J.K. Rowling's Official Site - v6

This the thread to discuss Jo's site and any updates, or to complain about the lack of updates!

v1 of this thread can be found here:
http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?t=27389 (http://showthread.php/?t=27389)

v2 of this thread can be found here:
http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?t=28642

v3 of this thread can be found here:
http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?t=32803

v4 of this thread can be found here:
Version 4 (http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?p=1489926#post1489926)

v5 of this thread can be found here:
Version 5 (http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?t=41582)


Please check this thread before asking your questions:
J.K. Rowling's Official Site -- FAQ (http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?t=27402)

This the thread to discuss Jo's site and any updates, or to complain about the lack of updates!

v1 of this thread can be found here:
http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?t=27389 (http://showthread.php/?t=27389)

v2 of this thread can be found here: http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?t=28642

v3 of this thread can be found here: http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?t=32803

v4 of this thread can be found here:
Version 4 (http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?p=1489926#post1489926)

v5 of this thread can be found here:
Version 5
(http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?t=41582)
Please check this thread before asking your questions:
J.K. Rowling's Official Site -- FAQ (http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?t=27402)

Whoops, anabel I guess you beat me to the punch! :lol:

Thread stuck.

TrixieBella18, I deleted your thread, hope you dont mind.

Thread stuck.

TrixieBella18, I deleted your thread, hope you dont mind.

No, not at all... ;)

Sorry! Didn't mean to tread on anyone's toes.

Potential topic of discussion for the new thread: Does anyone have any ideas as to what we might expect to see from any possible future openings of the "Do Not Disturb" door? What sort of info (if any) was released pre-OotP that we haven't seen yet for HBP? I didn't read the books for the first time until last year, so I wasn't around for the OotP release...I would think that we've probably seen all the chapter titles we're going to get, but we could certainly get one or two more book excerpts about which to speculate. Unfortunately, I suppose it's quite likely that the door will remain closed, especially considering the long period of time since the last opening...

I have no idea when the door will open but i sure would like an answer to the FAQ poll.

this is totally off topic, but i just had to say - teo, I LOVE your signature. made me giggle :D

I reckon an excerpt could be expected, seeing as that's what we got before the release of Order of the Phoenix.

I reckon an excerpt could be expected, seeing as that's what we got before the release of Order of the Phoenix.But... there wasn't a JKR web site at that point was there?

I think the FAQ poll will be answered, but I can't think of anything that could go behind the door... maybe a chapter illustration? One that didn't give anything away of course...

I'd be willing to wait more patiently for a door opening if we could get an answer to the FAQ poll. :agree:

I'd be willing to wait more patiently for a door opening if we could get an answer to the FAQ poll. :agree:I've heard that before! (not necessarily from you of course) Look at all the begging, pleading, whining, and promising of good behavior before the most recent update and it took... what... a couple of hours for the fans to be wailing for more again?

But yes, a nice, full, well-reasoned answer would be a good thing. But it is only three months after all!

Old dunder head in here's having a hard time with his keyboard as it is, so other things are going out of said dunder head's brain, what was the poll question?

Old dunder head in here's having a hard time with his keyboard as it is, so other things are going out of said dunder head's brain, what was the poll question?Erm... there are three I think - one was how long is HBP (or how many chapters or something) another was whether Ron will ever have a girlfriend (edit - actually just checked at it was more 'will Ron ever be more than just good friends with a girl'), and the current front runner is what significance there is in the fact that the prophecy could refer to Neville.

Well, Jo did give us something at 100 days before release, maybe she will have something to offer when the promo stands hit the book stores 50 days before the release....

I expect Jo will be in interviews up to her eyeballs as the release nears (and just after, of course)....I don't blame her for wanting to spend time with her family before all heck breaks loose!

FAQ poll questions:

8% How many chapters will Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince have? (Subject to editorial changes, of course)

58% What is the significance of Neville being the other boy to whom the prophecy might have referred?

25% Will Ron ever manage to become more than just good friends with a girl?

But... there wasn't a JKR web site at that point was there? Can someone tell me which excerpt was released before OotP. I wasn't here then, and it would be interesting to see which bit she chose.

I think the FAQ poll will be answered, but I can't think of anything that could go behind the door... maybe a chapter illustration? One that didn't give anything away of course...An illustration would be brilliant. Really tantalising, open to lots of speculation, yet not a spoiler. Are you reading this, Jo?

An illustration would be brilliant. Really tantalising, open to lots of speculation, yet not a spoiler.
Do we know if Jo sees the chapter artwork ahead of time?

Do we know if Jo sees the chapter artwork ahead of time?I'm sure she does. The fact that the cover art has been released means that the chapter illustrations are at least under way. The Bloomsbury ones don't have illustrations. :sad:

Can someone tell me which excerpt was released before OotP. I wasn't here then, and it would be interesting to see which bit she chose.

From a joint press release on the day the publication date for OotP was announced; January, 1993:

The hottest day of the summer so far was drawing to a close and a drowsy silence lay over the large, square houses of Privet Drive.....The only person left outside was a teenage boy who was lying flat on his back in a flowerbed outside number four.

"Later in the novel, J.K.Rowling writes:"

Dumbledore lowered his hands and surveyed Harry through his half-moon glasses.'It is time,' he said 'for me to tell you what I should have told you five years ago, Harry. Please sit down. I am going to tell you everything.'

I was fully expecting to see something similar to this when the HBP publication date was announced. A couple of sentences at least. :sad:

Maybe we won't get anything before July 16th. The one year anniversary of her site is coming up on May 15th. Might we expect something then?

Does anyone have any ideas as to what we might expect to see from any possible future openings of the "Do Not Disturb" door? What sort of info (if any) was released pre-OotP that we haven't seen yet for HBP?
I haven't the faintest clue what is yet to be behind the door. I do reckon, however, that we will get one more door opening before the HBP release on some smaller information; like an small, almost insignificant excerpt just to excite the release a bit. I doubt it'll be anything grand or revealing. As an afterthought, I think maybe a total number of chapters and other smaller tidbits would be interesting to know.

I have no idea when the door will open but i sure would like an answer to the FAQ poll.
As would I. :) Although, it may be a very difficult question to answer without giving too much away about what will be in the Half-Blood, but hopefully even the smallest answer, we'll be able to learn upon. I think it may have significance in the next book and may reveal more than she favours.

From a joint press release on the day the publication date for OotP was announced; January, 1993:

The hottest day of the summer so far was drawing to a close and a drowsy silence lay over the large, square houses of Privet Drive.....The only person left outside was a teenage boy who was lying flat on his back in a flowerbed outside number four.

"Later in the novel, J.K.Rowling writes:"

Dumbledore lowered his hands and surveyed Harry through his half-moon glasses.'It is time,' he said 'for me to tell you what I should have told you five years ago, Harry. Please sit down. I am going to tell you everything.'Thanks! Now that I read it, I do remember seeing that last excerpt and getting very excited about it.

Whilst we're waiting, let's dream of the future... Wait 'till it's fully loaded. It's animated. :huh:

http://img151.echo.cx/img151/4775/jkrhoaxfinished7gf.gif

PS. No, there isn't an update on JKRowling.com, to avoid any confusion.

It's not real.

Ha! Looks like you worked hard on that!

As for hopes/predictions for future door openings, I'm hoping/predicting that we will get another small exerpt from the book. I think, so far, the door opening that drove us the craziest (is that a word?) was the lion-man exerpt...another one would be simply maddening. I'm sooooo ready to be driven the short ride to insane over it. My brain needs something new to chew on for a while.

However, I believe that an FAQ poll answer will come before a door opening. That would be sufficient to tide me over.

However, I believe that an FAQ poll answer will come before a door opening. That would be sufficient to tide me over.
The FAQ answer is long overdue. The other ones i believe have been answered in 10-11 weeks on average but i guess with recent events, this one is taking more than twice that length. Don't quote me, these are approximations.

Whilst we're waiting, let's dream of the future... Wait 'till it's fully loaded. It's animated. :huh:

http://img151.echo.cx/img151/4775/jkrhoaxfinished7gf.gif

PS. No, there isn't an update on JKRowling.com, to avoid any confusion.

It's not real.

:rotfl: you know this would have been a killer april fools joke. but i'm glad it wasn't.

PS. No, there isn't an update on JKRowling.com, to avoid any confusion.

It's not real.
Very well cool though :rotfl:

I've noticed something in the Rubbish Bin...I've seen it for a while, but I decided not to say anything...but since I can't holdit back anymore I'm letting it out.

