Publish your own Fill-In puzzles on the WWW.

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

Publish your own interactive FILLIN puzzles on the Internet.

Registered owners of Crossword Express can publish their own Fillin Puzzles interactively on the Internet using the Crossword Express Fillin Applet. With the release of Version 7.7 of the Crossword Express program, this has become a very simple process which makes use of an Export as Applet function within the program.
The steps involved in preparing a puzzle for publication on the Internet are as follows:-
- Make sure that the copy of Crossword Express you are using is at version 7.7 or later. If this doesn't apply in your case then please complete a free upgrade of your installation by visiting:-
  - www.crauswords.com/windows.html for Windows users.
  - www.crauswords.com/applemac.html for Macintosh users.
- Start the Crossword Express program, and select Miscellaneous Functions from the Control Panel screen.
- Use the Select Dictionary button to select the dictionary which you know was used to construct the puzzle which you want to implement as an applet.
- Use the Select Puzzle button to select the puzzle you require.
- Click the Export as Applet button.
- Click the Export as Fillin Applet button to complete the process.
When you have completed these steps, you will find that inside your Crossword Express folder, there is a sub-folder called java, and inside this folder there is a total of three files as follows:-
- A single .cwe file. This is the file which contains the actual puzzle which you have selected for interactive publication.
- The file fillin.class This is the Java program file which creates the interactive environment in which the puzzle will operate.
- The file puzzle.html This is the file which starts the interactive process. Double clicking on the icon of this file will start your web browser with your puzzle displayed and ready for interactive operation in a test environment.
All that is now required to publish the puzzle on the Internet is to upload the three files onto your web server, and to provide a link from one of your existsing web pages to the puzzle.html file. If the exported puzzle performs correctly when operated locally on your hard drive, but fails to do so after loading onto your web server, it will probably be caused by one of the factors discussed in Frequently asked Questions.
You should find the puzzle perfectly acceptable exactly as it is exported by Crossword Express. You can however make changes to the appearance and behaviour of the applet using a system of param statements located within the puzzle.html file. There is a very comprehensive selection of params the use of which is explained in the following. Simply click on any param name in the following index for a complete description of that param and how to use it.

INDEX OF FILLIN APPLET PARAMETERS.
actcell /applet applet average bgcolor bgpic bordercolor buttoncolor buttonfontsz buttontext casesensitive cellid choiceloc code contestn correctn drawborder encoding errcell errletter	errorloc errors errorsidle errorsover errorsdown focuscell focusletter focusword font graphicpanel graphloc gridline height help helpidle helpover helpdown helpheader helploc helpn	helpok helpokidle helpokover helpokdown helpokloc idfontsz include infocolor infotext1 infotext2 keysound letters moreloc morepuzzles morepuzzlesidle morepuzzlesover morepuzzlesdown morepuzurl msgfontsz mybanner	noerror nonotes nopeek notes notesidle notesover notesdown notesloc patcell peek peekidle peekover peekdown peekloc puzzleloc puzzlen puzzlepanel rewardgraphic rewardmsg rewardsound	save saveidle saveover savedown saveloc savemsg savesound saveurl shadowbox style submit submitidle submitover submitdown submitloc time timedisploc timelabloc titlefont titlefontsize	titleloc titlen titlepanel titletext tmcolor tmlabel tmlabeltext tmtext unusedword use3D usedword warning width wordfont wordfontsz wordloc wordstyle wordpanel

<applet code="fillin.class" width=700 height=350>

The width and height values may be changed if you want a bigger or smaller puzzle in your web page. Depending on the values you select, you may need to rearrange the locations of the components of the Applet, using the various loc parameters.

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<H1>WARNING!</H1>
You must use a Java enabled browser to solve these puzzles.
<hr>

These three lines provide a brief announcement for the benefit of people who are using a browser which is not able to process Applets. Feel free to change the wording of this message but please do not remove it.

