Monday, November 7, 2011

The Upgrade Appears to be a Downgrade

Hogwarts1Image via WikipediaWell, Pottermore is back up, but so far the only new thing I see (besides the return of wizard duel!) is the return of overloaded servers. I really thought they had resolved that one after getting so many complains from the beta group.

I'm starting to wonder if Sony should just turn Pottermore over to Zynga (oh horrors!) Seriously, each Zynga game has millions of users, while there are as of today only 666,703 registered users of Pottermore. Yet it's Pottermore having these server issues.

Very frustrating, but it's too much fun pretending I'm a student at Hogwarts to give up on Pottermore.
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Thursday, November 3, 2011

Pottermore Down for Upgrades

I have stuck with Harry until the very end.Image by jox. via FlickrSorry for not posting for a while, unfortunately there wasn't much new happening in Pottermore for the past couple of weeks. When I tried to log on yesterday though, the site said they were down for a few days to make a number of changes based on beta-user feedback.

I've seen a lot of great comments by beta-user and I hope some of the ideas mentioned get implemented. A favorite seems to be the ability to fight the mountain troll in Book 1 - that would be great! And many, many people have been clamoring for the return of wizard dueling.

So, although Pottermore will be down for a few days, I can't wait to what's new when the site goes live again. Stay tuned!


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Sunday, October 16, 2011

Incendio!

Wizard with a spell.Image via WikipediaAs Pottermore beta-testers, we can tell you that casting spells is tricky! Or at the very least, you have to get the timing just right or your spell will fail.

To cast a spell, you have to hit the letters indicated, in the right order, at the right time. The bigger the circle is around each letter when you click that letter on your keyboard, the more points your spell will earn you.

This is very useful for Wizard's Duel, in which you compete in spellcasting against other wizards and witches. The skillful can earn many house points with Wizard's Duel, so practice, practice, practice! Especially if you're a fellow Gryffindor (just kidding!)

After a great deal of practice, I can say with pride that I finally cast my first spell - Incendio! which  can be found in the Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1.

I'm off to practice spells from some of the more advanced books - The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection and Curses and Counter-Curses.

Until next time, keep practicing your spell-casting!
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Sunday, October 2, 2011

The Cats of Eeylops

The Love PotionImage via WikipediaCats have a lengthy history as the most common and most powerful witch's familiar.

Cats are considered in many cultures to be shapeshifters and adept at boosting the power of spells.

It is believed that cats intuitively know how best to assist their witch companions in performing spells.


Cats can see much better than humans can. It is said that cats are able to see the spirits of the dead and otherworld beings such as fairies.

Cats are believed to communicate telepathically with their human companions and to have the ability to call on or chase away spirits. 

The following cats can be purchased from Eeylops,  but remember, just as with wands, the cat chooses the witch so be sure to ask your chosen cat's permission before purchasing.

Black cat: The black cat is the most familiar witch's familiar. Black cats are said to draw many friends and suitors to their companions.

Finding a white hair on a black cat or a black cat at your doorstep is thought impart great luck. Fisherwives always kept a black cat in the home to ensure their husband's safe return from sea.

There is a famous black cat in the Scottish Highlands called Cath Sith or the Fairy Cat. It is said to be the size of a large dog. I like to picture it the size of Sirius Black in animagus form.

Ginger cat: Ginger cats are particularly adept at magic meant to draw business or money. If you own, or plan to own a shop or other place of business, be sure to keep a ginger cat to help speed along your success in this endeavor.


White cat: The white cat enjoys a high status amongst Celtic people because the goddess Ceridwen is attended by white cat familiars who do the goddesses bidding in the earthly realm. White cats are considered most helpful in matters involving the spirit, divination and communicating with other realms and otherworldly beings.

Siamese cat: Siamese cats are held in high esteem as temple guardians and loyal protectors of their human companions. It is said that Siamese cats are as fierce as dragons when it comes to protecting treasure. Unlike dragons though, the Siamese cat protects the treasure of her human companion, rather then keeping the treasure for herself.

Tabby cat: The tabby cat is for those charged with protecting and taking care of home, family and children. Tabby cats are also said to draw many friends to their human companions.