(You might want to go here to see it better: http://www.jkrowling.com/f7b3qash/level_0.swf)

In the upper right hand corner, you see a piece of paper. It looks like this (don't mind the...badness) click the picture on the bottom...


But anyway...my point was going to be drawn toward the Harry and Hermione and then Ron on the other side. My point was that it was Harry and Hermione together.

But it is in the RUBBISH BIN

Meaning that once again, the Harry and Hermione ship is...having a few canonballs thrown at it (from Heron)...

But anyway..I thought I would just say that and..yes, I'm done :D

Yeah, people have mentioned this before, but nobody knows what it really means. I think most people just think it's in the rubbish bin and so doesn't mean anything.

In the upper right hand corner, you see a piece of paper. It looks like this (don't mind the...badness) click the picture on the bottom...


But anyway...my point was going to be drawn toward the Harry and Hermione and then Ron on the other side. My point was that it was Harry and Hermione together.

But it is in the RUBBISH BIN

Meaning that once again, the Harry and Hermione ship is...having a few canonballs thrown at it (from Heron)...
There is also a scrap pf paper in the bottom left with what looks like a paragraph from the book. I've been trying to clear up the image so it can be read..
So far it says -

Harry _______
a large ______
is dead." _____
my father ____
swallow _____
nothing _____
these _____

To: Xeiqu -
I love the animation. It took a lot of thought and artistic ability to put that out.

PS. No, there isn't an update on JKRowling.com, to avoid any confusion.

It's not real.
You had me going for a second but then i wondered why we hadn't skyrocketed to page 100 on this thread if the door had opened :)

I've noticed something in the Rubbish Bin...I've seen it for a while, but I decided not to say anything...but since I can't holdit back anymore I'm letting it out.

(You might want to go here to see it better: http://www.jkrowling.com/f7b3qash/level_0.swf)

In the upper right hand corner, you see a piece of paper. It looks like this (don't mind the...badness) click the picture on the bottom...


But anyway...my point was going to be drawn toward the Harry and Hermione and then Ron on the other side. My point was that it was Harry and Hermione together.

But it is in the RUBBISH BIN

Meaning that once again, the Harry and Hermione ship is...having a few canonballs thrown at it (from Heron)...

But anyway..I thought I would just say that and..yes, I'm done :D

That was discussed in one of the prior versions of the thread. No clue which though. :p

It may have even been discussed in the LT also. Perhaps a topic for a slow day. :D

Whilst we're waiting, let's dream of the future... Wait 'till it's fully loaded. It's animated. :huh:

PS. No, there isn't an update on JKRowling.com, to avoid any confusion.

It's not real.
That was a good hoax attempt though. Pretty cool work. You must have spent a load of time on it. Haha.

Oh well, don't want to get my hopes up on a door-opening anytime soon because I have a feeling it won't open until after HBP is released. In the meantime, we'll just have to pray and hope JKR will update the other sections of the site (like Fan Site Awards, Rumours, FAQ, FAQ Poll [please! please!] etc.) or add a few new Easter Eggs. Hmmm...

Oh, nice hoax. :) I like.

I hope we do get another update, but I reckon the last one was "crowd control"; i.e. JKR wanted us to stop hounding her for a while so she can look after her children. She adores her fans, but I'm sure sometimes the constant clamouring for an update gets on her nerves. :p :p

Nothing new from the website, but thought I'd post this here as well as in Divination Studies so you can see it - it's the key from the Borders poster, and I flipped it in Paint so it is upside down:

People are always telling me I "see things," but I think it is pretty clear what it looked like:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v624/sip44/HarryPotter-HBPKeyVultureChick.jpg

It looks like a vulture and a chick, or a baby Phoenix!

I know some people will automatically think of a vulture as a "Death Eater," but it has other meanings. :tu:

In Egyptian Hieroglyphics, a vulture and chick would mean a parent and child.

vulture= "ah" or "father
Also symbol of the mother goddesses Nekhbet and Mut (mwt=vulture).
http://64.233.179.104/search?q=cache:Qz97pLzZJukJ:homepage.mac.com/glenbledsoe/winners/EgyptWeb/pages/hieroChart.html+vulture+chick+hieroglyphics+egypt&hl=en&ie=UTF-8

http://www.teenwitch.com/DEITY/KMT/MWT.HTM

Mwt: The original mother Goddess. Mwt-Bast is one of the oldest combined deities, with the Mother Mwt and the Maiden Bast. Wife of Amun. Thousands of children, including Bast, Neith, Hapi, and Khons. Later faded in importance as Aset becomes the primary mother Goddess. Typically shown with the head of a vulture.

Amun, Mwt, and Khonsu form the great triad of Thebes.

chick = "oo" sound as in "moon" - denotes child
http://www.greatscott.com/hiero/hiero_alpha.html

(I'm really excited by this - I wrote a fanbook essay about vulture images and Neville's Gran)

I should have posted my picture without the disclaimer :). It'd be nice to have some action. Maybe I'll go scare the rather dimwitted HPANA's now, without telling them it's a hoax. I'm glad quite a few of you thought it was real.

It didn't take long to make. The power of Adobe is unlimited :D.

I have also often wondered at those things in the rubbish bin. Pity they're pixelated, unlike some text. :sad:

I should have posted my picture without the disclaimer . It'd be nice to have some action. Maybe I'll go scare the rather dimwitted HPANA's now, without telling them it's a hoax. I'm glad quite a few of you thought it was real.
Nice work, Xeiqu. It's quite believable except for the final tapestry. I doubt JKRowling would ever give us something that important, useful, and significant. Nonetheless, excellent! I'm rather illiterate when it come to computers. :blush:

Meaning that once again, the Harry and Hermione ship is...having a few canonballs thrown at it (from Heron)...
*Snicker* Never give up do you? ;) It is quite interesting that those papers are in there though. Maybe someone will pluck the courage and ask JKRowling one of these days.

I should have posted my picture without the disclaimer . It'd be nice to have some action. Maybe I'll go scare the rather dimwitted HPANA's now, without telling them it's a hoax. I'm glad quite a few of you thought it was real.Go on! I dare you!

Go on! I dare you!
:elaugh: Imagine the look on their faces! I'll second that! :D

Go on! I dare you!

Imagine the look on their faces! I'll second that!
Now now guys, it's not nice to encourage the creation of havoc on other forums. :angel:

:evil:

that animation is so cool! (although, you mispelt 'phoenix' ;)) I seriously did a doubletake when I first saw it :D

There is also a scrap pf paper in the bottom left with what looks like a paragraph from the book. I've been trying to clear up the image so it can be read..
So far it says -

Harry _______
a large ______
is dead." _____
my father ____
swallow _____
nothing _____
these _____

Yeah, I know...but I saw Harry, dead, father, and I stopped...

But then I thought..well, it's in the rubbish bin..but then I never found out what it said. :D


*Snicker* Never give up do you? ;)

That'll be the day! :D

The Animation thing was so cool! It would have been a great April's Fool joke. I almost believed it until i saw the disclaimer.

I should have posted my picture without the disclaimer :). It'd be nice to have some action. Maybe I'll go scare the rather dimwitted HPANA's now, without telling them it's a hoax. I'm glad quite a few of you thought it was real.
You know Mugglenet's April Fool's joke, according to them, Lanka Business Online believed it was real. They were comparing HBP release security to Annan's security, and saying Annan's security was low key.
It would be cruel to do, but remember the Storge incident, due to it we found out the title earlier. I am not recommending you send it to HPANA. I am certain some HPANAers post at COS.

I have a question about the "key". I have only seen it on the banner. But what does the banner say? The only pictures I have seen have just focused on the key.

I have a question about the "key". I have only seen it on the banner. But what does the banner say? The only pictures I have seen have just focused on the key.
I believe the best picture we have of the 'mysterious key' and the sign that it's on is the MuggleNet picture (http://www.mugglenet.com/viewer/?image_location=/hbpkey.jpg). I have yet seen the sign myself nor found a picture containing the entire poster. I believe it's just--judging by the picture--a Border's and Walden's books sign promoting Harry Potter and the HBP.

I have a question about the "key". I have only seen it on the banner. But what does the banner say? The only pictures I have seen have just focused on the key.

Windstar: Here is the original poster:
http://www.mugglenet.com/viewer/?image_location=/hbp/hbpcountdown.jpg

Scroll down to see the key on the poster.

