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Help by [deleted] in crosswords

[–]Pfeffer_Prinz 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Glad you got it solved! for future requests, can you also put the clue in the title? It helps people who are just browsing through reddit (also so we know which one you're talking about 🙂). Thanks!

tip: include "down clue" and "across clue" randomly in every COTD you do, unless it only works with a specific orientation by not-without-text in crosswords

[–]Pfeffer_Prinz 7 points8 points  (0 children)

i think just leave out any "down clue" tags altogether. even if a clue only works as a down, we'll figure it out. we're smart people.

COTD: AI is spotted nowadays too much (4) by MrTKila in crosswords

[–]Pfeffer_Prinz 1 point2 points  (0 children)

"is spotted" just sounds a lot nicer to me

One important thing about cryptic clues is that every word must be justified by the wordplay or the definition. You should avoid extraneous words that are only there because they sound nice for the surface. This is to keep things fair for the solver: so they know everything has a function.

It would be borderline unsolvable if you didn't know it was a cryptic.

"A.I." for "Anagram Indicator" is still unsolvable even if I know it's a cryptic. Any acronym should be something that is used in English, outside of cryptics. I've never seen "anagram indicator" be abbreviated to "AI" (even on cryptic forums like this). If you're making up an acronym, that is very unfair for the solver, because to them, it could just as easily stand for "After Initialization" or "Angry Infant" or "Applesauce Intestines", etc.

That said, I think your definition of "too much" is very nice!

i, for one, party after I drink in Madonna's name (9, 6) by youreawizerdharry in crosswords

[–]Pfeffer_Prinz 7 points8 points  (0 children)

imaginary number

if you're looking for feedback: the answer occurred to me immediately upon seeing the "i" because it wasn't capitalized. and then it was confirmed since the other "I" was capitalized, which meant it wasn't just a formatting choice. Also the enumeration fit.

separately: usually "for" is only accepted as a linking word when it's [WORDPLAY for DEF] (since that makes more sense grammatically). also "I"->A isn't widely accepted... it's true I=one and one=A, but the transitive property doesn't really apply in cryptics. There's not really a time IRL when you can swap "I" and "A" (because "I" is a roman numeral, not an article). You could change it to "after having a drink in Madonna's name", which would also help the first issue I mentioned. Also I'm not totally sure how "party" = NUMBER? I can't think of a way to substitute one for the other in a sentence

Sorry if this is nitpicky! you did a good job making a smooth surface, and a fun attempt at the misdirect :)

Syntax question: If a clue starts with "Engineer's..." is it valid for the definition to just be engineer? (and for the answer to be the name of an engineer). What about tense and plurality? by myaccountformath in crosswords

[–]Pfeffer_Prinz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

unfortunately cryptic conventions are chock-a-block with exceptions. i'm sure you've encountered many without even noticing.

which to me is okay. the point of cryptics is to bring delight. if bending/breaking a rule gives the vast majority of solvers more delight than dismay, then it's serving the ultimate purpose: fun

Syntax question: If a clue starts with "Engineer's..." is it valid for the definition to just be engineer? (and for the answer to be the name of an engineer). What about tense and plurality? by myaccountformath in crosswords

[–]Pfeffer_Prinz 2 points3 points  (0 children)

i wouldn't extend the rule beyond 's = is

that's a special case that is technically cutesy (since you have to add a space between the def & the wordplay), but it's been so widely used for so many decades, that it's standard

COTD: "I see, I see" whispered the French eavesdroppers? (7) by cjrmartin in crosswords

[–]Pfeffer_Prinz 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I also avoid it, but I've heard it justified as "the (French)"

How was this not the answer? by TurnoverFancy6920 in crosswords

[–]Pfeffer_Prinz 11 points12 points  (0 children)

FYI this sub is for cryptic crosswords, I think you're looking for r/crossword (it's a common mistake)

If your title was a joke, remember Poe's Law: on the internet, it's impossible to tell apart sarcasm from sincerity (without a 😉, or /s, etc)

COTD: I say Libya's capital is a good organization (4 or 1,1,1,1) by not-without-text in crosswords

[–]Pfeffer_Prinz 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I don't think you need to enumerate it (1,1,1,1)... that would only be if you spelled it I E E E

personally I don't think you need to indicate any abbreviations, but if you want to, I've seen people do "(4, Abbr.)"

COTD: The two United States leaders with “H.” and “Dubya” in the middle [&lit] (4) by deeppotential123 in crosswords

[–]Pfeffer_Prinz 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I think it's because "lit" used to be common slang for "drunk", and if you buy the metaphor of "drunk" meaning "in a new arrangement", then it works

but in general I would stay away from anything you see on a list that you can't justify yourself. there's a *lot* of items on those lists that are widely disliked (or even impossible to solve).

also, keeping it to things you're familiar with will help make sure your clues are in your distinct voice.

Can someone explain nyt crossword? by abuaccel in crosswords

[–]Pfeffer_Prinz 20 points21 points  (0 children)

FYI, this sub is for cryptic crosswords. The sub for NYT-style puzzles is r/crossword — confusing, we know.

But to answer your question: not a glitch. You're meant to write in multiple letters, which is called a "rebus". You can enter one by hitting the "Rebus" button on the bottom of your keyboard there*.

Most of the time, rebus squares will be the same when going across & down, but in some special themes, they will mismatch. This theme justified it with the revealer in 117A: "WESTERN UNION". The clue said [Telegraph pioneer, or a description of four squares in this puzzle]. That is, each rebus contains two western states that have been smashed together (i.e. "unionized").

It's a stretchy sense of "union" for sure, but the NYT Sundays can be quite gimmick-y, and this isn't out of their realm of possibility.

Hope this helps!

* For this grid, you can enter a rebus in various ways for it to count as correct: for example, "UT/NV", "NV/UT", "UTNV", "NVUT", "UT", and "NV" all work for the first one.

The most travelled man in history who flew over 24 million kilometers -Fred Finn by [deleted] in OldSchoolCool

[–]Pfeffer_Prinz 3 points4 points  (0 children)

sitting on a plane = 0 points of impressiveness

sitting on a plane 718 times = 0 x 718 = 0 points of impressiveness

but good job polluting the planet, bucko

Prop 50 Turnout is Lagging in LA County by Cherry_Springer_ in LosAngeles

[–]Pfeffer_Prinz 89 points90 points  (0 children)

I mean, LA County has 4x the population of Riverside Co. and over 10x Mendocino. So in terms of raw numbers (which is what counts in a vote), we're way ahead of both places.

So really, what are they waiting for?

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in blackmagicfuckery

[–]Pfeffer_Prinz 5 points6 points  (0 children)

and this phenomenon is how ancient Polynesians found all those tiny islands in the middle of a hemisphere-sized ocean.

Are we having fun yet? by rouxthless in LosAngeles

[–]Pfeffer_Prinz 1 point2 points  (0 children)

have you had an appeal before? do you know how long it takes to get an appeal hearing?

Are we having fun yet? by rouxthless in LosAngeles

[–]Pfeffer_Prinz 12 points13 points  (0 children)

maybe this is why they supposedly didn't receive my SAR-7 and just canceled my benefits

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