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<param name="encoding"      value="Cp037">

The characters used by this Java applet are stored according to the standard international character set called Unicode. When characters are being read from the .cwe puzzle file, they must be translated into Unicode from whatever encoding was in use when the puzzle was constructed. If you are confident that the only people who will be solving your puzzles will be using a computer whose default language is the same as your own, then you can safely omit this parameter. Otherwise, you can select the value for this parameter from the following list:-
Cp037 USA, Canada, Netherlands, Portugal, Brazil, Australia
Cp285 IBM United Kingdom, Ireland
Cp1250 Windows Eastern European
Cp1251 Windows Cyrillic
Cp1252 Windows Latin-1
Cp1253 Windows Greek
Cp1254 Windows Turkish
Cp1255 Windows Hebrew
Cp1256 Windows Arabic
This is only a partial list, and many more codes are available. If you believe you need something which is not on this list, please contact support@crauswords.com with details of your requirements.

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<param name="include"       value="false">

Any, or most of the params contained within the <applet> tag may be placed instead into a file called fillin.ini which is uploaded into the server folder that also contains the fillin.class file. This parameter tells the applet whether or not it should attempt to load the fillin.ini file. Normally, you can choose not to use the include parameter at all, because the Applet will attempt to read fillin.ini by default. However, some web servers generate an error message if an attempt is made to read a file which doesn't exist, so if you are not using the fillin.ini file, it is a good idea to use this parameter, and to set its value to false. Naturally, the include parameter must be placed in the <applet> tag rather than in the fillin.ini file.

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<param name="bgcolor"       value="E9EDDE">

The "bgcolor" parameter may be set to any color which contrasts nicely with the background color of your web page. You can even use the same color as your web page if you like, in which case the elements of the puzzle display will appear to be floating in your web page content. If you make full use of the loc parameters you can arrange for the entire Applet to be covered with the components of the puzzle, so that the background color won't even be seen at all.

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<param name="buttoncolor"   value="00C0C0">

You are able to control the color of the buttons by setting the value of the "buttoncolor" parameter. The buttons will be drawn in a 3D style but you may need to experiment with this, as the 3D effect is more pronounced on some colors than on others.

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<param name="buttontext"    value="000000">

You can control the color of the text displayed on the buttons by means of the "buttontext" parameter.

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<param name="titlepanel"    value="D0E0C0">
<param name="titletext"     value="C04000">

Use these parameters to control the color of the panel on which the puzzle title is displayed, and the color of the text.

<param name="titlefont"     value="Monospaced">

The "titlefont" parameter allows you to specify the font which will be used to display the puzzle title in the title panel. There are three choices available to you, viz. "Serif", "SansSerif" and "Monospaced". (Note that the upper case letters in this parameter are required).

<param name="titlefontsize" value="40">

Use this parameter to specify the size of the font to be used for the puzzle title. If the puzzle title will not fit into the space you have allowed for it, a smaller font will be substituted.

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<param name="graphicpanel"  value="E9EDDE">

Use this parameter to control the color of the panel on which graphic banner is displayed.

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<param name="puzzlepanel"   value="E9EDDE">

Using this parameter you can control the color of the panel on which the actual puzzle is drawn.

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<param name="wordpanel"     value="E9EDDE">

Using this parameter you can set the color of the panel in which the list of words is displayed.

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<param name="usedword"      value="A0A0A0">
<param name="unusedword"    value="000000">

When the Applet is first displayed, the words in the list will be rendered in the color specified by unusedword. As each word is inserted into the puzzle, its color is changed to that indicated by usedword.

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<param name="infocolor"     value="E9EDDE">
<param name="infotext1"     value="C00000">
<param name="infotext2"     value="0000C0">

The infocolor parameter controls the background color of the Help window, and the windows which appear when a complete solution has been entered for the puzzle.
The infotext1 and infotext2 parameters control the colors of the opening lines of the Help and Puzzle Complete windows.

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<param name="focusword"     value="FFFFA0">
<param name="focuscell"     value="FF0000">
<param name="focusletter"   value="FFFF00">

The background color of the focus word and the focus cell, and the color of the text in the focus cell can be controlled by these three parameters.

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<param name="errcell"       value="C0C0C0">
<param name="errletter"     value="FF0000">

When the "Show Errors" button is clicked all cells in the puzzle which have the incorrect letter inserted will be highlighted. The two parameters above allow you to control the foreground and background colors of the error highlight.

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<param name="tmcolor"       value="C0C0C0">
<param name="tmtext"        value="00A000">
<param name="tmlabel"       value="FFC000">
<param name="tmlabeltext"   value="A00000">

Use these parameters to control the color of the panel on which the elapsed time is displayed, the color of the text of that display, the color of the label panel associated with it, and the color of the text on the label panel.