As you know, we are discussing the key here, in Divination Studies:

The Key from the Border's promotional posters (http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?p=2117838#post2117838)

You can see from my signature that there is another trick with the key. I put it in paint and reversed the colors, and suddenly the key was golden and the background was purple! I believe the key was either a drawing or a photo of a golden key, and before they put it on the poster, someone clever reversed the colors and turned it upside down down to hide any clues.

http://www.mugglenet.com/viewer/?im...bpcountdown.jpg
Silver ink pot's link may be a bit more helpful than the one I provided. :blush: I just now saw the vulture and the chick in the key! Good eye, there! :tu: Do you really suppose it'll be of any significance? I do wonder, along with some other things, if anyone will ask JKRowling about it.

Windstar: Here is the original poster:
http://www.mugglenet.com/viewer/?image_location=/hbp/hbpcountdown.jpg

Scroll down to see the key on the poster.

As you know, we are discussing the key here, in Divination Studies:

The Key from the Border's promotional posters (http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?p=2117838#post2117838)

You can see from my signature that there is another trick with the key. I put it in paint and reversed the colors, and suddenly the key was golden and the background was purple! I believe the key was either a drawing or a photo of a golden key, and before they put it on the poster, someone clever reversed the colors and turned it upside down down to hide any clues.I'm sorry if I'm just being stupid, but the key on the poster IS golden on a purple background, so I don't know what you mean about reversing the colours. Why would "someone clever" reverse the colours and turn it upsidedown to hide any clues?

Perhaps if the key does have significance then it may be connected to the parchment in the back ground. I can not find the link to the thread again after searching but may be it is the key to Sirius Blacks inheritance, the key to Grim-12. On the other hand it could just be a made up poster and not really have any significance to the plot.

I'm sorry if I'm just being stupid, but the key on the poster IS golden on a purple background, so I don't know what you mean about reversing the colours. Why would "someone clever" reverse the colours and turn it upsidedown to hide any clues?

anabel: You are definitely not stupid, but I am! :rolleyes:

You are right - in my excitement yesterday, I must have reversed the colors in my original post. Good Grief!

The original picture on Mugglenet is golden. I was messing around with it in paint when I saw the figures and must have already reversed the colors.

Ok, let me revise. Someone clever took the golden key and flipped it upside down and that is all, lol. :tu:

Apology: I certainly didn't mean to cause all the confusion, but I was having to do print screens and switching files back and forth, and I am no computer whiz, plus my teenagers were having problems yesterday in the middle of everything. I can't believe no one else caught it. Sorry about that.

:lol: That's alright! I just couldn't work out what I was missing!

silver ink pot, good catch on the chick and vulture. I didn't even spot it even after you turned the key upside down. In fact, for a good five minutes I was staring at the key and going, 'What chick? What vulture? I don't see anything except a lot of weird shapes!'

Guess I wasn't looking hard enough. Just spotted it though. Though, like Tane said, it could be just a made up poster the key was on, giving the key no significance again.

Anyway, isn't this thread supposed to be about JKR's Official Site? Getting a bit off-topic, aren't we? :D

You're right, nate089, sorry. :angel:

Plus every time we post something off-topic, people get notified and they probably get excited thinking it is something new on the Official Site.

I'll try to control myself and stay off this thread today unless something happens. :tu:

:elaugh: Imagine the look on their faces! I'll second that! :D

I'll send it to my friend. Then I won't get the blame if he decides to post it :D.

I did also put some clues in it so that it could not be real. One has already been found, (Phoenix was mis-spelt as Pheonix), and when the screen darkens to reveal the tapestry, the edge of the picture darkens too :).

Okay can someone PLEASE show me where the vulture and chick are on the key? I've looked at it for hours and I don't see it. :huh: Outline it or something.

Okay can someone PLEASE show me where the vulture and chick are on the key? I've looked at it for hours and I don't see it. :huh: Outline it or something.

Here it is Redwolf - next time don't waste hours, just send me an OWL!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v624/sip44/HarryPotter-HBPKeyOutlined.jpg

Thanks. Sorry, but I wanted to try and find it on my own first. Plus I was exaggerating a bit. I only looked for about 20 minutes.

Oh... I couldn't see it either. good catch. I trying to find the shapes in the key, but they were in the space. now it is so obvious.

Sorry to crush all of these lovely theories about lil' birdies, but...

The Key means nothing. It's just been confirmed by MuggleNet.

Sorry :).

Xeigu: Are you really sorry? :eyebrows:

Mugglenet spread this rumor themselves with three different stories they ran, and different views of the key. I wouldn't have looked at it again if they hadn't.

I'm keeping my pictures for a rainy day, I mean for after HBP comes out. Maybe it is just a "visual element" (what a nice way of saying it is an illustration) or maybe we were all getting too close? We'll never know till we read the book.

Xeiqu: Are you really sorry? :eyebrows:

Perhaps I'd be a little more sorry if we hadn't started seeing vultures inside the handle... :p

Hey, I just noticed something on JKR's site, in the Rubbish section (the one by clicking the bubble gum wrapper. Well on the top right hand corner there is a tree and it is very difficult to read but looks kinda like this:

Harry and --|-- Ron
Hermoine |


etc.


now also on that same sheet is the name of what looks like Hagrid with someone else (bottom left of that sheet)

THis is only a theory, but if anyone else can read it better then I can.

Also I forget where the options are for it, but Windows also has its own magnifying glass for users with eye sight disability, if it helps to look at the writings closer...

Hey, I just noticed something on JKR's site, in the Rubbish section (the one by clicking the bubble gum wrapper. Well on the top right hand corner there is a tree and it is very difficult to read but looks kinda like this:

Harry and --|-- Ron
Hermoine |


etc.


now also on that same sheet is the name of what looks like Hagrid with someone else (bottom left of that sheet)

THis is only a theory, but if anyone else can read it better then I can.

Also I forget where the options are for it, but Windows also has its own magnifying glass for users with eye sight disability, if it helps to look at the writings closer...


Sirius Black is also on that chart... in the middle-ish. The others at the bottom, besides Hagrid, are too hard to read.

I think it's just some of her notes for one of the books, like all the other notes she has lying around her website... it might be relevant to HBP, but I can't imagine what it could mean. I'll think about it again after HBP.

I'm keeping my pictures for a rainy day, I mean for after HBP comes out. Maybe it is just a "visual element" (what a nice way of saying it is an illustration) or maybe we were all getting too close? We'll never know till we read the book.
I guess we have to do something except twiddle our thumbs or we'll all go crazy :agree: and i personally like crazy theories, because you never know which crazy thoery is right.

I have to disagree: not all crazy theories have value; in fact most of them are just crazy. We are all able to apply critical analysis and weed out the chaff. It may keep us busy to go in circles over crazy theories, but in the end they are just crazy.

The key is not in the same style as the rest of the illustration, that's a big clue that it isn't part of the book.

I like crazy ideas, it keeps me entertained until the book come out. Without those ideas, I would be bored.

I like crazy ideas, it keeps me entertained until the book come out. Without those ideas, I would be bored.

Me too! It amazes me what we all come up with!

I guess I value my brain cells too much to spin in circles.

I guess I value my brain cells too much to spin in circles.

Then what the heck are you doing here? :p

Well, I had to go to the mall anyway, so I found the dreaded "key" poster and looked at it myself. The poster is 4-5 feet tall and is clearly something from Scholastic Books, whose logo is printed on it. But it does have Waldenbooks and Borders printed on it, too, and this was a Waldenbooks store.

There is no other artwork on the poster whatsoever, nothing except the key at the very bottom and some crumpled parchment-looking paper behind a sign that says 40% off on early orders. Maybe it just means that early ordering is the key? I don't know, but the key is the only piece of artwork on the sign.

It looks just like this:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v624/sip44/Waldenbookspostersmall.jpg

:evil: I was tempted to study that crumpled paper, but I made myself walk away, lol.

:evil: I was tempted to study that crumpled paper, but I made myself walk away, lol.Brave woman... but next time you'll have to take your high-quality digital camera with you and take close, clear photos of all the parchment so that there will be enough entertainment to be had between now and the next update! As there's no other artwork on the sign I think it's highly unlikely the key was done by GrandPre...

that animation is so cool! (although, you mispelt 'phoenix' ;)) I seriously did a doubletake when I first saw it :D
I might have fallen for it if you hadn't listed Lily on the family tree as Lily Potter. She should be listed as Lily Evans. :huh: The graphics are very good though.

