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Opening A Puzzle © |
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Opening A Puzzle © |
The XWord Crossword Puzzle Application is for the running of crossword puzzles which have been created in the XWord Editor program that accompanies the XWord Application. The puzzle is stored as a database or as a text file.
When you first start XWord it opens with no puzzle loaded, as in Figure 1.
Figure 1: The XWord Application when it is started
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A Splash Window tells you the basic operations and disappears when the mouse is clicked inside the window. You can select the entry for Basic Operation under the Help Menu at any time. For a more detailed explanation of how the program works open the Help File itself.
Puzzles are opened from the File Menu.
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Recently opened puzzle files are listed, showing that the default database extension is .XWD. The default extension for the third item is .DAT, but you can use .TXT or any other extension as the file is in text format. The operation of the puzzle is the same.
When a puzzle is opened the XWord Application opens the Clues Window on the right.
Figure 3: When a puzzle opened the Clues Window appears on the right
Both windows can be resized and moved. When the puzzle is first opened the focus is set on the first puzzle, in this case 1 DOWN. The answer is simply typed into the square that has the focus, shown with GREEN - you can move the focus anywhere in the matrix by selecting the square you want with the mouse.
If the letter you type is correct then it is shown in BLUE, otherwise it is a PINK color.
Figure 4: The puzzle with the answer correctly typed into the matrix
There are various ways of entering the clues. To move to 10 ACROSS when the green square is already on it (from 1 DOWN) simply hit the SPACEBAR. Alternatively you can select 10 ACROSS from the Clues Window and either double-click the mouse or select Answer from the Clues Window Menu. Any of these functions switches the direction and the puzzle to 10 ACROSS. The answer has been entered into the matrix, but two letters have been printed in PINK, showing that they are incorrect, in thus case wrongly ordered.
Figure 5: The answer to 10 ACROSS with two letters printed in PINK to show they are incorrect
The Clues Window can be shown or hidden using the View Menu, as shown in Figure 6.
Figure 6: The View Menu can be used to show or hide the Clues Window, and also to show the Browser Window
When you have opened a puzzle, the buttons in the toolbar are enabled, as shown in Figure 5.
Figure 7: The Toolbar Buttons enabled when a puzzle has been opened
The functions of the Toolbar Buttons are as follows, from left to right:
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