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<param name="patcell"       value="808080">
<param name="actcell"       value="C0C0C0">
<param name="gridline"      value="0000FF">
<param name="use3D"         value="true">

Use these color definitions to control the color of the pattern cells, the active cells and the grid lines which define the cells. Use the use3D parameter to have the puzzles cells drawn in a striking three dimensional mode. If you use the 3D effect, you should be aware of the following:-

The gridline color is not required, and if included will not be used.
The 3D effect is more pronounced on some colors than others, so you may want to do some experimenting here.
Use of the 3D effect is not compatible with the Bar and Tunnel cells.
The 3D effect is compatible with the shadowbox option, and some very striking effects can be achieved by mixing these options.

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<param name="drawborder"    value="true">
<param name="bordercolor"   value="00FF00">

Include these two lines if you would like a 2 pixel wide border to be drawn around the outside of the applet. The color of the border is given by the parameter "bordercolor". If you make good use of the loc parameters which control the size and locations of Applet components, you will probably want to cover the entire area of tha Applet with the components, and there will be no need to use this option.

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<param name="font"          value="Serif">
<param name="style"         value="plain">

The "font" parameter allows you to specify the font which will be used when solving the puzzle. There are three choices available to you, viz. "Serif", "SansSerif" and "Monospaced". (Note that the upper case letters in this parameter are required). You can also control the style of the font by setting the "style" parameter to one of the four values "plain", "bold", "italic" or "bolditalic".

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<param name="wordfont"      value="Serif">
<param name="wordstyle"     value="plain">

The "wordfont" parameter allows you to specify the font which will be used to display the list of words which are to be found in the puzzle. There are three choices available to you, viz. "Serif", "SansSerif" and "Monospaced". (Note that the upper case letters in this parameter are required). You can also control the style of the font by setting the "wordstyle" parameter to one of the four values "plain", "bold", "italic" or "bolditalic".

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<param name="wordfontsz"    value="35">

When the Applet is drawing the list of words, it will try to use a font having the size specified here. If it finds that the words will not fit into the space allowed for the word panel, it will reduce the font size until the words do fit.

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<param name="buttonfontsz"  value="35">
<param name="msgfontsz"     value="35">

The size of the fonts used in displaying the text used in the applet can be controlled by means of these two parameters. To derive the number to use for "value", imagine the applet being sliced into 1,000 horizontal strips. The number you use represents the number of horizontal strips spanned by a character of the font. If you omit these parameters, the applet will select a default size for the font which will be satisfactory in the majority of cases.

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<param name="idfontsz"      value="35">

This parameter controls the size of the font used in displaying the cell ID numbers. The number you enter here is interpreted as a percentage of the height of a single cell. Suitable vales will be in the range of 35 to 50%. If you omit this parameter, the applet will select a default size of 50%.

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<param name="peek"          value="Peek 1 letter">
<param name="peekidle"      value="peekidle.gif">
<param name="peekover"      value="peekover.gif">
<param name="peekdown"      value="peekdown.gif">

The peek parameter is used to set the text attached to the Peek button, and the location of this button is set by the peekloc parameter.

As an alternative to having the applet draw the button you can prepare a set of three graphic files (.gif or .jpg) which the applet will use to represent the button when it is in each of the states, idle, mouse-over and down. The peekidle, peekover and peekdown parameters are used to inform the applet of the names of these files.

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<param name="errors"          value="Show Errors">
<param name="errorsidle"      value="errorsidle.gif">
<param name="errorsover"      value="errorsover.gif">
<param name="errorsdown"      value="errorsdown.gif">

The errors parameter is used to set the text attached to the Show Errors button, and the location of this button is set by the errorloc parameter.

As an alternative to having the applet draw the button you can prepare a set of three graphic files (.gif or .jpg) which the applet will use to represent the button when it is in each of the states, idle, mouse-over and down. The errorsidle, errorsover and errorsdown parameters are used to inform the applet of the names of these files.

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<param name="help"          value="Help">
<param name="helpidle"      value="helpidle.gif">
<param name="helpover"      value="helpover.gif">
<param name="helpdown"      value="helpdown.gif">

The help parameter is used to set the text attached to the Help button, and the location of this button is set by the helploc parameter.

