Crossword Puzzle: You Think You Already Know

Okay, so you have answered a crossword puzzle (whether it is with or without any reference), but can truly say that you know important facts about the world’s most brilliant and played word puzzle? 

Crossword puzzle has been around for decades.  It has developed enthusiasts and haters alike, haters for those who were unable to finish one.  According to some survey done recently, there are approximately 40 million people in the United States who answered the crossword puzzles daily. 

Let check some amazing facts about crossword puzzles.

• Crossword puzzle creators are called “cruciverbalists”.  Creating crosswords is called cruciverbalism. It came from the Latin word for cross and word.  This term is rarely used, most of the times crossword creators are referred to as constructors.  Outside the United States, crossword creators are also called setters or compliers.

• Word square puzzles were found in the ruins of Herculaneum in Pompeii.  This can be said as the oldest “ancestor” of crossword puzzles. In these puzzles, the words appear vertically and horizontally.  This is often referred to as the Sator word square.

•  Arthur Wynne of England is the first creator of a crossword puzzle.  It was first published in 1913.

• The first published crossword puzzle appeared in The New York World.

• The first crossword puzzle book was published and released by Simon & Schuster in 1920s.  this signalled the craze over crossword puzzle.

• The first editor of the published crossword puzzle book was Margaret Petherbridge.  When she got married, she was better known as Margaret Farrar.

• Because of the heights of the popularity of crossword puzzles in 1920s, there was a musical played on Broadway called Puzzles of 1925.  The play was set in a crossword sanitarium.

• According to Publishers Weekly, during the 1920s there were 2 schools of puzzle solution.  The first one are those who armed themselves with dictionaries, gazetteers and Latin phrase books.  The second school is for those “who’d rather die in flames than consult a book.”

• Dell is the longest running crossword magazine in the United States since it was founded in 1931.  It is still available in news stands until now.

• Crossword enthusiasts did not just settle with a musical, they asked for more. There was a music sheet inspired y a crossword puzzle in 1935.  The sheet music showed a couple doing a crossword puzzle.  It was called “Cross Words Between Sweetie and Me.”

• France banned the use of crossword during the Second World War for the fear that messages can reach the enemy through the puzzles.  Actually, in 1944 there was a commotion in England when some telegraph solvers believed that some clues in a crossword puzzle were used to tip the Germans about military plans.

• The New York Times published its first crossword in 1930.  The New York Times initially show disgust with the crossword craze.  They said that it was only a temporary madness and will only last until the end of the 1920s.  That did not happen and eventually they released their own first Sunday crossword puzzle.

• The Japanese have their own crossword version called monogram but it does involve any word clues.

• The Guinness Book of Records say that the largest crossword is 7’X7’ in size, 91,000 squares and 28,000 clues. The largest published crossword puzzle has 3,185 clues across and 3,149 clues down. Robert M. Stilgenbauer, the creator, took 11 years of spare time to finish it.

• The fasted completion time of a New York Times crossword puzzle was set by Stanley Newman in 1996.  He finished in within 2 minutes and 14 seconds. Completion of the London Times crossword lasted for 3 minutes and 45 seconds.  It was set by Roy Dean on 1970. 

And you thought you knew everything about crossword puzzles. Happy puzzling

The Online Role Playing Game

Massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) is a computer role-playing game where a large number of players meet and play with each other in a virtual world. Richard Garriott coined the term MMORPG. He is the creator of Ultima Online, the game which popularized MMORPG.

As in most role-playing games, players take roles in a fictional fantasy world. In the virtual world, the player takes control of the character and his abilities. In every game there are different characters with different traits and abilities. Most MMORPG characters are categorized into melee, ranged, and magic users. Players have the option to choose from these variety characters to match their personality with the avatar. MMORPG’s Difference From The Average Computer Role Playing game MMORPG can be distinguished from normal computer role-playing games by the number of players and the virtual world where the game is situated. While single-player computer role playing games is limited to one player, MMORPG can host thousands of players at a time.

Another difference between the two is the world that surrounds the game. Computer role-playing games are situated in a setting which is repetitive and constant. Each time the player plays the game, the same event is repeated since the game was programmed that way. On the other hand, the MMORPG’s environment continues to evolve whether the player is online or away from the game.

Cost of Online Role-Playing Games

Since MMORPG has become very popular over the world, revenues have risen dramatically over the years to keep up with the demand of online gamers world wide. As of 2005, about half a billion US dollars have been allotted to MMORPG and about one billion dollars have been allotted to the western revenues alone. 

Economics on MMORPG

Most online role-playing games feature living economies. Virtual items and currency have to be gained while playing the game and have definite value for the players. Such a virtual economy can be analyzed and has value in economic research and can even have a dramatic impact on the economies of the real world.

Edward Castronova, one of the early researchers of MMORPGs, demonstrated that there is an existing supply-and-demand market for virtual items, even crossing over with the real world. Some of the crossover requirements are the following: The player’s ability to sell in-game items for virtual currency, trading of items which have the similar value, the purchase of game items with real money, and the exchange of real money with in-game money.

The idea of exchanging real currency virtual currency or in-game items has had a significant effect on both the players and game industries. Some people even make a living out of the virtual economies. These people are termed as “gold farmers” and can be employed through the game shops or private forums. Game publishers usually prohibit the exchange of real currencies with in-game items or virtual money however, these exchanges are hard to control and due to the necessity of an item or virtual money, many of the players offer real money exchange. There are some online games which offer a direct link between virtual economy and real-world economy. A perfect example is the game “Entropia Universe”. In this online game, real money can be deposited for game money and vice versa.