So, I wonder if Jo is going to ever open the door again before HBP is released. She did it almost every six weeks to two months until the release date was announced, but since then it hasn't budged. It makes me sad.

man, you all over fast. but I took that key into my kodak easyshare,messed with it & zoomed in on the end of the key, and saw nothing, I was always bad at those artbooks. But you know that key looks a lot like the ones that opened the door last time on her site. just a thought.

On the bottom right hand corner of the sign it also looks like there are three stars....reminds me of the three stars on the stationary JK uses on her website (but on the bottome left, I believe there us a spider on the bottom right)

I was tempted to study that crumpled paper, but I made myself walk away, lol.
Congratulations! ;) :lol:

I also had to go to the mall this weekend and yes, I did, indeed, deliberately stop in front of the Walden's bookstore! I did see "the sign" and had to be sure and look for "the key". It was all the way at the bottom of the sign and I did see the little flamingo's. I stared at it for a few moments and walked on.

Congratulations Silver Ink Pot on being able to walk away and not study that crumpled paper. I'm proud of you. Have you been looking at it in the picture on your post though? I considered trying to study it but that will have to wait until i have a bit more time. Lol.

I love this quote from JK from an interview about Book #5...yes it is old:

JP: And is there going to be a death in this book?

JKR: Yes. A horrible, horrible death

JP: A horrible death of a significant figure.

JKR: Yeah. I went into the kitchen having done it….

JP: What, killed this person?

JKR: Yeah. Well I had re-written the death, re-written it and that was it. It was definitive. And the person was definitely dead. And I walked into the kitchen crying and Neil said to me, “What on earth is wrong?” and I said, “Well, I’ve just killed the person”. Neil doesn’t know who the person is. But I said, “I’ve just killed the person. And he said, “Well, don’t do it then.” I thought, a doctor you know….and I said “Well it just doesn’t work like that. You are writing children’s books, you need to be a ruthless killer.”

And you guys can't say that it's off-topic because no-one has posted here for about 2days-it needs some life!

That was about Sirius no?

rons little luva: I like that quote, too, but I never guessed it would be Sirius, did you? Of course, I wasn't as obsessed before OotP as I am now, lol, so I don't think I paid enough attention before the last book.

I actually have something that I found on the Official Site that is interesting.

(Anyone who hates anagrams, please look away now. Thank you.)

I was staring at the new Wizard of the Month, Gondoline Oliphant, and realized that is a name screaming out to be anagrammed. :p So I did.

GONDOLINE OLIPHANT

The first name I saw in there was "Ogden" as in "Ogden's Old Firewhiskey" and "Tiberius Ogden" the old wizard who resigned from the Wizengamut in protest when Umbridge was put at Hogwarts as High Inquisitor. If he's against Umbridge, he must be a good guy, right?

When you read these, think about the "Lion Man" that JKR wrote about a few months ago:

AN OGDEN ILL IN PHOTO

GOLDEN LION HAT IN OP (Order of the Phoenix) ~ Luna's Lion Hat?

GOLDEN LION A HINT OP

HOG PLOT IN A LION DEN

I hope you have fun with these. At least it is something to talk about, lol. :angel:

:elaugh: Silver Ink Pot :elaugh:

We will see, won't we? ;)

Nicole: Yes, we will! :evil:

The reason I was looking at the site again was because everyone is longing for more clues, but we aren't getting any obvious ones. So I think she has already given us something, but we just don't recognize it.

I really like the "Lion Hat" clue the most. :)

The one year anniversary of her site is coming up on May 15th. Maybe she'll throw us a bone then. I never thought we'd have to wait this long for the door to open again....or even for an answer to the FAQ poll. C'mon, Jo. Give us a sentence. One wee sentence.

This waiting would be a little more tolerable for me if we at least had a synopsis from the publishers. I understand wanting to enhance the experience with as few spoilers as possible, but this is getting ridiculous! It's too quiet. :grumble:

I wonder if Jo will update her site right before, or right after, the publication. It would be neat to see an update the night/day before. Just a little "enjoy the book" or something.

I wonder if Jo will update her site right before, or right after, the publication. It would be neat to see an update the night/day before. Just a little "enjoy the book" or something.
Well, while anything new on her site will be great--what a bummer that the forums will be closed the day before the book release, we won't be able to come here to discuss it!

The one year anniversary would be a very nice date. :tu: There is also May 27 when the promo stuff from Scholastic hits the book stores (50 days before release)--but I don't know if Bloomsbury is doing anything similar (nor if it would be at the same time...), so that might not mean much.

It's too quiet. :grumble:



That's what I keep thinking . . . too quiet indeed. :huh:

Maybe we are just so close to the end of the series that anything she gives us would give away major clues. There can't be that many "new" characters, and there have to be some plot resolutions that we'll just have to read for ourselves.

I love this quote from JK from an interview about Book #5...yes it is old:

JP: And is there going to be a death in this book?

JKR: Yes. A horrible, horrible death

JP: A horrible death of a significant figure.

JKR: Yeah. I went into the kitchen having done it….

JP: What, killed this person?

JKR: Yeah. Well I had re-written the death, re-written it and that was it. It was definitive. And the person was definitely dead. And I walked into the kitchen crying and Neil said to me, “What on earth is wrong?” and I said, “Well, I’ve just killed the person”. Neil doesn’t know who the person is. But I said, “I’ve just killed the person. And he said, “Well, don’t do it then.” I thought, a doctor you know….and I said “Well it just doesn’t work like that. You are writing children’s books, you need to be a ruthless killer.”

And you guys can't say that it's off-topic because no-one has posted here for about 2days-it needs some life!

Here is a question for all of you now. Using this quote as evidence (or not) do you still think Sirius is alive somehow. (I know quite a few people who think he is alive and I just want to get your thoughts)

yes, it is off topic but too bad! this thread moves slowly anyway.

Then let's have a look at the Open Letter questions that haven't been answered:



What are the first names of Flitwick, Sinistra, Vector, Sprout, and Hooch? What houses were they in? (Partially answered, it is Filius Flitwick.)

Who teaches Ancient Runes and Muggle Studies and are there other teachers or subjects that we haven't heard about yet?

How many students are there really at Hogwarts? You said 1000 once, but that doesn't really work out very well with information elsewhere in the books. Can you give us an explanation?

How old are Molly and Arthur Weasley? (Thanks for letting us know that Lucius is 41, by the way. We wondered.)

As you probably know, we have worked out the years of the books to 1991 through 1998 using information from the books. The official timeline on the Chamber of Secrets DVD follows this as well. Is that correct?

Speaking of that official timeline, there is some pretty convincing evidence that they took the timeline directly from the Lexicon. Do you know anything about that? The folks at Warner said that they took a timeline and gave it to you for review. Was the timeline they gave you from the Lexicon's calendars?

What house was Myrtle in? What was/is her last name?

Are there other Gryffindors in Harry's year besides the ones we've met in the books?

Was James a Chaser, as you said in an interview at one point, or a Seeker? Or did he play both positions?

In fifth year, some students are made Prefects. Are there sixth year and seventh year Prefects as well? Are they simply the same kids or are there new Prefects chosen each year? (We're resisting the urge to ask how James became Head Boy if he was't made a Prefect in fifth year.)

What are Dumbledore, Draco, and Hermione's wands made of and what are their cores? (Partially answered, we know Hermione's core.)

How old are Mad-Eye Moody and Tonks and what houses were they in?

Is there a living heir of Gryffindor? What about Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw?

Here is a question for all of you now. Using this quote as evidence (or not) do you still think Sirius is alive somehow. (I know quite a few people who think he is alive and I just want to get your thoughts)

yes, it is off topic but too bad! this thread moves slowly anyway.

I'm just getting to the fact that he is dead, but I think we will see him again somehow. Maybe through the mirrors...

Well, while anything new on her site will be great--what a bummer that the forums will be closed the day before the book release, we won't be able to come here to discuss it!

Sigh....I shall "squee" alone. :upset:

The one year anniversary would be a very nice date. :tu: There is also May 27 when the promo stuff from Scholastic hits the book stores (50 days before release)--but I don't know if Bloomsbury is doing anything similar (nor if it would be at the same time...), so that might not mean much.

I wonder if the publishers expect her to pitch in as far as publicity goes the closer we get to July. :shrug:

That's what I keep thinking . . . too quiet indeed. :huh:

Maybe we are just so close to the end of the series that anything she gives us would give away major clues. There can't be that many "new" characters, and there have to be some plot resolutions that we'll just have to read for ourselves.

