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HW7, I have the 11 letter word but am struggling to make it fit the clue. Latin American?

‘about’ is the anagrind. Usual abbreviations apply to the fodder.

Can’t really say much more without crossing the line...

But on which point, is it just me, or are some posts at risk of getting a little too, ahem, ‘helpful’ for Day 1...?

Not to dismiss the willingness to assist comrades in distress - but surely there’s room between a subtle nudge, and a full-blown answer plus explanation and explicit parsing.

Can’t help feel it’s risking spoiling the fun for people looking for a simple assist over a hurdle, rather than an automatic fast forward to the finish.

Personal opinion only of course.

hw7

We've noticed that answers are posted on facebook each week. Is it permitted to give a link so that people who want help can have it ?

Brendan posted earlier about 10d, and I was already thinking along those lines (harem room is a giveaway,) but does it begin with "g" or "h"? With "h" is what's in my dictionary.

Colin... I'm not a fan of those sites which give all the answers, the final solution etc. People who want 'help' are very welcome here (and elsewhere, I imagine). Simply being told all the answers wouldn't be high on most of the Forum users' wish-list - well, I hope not! I think most of us relish the challenge of a puzzle. The Listener being one of the tougher puzzles means that assistance is sometimes needed. It's hard to get the balance right, of course - one 'gentle hint' might be meaningless to one solver, or might be enough in itself to get the answer for another.

Hotelwhiskey7. I agree with much of what you said in your post. Subtle nudges are good, though sometimes a little more is needed!

HotelWhiskey7. Fully agree with your point about too much information being given too early. We all appreciate the occasional nudge but don’t want the challenge completely removed. Not sure of the answer. Even if the forum only opened, say, 48 hours after a puzzle’s release, or if responses and queries were filtered through an intermediary, another solutions forum would soon spring up on social media. Respondents will just have to be gently reminded to be more discreet as per your timely reminder.

Chambers gives both spellings for 10d

Malone. Perhaps the answer is to further encrypt our responses, via a cunning code produced by Sabre!

Perhaps it would be better to go back to 2 threads then , where one does give answers and the other only hints......although it didn't really work before.....there were still complaints then.