We were pleasantly surprised by a small free program that can create complex crossword puzzles in minutes. It's simple to use, easy even for the least experienced, and the results are amazing. EclipseCrossword is a free program to create printable crossword puzzles or in web format (with or without JavaScript). That said, it seems like a small thing, true. But the simplicity of the software and the surprising results should be a model for all developers. Moreover, it's free and without any limitation. What more do you want? Let's see how it works.
Creating a crossword with EclipseCrossword
To start creating your own crosswords, download the software. After the brief installation process, when you run it, you will see a window like the one below. If it's your first time using the software, leave the first option selected and click Next.
In the first step you can choose to create a list of words from scratch, which you'll have to do if it's your first time using it, or use a saved list or crossword.
The second step is to create a list of words. In Word you put one of the many words you want to use for your creation. In Clue for this Word you write the clue. Tools allows you to load a previously made list. Remember that a good crossword has at least 30 words. Once the list is generated, click Next.
After giving the crossword a name and entering yours, click Next.
The next step is crucial. Here you define the number of letters in width and height you want your creation to have. Keep in mind that if there are many words and you give it little space, it won't be able to fit them all. And if it has few words and you give it a lot of space, it will look very empty. Think it over. All ready? Next!
EclipseCrossword will start 'thinking' possible combinations for the entered words. Depending on the number of seconds you allow it (configurable from Options) it will make better or worse combinations. If it has left out words, it will tell you. When finished, if the result satisfies you, click Next or Make another Puzzle like this one if you don't like how it turned out.
The options to save it are varied. You can save it as is on your hard drive, print it, create an html or php file (configurable from Options) or make a text document. And that's it. Isn't it easy and fast to create a crossword?
EclipseCrossword