Yeah, I see what you mean. But, surely she could give us some obscure little bit without ruining the book for us? Just a little something to whet our appetites.....and that's what I really love. Getting little nibbles that leave us scratching our heads wondering exactly what that meant. Something to chew over for a couple of weeks. Is anyone else getting hungry? :blush:

What are the first names of Flitwick, Sinistra, Vector, Sprout, and Hooch? What houses were they in? (Partially answered, it is Filius Flitwick.) Would the other names give too much away? [Or were all the names revealed and I missed them? Just realized that is is Rolanda Hooch.]
Who teaches Ancient Runes and Muggle Studies and are there other teachers or subjects that we haven't heard about yet? This shouldn't give much away, either.
What house was Myrtle in? What was/is her last name? Maybe her name would be too meaningful, but probably not her house....
Was James a Chaser, as you said in an interview at one point, or a Seeker? Or did he play both positions? I can't see how knowing the answer to this would ruin anything, we know he played Quidditch....
How old are Mad-Eye Moody and Tonks and what houses were they in? Well, JKR says she isn't good at 'maths', so she probably doesn't want another Charlie Weasley fiasco...And as I think we will see these two again, maybe we will find out in the next two books (though I doubt their houses will be a critical factor for anything, I think some people have a different opinion on that!).
In fifth year, some students are made Prefects. Are there sixth year and seventh year Prefects as well? Are they simply the same kids or are there new Prefects chosen each year? (We're resisting the urge to ask how James became Head Boy if he was't made a Prefect in fifth year.) I can see why she wouldn't answer this one--we are sure to have a clue about the matter in HBP, if not an outright look at how the Prefect system works for sixth year. The rest will be saved for book 7 :evil: .

I wonder if the publishers expect her to pitch in as far as publicity goes the closer we get to July.
We can watch for interviews as July gets closer...Although I suspect most of them would be aired after the release of the book. (How many interviews were published/aired just prior to OotP? Any?)

My first post on this thread and nothing interesting to add. I'm sorry. But I'm not only getting hungry for some crumbs of information, the list posted by Nicole made me nervous. Is JKR saving up questions for the very, very, very long period of time between book 6 and 7? I can see myself getting enthusiastic over the first name of Mme Hooch in March 2008!

Is JKR saving up questions for the very, very, very long period of time between book 6 and 7?
Good heavens, I hope not! I expect that, even though Jo says we will get more answers than clues in HBP, we will still think of questions to ask! Maybe MuggleNet and the Lexicon can start a second open letter after Book 6 is released....:eyebrows:

I just had an image of Jo telling Lexicon Steve that she doesn't have time to answer those questions, and to just go ahead and answer the questions himself. Sometimes I think the Lexicon folks have a better grasp of her timeline than she does :p

.We can watch for interviews as July gets closer...Although I suspect most of them would be aired after the release of the book. (How many interviews were published/aired just prior to OotP? Any?)

I remember looking into this a while ago; I believe she only gave a few interviews right before the release. She was still on "maternity leave" at that time, and concentrating on her family. I'm hoping we'll hear more from her this time. She does have that handy dandy site now with which to communicate more directly with her fans.

Would the other names give too much away? [Or were all the names revealed and I missed them? Just realized that is is Rolanda Hooch.]

Flitwick is Filius Flitwick... it was on her desktop calendar on his birthday, plus it had been mentioned somewhere else before... I dont know where... because people knew it. Maybe on wizard cards?

I stopped in at a little book store yesterday and I got a Harry Potter Half Blood Prince book mark! The back of it has pictures of 6 books to read while waiting on the Half Blood Prince to come out. Who has time to read books other than Harry Potter books? I just keep reading them over and over again. Now I have a new book mark.

May 15th isn't too far away. Surely we could make it at least till then without an update? But maybe JKR will surprise us sooner!!!

That's what I keep thinking . . . too quiet indeed.
Maybe there are new eggs that have been placed but no one's found it yet. Maybe the Page 1 of the doodlings.

I stopped in at a little book store yesterday and I got a Harry Potter Half Blood Prince book mark! The back of it has pictures of 6 books to read while waiting on the Half Blood Prince to come out. Who has time to read books other than Harry Potter books? I just keep reading them over and over again. Now I have a new book mark.

I stopped at Walden Books and asked for a bookmark. They said there wouldn't be any available until closer to the release date. Hmph.

They did give me a coupon worth 25% off another item in the store on the day I pick up HBP. HA! As if I plan on sticking around after I get my hot little hands on that book to shop for something else!

May 15th isn't too far away. Surely we could make it at least till then without an update? But maybe JKR will surprise us sooner!!!

We can only whine.....I mean, hope! :angel:

In fifth year, some students are made Prefects. Are there sixth year and seventh year Prefects as well? Are they simply the same kids or are there new Prefects chosen each year? (We're resisting the urge to ask how James became Head Boy if he was't made a Prefect in fifth year.)


We already know the answer to part of that. Percy Weasley was prefect in the 6th year - remember the Polyjuice potion, he deducted points from everyone? :) Also, obviously Dumbledore doesn't HAVE to choose head boy/girl from prefects, else he would've chosen someone else as head boy, wouldn't he? ;)

Just my logical opinion ;)

Would the other names give too much away? [Or were all the names revealed and I missed them? Just realized that is is Rolanda Hooch.]
As rjade said, Filius was confirmed on the website. But as far as I know Rolanda is only mentioned in some trading card game. As I understand it not all of them are confirmed canon.

On her website, Jo has said that she wrote the info on the wizard cards herself, so I should think that would be a direct confirmation.

Flitwick is Filius Flitwick... it was on her desktop calendar on his birthday, plus it had been mentioned somewhere else before... I dont know where... because people knew it. Maybe on wizard cards?
As rjade said, Filius was confirmed on the website.
Yeah...you have to go back to my first post about the questions to see that mentioned. What are the first names of Flitwick, Sinistra, Vector, Sprout, and Hooch? What houses were they in? (Partially answered, it is Filius Flitwick.) My bad for not including it the second time. So we don't know the first names of Sinistra and Vector. We do know Pomona Sprout, Filius Flitwick and Rolanda Hooch. :tu: Also, obviously Dumbledore doesn't HAVE to choose head boy/girl from prefects, else he would've chosen someone else as head boy, wouldn't he?
I'm sorry, I don't understand. Percy was chosen as Head Boy, and he was a Prefect prior to that (but good point about Percy continuing his Prefect run :tu: ).

I'm sorry, I don't understand. Percy was chosen as Head Boy, and he was a Prefect prior to that (but good point about Percy continuing his Prefect run :tu: ).

Sorry - I meant someone "other than James Potter", not "other than Percy". :) Didn't mean to confuse people.

Jim Gamma: So to restate your point, we know that James wasn't a Prefect, because Sirius and Lupin confirm that he wasn't. However, Hagrid told Harry that his parents were Head Boy and Head Girl of their classes. Therefore, you don't have to be a Prefect in order to be Head Boy. :tu:

^Yep, pure, simple logic. I doubt JK would get something like THAT wrong. :D

Jim Gamma: So to restate your point, we know that James wasn't a Prefect, because Sirius and Lupin confirm that he wasn't. However, Hagrid told Harry that his parents were Head Boy and Head Girl of their classes. Therefore, you don't have to be a Prefect in order to be Head Boy. :tu:

Actually...I don't recall being told that James was NEVER a prefect, just that he Lupin was originally prefect to keep the others in line...I've always had a bit of a nagging suspision that maybe Lupin didn't make it through 7 years at Hogwarts...especially after Snape found out about his secret...

hmmm, I wonder why I was able to get a book mark then. I wish I was better at this computer, I have a digital camera and could take a photo of it and put it in this post but I do not know how. I don't know how to resize pictures.

I just assumed that Lupin did make it through all 7 years at Hogwarts. I suppose it could be possible that he didn't. But didn't they make Snape swear not to tell?

...I've always had a bit of a nagging suspision that maybe Lupin didn't make it through 7 years at Hogwarts...especially after Snape found out about his secret...
That's food for thought! :tu:

I wonder how we can get it to qualify as an FAQ on Jo's site...:huh:

Actually...I don't recall being told that James was NEVER a prefect, just that he Lupin was originally prefect to keep the others in line...I've always had a bit of a nagging suspision that maybe Lupin didn't make it through 7 years at Hogwarts...especially after Snape found out about his secret...

Hi, Mizaru! I am intrigued by this idea of Lupin not graduating. I'd love it if you would come over to Deconstructing the Marauders and talk about this a little more.

