Prefer GitHub Releases when you want a macOS crossword app you can name on a ticket. The primary asset is XWord-macOS.zip. Extract the app bundle, open it, then load a .puz.
No Homebrew cask was found on this review date. Do not invent one. Keep Windows teammates on XWord-Windows.exe from the same tag when you want one release family across desks.
Steps
- Open XWord releases.
- Download
XWord-macOS.zip. - Extract the zip with Finder or
unzip. - Open the XWord app.
- Use File, Open on a small puzzle and prove clues move with the cursor.
Gatekeeper wording is UNVERIFIED. Safe habits: download safe. First hour: installed.
After install
Write the zip name beside the macOS version on the machine ticket. Prefer the same asset for the next bump. Update path: update uninstall. Formats: formats.
Common mistakes
Dragging a random installer from a search ad. Expecting brew to magically appear. Skipping the first local open. Mixing Package Manager downloads before a .puz works. Keeping mystery USB copies without a Releases URL.
Apple silicon and Intel
Upstream ships a single XWord-macOS.zip on the current tag. Confirm the app launches on your CPU class. If it fails, note the macOS version and file an upstream issue rather than grabbing a renamed portal build.
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.
Related
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.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a Homebrew cask for crossword?
No Homebrew cask was found for XWord on this review date. Prefer XWord-macOS.zip from GitHub Releases and extract the app yourself. Do not invent a brew install line that was never verified on a real Mac.
Where do I download crossword for Mac?
Use GitHub Releases for mrichards42/xword and take XWord-macOS.zip from the same tag that still ships XWord-Windows.exe. Skip rename portals that only rank for crossword keywords and wrap unknown installers.
Does Gatekeeper block XWord?
Gatekeeper wording is UNVERIFIED here. If macOS blocks the first open, prefer returning to the Releases zip you typed yourself instead of downloading a second copy from a random mirror site.