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Frequently
This is the ClueMaster's 'help' page. All of the questions here have been asked at some time since
the site was set up in June 1997. If you have a question which is not among these, please feel free
to use the FEEDBACK page to e-mail the ClueMaster. Most
questions are answered on a same-day basis. |
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Why can't I enter the solutions into the grid on screen? |
Many puzzles are not interactive. You
need to print them to solve them. However, crosswords are interactive. This requires special
Java software
to run them that requires your PC to be activated for Java. Make sure that your
PC is set up correctly: in Internet Explorer you'll find it in the Advanced
section of Internet Options.
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What is a crossword? |
A numbered clue is provided. The solution to that clue should be entered into the numbered
grid provided. For example, the solution to 1 Across should be entered into the empty horizontal
squares starting with the square numbered 1. (Not all crosswords start with 1).
The solution to "Down" clues are entered into vertical empty squares commencing with the
square having the same number as the clue.
The number in the parenthesis after the clue indicates the length of the solution word or words. For example the solution word "obvious" might have a clue "Easy to understand (7)". Other types of solution might be two or three words. For example "tip-off" might have the clue "Warning (3-3)" and the solution "prayer beads" could be clued "Rosary (6,5)". As solutions are found and entered into the grid, completed squares will provide further clues to solutions which share the same squares.
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Why are only some puzzles interactive? |
Interactivity was a low priority when we started the site in June 1997 (and the ClueMaster's original website from 1995). We saw the main task as one of getting the puzzles right and getting them onto the web. We do recognize the need for the option and interactive and there are now interactive puzzles on site. Most puzzles are best solved using a pencil on paper, so we still don't see interactivity as a high priority. |
Why only one puzzle per page? |
Puzzles have been designed for printing from the browser and one at a time is the quickest way
to achieve this.
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Where are the WordSearches? |
There is already a small stock of these puzzles in the members' area as of June 1998.
More will be added to the stock from time
to time.
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What program do you use to create the crosswords? |
None of the crosswords are created with a program. We do use software to encode the puzzles
for the Web, but all the clues and solutions are assembled in the time-honoured way: blood,
sweat and tears.
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Why not more Giant 2-way crosswords? |
Mainly because of the amount of effort required in producing these puzzles. The ClueMaster puzzles
are all compiled through human (rather than electronic) creative effort. A 25x25 crossword pattern
requires about 100 clues compared with the 30 or so for a 15x15 crossword, but obviously a 2-Way
puzzle requires twice as many clues. If you want more, you'll have to ask nicely, but we shall be
uploading more of these very popular puzzles from time to time.
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Why only British style crosswords? |
If you knew there was a difference in styles, then you must know quite a lot about crosswords
already. For those who didn't, a word of explanation is necessary: There is a world of difference between the British cryptic crossword and its American cousin. The crossword was an American invention, but we Brits have never understood the American maxim "if it ain't broke don't fix it" and had to come up with our own version of highly structured crossword. This style requires that solutions are real dictionary words and phrases. This might not be the case in the American crossword, where the open style of pattern sometimes requires that the solution might only loosely be described as a word or phrase. Thus it is rare for initials to appear as a solution in a British cryptic, but not so rare in the American style. American crosswords can be cryptic, but the clues are not always strictly 'two part' as is usual in British crosswords. eg, the clue "Henry, Elizabeth and Mary from Stroud" gives the solution "Tudors"—Henry, Elizabeth and Mary were all Tudors and "Stroud" is an anagram of "Tudors". There is no hard rule about the style of crosswords on the site, it's just that we are a UK site and know the British style best. American style crosswords will come if subscribers want them.
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What is a cryptic crossword? |
There can be no one-line solution to this question—indeed it is the subject of complete books.
But, very briefly: unlike the quick clue which requires some general knowledge and a good stock of
synonyms, the cryptic crossword solution is concealed in a short phrase. Clues can
sometimes be extremely obscure and occasionally require specialist knowledge of,
for example, literature and the arts. The solution may be hidden in an anagram, and in a British style
cryptic the anagram may be pointed to by other words in the clue such as 'broken', 'rewritten' or 'smashed'.
It may be that the clue will yield a word which is itself a clue to the final solution. There are no rules on just how difficult the clue should be to solve. The experienced crossword solver will try to get on to the compiler's wavelength and this can certainly help, but at times we all get the feeling that only ESP will help solve some clues.
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Can I download a group of files? |
Yes. An off-line reader is best for sites like these. You can fix just how deep you want the search for files
to go and then let the software do the job for you. Some will even cope with the password problem which will
stop an ordinary browser in its tracks. (That's if you have the proper username and password that the site
requires, of course).
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My password and username don't work. Why not? |
Up to November 2002, free membership required a password and
username. If parts of this website still need this membership confirmation, this checklist
may help if you are having problems accessing a directory.
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Why doesn't my access provider password work here? |
All the major Web search engines list ClueMaster Crosswords and Puzzles, and some of the
major providers, such as AOL will have listings of attractive sites like this. Quite
understandably some surfers have thought that, because ClueMaster is in such a listing, it
is a part of their provider's service. They have attempted to access the ClueMaster
'Members' area using their provider's username and password.
It won't work, of course, and currently the only way that you can gain access is by subscribing to ClueMaster puzzles.
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Who is the ClueMaster? |
The site was founded by Michael Mepham in 1997 following the
success of his personal web site created in 1995. Michael's work can be found in
the UK's Daily Telegraph each week, as he compiles the Giant General Knowledge
crossword each Saturday and its sister puzzle on Monday, the Herculis puzzle.
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Copyright © 1997-2002 ClueMaster Limited. All rights reserved. |
