Crossword Help Forum
Forum Rules

There's really only one name that crops up consistently. Although the person may or may not have said it I can't find anyone else linked to it in any convincing manner.

Maybe the setter and the crossword editor thought that filling the grid correctly was enough of a challenge. It does seem odd though. Never seen such a thing in a preamble before.

Thanks Cagey, easily my favourite Listener in a long while. Was hoping it would silence those complaining that the standard of puzzles was becoming a tad too easy, but alas, the toys are thrown out of the pram again.

Alas another stranger turns up with an attitude (at least one that's aptly named).
It seems it's not enough to step out of your comfort zone and finish the 'thing' in a reasonable time - you have to love the experience too.

piffleworthy @140, this link should go to a copy of Squaring The Circle by Amicus.

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/z4gi5m6nvyix7sojl041h/Squaring-The-Circle-by-Amicus.pdf?rlkey=z3eor71zw1dt3a2pq11h8s2xs&dl=0

It's not a great copy, and I found it in an online library, so I can't improve the quality, but blackdowner may be able to clear up any queries.

Definite contender for POTY. Gosh, I could drone on for ages about how much I enjoyed it.

Well done, bull - it must have been quite a challenge for one of such tender years.

piffleworthy@140, I've managed to improve the quality. Please use this link instead

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/z2vkp04itw1v52subsnga/Squaring-The-Circle-by-Amicus-xx.pdf?rlkey=ko4akm5118k9gmg06gqlyopzk&dl=0

Wow.
The longest time I have taken to solve a Listener for some years but I really enjoyed the challenge. A novel construction, clever clues an amazing finale.
I never look in here until I have completed the puzzle but have have skimmed the previous posts and see there is some controversy. My take is as follows.
If clues are in alphabetical order of their answers it is not really cold solving.
The construction is astounding.
I will not forget this puzzle any time soon.
So it is a thumbs up from me.

Perhaps you missed the controversy by skimming, smithsax?
The crossword element is scant - 4 letter words throughout and, OK, not quite cold-solving, I can accept that. It's the grid-fill and how many answers are needed to populate it that is controversial. At the last count, 'a handful' appears to be adequate (before the sudoku element of trial and error kicks in) but that was far from my experience. I had all of the clues solved and all of the extra letters pretty quickly - and still barely half of the grid populated when I had to start the guessing game.
A further controversy - that the final grid fails to show that the puzzle has been completely solved - is mentioned later on, but it would be giving too much away to go any further into that.
Still, despite the obvious flaws, this is clearly work of genius for anyone with a passion for programming or sudoku... or something. Sadly, I'll find the puzzle unforgettable too.

Smithsax, just to present the other side, no trial and error is necessary to fill the grid. It is achievable with pure logic. So I see what drxx refers to as the Sudoku aspect, but again trial and error is not necessary, although a valid approach. Also, once I had around half the clues solved I was able to start filling the grid, and then use some of that information to help solve some of the trickier (for me) clues. Of course, as geeker always says here, your mileage may vary. However, I note that others have posted similar experiences. I enjoyed the challenge.