1. In my house we have 2 computers, one has the patch for BG2, one doesn't. On the one that doesn't have it, I was in the underdark and Phaere (and everyone for that matter), was ALWAYS "appearing busy". Does the patch fix that?

2. For the second question, who is Volo? I know he's obvioulsy a mage of some power, but who is he?

1. It's a well known bug and a patch fixes that although I'm not certain which.

2. Volo is a mage yes, but I don't think he's that powerful. IIRC he's only a level 5 mage according to the manual to BG1. Anyway, he is a wandering chronicler and author and a well known individual in Faerûn.

It is the official patch that fixes that bug with WinXP.

Well he must be greater than a level 5 now, IIRC he wrote a couple of the 10th level spells in TOB.

Well, like Elminster, the level is only for the game purposes. Elminster and Volo etc are like old adventurers who are very well known across Faerun, like Drizzt, Alustriel etc...

doesnt he just "write" comments under some of the spells?

Yeah, and I thought they were only there for fun, not that Volo or Elminster were 'the authors' of the spell section or something like it...

yeh he does, cos him and elminster keep annoyin each other

You can meet Volo in BG1, I'm not sure about BG2, but I know he's also in ToB. He pretty much writes stories or writes about you and your famous adventuring party ;)

Under the dragon fire (or whatever it is called), the spell that summons a dragon's head to blow fire if you know what I mean, take a look under and you'll see him say that he wrote it after he had hot soup, calimshite fire wine, etc, or something like that.

OFF TOPIC: Where exactly IS Volo in TOB?