As an alternative to having the applet draw the button you can prepare a set of three graphic files (.gif or .jpg) which the applet will use to represent the button when it is in each of the states, idle, mouse-over and down. The helpidle, helpover and helpdown parameters are used to inform the applet of the names of these files.

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<param name="helpok"          value="OK">
<param name="helpokidle"      value="helpokidle.gif">
<param name="helpokover"      value="helpokover.gif">
<param name="helpokdown"      value="helpokdown.gif">

The helpok parameter is used to set the text attached to the OK button, and the location of this button is set by the helpokloc parameter.

As an alternative to having the applet draw the button you can prepare a set of three graphic files (.gif or .jpg) which the applet will use to represent the button when it is in each of the states, idle, mouse-over and down. The helpokidle, helpokover and helpokdown parameters are used to inform the applet of the names of these files.

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<param name="submit"          value="Submit">
<param name="submitidle"      value="submitidle.gif">
<param name="submitover"      value="submitover.gif">
<param name="submitdown"      value="submitdown.gif">

The submit parameter is used to set the text attached to the Submit button, and the location of this button is set by the submitloc parameter.

As an alternative to having the applet draw the button you can prepare a set of three graphic files (.gif or .jpg) which the applet will use to represent the button when it is in each of the states, idle, mouse-over and down. The submitidle, submitover and submitdown parameters are used to inform the applet of the names of these files.

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<param name="notes"          value="Notes">
<param name="notesidle"      value="notesidle.gif">
<param name="notesover"      value="notesover.gif">
<param name="notesdown"      value="notesdown.gif">

The notes parameter is used to set the text attached to the Notes button, and the location of this button is set by the notesloc parameter.

As an alternative to having the applet draw the button you can prepare a set of three graphic files (.gif or .jpg) which the applet will use to represent the button when it is in each of the states, idle, mouse-over and down. The notesidle, notesover and notesdown parameters are used to inform the applet of the names of these files.

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<param name="save"          value="Save">
<param name="saveidle"      value="saveidle.gif">
<param name="saveover"      value="saveover.gif">
<param name="savedown"      value="savedown.gif">
<param name="saveurl"       value="http://www.crauswords.com/cgi-bin/cwe.cgi">
<param name="savesound"     value="magic.au">
<param name="savemsg"       value="Puzzle Saved.">

Want to allow your visitors to save the work they have done so far, so that they can return later and continue from where they left off? To set up this feature it is necessary to take the following three steps:-

Use of the "saveloc" parameter to specify that a save button is to be included. The solver will click this button to save the solution so far in a cookie. This information will be placed back into the puzzle the next time the solver accesses it.
Use the "save" parameter to specify the text to be placed into the save button. As an alternative to having the applet draw the button you can prepare a set of three graphic files (.gif or .jpg) which the applet will use to represent the button when it is in each of the states, idle, mouse-over and down. The saveidle, saveover and savedown parameters are used to inform the applet of the names of these files.
A copy of the cgi script (cwe.cgi) which is responsible for saving the partial solution is included in the download .zip file. This file needs to be uploaded to your web server along with the applet and puzzle files. The saveurl parameter is then used to inform the applet just where the cgi script is located. Before taking any action in this direction you will generally need to talk to your ISP to ensure that you are authorised to run cgi scripts on your account.

There are also two optional steps you may choose to take:-

The "savesound" parameter allows you to nominate a .au sound file which will be played when the save button is clicked, thereby informing the solver that the save request has been processed.
You can also provide an advisory message to the solver that the puzzle has been saved by including the savemsg parameter.

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<param name="morepuzzles"      value="More Puzzles">
<param name="morepuzzlesidle"  value="morepuzzlesidle.gif">
<param name="morepuzzlesover"  value="morepuzzlesover.gif">
<param name="morepuzzlesdown"  value="morepuzzlesdown.gif">
<param name="morepuzurl"       value="http://www.anyoldpage.com">

One of the features you may choose to use is the "morepuzzles" function. It provides your applet with an additional button which, when clicked, causes the browser to link to a new page in a new window. You provide the address of this page using the "morepuzurl" parameter. Use this feature in any way which you find to be useful. If you don't want this button, you can use the moreloc parameter to ensure that it does not appear.

