Hello and welcome to the Help File of Blind Crossword 3D, wonderful creation of Sam Twidale and Mahomed Khatri of The University of York. This computer program enables a totally blind crossword solver independent access to our 3D crosswords. Sam and Mahomed have worked very hard so that we can have some fun.
The program will read the clues that you select. Unfortunately you still have to work out the answers! (smile) As you type in your solutions, the program remembers the letters and their positions in the grid. When you select a clue for an affected solution the program reads the clue and gives the letters you have in the partial solution. If you have some vision you will be able to tackle the puzzles with your eyes closed!
There are numerous 3D competition crossword puzzles loaded on the program, one prize puzzle for each month of a year. Each annual series of 3D crosswords forms a 3D Crosswords World Championship.
It would be marvellous if the next 3D Crosswords World Champion was a blind solver? You can print your solution and send it to me at PO Box 4823 Coventry CV6 9FN before the end of each month.
We are very keen to receive feedback on the use of this program. We are interested in developing it further. I would love to hear from you by post at the address above or by email at: ericwestbrook@btinternet.com
BBC Radio Four presenter, Peter White, issued a challenge in 2008 on the In Touch programme to provide the means for a blind person to be able to solve our 3D crosswords. This was met for conventional 2D crosswords by the Spoonbill Software Blind Gamers Crossword Puzzle program written by Ian Humphreys of Albany, Western Australia. Now Sam and Mahomed have solved the problem for 3D crosswords. But come on! Let’s get solving!
Good luck and best wishes,
Eric Westbrook
Registered Blind RNIB Member & Volunteer
3D Crossword Creator
JCR Chairman, Alcuin College, University of York 1970
You can hit H to open this help manual at any time with the program in focus. For a separate, more detailed quick start tutorial, press G with the program in focus to open the tutorial page. For a fast and minimal introduction, follow the instructions below:
This is a reference list of controls, with brief descriptions. The controls are divided into management controls and gameplay controls. You will probably find yourself using the gameplay controls often when solving a puzzle. The management controls will be useful for configuring the program outside of solving the crossword.
With the program running, you can hit L to open the list of crossword files. Use the up and down arrow keys to move through the list of files. When you have the found your selected crossword, hit Return or Enter to load the file. Once the file is loaded, you can move onto immediately solving it. Alternatively, before loading the file you can hit Escape to close the loading dialog, and continue to use the program.
You can hit L at any time to re-open the list of crossword files. Remember that if you want to save (see below) your progress on an existing open crossword, you must do so before loading a new crossword.
You can hit S to save the currently open crossword. The crossword file is automatically saved with the title of the current crossword. If a crossword file of the same name already exists, then the crossword is saved using the crossword title followed by an underscore followed by a number.
You can use the arrow keys to navigate the clues table. The table has the following columns:
The voice will read out details of clues as you go navigate through the table. You can use the left and right arrow keys to read different columns of the clues table.
It is possible to sort clues. Tapping Key 1 will sort clues by the day they appear on, and the alphabetical order of the clues.
It is possible to filter clues. Tapping Key 2 repeatedly will filter clues using various criteria - such as the clue's grid direction, whether they have been started (i.e. contain letters), or whether they are unstarted.
Whilst navigating the clues list, you can hit Return or Enter to start entering an answer.
Type your guess in. Hit Enter to submit your guess. If you are unsure of all the letters, you may use the spacebar to leave a blank letter before proceeding to the next. For example, entering an answer such as T space space E D would enter letters into slots one, four and five, while leaving slots two and three blank (containing dots).
If you make a mistake when entering an answer, then the program will tell you the problem. You can hit Return or Enter to try again and enter another guess.
You can erase or delete a guess by hitting Backspace or Delete.
If the crossword you are solving contains a set of answers, then you may validate your clues by selecting the desired clue and pressing V. If there are any incorrect letters in the guess, they will be removed from the guess.
If a full set of answers for a puzzle is available to the program, then you can get an overall grade/mark for your guesses by pressing M.
Currently blind users cannot navigate the graphical grid. However, users with some sight can view the grid. It is possible to view the grid on its own by repeatedly pressing the apostrophe (') key.
The grid can be zoomed by scrolling your mouse wheel over the grid. If you do not have a scroll wheel, tapping the + (Plus) and - (Minus) keys can achieve the same effect.
You can move around the graphical grid view by left clicking and dragging your mouse across the view.
To print your answers, press P. This will bring up a dialog which you must work with using your screen reader, in order to confirm that you wish to print. The printed document will include a list containing your answers and the Calendar Puzzles mailing address.
To email your answers, press E. This will open up an email in your default mail program. It will be addressed to Calendar Puzzles and will contain a list that includes your answers.
You can download completed crosswords and new crosswords from the CalendarPuzzles website. The website is accessible here:
http://www.calendarpuzzles.co.uk/
Once you have downloaded a crossword file, you must move it into the Crosswords folder which is itself inside the Blind Crossword 3D folder. Once you have done this, you can open the load crossword dialog (reopen it if it was open to begin with) in the program - you will find that the downloaded crossword file has appeared in the list.
This software uses Microsoft SAPI computer-generated voices. Voices are not built into the game, and can be changed through the Windows Control Panel.
Question #1 - Some words are pronounced incorrectly by the voice. How can I work around this?
Answer #1 - Unfortunately the quality of the pronunciation depends on the SAPI voice that is being used. You can press J to cycle between different types of reading. You can also press Keys I and O to read a clue you are having difficulty with word by word.
Question #2 - How do I change the program's voice?
Answer #2 - See the Voices section
Question #3 - I cannot do these difficult cryptic crosswords. How can I find easier ones?
Answer #3 - See the Obtaining Crosswords section
To contact us with general feedback or comments, you can send a feedback email through the program. Alternatively, you can email Calendar Puzzles at:
ericwestbrook@btinternet.com
To get in touch with the developer for this project, email:
samcodesit@gmail.com
If you would like to get the source code of the program, or are a programmer interested in adding to Blind Crossword 3D, you can view the code repository online here and find details on getting started:
https://github.com/Tw1ddle/Blind-Crossword-3D
Blind Crossword 3D is free software licensed under the GNU General Public License Version 3.
This software was originally developed by Samuel Twidale and tested by Mahomed Khatri at the University of York, UK. This software could not have been produced were it not for excellent advice and support from Eric Westbrook.
THIS IS THE END OF THE HELP MANUAL.