Minecraft Beta 1.6! (And Beyond!)

Okay, looks like we're pretty late.

Minecraft Beta 1.6, 1.6.1, 1.6.2, 1.6.3, 1.6.4 were ALL released on the same day, which was the 26th of May, 2011! (2 days ago) Looks like Notch and his team had a busy day!

What's new in Beta 1.6?

Tall Grass and Dead Shrubs!
  Firstly, Tall Grass and Dead Shrubs have been added into the game! (Not really exciting.) But what really changes is that you cannot obtain wheat seeds by tilling grass blocks with hoes anymore. However, the advantage to this is that you can obtain seeds by just giving tall grass a whack with your fist! (or any other tool, for that matter.) And Dead Shrubs are completely useless! (big whoop.) They spawn in desert biomes, on sand blocks. They look just like saplings without the leaves.

Dead Shrubs.

Tall Grass.

Speedier Booster Tracks!

  Booster Tracks! Before this update, many of us noticed that the booster tracks were not as fast (or efficient) as the player-designed double minecart boosters before. Well, now Notch has increased the boosting speed of the booster tracks! (Speed limits. Notch, you're setting a bad example.)

Mushroom Spores!

  Mushrooms now spread slowly! (Minecraft Wiki: On average, once every two hours) When I first saw this update, the first thing that came to my mind was to set up a mushroom farm to make a healthier alternative (more protein!) to Bread. The problem is, the mushrooms spread really slowly, like I mentioned above. So if you are keen on starting a mushroom farm, you're going to need a lot of time.

Maps!
  In a previous post about the upcoming addition to Minecraft 1.6, Notch has mentioned adding maps. Maps really are useful, in case you lose your way back home. Here's how to craft a map:

  When you use a map, a new map GUI does NOT open, but instead, the map is held in your hands. To view the map, all you have to do is to look downwards at the map while holding it. When walking and holding the map, the map does block a wee bit of your view. Maps are filled out as you explore the area around the place where you first crafted the map. 

A complete map.

A freshly crafted map.

A word of caution, though, don't use maps when there's an angry creeper around you.

Trapdoors!

  Basically doors, but only one block large and they are doors which cover holes in the ground. 'Nuff said.

A trapdoor.

Interesting Bugs in Minecraft 1.6!

EXPLODING BEDS!

  A cheap alternative to TNT in the Nether! Occurs when you try to sleep in a bed in the Nether.

SHIPWRECKS!

  Submerged boats no longer float to the surface!

Wait! Minecraft 1.6.5 has just been released?

 Yes, it was updated just a couple hours ago! Nothing new has been added, only bug fixes from the previous versions.

Visit the Minecraft Version History page here!

Happy Mining!