OK, it's a new day, and maybe - just maybe - I can write without being too fuzzy.

One exciting opportunity I've had recently is to become involved with LEGOFan.org, which is a portal site that was started by Jake McKee, former LEGO community liaison. It's been a bit neglected, and I have been able to go in and migrate the content to a new server, set up new forum software, and so on. The switchover isn't complete yet (there was a DNS mixup, it should've been finished today but it's not), so you'll still probably see the old site, but the new one should be available in the next day or two.

This involved setting up a server, installing content management software (CMS), and porting all the content over. It was a pretty big job, and it's not quite done yet, but it's to a point where people can use the site.

The server was set up as a Windows server - not my first choice, being a LAMP (Linux/Apache/MySQL/PHP) geek... but it was already done, and why not learn something new? So we (meaning "Binky") set up something called DotNetNuke, based on .NET 2.0 and began installing and configuring modules. Took a while, since the CMS is fairly primitive (although DNN is at 4.x) and I had to do a bunch of workarounds. Even had to buy new software for it. But overall, I'm pleased with the result, and hope that the new server and structure can help revive LF.org, as I think it has enormous potential. I intend to talk more about this in the future.

The second (and more immediate) thing I've been preparing for is a BZP-related trip to the UK next week. I've been given the opportunity to visit TT Games, the development company creating Bionicle Heroes, and interview the people involved. So next week, I'll be in London and their main offices, just outside Manchester. It'll be a busy and action-packed trip, and I'm really looking forward to it.

While I'm there, I'll be asking some of the questions posed in this topic and the answers will be recorded for you to see later. I've seen some really good questions there, it'll be tough to winnow them down to a manageable number. From my conversations with TT Games thus far, it's obvious they're very interested in what the fans have to say, and they're working to make sure it'll be a great game for everyone.

I'll also have a little time to talk with the developers working on LEGO Star Wars II (same company), but since they're closer to deadline, it'll be short 'n sweet. Hopefully it'll be enough for a couple of pages of ink in BrickJournal, though.

And I've heard rumors of something coming up that'll be of great interest to most BZP members... although I can't give details quite yet. But I know from personal experience, it's definitely something mondo cool. Trust me.

It's certainly nice when the time comes to peek from behind the curtains and share the nifty stuff with everyone. I'll try to update next week from the UK, but no guarantees.

- Bink