I never thought about Lupin being thrown out of Hogwarts and James taking his place as Prefect! That's an amazing theory! :huh:

Come over to the Decon Thread in History of Magic, please! :tu:

On her website, Jo has said that she wrote the info on the wizard cards herself, so I should think that would be a direct confirmation.
Unfortunately it isn't that simple. She apparently confirmed only one of those card thingys. HP lexicon gave an explanation of this problem in version 5 of this thread, in post #1455 on page 73. In this post he clearly stated that the Trading Card Game is still to be considered non-canon. :)

Just a question, I've noticed this word coming up alot lately and just want a clarification on it. What does "canon" mean? From the way I've seen it used, it means true or good?

Just a question, I've noticed this word coming up alot lately and just want a clarification on it. What does "canon" mean? From the way I've seen it used, it means true or good?
Canon means something that follows the information in the books. For example, Malfoy being evil and horrid is canon, whereas Malfoy being all sweet and kind is not canon. :)
(Well, that's the definition of 'canon' for Fanfiction at least. If there were anyone who could do a better explanation than me, please do!)

...I've always had a bit of a nagging suspision that maybe Lupin didn't make it through 7 years at Hogwarts...especially after Snape found out about his secret...

I've never accualy considerd that...maybe he didn't.

Just a question, I've noticed this word coming up alot lately and just want a clarification on it. What does "canon" mean? From the way I've seen it used, it means true or good?
It means verifiable via direct JKR quote, JKR website, or the books themselves. This cannot include what people read into it. Rather it has to be derived directly from those sources. Now people can draw inferences from canon, but that will be speculation. A caution about JKR quotes. They should come from reliable sources like JKR's website or the quote archive at Quick Quotes / Madam Scoop's. The HP Lexicon is an excellent source for information as well. Most of their information is from canon, but some of it is derived from carefully examined inference. No one does better indepth analysis of HP information than the Lexicon, but not all of it is canon. Some of it is just a very good guess, and the best approximation possible (like the Timeline for instance). No one guesses better than them.

So canon is verifiable information.

^ Thank you ComicBookWorm! You certainly did a better job explaining than me! :D

Ahhhh, thanks! Now I understand.

Do you think that JKR will update her site anytime soon? I really hope so, it's been a lot of time since the last one! If you think that she will, what kind of information do you want her to reveal?

Yes, I think the door will open at least once again to reveal a last bit of information before the release, something that will make us more eager to know what will happen

Do you think that JKR will update her site anytime soon? I really hope so, it's been a lot of time since the last one! If you think that she will, what kind of information do you want her to reveal?

I hope so. :) The answer to the FAQ poll would be nice, or a new fansite award... but I'm not picky, any update is usually pretty exciting. :)

I wonder what other character birthdays she'll announce... we only have until July 30 before they repeat again.

At least in a week there will be a new WotM...

Ahhhh, thanks! Now I understand.
I had that problem alot too since it came up alot in the love thread, although i didn't stick around for long there. That place can be very scary sometimes.

Do you think that JKR will update her site anytime soon? I really hope so, it's been a lot of time since the last one! If you think that she will, what kind of information do you want her to reveal?

Now that we're less than three months from the release of HBP (the English versions anyway), I'm growing more and more of the opinion that we've seen the last door opening until after HBP has been out for a while. I'm just not sure what information there is left to release to us now. We've got chapter titles, a book excerpt, the length of the book...the door seems to have been a way for JKR to give us info while we're all waiting between books. There was an update of Rumors/FAQ a few weeks ago, so those pages should stay the same for a while.

Note: By saying that I don't think the door will open again, I am hoping this will cause it to open tomorrow since I'm wrong about virtually everything else. :shrug:

Note: By saying that I don't think the door will open again, I am hoping this will cause it to open tomorrow since I'm wrong about virtually everything else. :shrug:

:lol:
I hope it will open again too, but I'm not expecting it to. If anything, I'd think that maybe there would be a new fansite award before HBP comes out; that section hasn't been updated in a long time.

teo: JKR still hasn't answered the Faq Poll question about Neville, has she?

Also, we may get some other birthdays - Luna's perhaps?

LOL - I came to this thread just to check, and we must have all had the same idea at the same time - I've had two messages just while typing this, lol.

teo: JKR still hasn't answered the Faq Poll question about Neville, has she?

Nope, she hasn't...I imagine it takes a while to craft a sufficiently evasive answer, or pack up the kids and move back to Bolivia if the answer to the Neville question is a simple "no". :lol:

Also, we may get some other birthdays - Luna's perhaps?

I'm really curious to know Luna's birthday too, to see if my guess that her birthday's in April was correct. :) She just seems like an April-y person to me... but April will be over soon...so, maybe May? :)

Nope, she hasn't...I imagine it takes a while to craft a sufficiently evasive answer, or pack up the kids and move back to Bolivia if the answer to the Neville question is a simple "no". :lol:

Sometimes I have to wonder if the answer to that question is a simple, "The significance of Neville being the other boy to whom the prophecy might have referred is simply this: if Voldemort had marked Neville instead, these books would be about him and not Harry."

:p That's a very pack-up-for-Bolivia-worthy answer.

Nope, she hasn't...I imagine it takes a while to craft a sufficiently evasive answer, or pack up the kids and move back to Bolivia if the answer to the Neville question is a simple "no". :lol:

:lol: Yeah, as in "Mark Evans."

Sometimes I think I need "Mark Evans" tatooed on my arm like the Dark Mark, so I'll remember not to overanalyze characters we only hear about but never see. :agree:

I'm really curious to know Luna's birthday too, to see if my guess that her birthday's in April was correct. :) She just seems like an April-y person to me... but April will be over soon...so, maybe May? :)

It's possible, but April's almost over. I'm betting on Luna being born under the sign of Cancer (ruled by the moon). But don't listen to me since I also thought that about Lupin and I was wrong (feels my Mark Evans dark mark burning). :p

I think a lot of us could use the "Mark Evans" dark mark! ;) For me it would be a "DBBG" tattoo though, as the Drooble's anagram is my favorite thing to overanalyze.

I put in a vote for May 29 as Luna's B-day...no particular reason, just a guess.

:lol: I think I should put "Droobles" on my other arm, along with silhouettes of the Marauders! :p

I should get a quill like Umbridge's that writes, "I will not anagram random words" on my hand. :evil: Please pass the Essence of Murtlap, lol.

Well, after next week, we only have May and June. Did the birthday list start in July of last year? For Luna to be born under the moon sign, it would be the end of June or first of July (same month as Harry - Cancer comes just before Leo).

I think the pack for Bolivia answer about Neville would be "There is no significance at all." That would make it a non-answer which is what most of her answers will be. She isn't going to give out significant information via thes FAQs. Anything that would be a big surprise isn't going to be reserved for the books.

Yeah, the birthday list didn't start till Harry and Neville, I would still imagine there being a couple of birthdays left to go. Luna being a Cancer makes sense, of course partly I'm hoping she'll share my birthday, June 28th:) Other than her the only ones I can think of off the top of my head who haven't been mentioned are Moody and Tonks (or has she mentioned Moody already?). I'm curious as to when Sirius' would be but I doubt she'd have an announcement, that'd just start up all over again the "So.... he's not really dead, right?" talks.

I hear you, LunaGoldstein! My birthday is July 21, so I'm getting a really good present this year (Book 6) even if Luna and I don't share a birthday!

Here is the list so far, from Mugglenet. Nothing in May or June, so I think she has been saving some!:

2005

April 1st
Fred and George Weasley

March 10th
Remus Lupin

March 1st
Ronald Weasley

February 6th
Arthur Weasley

January 9th
Severus Snape

2004

December 12th
Charlie Weasley

December 6th
Rubeus Hagrid

November 29th
Bill Weasley

October 30th
Molly Weasley

October 17th
Filius Flitwick

October 4th
Minerva McGonagall

September 19th
Hermione Granger

August 22nd
Percy Weasley

August 11th
Ginny Weasley

July 31st
Harry Potter

July 30th
Neville Longbottom


There are quite a few birthdays we don't have yet:
Kingsley Shacklebolt
Madame Trelawney
Madame Sprout
Argus Filch
Luna Lovegood
Tonks
Moody
Mrs. Figg
Dumbledore
All of the other students!
James, Sirius, and Peter - we may never get those.

Thanks for the whole birthday list SIP:) Half-Blood Prince does indeed make a fantastic present.