As an alternative to having the applet draw the button you can prepare a set of three graphic files (.gif or .jpg) which the applet will use to represent the button when it is in each of the states, idle, mouse-over and down. The morepuzzlesidle, morepuzzlesover and morepuzzlesdown parameters are used to inform the applet of the names of these files.

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<param name="time"          value="Time">

This is the parameter which contains the text which is displayed adjacent to the elapsed time display on the Applet.

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<param name="letters"       value="letters.">

This is the parameter which contains the text for the word length headings. You can use letters or numbers as appropriate, or you can use it to configure the applet for languages other than English.

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<param name="nopeek"        value="Sorry...Peeking at the solution is not allowed on this puzzle.">

If you create your puzzles with the Peek feature disabled, this fact will be recognized by the Applet, and the message which you supply with the "nopeek" parameter will be displayed to the solver if they should attempt to use the Peek button. Naturally you would use this option on any puzzle which was to be part of a competition. Alternatively, you can use the peekloc parameter to ensure that the Peek button doesn't appear at all.

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<param name="noerror"       value="Sorry...The display of errors has been disabled on this puzzle.">

If you create your puzzles with the Show Errors function disabled, this fact will be recognized by the Applet which will prevent the display of errors. The message which you supply with the "noerror" parameter will be displayed to any solver who tries to use the "Show Errors" function. Naturally you would use this option on any puzzle which was to be part of a competition. Alternatively, you can use the errorloc parameter to ensure that the Show Errors button doesn't appear at all.

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<param name="nonotes"       value="No notes have been defined for this puzzle.">

Use this parameter to supply the text which will be displayed to the solver if the NOTES button is clicked, but the current puzzle does not contain any puzzle notes.

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<param name="keysound"      value="typekey.au">

If you include this parameter, the sound associated with the .au file will be played each time a character is typed into the puzzle.

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<param name="mybanner"      value="mybanner.gif">
<param name="bgpic"         value="mybg.jpg">

The "mybanner" parameter provides you with an opportunity to customise the Applet by including your own banner in the display. Set value equal to the name of your .gif or .jpg file. The .gif or .jpg file containing your banner must be loaded onto your web server in the same directory as your .class file.

You can also place a graphic image in the background behind the actual puzzle by making use of the "bgpic" parameter. This will really only be of use when you are publishing a Classroom style puzzle, and have turned the shadowbox option on.

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<param name="average"       value="true">

If the mybanner graphic (and any other graphics you may elect to use in the applet) does not exactly fit into their target spaces, a simple scaling process is automatically used to make it fit. This may result in a jagged appearance for objects within the image. Using an "average" parameter set to true will force an averaging process to be used during scaling, and the jagged effects will be removed. Be aware that this will substantially slow down the operation of the applet each time a graphic is displayed for the first time. It is a much better idea to create your graphic images to fit exactly into the available spaces.

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<param name="cellid"        value="false">

Cell ID numbers are included in the puzzle display as the default condition. You can turn off this behaviour by including a "cellid" parameter, and setting the value to "false".

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<param name="shadowbox"     value="true">

Normally the Applet presents puzzles in the traditional way with the pattern cells rendered in black. Setting the shadowbox parameter to true results in the pattern cells not being drawn at all, while the active cells appear to cast a shadow, which provides a pleasant 3D effect.

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<param name="casesensitive" value="true">

Under default conditions, the applet will convert input characters to upper case. If you would like to over-ride this behaviour and always have the character displayed exactly as input by the user, you can do so by setting the value equal to "true".

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<param name="title1"        value="A puzzle with hot-links and graphic clues">
<param name="puzzle1"       value="demo.cwe">

For each puzzle which you want the applet to handle, you should include a pair of param statements. The numeral added to "title" and "puzzle" must start at one and increase by one (no gaps please) for each new puzzle. You can include as few as one puzzle, or as many as you like. The values associated with the "title" params are the names of the puzzles as they appear in the drop down list above the puzzle and in the title panel, and the values associated with the "puzzle" params are the actual names of the puzzle files.

