Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

Hey terrencegf, I just realized that the -/+ keys would be even more perfect to use for previous/next clue, so go ahead with your center-key change.

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

Some comments about some of the "suggestions".

Re: handwriting recognition. I also love Graffiti 1, so much so that I hacked my Palm TX to use it instead of Graffiti 2. However, I do not have the time nor the desire to figure it out for the NIT. I bundled xkbd with xword since it was a quick-and-dirty solution. Nothing more. If you don't like it, don't use it (since it is an option), or come up with an alternate xkbd layout or input method that works better.

Re: screen rotation. I have that on my NIT as well, but rarely use it. I would argue that the vast majority of people don't have it installed. I feel that rewriting the code to handle that special case is over-the-top. The original garage maintainer specifically moved the toolbar buttons to the side to give more vertical room for the default layout. It would be easy enough to remove the toolbar buttons completely since those are actually available from the "Puzzle" menu anyway. But it would only help with super-wide puzzles since the 21x21 puzzle I'm testing fits without horizontal scrolling.

Re: displaying the clues. The default "word list layout" is "only puzzle" which gives enough room to fit the puzzle horizontally. The current word's clue is always displayed just above the puzzle. It's not ideal but it is workable.

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

truly? I'll admit to 15-30 minutes on a Friday (or Saturday) on occasion, but otherwise I can usually finish the puzzle during my morning coffee break.

do let me know if you run across one of mine and it gives you fits, now, won't you? ;)

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

A couple other ideas for your next release: Try to show the title of the puzzle and the AcrossLite Notepad (in the preferences box). Both of them often offer valuable clues to a solver. (I am more experienced in the ways of crossword constructors than I am software developers.)

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

The title of the puzzle can be seen when you select "File->Properties..."

I'm not sure about the "Across Lite Notepad". There's certainly no code in the xword python script to read that info from the puzzle file, and I don't have any puzzles with that kind of data, so I wouldn't know what to look for. Do you have some .puz files with Notepad data? If so, do they read okay with the xword python script?

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

I was just trying to figure out if there was a way to get a lot of different .puz files for testing (not quite ready to buy myself a subscription at NY Times i guess) and this worked verrry nicely: http://www.google.com/search?&q=filetype%3Apuz

Thank you google :p

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

heh. yeah, it might not get you the best quality puzzles, necessarily, but it'll get you puzzles. ;)

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

15-20 mins ON A FRIDAY OR SATURAY puzzle? All I can say is YOU SUCK!!! :p hehehehe...

Around here the better half, she is the puzzle vet, me? i've just been at it regularly for a year or so. But, I have become hooked, and in a horrible fashion...I loved watching 'Word Play'. I found it a fun movie/documentary and just amazing how good some folks are at solving puzzles!! i'm happy with a leisurely pace. I use them to reduce stress and have enough other competitive sources. That is the beauty, everyone can work them any way it makes a happy. ;)

and whaddayamean "...do let me know if you run across one of mine and it gives you fits, now, won't you?..." hmmmmm...a clue for us? ;) Ya *wood*nt be one of those sadstic puzzle creators? If so, thanks for contributing to the fun. :D

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

When I first started, I could do the Monday & Tuesday puzzles in under an hour (correctly), finish a Wednesday in about the same time (and correctly about 10% of the time); Thursdays and Fridays were "all day affairs", and I would rarely fill the grid (much less worry about what percentage of the grid was correct!!); Saturdays were skipped altogether, and Sunday puzzles were carted along with me to brunch, the bookstore, etc until I finished them. Anyway, my point being -- after about a year or so, I had improved to the point where I could dash out a Mon or Tue in less than 5 minutes (my personal record, when I was actually keeping track with the AcrossLite timer, is 2:38 for a Tuesday NYT), and the rest of the week saw similar improvements (and I started doing/enjoying the Saturday puzzle, too! ;)).

Moi? A cruciverbalist? ;)

okay, yes... but not one of the sadistic ones. (or, for that matter, one of the particularly prolific ones, either! ...but, there's a few of mine buried in the mix out there)

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

This port is quite terrific!