I completely forgot we don't have Dumbledore. I think it's cause he's such a larger than life figure it seems almost strange for him to celebrate a birthday, if that makes any sense. But when the day comes hopefully he'll get his socks:D

JKR still hasn't answered the Faq Poll question about NevilleThere must be more to Neville than meets the eye or JKR would have updated the poll very quickly. It could be that JKR is wording what ever put in the poll responce very, very carefully or just teasing us.

She has to answer the poll question before July, doesn't she? She did say she was taking time off with her family though, and she deserves it. I just hope she can spare us half an hour!

Mark Evans meant nothing, but she took a long time to answer that one too. I think she is just busy being a new mother and providing the finishing edits on HBP.

I hope she can aswell. OH please update jo I need to know more info :)

I think the pack for Bolivia answer about Neville would be "There is no significance at all." That would make it a non-answer which is what most of her answers will be. She isn't going to give out significant information via thes FAQs. Anything that would be a big surprise isn't going to be reserved for the books.
Even if it's no significance why do I get the feeling people are going to disect her words anyway and dry to find some hidden meaning :lol:

You forgot Nearly Headless Nick-halloween on your llist

You forgot Nearly Headless Nick-halloween on your llist
We don't know his birthday, but we do know his date of death...

We don't know Lily's birthday, nor any of the Dursley birthdays...And we don't know the birth dates of most students. We also don't know Lockhart, Umbridge, Fudge, Tom Riddle, and Death Eaters....:lol: I don't see JKR giving page time to the bad guys--or the minor students!

Yeah, we're pretty unclear on almost all of the character's birthdays. The only ones which come to mind are Harry's, Neville's, Ron's and Hermione's.There must be more to Neville than meets the eye or JKR would have updated the poll very quickly. It could be that JKR is wording what ever put in the poll responce very, very carefully or just teasing us.I agree. If there is more to Neville than meets the eye, and it's important, then Jo is going to have to spend a long time (or longer than it would usually take) to make sure she's not giving anything away, hinting at anything or debunking things which are true. Must be tough for her. Or, of course, she's just taking a long time so that we're more anxious to hear her response. Give it another month and somebody'll start a petition...

What I don't get, is why she would post the question, if the answer wasn't already prepared.

What I don't get, is why she would post the question, if the answer wasn't already prepared.I agree - I figure she knows what she'll say to any of the FAQ. Why hasn't she answered yet? Time... other concerns... maybe the answer will coincide with some sort of other release - she must have known that one would be chosen!

She might have well not have had the poll, if she wasn't intending to answer the question!

Just in case we have non English speakers - canon can refer to ANY information verified directly from original material. It doesn't just work here. The word is often used in literature and history. It's certainly used correctly in this site and you're correct - the definitions were excellent.

Anabel: I'm frightened of your new avatar and siggy! :scared: They are alarming, yet I can't look away! :lol:

Are you hypnotizing us? Should I put my aluminum foil hat back on? :p

I agree about the poll. She is in charge of which questions to post, so why choose the very ones she doesn't want to answer? :huh: It seems like a way to drive yourself crazy.

Maybe she underestimated how much people are interested in Neville, however that doesn't seem likely. She must know how sympathetic he is and how much we all love him.

Just in case we have non English speakers - canon can refer to ANY information verified directly from original material. It doesn't just work here. The word is often used in literature and history. It's certainly used correctly in this site and you're correct - the definitions were excellent.

Nobleone: Right. There can be "canon" concerning any topic, not just Harry Potter. You can have Jane Austen canon, or philosophical canon, or religious canon, or scientific canon.

Another word I often see used here is "Fanon." I didn't know what that meant for a long time, till I realized that it means ideas that come from popular fan fiction and not from the books (canon). Alot of ideas about the Marauders are total "fanon." And that's probably the nicest thing I can say about some of those theories, lol. :evil:

What I don't get, is why she would post the question, if the answer wasn't already prepared.

Maybe she is putting it off in the hopes that many thousands of shippers will stumble upon the site and vote for Question #3, the answer to which is almost certainly a very minor detail in terms of the overall plot. :lol:

Maybe she is putting it off in the hopes that many thousands of shippers will stumble upon the site and vote for Question #3, the answer to which is almost certainly a very minor detail in terms of the overall plot. :lol:

Hehe, I was actually sort of surprised that that question didn't win, and vaguely disappointed (I'm a shipper), but in a way I'm actually very glad it didn't win. It gives me faith in the fandom -- I don't WANT the whole fandom to be shippers...as JKR said, we're vehement and scary :)

Another word I often see used here is "Fanon." I didn't know what that meant for a long time, till I realized that it means ideas that come from popular fan fiction and not from the books (canon). Alot of ideas about the Marauders are total "fanon." And that's probably the nicest thing I can say about some of those theories, lol.
I didn't even know such a word existed

I didn't even know such a word existed

Apparently 'fanon' is an actual, non-fandom-related word, too:


fanon

A term applied to various articles, as: (a) A peculiar striped scarf worn by the pope at mass, and by eastern bishops. (b) A maniple. [Written also fannel, phanon, etc.]



I think I learn more stuff from these threads than I do in school... :p

By the time she answers the FAQ poll the question may be moot :)

Regardless of any possible dictionary definition, when fanon is used in an environment with fan fiction it means facts derived from fanfic and not from the books themselves. For instance, I stopped reading fan fiction when I started confusing fanon with canon.

Apparently 'fanon' is an actual, non-fandom-related word, too:
I thought people just made it up!

I think I learn more stuff from these threads than I do in school...
Tell me about it :D

I thought people just made it up!

Well I think people did make it up, seeing as it's so similar to 'canon' and it has the word 'fan' in it, it's just a coincidence that it's also an actual word. :)

Well I think people did make it up, seeing as it's so similar to 'canon' and it has the word 'fan' in it, it's just a coincidence that it's also an actual word.
I see, thanks :)

I think I learn more stuff from these threads than I do in school... :p

Haha, you're not the only one :p

I've learned so much more about Harry Potter on these things

..I can't remember why I stopped coming on here in the summer...hmm..maybe because it was the summer? Anyway, I'm so glad I came back!

As of today, McKenzie is 3 months old. They most likely have a schedule of some sort figured out. Hopefully we will get an update soon!

Someone mentioned in an earlier post that we have chapter titles. We do??

Someone mentioned in an earlier post that we have chapter titles. We do??


Only for chapters 2, 6, and 14.

2- Spinners End
6- Draco's Detour
14- Felix Felicis

(they were revealed in a door opening)

Someone mentioned in an earlier post that we have chapter titles. We do??
Only for three chapters:
Chapter 2: SPINNERS END
Chapter 6: DRACO'S DETOUR
Chapter 14: FELIX FELICIS

Enjoy :tu:

Edit: Beaten to it!

Oh dear! I thought something interesting might have happened on her site b/c suddenly people were writing on this but alas I was wrong... not even a new Easter egg. :(

Someone mentioned in an earlier post that we have chapter titles. We do??
You might want to check these out:

HBP Chapter Titles - What could they tell us? (http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?t=38864&)

HBP Chapter Titles - What they could tell us? #2 (http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?t=37659&)

Yikes! How did I miss that door opening? I thought I was up on all of that! Sigh....About how long ago was that? :upset:

The chapter titles were revealed on Halloween.

Not to sound dim or anything, but I always hear of JK wishing someone Happy Birthday on her site, but then I go there and I never find it. Can someone tel me where it is?

Not to sound dim or anything, but I always hear of JK wishing someone Happy Birthday on her site, but then I go there and I never find it. Can someone tel me where it is?Sure - there's a little thing at the very top right of the screen that says 'wizard of the month' on - it looks a bit like a flip desk calendar. Click on that and you get the picture and blurb about whatever odd wizard or witch has been chosen for the month (Gondoline Oliphant this month). That display changes if a character has a birthday on that date - but only for one day. A page or so back someone posted a list of all known birthdays so far.

Ennervate: The birthdays are only on the little rolodex thingy for one day, and as far as I know there is no archive. That's why people have been keeping track of them. The wizard of the month disappears for a day and the birthdays appear.

I don't know if you go to the text-only site, but I don't think the birthdays appear there. They only appear on the Flash site, here:
http://www.jkrowling.com/en/

As Machiavelli wrote, the "rolodex" thing is up in the right-hand corner.

I have seen them show up on TEXT ONLY as well.

Ok, it's come to this; I'm so desperate to discover something new on her site I'm considering resetting something so I have to look for the easter eggs all over again. Where exactly on your browser can you do this, and is it possible to do it just for one site and not everything?