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<param name="helpheader"    value="How to use this program.">
<param name="help1"         value="Solve the puzzle by typing the listed words into">
<param name="help2"         value="the lattice. Any characters you type will be">
<param name="help3"         value="placed into the puzzle at the red 'focus' cell.">
<param name="help4"         value="The focus cell will then move on to the next letter">
<param name="help5"         value="in the word indicated by the yellow highlight.">
<param name="help6"         value="-">
<param name="help7"         value="The focus can be shifted by pointing and clicking">
<param name="help8"         value="with the mouse, or by means of the arrow keys.">
<param name="help9"         value="Clicking the focus cell will change the">
<param name="help10"        value="highlighted word between ACROSS and DOWN">
<param name="help11"        value="without changing the position of the focus.">
<param name="help12"        value="-">
<param name="help13"        value="A number of other Fill-In puzzles are">
<param name="help14"        value="available for you to solve. Choose the">
<param name="help15"        value="one you want by using the selection box">
<param name="help16"        value="immediately below the buttons.">

This set of parameters allows the Help information to be translated into any language you wish. Please observe the following rules when making changes here:
1. You need not use all 16 lines of Help, but numbering MUST start from 1 and continue upward without any omissions.
2. Limit the length of each line of text to fit in the space available on the Applet.
3. Any line which contains only a single printable character (other than a space) will print as a blank line. Use this fact to break your Help text into paragraphs.

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A note on Crossword Puzzle solving competitions.
Setting up an on-line crossword puzzle solving competition is a simple process involving these three steps:

Any puzzle can be marked for inclusion in a contest by appending the URL of a Submit web page to the end of the Notes for that puzzle. The URL must be separated from the Notes by a single space, and must be of the form http://www.submitURL.com The simplest method of including this URL is to use the Save As function of the Manual Construction screen of the Crossword Express program.

If you add two different URLs to the end of the puzzle Notes, then correct solutions will be submitted to the first of these URLs, while incorrect solutions will be submitted to the second one. Exactly one space should be used to separate the two URLs.
Include the following line in your list of parameters:
```
<param name="submitmode"    value="code">
```
Three different values can be applied to this parameter, and these will lead to three different modes of operation when a solver has completed a puzzle solution as follows:-
- "simple"
  In this case, you should also include the following set of six parameters:-
```
  <param name="contest1"    value="Your solution code is ">
  <param name="contest2"    value="Here you can insert up to five lines of">
  <param name="contest3"    value="instructions to successful solvers.">
  <param name="contest4"    value="You should tell them to make a note of">
  <param name="contest5"    value="the solution code so that they can type">
  <param name="contest6"    value="it into the submit page which you provide.">
```
  The text which you provide here will be presented to any solver who has entered a complete (though not necessarily correct) solution to a contest puzzle. It will appear in the area normally occupied by the optional graphic banner, so you should make sure that you do provide for a banner in these cases. A number having a maximum of six digits will be appended to the first line before it is displayed, and the value of this number will indicate whether or not the puzzle has been solved correctly. You can find out what this number will be for a correct solution by selecting the puzzle into the Miscellaneous Functions screen of the Crossword Express Compiler program. From version 5.0 onwards, this value will be displayed as the Validation Code. The solver will also be presented with a submit button which, when clicked, will lead them to the submit page which is displayed in a new browser window.
- "code"
  You will need to write a different set of "contest1" to "contest6" params to act as instructions to the solver. In this case the submit button and the instructions are displayed, but the solution code is not appended to the first line of the instructions. Instead, a string of the form:-
  ?code=solution code&time=solution time
  is appended to the URL which you provide, and is transmitted to your submit page as part of the HTML header. The solution time is simply a decimal number indicating the time taken by the solver to complete the solution. Note that transmitting data in this way requires a single ? character between the address part of the URL, and the appended data, and this ? character is automatically provided by the applet. A submit button will be presented to the solver in the usual way, and clicking this button will display the submit page in a new browser window.
- "solution"
  Once again, you will need to write a different set of "contest1" to "contest6" params to act as instructions to the solver. The solution code plays no part in this submit mode at all. Instead, a string of the form:-
  ?solution=solution string&time=solution time
  is appended to the URL which you provide, and is transmitted to your submit page as part of the HTML header. The solution string consists of exactly one character for each cell of the puzzle, presented in row order. The character will simply be the character entered into that cell by the solver, or if the cell does not contain a letter (pattern cell) then a single * character will be used as a place holder. Note that transmitting data in this way requires a single ? character between the address part of the URL, and the appended data, and this ? character is automatically provided by the applet. A submit button will be presented to the solver in the usual way, and clicking this button will display the submit page in a new browser window.
It is your responsibility to create the page which handles the submit operation. In the "simple" case, it could be as simple as a single mailto HTML tag which the solver uses to compose an email containing the relevant information. If you use the "code" or "solution" mode, you will need to use some scripting to extract the solution code or the puzzle solution from the HTML header, and you will probably want to set up a form to receive the solvers name and address details.
If you want the last word in simplicity in setting up your online contest, you can arrange for an email to be sent to you when the solver has entered a complete (though not necessarily correct) solution, and this email will contain a complete image of the solvers attempt, along with the time taken to complete the puzzle. The steps involved here are as follows:-
- Set the submitmode parameter to solution. The simple and code values have no role when using email submissions, and must not be used.
- Add the URL to the end of the Puzzle Notes as described above. The URL to be used must be of the form
  mailto:youraddress@yourdomain.com?subject=Crossword competition entry
  The sections shown in red can be varied to suit your own requirements. If you wish, you can enter two mailto: items separated by a single space. If you do this, then correct entries will be forwarded to the email address included in the first mailto: while incorrect entries will be forwarded to the email address in the second mailto:.