Just a couple of quick questions.

Does this run really chunky for anyone else besides me?

It takes about a second for the letter to appear after typing one in.

When I first did that vertical keyboard layout, I had it on the left side because Xkbd wouldn't work in full screen mode some time back so that was really the only place to put it.

Also, since I'm right handed like most of us here, the unnatural flexion of the wrist to stay bent while typing on the right side started to become a little painful after awhile.

Anyway, I'm running XWord in full screen mode and I agree that it seems like it would have a better appearance if it went on the right side.

Oh, and terrencegf, that keyboard design is very impressive!

How did you make those image files in .xpm format? I'm very curious as to how you got that done.

Thanks!

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

I'm working on the next release of xword which will be available from the garage for the first time. The original garage maintainer, Brad, came up with a very innovative solution to the keyboard problem before I created the xkbd layout. He used toolbar buttons within the application to input letters. I think this is a pretty clever idea and am thinking of incorporating it (and thus eliminating xkbd). My idea is to replace the current buttons (for "check word", "check puzzle", etc) with letter buttons. Screen real estate would be about the same. I think I can set up a preference menu to have the keyboard on the left or right of the puzzle, and perhaps alternatively show the current buttons left or right, like this.

"Checks on Left" corresponds to the current layout. I think I would keep the timer at the bottom of the keyboard since there's really no other place suitable. And I suppose I could even add a "Keyboard on Bottom" for those people that use the rotated view. Any comments or suggestions on this idea? It will take a bit of research and extra coding so I'd like to make sure that people would like this (instead of xkbd).

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

Oh yeah! It's sloooow. It's a big script and I'm pretty sure the screen updating isn't optimized much. It's even a bear on my old computer at work, so it's not just the NIT.

See my post about possibly putting the keyboard within the program by using toolbar buttons. That would address this issue, but require a lot of research on my part to make it work.

I've done it two different ways. First, I used the netpbm toolkit (a bunch of command line utilities) to transform from .bmp to .xpm using a script I found. But then I realized that Corel PhotoPaint (my paint program of choice) can write .xpm files, so I switched to that method.

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

Okay, thanks Terrence!

Yeah, I wasn't too sure if there was some unnecessary crud running on the tablet that was causing the slowdown.

I appreciate the response!

Well, my suggestion for the layout would be this:

X-Word being run in full screen mode
Maximize the full amount of real estate on the right side of the puzzle
Like start the keyboard flush with the edge of the puzzle all the way to the edge of the screen
I'd also would have three buttons per row instead of just two
That way the size for each of them will be much more friendly and I think it would have a better layout appearance with the direction keys as well.

The only downside on this would be people that are trying to run gianormous puzzles that are bigger than 21x21. Then I don't think that layout would work too well.

Anyway, I look forward to next year when you can figure out how to do the toolbar trick! :D

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

A good place to get a lot of puzzles with the Notepad in use is http://world.std.com/~wij/puzzles/cru/Crypticxxx.puz, where you replace xxx by a number between 1 and 238. These are British-style cryptic puzzles where the Notepad is used to explain how the answer was arrived at by the constructor.

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

Wow, the first one I tried came out pretty weird, xword treats single squares as separate answers, but across lite doesn't. So Cryptic238.puz has 28 numbered squares in across lite, but 124 in xword. All the extra ones are just blank clues, so it ends up working anyway. A side effect of this is that it might make it a little more difficult to get at the notepad data, since without an accurate count xword just treats every string at the end of the file (including the notepad data) as a clue, and then throws away the ones it doesn't use. So it might be hard or it might not.


RE letters on the right: I'm right handed and they don't bother me on the left, but that sounds like a good idea to try.
We might even be able to fit a full qwerty layout on there in full screen mode, with most of the other toolbar buttons eliminated and the rest moved above/below the keyboard.

