This is the crossword puzzle thread

tbh if you have a significant streak you should know better

the gimmick was obvious enough, and so was the fact that the app(s) might be touchy about it

I’m quite new to this, finally gave in & got the sub to do the spelling bee thing & started doing this despite not really getting on with us style xwords previously - I still on the whole find them less satisfying/interesting than uk cryptics but there are moments of inspiration that wouldn’t be possible with the latter, the worst thing tho is that the lack of black squares means that the same answers have to come up over and over again

The relative easiness also makes it dangerously addictive (I’ve done 15 daily puzzles since I joined but 69 total, you can just blast through the archive) and echoing recent posts the existence of “stats” and timing is toxic

One of these days I'm going to take another whack at cryptics, but the learning curve seems pretty steep for a newcomer.

Anyway, I solved today's on Android and had no trouble getting it to accept it, so my streak never felt threatened (lol feeling called out).

I think this is the best possible time to get into US/Canadian cryptics, as they play a bit fairer than UK ones, and you can get 5/6 new ones a week from various publications. There are also a lot of how-to/training guides popping up on both blogs (see https://toughasnails.net/2022/01/01/announcing-the-oneth-of-the-month-mini-cryptic/) and publications (see The Browser, The New Yorker, AVCX, and others). I've been doing one a day for this whole year and it's been very satisfying.

Hard to believe NYT with all of their resources can't figure out how to make an online puzzle with the tiniest of variety elements work. This isn't the first time a gimmick like this has gone wrong. Indie creators have figured out how to make digital versions of acrostics, spirals, marching bands, and other variety types. You would think NYT could at hire them or at least copy their work.

The received wisdom on UK cryptics at least is that they are very specific to the setters - you'll need a month of one setter to really settle in, but it won't help you much with others - is that less the case in the US?

There is some small variance among US setters, but mainly the vocabulary and references of their cryptics are familiar to people who do US Crosswords.

With UK cryptics, the best advice seems to be British. Or, have a desire to learn about British locales, slang, and abbreviations that seem a bit crusty/outdated at times. UK cryptics rarely (if ever) have living people or current events in their clues, but they do go far into the Chambers dictionary to find words like SPATCHCOCK or OTOLITH. I have to be in the mood for the challenge, but it’s a bit of a steep climb to get there.

OTM

The received wisdom on UK cryptics at least is that they are very specific to the setters - you'll need a month of one setter to really settle in, but it won't help you much with others - is that less the case in the US?

I don’t mind the vocabulary hunt at times, and there are definitely some inventive ways of clueing/punning in UK puzzles. Feels like only recently though that the average US solver now knows that cryptics are a thing, and might want to do them. Although that is a bit of speculation on my part.

Just remembered that I started doing cryptics with a Telegraph (?) How To Solve Cryptics I bought at Heathrow. I then kept going with the variety cryptics in Harper’s and the Atlantic and would still try to do UK cryptics on and off for various spells but ultimately didn’t really feel it was worth it for me.

Today’s puzzle I liked

i did too, so i’ll give it a pass for 45D

Ha, yes, exactly.

Hah, and the 45A cross.

Solved it, don’t know how I feel about it. I was on the verge of annoyance at times but overall an enjoyable experience I guess. 32D had me going for a bit, I had something else there for the longest time.

I had two different things in for 28D MARRIAGES and then MATERIALS - not being sure how to spell 34D didn't help

struggled a bit with that middle section (never heard of DEJAGER or HUGUENOT, also had INDIA instead of NEPAL for the longest time) but overall I quite liked it. faster fill than usual for a Saturday even with the hiccups.

easiest sunday ever

Yeah, another record!

can will shortz fit every possible spelling variation of a certain egyptian god into a single week? perhaps

You’re talking about AMONUPDO?

Should have said AMENRA to that.

That's my favorite type of noodles

Lol!

Rejected crosswordese screenname: AMEN UPDO.

So some of the time restrictions for doing a puzzle that counts towards your streak have definitely been relaxed -- I *just* finished Wednesday's and it's showing up as gold.

Were there time restrictions? Didn't know. Oh, day of or something maybe.

I think it matters whether you start the next one.

Like, if it's Thursday morning and I forgot to do Wednesday, I can still do it and get gold... as long as I don't start Thursday until Wednesday is done.

That's how I understand it anyway.

That said, if I ever get too precious about this, please kick me in the groinal region and remind me that it's a voluntary leisure activity that is also basically meaningless. Thxbye

People getting precious about their streak is kind of half the business model for the NYT xword

Addiction through gamification is real, people!

Or is it?

xxp and wordle too! they're playing on peoples' OCD tendencies

I know a lot of people don't do numbers but it's nice that the sudoku isn't like that

I’d say the “cracking the cryptic” sudoku fans can get pretty obsessive/dedicated. The speed solvers at Logic puzzle tournament are pretty incredible, although these events also seems to be accompanied with nerdy endless arguments about things like bifurcation, uniqueness, and if the cognitive load of the solving path is too heavy.

I do love Nikoli-style logic puzzles in general though.

Okay, Sunday 5D made me smile.

easiest Wednesday ever

Streak is now at 365, and I kind of hate myself for caring that much.

Ray Stevens to thread! Or not.

Leee, I also got to 365 recently and had the same ambivalence - simultaneously "yay me" and "who gives a fuck."

Anyway, today’s puzzle…took me a while but I enjoyed, I think.

same, was a fun one! really liked the clue-ing on this

Sunday was a bit of a headfuck, I only figured out the gimmick after I’d ground through the whole thing using crosses.

I saw the gimmick early on but didn’t have much of a reaction to this puzzle pro or con. I started it last night, didn’t feel like bothering and picked up again this morning.

Today's is chewy -- tough but fair, if that's something you enjoy.

And again today. YMMV but I really enjoyed it despite nearly not finishing. Clues were difficult but not arbitrary, and some nice fill too. (It does have glue but I'm more tolerant of it especially if it's balanced it by good fill.)

And if I scared you off, Rex calls both days exceptionally easy, so maybe I'm just obtuse.

I did both. They weren’t particularly hard or easy. More of the medium challenge I am willing to accept these days.

the port authority/fields medal winner cross was rough

Was wondering why I never saw you on the math threads.

Tomorrow’s puzzle seems really boring.

Sez I as I peer into my 🔮