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<param name="correct1"      value="CONGRATULATIONS!">
<param name="correct2"      value="Your solution is correct.">
<param name="correct3"      value="Why not select another puzzle">
<param name="correct4"      value="from the choice box above?">

This is where you can control the text which is presented to a successful solver of a puzzle which is not part of a contest. Once again, please follow the same rules which applied in the case of Help.

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<param name="rewardgraphic" value="reward.jpg">
<param name="rewardsound"   value="reward.au">
<param name="rewardmsg" value="Well done!">

As an alternative to displaying a simple text message to a successful solver, you can instead use the rewardgraphic parameter to specify the name of a .jpg graphic file which will be displayed to the solver. Optional additions to this display are the inclusion of a .au sound file using the rewardsound parameter and a brief text message using the rewardmsg parameter.

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A note on setting Applet component locations.

The size and location of all of the major components of the Applet may be controlled by the webmaster using the parameters referred to in this section. The value which sets the size and location of a given component consists of a string of exactly twelve digits which is to be viewed as four three digit numbers joined together. These four numbers represent the "top", "left", "bottom" and "right" coordinates of the component. To derive the values of these numbers, imagine the area of the Applet being divided into 1,000 vertical columns (numbered 000 to 999) and 1,000 horizontal rows (also numbered 000 to 999). The components of the Applet are superimposed on this coordinate system and the required numbers can easily be calculated.

<param name="titleloc"      value="000 000 096 999">
<param name="peekloc"       value="096 000 170 167">
<param name="errorloc"      value="096 167 170 333">
<param name="moreloc"       value="000 333 000 500">
<param name="saveloc"       value="096 333 170 500">
<param name="helploc"       value="170 417 260 500">
<param name="notesloc"      value="065 167 065 275">
<param name="helpokloc"     value="840 695 905 805">
<param name="submitloc"     value="840 695 905 805">
<param name="timelabloc"    value="065 358 130 425">
<param name="timedisploc"   value="065 425 065 500">
<param name="graphloc"      value="260 000 520 500">
<param name="choiceloc"     value="170 000 260 417">
<param name="puzzleloc"     value="096 500 999 999">
<param name="wordloc"       value="520 000 999 500">

You may wish to omit some of these components. This can be achieved by setting the value to "000 000 000 000".

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</applet>

This line terminates the applet HTML tag.

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In its present form, the Applet will handle puzzles up to a size of 40x40 which should be more than adequate. Exceeding this limit will cause serious problems.
Any puzzle which is to be used in a contest situation should be created with the Scramble option turned on. This can be done before the puzzle is created by turning on the Scramble checkbox which is part of the Puzzle Description dialog box. Alternatively, you can scramble an existing puzzle by using the Save As button which can be found on the Manual Construction screen of the Crossword Express compiler program.
Good luck with your interactive FillIn puzzles. If you would like to enhance your web site even further, why not investigate the other great Crossword Express applets. They will all become available to you at no extra charge when you register the Pro version of Crossword Express. Find out all you need to know about Registering Crossword Express and about the great benefits you will receive when you do.

How to Register Crossword Express.
Register on-Line using PayPal.
Return to the Crossword Express Home Page.