OT: dilemma re: crossword puzzles

[Ken Robb]

I skip the NYT Sunday puzzle because it's too big and takes too long. In my youth as a recent college grad in NYC we had a gang that would do the Sunday puzzle as a group project/competition over coffee and bagels and pastries.

This is the first I have heard of a MINI NYT Puzzle. It doesn't run in The San Diego Union with the big version.

[Ken Robb]

The Thursday version can be frustrating since they are usually "gimmick" puzzles and if you don't figure the gimmick/theme early on you may be stumped.

[OtayBW]

Originally Posted by Ken Robb

The Thursday version can be frustrating since they are usually "gimmick" puzzles and if you don't figure the gimmick/theme early on you may be stumped.

Gimmicks - or themes - are OK, as long as they're not some esoteric nonsense known only to the illuminati....

[Louis]

Originally Posted by Ken Robb

I do NYT Crosswords but can't understand why SUDOKU is so popular. But I have always been a "word" person with little to no interest in numbers and I'm sure SUDOKU fans must find crossword people a little crazy.

Ken, Sudoku isn't really numbers, but logic and deduction.

The numbers could just as well be replaced by symbols or letters and still work, but with symbols it would be harder because numbers are so ingrained in our brain.

[e-RICHIE]

I did the end of year LARGE puzzle in the Sunday NYT, got the clue answered correctly, emailed the newspaper to get into the lottery of folks who did the full puzzle AND sent in the correct answer, but didn’t get chosen to win $1,000.

[AngryScientist]

picked up the paper on the way home.

working on the Monday edition now!

[Ken Robb]

Originally Posted by Louis

Ken, Sudoku isn't really numbers, but logic and deduction.

The numbers could just as well be replaced by symbols or letters and still work, but with symbols it would be harder because numbers are so ingrained in our brain.

HMMM, maybe I'll take another look at Sudoku to see what I have been missing.

[wc1934]

Originally Posted by Ken Robb

I skip the NYT Sunday puzzle because it's too big and takes too long. In my youth as a recent college grad in NYC we had a gang that would do the Sunday puzzle as a group project/competition over coffee and bagels and pastries.

This is the first I have heard of a MINI NYT Puzzle. It doesn't run in The San Diego Union with the big version.

NY Times online. Quasi puzzle. Very small - about 10 clues and can be solved in under 3 minutes. But it does get you thinking.

[merlinmurph]

My wife is a word person - crosswords, Scrabble, Jumble, Acrostic - you name it. First thing she does when she wakes up is go online and start the NYT crossword. After that, Scrabble. She'll do Sudoku, too, and play against the app in Evil (hardest) mode.

There is a mindset for crosswords that you learn, I've seen, especially with the theme puzzles that have long, tricky/punnish/wordplay answers. My wife eats it up. The most I can handle is the mini.

Waste of time? I don't think so. Mental stimulation is important, and if you enjoy it, that's great.

[tab123]

i'm seriously addicted to crossword puzzles. NYT, WaPo Sundays, The New Yorker (Monday and Friday), the Saturday Stumper (hardest puzzle of them all), WSJ, American Values Puzzle, the Fireball. And there are many more. I'm no speed demon (just like cycling!), but I am much faster than I used to be.

And I love the feeling of satisfaction of setting down a hard Saturday puzzle and figuring out the last few answers during a bike ride! The word play in contemporary puzzles makes them a delightful diversion.

[Tony T]

Originally Posted by Ken Robb

This is the first I have heard of a MINI NYT Puzzle. It doesn't run in The San Diego Union with the big version.

I Use the NYT Crossword App.
The Daily Mini is free
The next day’s is avail at 10pm the night before (just did tomorrow’s in 1:04 )

[tab123]

The Atlantic runs a free mini puzzle during the week. The puzzles get longer and more challenging as the week progresses.

https://www.theatlantic.com/free-dai...ssword-puzzle/

[fiamme red]

I used to do the NYT crossword every day at work. At first I could barely get a few clues on the Thursday and Friday puzzles, but after a while I was able to finish them, but they were always challenging, especially Friday's. I would start a Friday puzzle during lunch, and whatever was left over I'd do in the afternoon during lulls at work. If you can't figure out part of the puzzle at first, look at it again later.

True, it's not the best use of time, but it's a good diversion when you want to take your mind off work for a few minutes.

[nalax]

Today's NYT Mini took 48 seconds.

[rwsaunders]

I fly fairly often for work so I do Xword puzzles while I’m waiting for planes to board and taxi and the NYT Sunday edition when I’m on a Sunday evening, cross country flight. The puzzles help to make the most mundane part of flying go pretty fast and it distracts me from paying attention to the legions of passengers who bang you with their backpacks as they pass you in the aisle.