Today I return to the subject of magic and mayhem created by bloggers, those online readers of the Register who take the time to offer comments in response to articles, editorials and letters in the Register — and of course to the comments posted by other bloggers on the same subjects.

As of Sept. 1, we have increased the level of accountability on our blogs by requiring commentators to register with us — providing their name, address, e-mail address and other information, although that information will not be posted on the Web. We are also requiring bloggers to agree to a more stringent set of rules before their comments will be posted.

The new rules are more closely aligned with our standards for letters to the editor printed in the newspaper.

The reason is responsibility, both of the Register and bloggers. Anyone familiar with the blogs — and I speak to people every week who have found them to be addictive — knows that some commentators cross the line from fair comment to unfair attack or nasty remark.

Those of us who monitor the blogs as part of our daily tasks do our best to keep those comments out, striking the sometime uneasy balance of providing the most open forum possible for contributors while blocking the libelous, the crude, the offensive, the hate-tainted, the just plain inappropriate.

Unfortunately, writers commonly enter the forbidden zone. Even more unfortunately, we have occasionally let some inappropriate comments appear on our Web pages, despite our efforts at vigilance.

Readers, leaders, subjects of articles, their family members, even workers in our own organization have asked us to do more to raise the bar when it comes to civil discourse. So we’re employing these new tools to do that.

Those who merely want to read the blogs and surf our pages need not register. Those who want to comment must register and agree to play by the rules.

As before, when and if writers step out of bounds, we will be able to block their comments. But now we will have additional information allowing us to contact them, remind them of the house rules and take the action we deem appropriate to create a positive, civil online conversation about the news of the day.

Commentators can still have online handles such as “Braves Fan,” “Napa Native,” “American Patriot” or “Liberal and Proud of It.” However, bloggers cannot be able to change these handles from comment to comment, as they can now, so choose your name wisely.

Perhaps the wisest name is your own, as comments shielded by even lively noms de net strike readers as less credible than those in a person’s true name.

For those who post comments on our Web sites, we thank you. We hope you will continue to surprise, inform and opine on our Web pages. We’re taking steps that we believe will improve the atmosphere.