Timer and check tools change how a crossword session feels. Prove them on a throwaway copy of a Monday grid before you touch a puzzle you care about finishing clean.
Timer
Start the timer when you want race conditions. Stop it when life interrupts. Timed practice is optional for casual desks and useful for clubs that run contests with shared rules.
Check letter and word
Check letter confirms one square. Check word confirms the active entry. Both beat revealing the whole grid when you only need a nudge on a stubborn crossword clue.
Reveal
Reveal is the spoil path. Use it deliberately. Save a copy first if you might want to retry clean without the answers already filled.
Preferences
Solving preferences control behaviour around checking and navigation. Style preferences control colors. Change one category at a time. Docs: preferences.
Tournament training
Upstream notes options to hide completion alerts. That helps when you want quiet practice. Confirm the toggle in your build after install from Releases for mrichards42/xword.
Shared desk pin
Shared desks should pin the Releases URL beside the OS version. After every reimage, prove one local crossword open before workshops begin. Travel laptops should download once on a trusted network, then solve offline with puzzles already on disk.
Club download discipline
Club volunteers invent Softonic mirrors when a first launch is blocked. Prefer returning to GitHub Releases for mrichards42/xword instead. Write the exact filename on the machine ticket so the next bump stays honest for the whole room.
Classroom images
Classroom images drift when someone keeps a private copy of an old exe. Prefer the current tag that still ships XWord-Windows.exe and XWord-macOS.zip together. Linux builders should document their wxWidgets version beside the commit they built.
Family PCs
Family PCs benefit from a boring puzzle folder path. Keep Across Lite or a browser board as a fallback until the new window feels normal. Subscription newspaper apps remain optional for archives and are a different job than a local .puz client.
Publisher note
Across Bind publishes install maps for people who searched for crossword software. Upstream XWord remains GPL-3.0. When Releases change asset names, re-check the live list before you refresh a lab image.
Lab and travel
Lab and travel notes also matter for crossword habits. Pin the puzzle folder path beside the installer name. After every blocked SmartScreen or Gatekeeper prompt, return to the same GitHub Releases URL instead of inventing a second download mid-session. That boring rhythm keeps shared desks honest.
Desk logistics
- Ticket line: OS, asset name, puzzle folder
- Demo door: one official path for volunteers
- Travel rule: trusted network first
Write the OS version, asset name, and puzzle folder on one ticket line. Clubs should assign a single demo door so volunteers stop mixing Across Lite, browser tabs, and XWord without notes. Travel kits should carry puzzles on disk only when policy allows encrypted storage.
After the first week
Only then add Package Manager downloaders, heavy layout floating, or diagramless drills. Prefer one documented update habit. Re-check Releases whenever upstream publishes a new tag that still lists your OS asset.
Related
More desk notes
Prefer one Releases bookmark in the browser profile used for installs. Refuse email attachments that claim to be a crossword updater. After every lab reimage, open one cached .puz before you call the image ready for students. Keep Across Lite only as a labeled fallback, never as a silent second installer path without a ticket note.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the timer?
XWord includes a timer for timed solves. Start it when you want practice conditions. Stop it when you pause. Exact menu labels are covered in the upstream Solution and window documentation for the client.
What should I check first?
Prefer check letter or check word before reveal grid. That habit spoils less of a crossword when you only need a nudge on one square or one entry during practice.
Can I hide completion alerts?
Upstream changelog notes options to hide percent complete and completion alerts for tournament-style training sessions. Confirm the preference location in your installed build after you install the client from GitHub Releases.