omg... how long have I waited for such an update? Let's face it: FFXI is NOT made for casual players, and, unfortunately, that's what I am most of the time. Often, I have to give up playing or looking for party because my parents keep calling me to do stuff around the house, or because dad needs the computer most of the night, and I'm left with only 20-30 minutes before going to bed. And when you have so little time you definitely cannot seek for a party. The most you can do are simple quests or farming, but farming bores me after a bit, so I usually end up just sitting in my mog-house or not playing at all. Which saddens me, cause I truly love this game.
I must say though that SE should have come up with something like that long before, cause even if FFXI revolves around partying, a lot of people don't always have the time or feel like being in a party all the time. They did an awesome thing with the Level Sync system, and I hope this will be quite exciting as well :)
Fields of Valor