Comments on: Guardian 24639 / Brummie

By: mhl

mhl — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 16:24:52 +0000

Sandra C: It’s good to hear that you found this post and the discussion useful There’s a link to the “discussions policy” at the top of the page, which basically suggests that people try to limit their comments on particular puzzles to things that relate to those clues and keep more general discussion to one of the threads in the “Chat Room” category.

Incidentally, if you want to get the crossword earlier then you can find it online at midnight GMT each day on the Guardian’s crossword site, but only if you search for puzzles in the current month (or a puzzle of the right serial number)…

By: sandra c

sandra c — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 15:26:01 +0000

I missed the fact that there was a theme, altogether, until I looked at this page.
I enjoyed the crossword though, with very few complaints. Never used this site before, although I do the Guardian crossword every day – one day late as I am not in the UK – but where do I find the rules for submissions?
Thanks
Sandra

By: Derek P

Derek P — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 13:20:05 +0000

My doubt about SSSI is that I had assumed a convention that all solutions should be pronouncable words (having never come across an example quite like this before) rather than simple initialisms.

By: mhl

mhl — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 13:15:24 +0000

Mark: I’m sorry to hear you didn’t enjoy this one. In 13 across “around” is the anagram indicator – there’s no double-duty going on.

With regard to SSSI, such acronyms do come up in the Azed, where the rule is that if they’re in Chambers it’s OK. (e.g. there has been IMHO in the past, which I rather enjoyed.) That seems to be a reasonable convention to me, but I guess you’d have to ask Hugh Stephenson if he has a consistent policy is on them. I can’t find a reference to this issue in the archives of his email newsletter.

By: smutchin

smutchin — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 12:46:12 +0000

I’m afraid I just don’t understand the complaints about SSSI. The definition is perhaps a little on the vague side but the answer is quite gettable from the clue, and it’s a “standard” abbreviation in wide use. If the complaint is that it’s too obscure, maybe some of you need to get out more – ie try any activity that involves having to look at an OS map!

As for the enumeration, I guess it’s just convention that it’s given as (4) rather than (1,1,1,1) – cf recent discussions about enumerating words with apostrophes and so on.

By: mark

mark — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 11:57:09 +0000

Hated it and with the answers I hate it even more.

SSSI – so now we can any abreviations the setter likes?!?

13A – presumably then “work” has to give us “GO” and indiscate the following anagram – is that ‘allowed’/convention?

1D – I agree with others, if it’s an obscure word then don’t make the getting there vague!
11A – obscure via obscure.

Off to kick the cat

By: Paul B

Paul B — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 01:20:23 +0000

Failing to notice something is not quite the same as it being hidden away. Nor was there an awful lot of ‘working out’ to do, since it was, as I say, simply there for all to see.

SSSI is an abbreviation. Are there different kinds?

Climsiness here and there, but a pretty nice puzzle.

By: liz

liz — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 23:36:34 +0000

Geoff, I did know what SSSI meant — tho thanks for pointing it out! — just didn’t think that kind of abbreviation was permissable. It isn’t as Stiofain says an acronym.

Agree that these hidden themes give an extra spice, not that I spotted this one, of course!

By: Tyro

Tyro — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 23:24:33 +0000

I don’t think you’ll find Buttons in Perrault, but, fair enough, your domain and I understand that implied criticisms aren’t permitted here, so I’ll move on.

By: stiofain_x

stiofain_x — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 22:23:38 +0000

A great puzzle, letting the solver work out the theme seems to be becoming a trademark of Brummie I enjoy these so much more than the “6 definitions are of a kind” type as the moment of realisatiion is like finding a Nina.
SSSI was a bugbear for me too.
Although i liked it when i worked it out NO 10 was unfair as it was in a clue to an obscure word it would have been fine in a clue for a more common word.
stiofain