Today I wanted to mess around with the New York Times crossword puzzle. I’ve heard about it for a long time, and I figured, why not give it a shot?
First thing I did was to pull up the New York Times website. I went straight to their games section, and there it was – the crossword puzzle. They had a new one for today, which was cool. They also had a bunch of old ones in their archive. That’s good to know if I get hooked.
I decided to start with today’s puzzle. It was right there on the main page. So I clicked on it, and the puzzle grid popped up. It looked pretty standard, you know, black and white squares, some with numbers in them.
- Trying out the interface: I started typing in answers, just to see how it works. It was pretty smooth. I could type directly into the squares. I could also switch between across and down clues easily. There were buttons to check my answers, reveal a letter or the whole word if I got stuck, and even an option to clear the puzzle and start over.
- Getting into the puzzle: Once I got the hang of the interface, I started tackling the clues. Some were easy, some were pretty tough. I found myself thinking a lot, trying to remember trivia, word meanings, and all that stuff.
- Using some help features: I’m not going to lie, I did use the “reveal letter” option a few times when I was really stumped. It felt a little like cheating, but hey, I’m still learning. I made a mental note to try and rely on it less next time.
- Finishing (or not finishing) the puzzle: I didn’t finish the whole thing today. It was harder than I expected! But I did get a good chunk of it done. It felt good to see those words filling up the grid.
I ended up spending a good hour on it. I had to stop because, you know, life got in the way. But I’m definitely going back to it. Maybe tomorrow. It’s a nice way to challenge your brain, you know? Plus, they put up a new one every day, so I won’t run out of puzzles anytime soon.
Overall, it was a fun experience. The New York Times crossword is definitely a classic for a reason. It’s well-made, challenging, and kind of addictive. I can see myself making this a regular thing. I also browsed around for some printable crossword puzzles online. I found a ton! It’s great to have options. I might print some out for when I’m on the go.
Also I found some online typing lesson, I need to practice my type. I’m a little slow. Anyway, this crossword thing is pretty neat. I’m glad I finally tried it. Also thank my friend Haley, I tried because of her recommendation.
I will try another day to resolve more puzzles.