Without a doubt, one of the premiere symbols of Halloween in the United States is the Jack O'Lantern. And one of Gamesville's premiere symbols is the alien bunny from Three-Eyed Bingo. So, it is with great pleasure that we present to you...

This year's Gamesville Jack O'Lantern:

For more information on pumpkin carving, including how to lay your creations to rest with some dignity, check out pumpkincarving101.

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.