Release Notes 2009-02-19

More juicy bits and kibbles for you:


 * Introduced a new system for guest players:
 * When a new player arrives at Whirled, they automatically have an anonymous account created for them so that they can start earning coins and winning trophies immediately. They can then register to associate a username and password with their account so that they don't lose their progress if their cookies expire.
 * A similar system is used to allow embeded players to start with an anonymous account and then make use of that account if and when they eventually join the full Whirled.
 * Anonymous users are restricted in some ways: they cannot create items, and they are like unvalidated users in that they cannot rate items, post comments, create or join groups or post to group forums.
 * Facebook Connect is still broken and we apologize to Facebook Connect users. Facebook changed their backend API in subtle and breaking ways and we're still trying to figure out why things aren't working even though they should. All is not honey and roses in the world of social networking integration.
 * Guests and Facebook Connect users are directed to first provide a username and password for their account if they click any of the Buy Bars buttons.
 * We now display a game's description when sharing it on Facebook and MySpace.
 * Nixed the == at the end of the email validation link which was confusing some people's mail readers.
 * Games that are not integrated with the Whirled API are no longer shown on the Games page. They are still accessible from the catalog and still work, but we're not going to promote them. Integrate your games with Whirled, award coins and trophies and your users will love your games ten times more.
 * Made the button for sharing games to Facebook/MySpace/Digg/etc. prettier. Added support for sharing items in the catalog.
 * Forming tables in multiplayer game lobbies now have a small "Info" button that shows the configuration options for the forming table. This information was previously available by hovering the mouse over the number of players label.
 * If a client becomes disconnected from the server, there is now a "Reconnect" button that allows you to easily return to where you were (if possible). Similarly, clicking on your Home icon or a room from the room page will automatically restart a disconnected client before trying to enter the room in question.
 * Players must affirm that they have read our Comment Guidelines before posting a comment.
 * Players must affirm that they own the copyright to all materials or have express permission for their use before creating or editing any item.
 * Updated the Whirled SDK to version 0.53.

It's been an eventful past two days in the code base. Hopefully there won't be too many new bugs. :)