Crossword Help Forum
Forum Rules

Don't be down.

I'm ok Ladies :-)

But what did happen to an entertaining Xword ?

Sorry if it's just me.

Not just you :(

Thanks SJ for that.
Just for the record, I personnally think that you're one of the best on here and one of the top 5 I know from around the globe (never said you was number 5) ;-)
So at that standard, where does that leave the future of attracting newcomers and keeping those whom have a fanatical addiction like myself and yourself interested ?

My point is directed at any of the setters who MUST look in here from time to time.

I am quite new to this forum, but have done crosswords for about 15 years, DT and ST.

I am also far from an expert, and certainly no wordsmith.

But, in my opinion, new solvers need to be shown some of the basics of a cryptic solve, be it spotting an anagram, or why a word in a clue such as Soldiers indicates "Men" or "TA" or "OR", to get them interested.

The mysteries of cryptic puzzles are, to the uninitiated, bewildering, but with a few prompts, can become less so.

Certain setters will for ever annoy, Dean Mayer springs to mind (!), and Ray T in the DT leaves me cold, but if the papers themselves perhaps had a "Guide for beginners", then maybe the random readers in the dentist waiting room might get the bug.

You're welcome.. I'd better not be number 5 ;o)

I agree with what you say (apart from the cocaine bit ;)) especially

//An Xword should be challenging and FUN. Not laborious and droll like you make them now. //

Hello markymark and welcome to the forum :-)

And fair play SJ, Cocaine was a bit strong. Heroine maybe ? :-)

There are plenty of guides to Cryptics, online and in book form - many helped me at the start.


I accept that some weeks there seems to be a dumbing down, but as I do so many or maybe as I'm not clever enough to notice, it doesn't bother me greatly.


I hate a puzzle that seems on the face of it to be an ego trip for the setter - that does grate on me.

I'm with you mamya, and I fully understand that the setters are trying to be unique. But unique is one thing and a reasonable parse of a clue is another.
A few years ago, we would all be darting from thread to thread to answer posing questions from those whom wanted to expand thier knowledge just as I have (the other place taught me so much from some great parsers including yourself). Rather than sit here turning tgi pauls thread into a chat room (opologies Paul)
But it has all slowed to a snails pace. I can only assume that so many have given up and no newcomers are coming through.
I still do my 3 a day minimum, But as I have stated, I now need a dictionary for one, another has become so droll that I don't enjoy it and the third is my warm up tabloid.

Ps. Do you know how silly I look with a hard hat, Hi-Vi, Multimeter and a Dictionary on site :-)

I think we need a pic, shooty ;o)