This is primarily a bug-fix patch for 7.00, although there are some new features as well. It should be fairly stable (famous last words!) but as usual give it a few days before starting any major campaigns. I suspect the independence option may be a source of some bugs, given all the possible ramifications involved, so backup before using it.This is a database patch so if you upgrade you will lose your saved game. Don't upgrade if you want to keep playing the same campaign.This patch can only be applied to version 4.2 or later. To apply the patch, unzip the patch file and copy the files as follow:1) Stevefire.mdb and Aurora.exe into the installation directory, overwriting the existing files with the same names2) a11.jpg, b20.jpg and M24.jpg into the Planetjpeg sub-directory (if you don't already have them)3) flag0390.jpg and flag0391.jpg into the Flags sub-directory (if you don't already have them)4) race350.bmp into the Races sub-directory (if you don't already have it) Aurora710.zip (9Mb)Patch notes are at: http://aurora2.pentarch.org/index.php?topic=8130.0 This database in this patch contains a brand new game. No technology or ships have been created. To start a new game, delete this one. My current game is so large now that it is not really suitable for the download.Steve