external: Crosshare* | Cruciverbalizer | (Drupal: crosswordplayground.com) |
PuzzleMe* (AmuseLabs) | Spoonbill (APH) | Squares | XWordInfo
internal: Crossword Compiler* | Crossword Nexus HTML5 Solver* | Drupal* | Exolve*
- external: applet code hosted on own web site or puzzle opened on outside web site
- internal: applet code and puzzle hosted on own web site
- *: applet can be embedded (via IFRAME) inside web page
- Crossword Embedding Options
AmuseLabs(PuzzleMe), Crosshare, Squares.io, Crossword Nexus HTML5 Solver, Exolve, Crossword Compiler; CN; 3/15/2022 - I initially started with Crossword Compiler (internal);
then switched to PuzzleMe (external*; free for personal use) for many of my own interactive puzzles;
currently, I'm been using Crossword Nexus HTML5 Crossword Solver (internal*; free, open source) - Crossword Scraper browser extension (Firefox, Chrome) can extract .puz, .jpz, .ipuz, .pdf from some sites.
"CS" marks "Crossword Scraper" compatible applets:
Crosshare, Crossword Compiler, Crossword Nexus HTML5 Solver, PuzzleMe, XWordInfo; others?
Sources: Web Sites includes CS compatible puzzles - How to Add Games to WordPress: Best Plugins + How-to Guide Amuselabs; 3/12/2024
- Some other custom/internal applets observed in the wild:
Arkadium/King, Chicago Tribune (LAT), Seattle Times (NYT), USA Today;
other (older) open source projects are also avail. - Note: the .pdf version of this section will have some strange page breaks (difficult to fix)
Crosshare: .puz; CS
- schoOL LIfe direct link; [image on right];
[embedded below -- click Begin Puzzle button]
Crossword Compiler (CC): .js; CS
- [embedded below]; discussion: .js format, .jpz conversion
- WordPress plugin that contains CC applet; source
Crossword Nexus HTML5 Solver: .puz, .jpz, .xml, .cfp; CS
- Open .jpz Puzzle, e.g., .puz -- or embedded example below; Jonesin' samples;
create IFRAME w/ your puzzle stored on crosswordnexus.com
-- or install source code on a site (used by OLLI example below) - example crossword showing both PuzzleMe and HTML5 Solver
- help for using HTML5 Solver (includes some custom changes)
Cruciverbalizer: .puz
- upload .puz; similar to DownForAcross.com?
- no circle support; special chars?
Drupal: Crossword: .puz, .txt
- Module for web sites using Drupal (Content Management System) -- used by my site [embedded example below];
scroll up for title, author, clue controls; scroll down for help: Keyboard Control and Entering Text; possible to omit page header/footer? - crosswordplayground.com uses Drupal Crossword module but can't be embedded in IFRAME
Exolve: .puz, .ipuz
- docs, source code; exolve.org [embedded example below]
PuzzleMe: .puz, .jpz, .xml, .xw (AmuseLabs); CS
- free for non-commercial use
- after creating or importing puzzle, copy Embed code
- schoOL LIfe example -- or embedded below
- Crossword Scraper (Firefox, Chrome browser extension)
can extract .puz, .jpz, .pdf on PuzzleMe (and some other) sites.
(Spoonbill) American Printing House: .puz, .xwc
schoOL LIfe example- cmd-ctrl-O to open local .puz
- no circle support; no embed via IFRAME?
- A Review of the Crossword Web-based Game from APH 5/2020
Squares: .puz, .jpz, .ipuz
- upload file to server; e.g., schoOL LIfe example:
[click to open in new tab]; [image on right];
expiration? no embed via IFRAME?
XWordInfo: Analyze: .puz; CS
- upload .puz file to server; analyze.pdf;
no embed via IFRAME? [image on right];
note same applet used elsewhere on xwordinfo.com: NYT Variety & Pre-Shortzian puzzles;
schoOL LIfe example (unless expired)