The Listener

[AB Editor]

Hi,

I have received an email from a guy associated with The Listener crossword.

The email itself is in reference to the stats which I know most of you are well aware of as you have referred to your own individual positions in the past.

I am going to post the email here later this afternoon.

However, before I do I would like to know your opinion -

Do you feel there are any issues related to people posting answers for The Listener crossword before the submission deadline?

Let me know your thoughts.
Thanks,
AB Ed

[Tichfield]

I don't like this reference to "cheats".

Where in the rules for for any Crossword does it say that you may not ask other people for help, or give other people help?

We are talking about a crossword puzzle here, not an exam!

[rabet]

This is exactly the point I made earlier.

[squarebear]

What's the prize for this thing anyway? I would imagine it to be at least �50,000 the way some people are going on about it.

[cheaton]

In the light of the above arguments and as someone who one day hopes to graduate to the Listener, I support those who wish to restrict argument until after the closing date.

AB Ed asked our opinion and so I'm giving mine! But I don't envy your decision, ed..........

[cheaton]

PS How sweet that someone is compiling the stats - three cheers for the eccentricity of the English!

[podger123]

The prize may be a pen, a certificate or a fiver I don't know but it's obviously the accolade of winning it by fair means that is the issue here. NOT by asking you squarebear to butt in with your vindictive two penn'oth. Just like GBQ etc."I wasn't going to give the answer but now I will" to quote. Babyish.

[squarebear]

As long as people complain about posting questions on a Q&A site, I will post answers where I can. I genuinely don't care whether you think it's babyish or not.

Perhaps you should join a car website and ask them not to talk about cars podger?

[midazolam]

To the AB Editor - can I add a constructive argument

yes this crossword is a hard crossword, but other crosswords can be just as hard or even harder (e.g. EV). Very rarely an answer is given on the weekly Listener thread because of these statistics, but hints are given. I feel there is nothing wrong with this and promotes the crossword to other would-be solvers. Why should statistics alter this fact.

The person who wrote the e-mail can stay away and not look if it is not what he/she dislikes the comments

There are a group of people (including myself) who comment on the crossword, usually praising the compiler and giving constructive criticism. This also adds to the appeal of doing this difficult puzzle, comparing others toils over the week.

In summary - the threads are very useful and should continue. (They will only go somewhare else - where outlandish answers given and then there will be an outcry)

Midazolam (P.S. continue sending EV comments/statistics to me)

[Aquagility]

Well, those supporting the anonymous "guy associated with the Listener" think that only those who do the puzzle have any right to express a view.

But this is an important matter of principle. If you censor questions on one puzzle, you must surely do the same for them all. And wrap up Q&P and Crosswords.

And so, once again, the many would suffer for the few.

[shaneystar2]

Yes I agree with Aq...shut the whole caboodle down ..this is the only solution .
This will put a stop to the self appointed police moaning on and and we can all get back to solving these things as we did before the advent of the web .
In spite of all the name calling and people getting out their prams ( guilty as charged :) ........
You cannot show preference to one group of people .It's totally unfair . Even if you ask for people to exercise their "discretion " over the Listener .
If this were to be the case then the others who do Azed ,Mephisto, EV ,Spectator etc can argue the same point and they would also be entitled to lobby you as this "anonymous" person has .Some crosswords may not hold the same prestige as the Listener but they are still pretty difficult to solve and lots of people don't like to see the answers to these given away either .Also those who do these quizzes ,GBQ,Quizmail etc... can argue the same point . As they have time and time again until it becomes boring to the point of screaming . You cannot discriminate Get rid the whole category and then there will be no more cause for this pettiness.
I am sure that on the whole we are a pretty nice bunch of people with a common interest but all these arguments are not worth it .
Ditch it .
Then we can all have a bit of peace .I'm sure I won't
miss the way it has degenerated into a club for know alls .

[podger123]

shaneystar2, Yes you are a star because of your last post suggesting 'The Last Post' for the Quizzes and Puzzles Topic.YES! It would be great to see entries to the 'difficult' ones be increased and therefore the prize money increased(Quizmail) I've never seen The Listener as a title heading but maybe the ABers who ask use a 'week number' instead hoping that non entrants will fall for helping. The topic has turned into a sort of club. You only have to look at some of the inane posted replies in this one question.
Good riddance I say. Of course the other AB topics are interesting with genuine calls for help.

[u10]

It seems to me that there is no easy "solution" to this problem. I think it would be wrong to stop all discussion of a current puzzle, but the Listener statistics are special and actual answers to a clue ought not to be given directly. However I see nothing wrong with gentle hints to give especially the less experienced solvers a few clues along the way. Also what's to stop those wanting to share the actual solutions to a Listener puzzle starting up their own message board somewhere else? What would happen then?

[shaneystar2]

They have got their own message board !
At The Crossword Centre ..nothing stopping them from going there and arguing the toss about it .
http://www.crossword.org.uk/

[MadSolver]

I too am envious of the self-appointed bow-tied elite who are able to do things I can't - and hopefully with the help of the Answerbank we can torpedo the whole thing and their ghastly dinner too.

It's not like an exam is it? Except that you answer questions and someone marks you right or wrong and gives the best person a prize or something. So it is a bit like an exam, I suppose.

And as for the stats bloke spending all his time working for these cleverclogs and swimming uphill against a tide of information, we'll show him too! hahaha, maybe he'll drown? Or realise our superiorness.

[boysinblue68]

AB Editor - there seems to be one thing you've forgotten to mention to everyone.

You were respectfully asked (by the question setter) to edit/remove answers posted on here that related to GBQ and GFQ, which I understand you refused to do - hence going a long way to ruining another great quiz.

I, therefore, find it quite illogical that you can ask the public what they think about The Listener. Surely, you have "made a rod for your own back" and must treat both requests the same?