You can try accessing the site on a different address, eg jkrowling.co.uk (http://www.jkrowling.co.uk), jkrowling.org (http://www.jkrowling.org) or jkrowling.com (http://www.jkrowling.co.uk) depending on which one you use now. You can start all over again on one of these.

Let's not forget she has a new baby. She also has the rest of the family. Don't forget, social engagments, last minute revisions, and watching over the newly canned movie. I think the poll probably doesn't rank the highest. I'm sure she may have been surprised at the winning question and has to think of a coy, vague answer to the important question.

I have seen them show up on TEXT ONLY as well.
So they do. 'Happy birthday' uses to be next to 'Wizard of the month'.

Let's not forget she has a new baby. She also has the rest of the family. Don't forget, social engagments, last minute revisions, and watching over the newly canned movie. I think the poll probably doesn't rank the highest. I'm sure she may have been surprised at the winning question and has to think of a coy, vague answer to the important question.
Or she's busy packing again :lol:

Okay - here's an odd thing. Out of curiosity I deleted the sol file for JKR's site and went back to her site but... although the FAQ poll came up with the voting options and I could highlight one or another there was no way to register the vote. Also, although the spider was back and the glowing marble was on the front page on the fan sites page the medals were already in their boxes and whatever it was meant to be behind the third box wasn't actually there... strange isn't it!

edit: even odder... it worked perfectly on a different version. Just a glitch I expect!

Okay - here's an odd thing. Out of curiosity I deleted the sol file for JKR's site and went back to her site but... although the FAQ poll came up with the voting options and I could highlight one or another there was no way to register the vote. Also, although the spider was back and the glowing marble was on the front page on the fan sites page the medals were already in their boxes and whatever it was meant to be behind the third box wasn't actually there... strange isn't it!

edit: even odder... it worked perfectly on a different version. Just a glitch I expect!
That is weird but yeah I guess it was probably just a glitch. Then again it could have occurred because they're recently updating the site but i think that's just hopeful thinking talking.

Thanks anabel for the links, finding everything all new is giving me a flashback to last summer:)

Lol I can't imagine an answer to the Neville question would have to send her packing! I was dissapointed for the other two questions actually, neither of the other ones seem interesting at all.

Lol I can't imagine an answer to the Neville question would have to send her packing! I was dissapointed for the other two questions actually, neither of the other ones seem interesting at all.
I know what you mean. I picked Neville out of elimination too.

Thanks guys, I guess I haven't found them cuz I wasn't looking on the exact days, cuz I've seen the WoM for ages

Or she's busy packing again :lol:

I think that might actually be it!:lol: There's no "if any" clue this time, but she could just point to Dumbledore's remarks in OotP and say "That's it!" I think she might have been banking on a Heron or Harmonian firestorm on the third question and just didn't get it.

Jk really needs to change the welcome note. Its not recent anymore!

Any change will do........................

the glowing marble was on the front page

what glowing marble?

what glowing marble?

http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?t=27402 will tell you all you need to know about the site, including the glowing marble.

The "glowing marble" could be a remembrall. In the PS movie, it is bigger than a marble, to make it more like a "ball" that Harry can catch from Malfoy. But it makes sense that JKR made it the size of a marble so people like Neville can keep one tucked in a pocket and notice when it starts to glow red, meaning the person has forgotten something.

Of course, I suppose a remembrall could also be used as a portkey. Or a regular marble could be used as a portkey.

The "glowing marble" could be a remembrall. In the PS movie, it is bigger than a marble, to make it more like a "ball" that Harry can catch from Malfoy. But it makes sense that JKR made it the size of a marble so people like Neville can keep one tucked in a pocket and notice when it starts to glow red, meaning the person has forgotten something.

Of course, I suppose a remembrall could also be used as a portkey. Or a regular marble could be used as a portkey.
I dont think there's a limitation to what item could be used as a portkey. It's more about getting it authorised by the ministry.

?!

JKR's site says that the new WotM is Felix Summerbee, inventor of the Cheering Charm... but wasn't he already on there one month? :huh:

EDIT:

Ah, I'm an idiot. I see now. Felix Summerbee was the WotM last May. Now it's May again. The WotM's repeat. :)

EDIT again:

Actually, now Mugglenet has word that it should be different, so never mind.

^^ Yeah, I thought that too.

I thought they would continue with new ones each month. There's no reason why it has to be the same every year!

Do you see the little pun?

Felix = "happy"
bee = "be"
summer = "summer"

Happy be Summer! :)

We'll certainly all be happy on July 16! :agree:

Maybe Harry has a good summer in Book 6? She's hinted at that before when she said he had a nice reason for leaving the Dursleys early in Book 6.

Isn't it funny that Felix looks as if he's holding a baby rattle?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v624/sip44/FelixSummerbee.jpg

Do you see the little pun?

Felix = "happy"
bee = "be"
summer = "summer"

Happy be Summer!

We'll certainly all be happy on July 16!

Maybe Harry has a good summer in Book 6? She's hinted at that before when she said he had a nice reason for leaving the Dursleys early in Book 6.

Isn't it funny that Felix looks as if he's holding a baby rattle?
I didn't notice that! :agree: I hope he'll have a good summer and I think that's what jk has been implying. The poor guy deserves it.

Well, Felix is certainly.. interesting looking

Well, Felix is certainly.. interesting looking
Diplomatic way of putting it :D

Isn't it funny that Felix looks as if he's holding a baby rattle?
I do see that one end is a happy face and the other a frowning face...and it does look like a rattle!

I wonder if Nearly Headless Nick knew Felix...They were alive in the same time period (for many years, anyway). Felix looks like someone who could have used some 'dental spells' like the one Nick was beheaded for performing...:lol: (Now I wonder if Nick has something to do with Chapter 14 in HBP...)

I wonder if Nearly Headless Nick knew Felix...They were alive in the same time period (for many years, anyway). Felix looks like someone who could have used some 'dental spells' like the one Nick was beheaded for performing...:lol: (Now I wonder if Nick has something to do with Chapter 14 in HBP...) I think you may be on to something there Nicole! Good thinking! :tu:

goodness...has it really been a year? :wow:

I do see that one end is a happy face and the other a frowning face...and it does look like a rattle!

I wonder if Nearly Headless Nick knew Felix...They were alive in the same time period (for many years, anyway). Felix looks like someone who could have used some 'dental spells' like the one Nick was beheaded for performing...:lol: (Now I wonder if Nick has something to do with Chapter 14 in HBP...)

How funny! I did notice the teeth and thought of Hermione, lol. :tu:

I noticed that the eyebrows look like Nick's, with one raised way above the other:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v624/sip44/JKR-NearlyHeadlessandFelix.jpg

Of course, that could just be JKR's way of drawing a humorous face, but it's interesting that you connected them another way. Maybe they were cousins?

Isn't there a chapter supposed to be in HBP Felix's Folly? Could he be related to that at all or am i just way out of it?

Isn't there a chapter supposed to be in HBP Felix's Folly? Could he be related to that at all or am i just way out of it?

The chapter name is actually Felix Felicis, and I suppose it's within the realm of possibility that Mr. Summberbee is related somehow!

The chapter name is actually Felix Felicis, and I suppose it's within the realm of possibility that Mr. Summberbee is related somehow!
But since they only have the same first name, the probability rate isn't all that high.

But I don't think it's a name. I think it's spell over something.
Felix and Felicicem are 2 forms of the same latin word for "lucky".
I don't think JKR would call one of her characters (one important enough to name a chapter after) "Lucky Lucky".
It seems too...easy.

But I don't think it's a name. I think it's spell over something.
Felix and Felicicem are 2 forms of the same latin word for "lucky".
I don't think JKR would call one of her characters (one important enough to name a chapter after) "Lucky Lucky".
It seems too...easy.
Maybe the person is twice as lucky as normal people :huh: Anyway, this is probably discussed in the thread for the Chapter titles:

HBP Chapter Titles (http://www.cosforums.com/archive/index.php/t-38864.html)

Maybe it was a deliberate mistake that the witch of the month was once again Felix Summerbee?

I definately think it's connected to the title of chapter 14 Felix Felicuis. I would imagine that the inventor of the cheering charm will become very relevant, as it's possibly a very powerful defensive charm against the Dementors, which are now on Voldemort's side. I should think the DADA teacher will be teaching all the students this particular charm.

Don't forget the state Sirius was in when he was arrested. Not unlike Ron's condition after Harry overdid his Cheering Charm in an exam.