The Japanese Maneki Neko figurine (commonly used to bring luck to a shop or business) is often depicted as a tabby cat.

And for my fellow Gryffindors, this is of course the animagus form that Professor McGonagall takes.

Have you decided to choose a cat as your pet/avatar on Pottermore? If so, which one did you choose, and why? We'd love to hear from you!


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Saturday, October 1, 2011

The Sorting Hat

Coat of arms of Hogwarts, the fictional school...Image via WikipediaFrom the site:

Congratulations
WitchNight127
The Sorting Hat has placed you in

I can't tell you my surprise at being Sorted into Gryffindor. For years I have considered myself a Ravenclaw - I even have the socks to prove it.

The Sorting Ceremony is quite interesting. You are shown seven sets of images and are asked to choose one image from each set.

Your results are calculated and voila! You are Sorted into your house.

I have heard a few people mention that they were a
Hat Stall - in other words, the Hat took their choice into
account by showing them images from two different houses and asking them to choose.

I, however, was not a Hat Stall, and so my choice of Ravenclaw was not taken into account.


Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with Gryffindor, it just gave me a surprise (and a bit of an identity crisis and wardrobe issues as I scurried out to get some scarlet and gold socks).

But, as one of my fellow Gryffindors pointed out, we are "as clever as Hermione, as loyal and fun as Ron and as brave as Harry". Thanks @SecretWizard7 for that inspiring tweet!

I am now a proud Gryffindor!
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Friday, September 30, 2011

The Owls of Eeylops

As I mentioned in an earlier post, choosing your pet from Eeylops means choosing your avatar - so choose wisely!

There are 14 choices in the shop. This post will introduce you to the owls that are available and their magical significance.

The owl has long been associated with wisdom, one look at a statue of the Roman Goddess Athena will tell you that much. Owls, with their large round eyes and nocturnal habits are also associated with the moon, and as an extension of that, with the feminine.

It is said that magical folk with an owl familiar have the power of clairvoyance and prophecy, and the ability to see deep inside others. It is said to be impossible to deceive an owl person. 

These are the owls you can choose as your familiar on Pottermore:

Barn owl: this familiar has the strongest connection to clairvoyance and the ability to "see beyond the veil"

Tawny owl: this familiar is useful for someone who wants (or needs) to appear more powerful than they actually are, as a protective measure

Brown owl: this familiar is said to give you the power of both imagination and passion, as well as the ability to be in the right place at the right time

Screech owl: the scream of the screech owl is unmistakable and undeniable. This owl is closely associated with courage, bravery and the ability to defend oneself and others from danger.

There is a great deal of English folk belief surrounding owls. Owls were used in past centuries to predict the weather, ward off evil (and lightning!) and treat diseases such as alcoholism and whooping cough.

Will you be choosing an owl familiar? If so, which one will you choose, and why? Let us know in the comments!



Beta Extended!

The Pottermore Insider blog posted today that the Pottermore beta period has been extended to the end of October in order to work out some issues and to collect more feedback from the beta group.

The blog reports that, with 1 million users now granted access to Pottermore and 55 million page views, user interaction has been "phenomenal".

Well, Pottermore is pretty awesome so the page views don't surprise me. The Unauthorzied Trio accesses (or tries to access!) Pottermore every day.

Unfortunately, the level of interaction has led to slow loading times and times when we haven't been able to access Pottermore at all. This will be even more of a problem once everyone is let onto Pottermore unless a solution is found before open access is granted.

So, I'm glad that's something they're going to address, even if it means a later general access date.

The blog post mentions that beta users will be surveyed to determine which aspects of the site need to be enhanced, and which aspects need to be simplified.

And I'm happy to report that apparently Wizard Dueling will be available again soon!

You can read the entire blog post here

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Chapter 15: Into the Forbidden Forest

Spider webImage via WikipediaHover over the spider web and the spider will climb the tree, hover over the bird and she'll fly away. You can also collect wolfsbane and unicorn blood from this screen but you'll have to search closely!

Move as far in as you can and you'll see something frightening.
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