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

I'm pretty sure Litsoft made some specific changes in the AcrossLite software so that cryptic puzzles would be supported. If all you're trying to add support for, at this time, is viewing of the notepad, you might be better off finding a standard crossword puzzle with a notepad entry.

On another (related) note, I see that the Litsoft home page is bragging about a new (reasonably priced) PDA version. Unfortunately, it runs on Windows Mobile Pocket PC. :/

Maybe they'd be willing to sponsor development of an ARM-based version, so our Nokia tablets can have an "official" AcrossLite binary...

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

That 'new' Mobile PC version is over 2 years old, so they simply don't update their web page very often. I emailed LitSoft as to the availability of Across Lite for arm(el) processors but never heard back. All we can do is continue to email them in hopes that they respond.

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

heh.. I guess that shows how often I visit their web page, huh? ;)

I notice that there's an "official" Linux build there now, too. (The last time I visited, I downloaded a "test" version for Linux.) If the source were available, it's possible that the x86 linux version would compile for ARM in the sandbox... or, maybe we just need to convince somebody there to install the sandbox so that they can create an ARM binary...

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

I know I would appreciate something other than xkbd. Not sure if it's xkbd or just the IT0S08 issue of detecting screen taps, but I get lots of repeated characters, continuous 'scrolling' at times when navigating with the D-pad. If there is a way around this you might talk to Mischa (the dude who wrote FBReader) as he seems to have developed a workaround for the tap detection issue. I have not and likely will not look at the code but he did add an option for the software to detect not the initial tap but rather the release (key-up kinda thing instead of the key-down event). It fixed the whole issue. Also he added a use settable delay before another tap/key-press is detectable.

I mention FBR because there was an issue of the software scrolling through multiple pages, instead of one, on a single key press (D-pad) or screen tap. So maybe his solution could be integrated in xword.

BTW, I don't find xword very slow at all. It seems fine but then again I am a SLOW puzzle guy not someone solving them in a handful of minutes...like SOME PEOPLE AROUND HERE...snickersnicker... ;)

Also, I actually do not mind the keys on the left but it would be much nice if they would be on the right or left. but I use an Avery Triple Click Pencil/Pen/Stylus not the included stylus, Or even better...hehehe...some form of Graffiti type input area set on either the left or right side. While you are at it maybe rewrite xword to also take out the trash, pick up the laundry, do my grocery shopping and throw in the kitchen sink... ;)

And oh yeah, some of us prefer to solve in lower case...I am not sure why I prefer it but I just do...that would be a useful setting too.

OK, I have a, thank the gawds, Monday puzzle to do...I could not handle a Friday or Saturday puzzle after the day I had. ;)

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

Another update... Now at version 1.0.4

I've made so many changes to this program (and UN-made some of those) that I'm not really sure what's what anymore! I'm releasing this version here since I'm still figuring out the garage and how it works. I will eventually put up a proper web page for this project with screen captures and decent documentation (and yes, another release). Feel free to test v.1.0.4 and let me know if you encounter any glaring bugs.

Here's the changes I can remember for this version.

• Replaced xkbd with a built-in keyboard. There's a new Preferences option called "Keyboard Layout". You can select the keyboard on the left/right, the old toolbar buttons on the left/right, or off entirely (which I think may be the default).
• Fixed the bug when you scroll the window to the bottom and click on a cell resulting in the wrong word being selected.
• Decreased the minimum box size so that a 21x21 puzzle can fit full screen.
• Added some funtionality for the hard buttons. Zoom -/+ now does previous/next word. The "go back" button (which is really Escape) invokes "Check Word".
• Clicking on the current "red" cell changes direction (Horiz <-> Vert).

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

The file spec calls for the solved clues to be in upper case so that the comparison (check letter, check word) function can do a simple == comparison. Not difficult, just not "standard".

