CROSSWORD EXPRESS
Copyright © 1995-2007 AUS-PC-SOFT

Frequently asked questions.

I have trouble finding the puzzles I've Made. Where are they stored?
You should think of Crossword Express as being a library of dictionaries, with each dictionary stored in a separate folder under the Crossword Express folder. This folder contains not only the actual dictionary, but also all of the puzzles which have been created from it. So, when you want to print or solve a puzzle, you should firstly use the Dictionary button to select the dictionary which was used to make the puzzle in question. Then you can use the Select Puzzle button to select the puzzle.
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How can I prevent a word which has been used to make a puzzle from being used in subsequent puzzles?
The Lockout Words function on the Miscellaneous Functions screen is provided for this purpose. Go to the Miscellaneous Functions screen, and use the Dictionary and Select Puzzle buttons to select the puzzle whose words you want to have excluded from future puzzles. Click the LockoutWords button, and respond to the resulting message box by clicking OK. If more than one clue has been defined for a word, a counter will be stepped on, so that a different clue will be used the next time that word is selected for inclusion in a puzzle. When no more clues are available, the word is locked out, and then cannot be used in subsequent puzzles. Locked out words can be restored to use by means of the Unlock Words function on the Dictionary Maintenance screen.
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Why does the Make operation never finish when making a Classroom Puzzle?
The same question is sometimes asked in connection with the making of Special Interest Puzzles, and the same answer applies in both cases. If you study the Help screens provided for these functions (good advice for any problem you have) you will find that this is perfectly normal behaviour. After the first puzzle has been made and displayed, Crossword Express goes on making a continuous stream of puzzles, looking for a better one than the one currently displayed. It is up to you to decide when the displayed puzzle is satisfactory to your needs, and to click the Stop button to interrupt the process. The puzzle which was displayed at the time Stop was clicked is the one which will have been saved according to the puzzle description you have defined.
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I want to export a Wordsearch puzzle for use in a Word document. The program does not seem to offer the option. How do I do it?
Crossword Express most certainly DOES allow you to export Wordsearch puzzles to the Clipboard for inclusion in Word documents. In fact EVERY type of puzzle made by Crossword Express can be exported in this way, and can then be pasted into virtually all Word Processor and Desk Top Publishing applications.
Proceed as follows:-

  • Go to the WordSearch screen (the one you used to make the puzzle).
  • Use the Dictionary button to select the dictionary you used to make it.
  • Use the Old button to select the puzzle.
  • Click Print the Puzzle.
  • Click Select and select the wordsearch puzzle layout from the list.
  • Click Preview to see how it will look. You can change this layout if you wish... for example you may like to remove the solution from the layout. Help will tell you how to do this.
  • Click Export to place the puzzle into the Clipboard. You will receive a message box informing you that the export has been completed.
  • Start Word and Paste the Clipboard into it.
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How can I save ink when printing a puzzle with lots of black cells?
The Print dialog for each of the Print options available from the Print or Export a Crossword screen has a Print Options button. If you click this button, you will find a number of options which you can set before you issue the command to Print or Export the puzzle. In particular, the Pattern Density option has a default value of 100% which correspons to full black. You can change this in steps of 10% to get varying shades of grey. If you set it to 0%, the pattern cells will not be printed at all, and instead, an offset shadow will be drawn behind the puzzle.
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Why are the clues so huge (or so tiny) when using the SmartPrint function?
When the SmartPrint function formats its output, it draws the puzzle (and optionally, the solution) into the space which you have defined using the controls in the SmartPrint dialog. The clues are drawn into whatever space remains, using the largest font which will allow all of the clues to fit in. Depending on the overall dimensions of the printed output, and the number of clue columns you have specified, the range of clue font sizes actually used could be quite large. The SmartPrint Help button will tell you how to use the adjustments to quickly obtain a font size which will satisfy your requirements. For the ultimate in control over the printing process, the Custom Print function is recommended. However, you will definitely need to read the Custom Print Help before you can make full use of this function.
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Why do the Java applets work perfectly on my hard drive, but not when I upload them to my web server?
There are three known causes for this effect:

Can I exchange Crossword Express puzzles between the Macintosh and Windows versions of the program?
The format of all of the puzzle files used in Crossword Express is EXACTLY the same regardless of whether you are using the Macintosh or the Windows version. (The same applies to Dictionary files and Lattice files). This means that all of these files can be copied freely between the two systems without the need of any kind of conversion process.
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