Then again, I never understood why Litsoft wasted programmer time writing in a pen and pencil option which does nothing other than (slightly) change the color of the "ink"... :shrug:

I do the puzzles for enjoyment, and don't purposefully try to get a "fast time" -- it's just the natural consequence of a quick mind and a typing speed at around 120wpm (this speed can be achieved on an electric typewriter or on any of my desktop PCs; N800 text entry isn't quite so quick, even with a bluetooth keyboard! ;))



terrancegf --

Thanks for the updated update! I'll grab it and get it installed on the tablet this morning...

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

I managed to load up xword once, but now it won't run.

I think I messed it up by accidentally loading a puzzle in palm db format instead of .puz. I assume that xword doesn't run anymore because the program remembers that Palm OS file as the most recent puzzle? If so, can this be cleared out by simply clearing the appropriate file (again I assume it's a file internal to xword and not the original puzzle file itself)?

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

Open an xterm and enter the following commands:
I'm not sure the second "rm" is necessary since the ".crossword.cfg" file holds the pointer to the last opened puzzle.

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

Thanks, it works well now. (Only the first xterm line was necessary...)

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

Thank you everyone for the feedback and especially to Terrence for his code and getting these releases out.
The next thing that needs fixing is to make it load a puzzle automatically when clicking on a .puz file. I think this just means having a correct .desktop and .service file, which I have tried to do, but somehow it still doesn't work for me.

After that I want to have a built-in browser, so when you have a whole bunch of puzzles downloaded, you can select one by title and maybe percentage completed.

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

First of all, thanks VERY much to btb for starting this entire xword project and for coming up with some excellent modifcations!

So you mean like when you use the File Manager to browse a directory and "open" a .puz file? I think that has something to do with associating an extension with a MIME type, but the documentation leaves some important details out (like how to read the new .xml specification file, or even where to put it).

That sounds pretty nice, but a bit out of my hacking ability for right now.

Here are two things I've added for the next release:

• Since there was space in the new keyboard layout, I added two new buttons for "check word" and "solve word".
• For those of us with old eyes, I added a new Preferences option to set the minimum box size between 12 and 40. (In v.1.0.4, it was hardcoded to 20.)

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

Thanks :) It's a lot of fun.

Yes. Also, when you click a .puz from a web page.

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

btb: there is a new post from pipeline, offering this very functionality. :)

see: http://www.internettablettalk.com/fo...ad.php?t=17757

then, just set up the association with the mime type for *.puz files, and we should be golden...

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

Hooray!!! I finally got the garage page figured out. v.1.0.5 can be downloaded from there.

Two changes to the program:

• Added a new Preference menu option to set the minimum box size (between 12 and 40 inclusive).
• Added two new buttons on the keyboard toolbar for "check word" and "solve word".

Also, I made a new thread for the official announcement.

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

whatever dude, just making a joke not being critical. :rolleyes:

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

Hey briand,

Now that I have had some time to look at the xword code, I'm a bit more interested in this "unscramble" feature. I can see in the .puz file the bits that get altered when the puzzle is scrambled, but I don't know anything more. Have you had a chance to search for (and hopefully find) your code for unscrambling the grid?

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

to be honest, i hadn't looked, yet... I will, though... or we can work together to figure it out anew. send me a PM in a couple days, if I haven't sent you one before that.

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

THANK YOU! Just when I thought my N800 couldn't get any better, along comes this delightful little gem!! Good puzzle sources from the Boston Globe at:

http://www.fleetingimage.com/wij/xyzzy/08-bg.html

and the mother lode of links at:

http://www.fleetingimage.com/wij/xyzzy/nyt-links.html

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

Thank you bfleury for those excellent links!

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

Briand,

> to be honest, i hadn't looked, yet... I will, though... or we can work together to
> figure it out anew. send me a PM in a couple days, if I haven't sent you one
> before that.

Any luck on finding that code for unscrambling .puz files?

Gene

Re: Online crossword puzzles?
 

nah... I did search for it, but it's not on (or not any place obvious on) any of the OS disks in the various computers I've had operational since 1995... so, it was probably on my work computer at the time (and I haven't worked there for several years). I'll have to see about re-inventing that wheel when time allows...