…to all of our readers. Thanks for all your help, support and encouragement in 2007 - we couldn’t have done it without you.

 We’ll aim to blog every day next week except the 25th so do drop by if the festivities get too much for you. Indy solvers will be pleased to hear that nmsindy will be again be producing his review of the year’s puzzles so keep an eye out for that.

Neil 

There’s an article on cryptic crosswords and the competition they face from <affects disdainful look> Sudoku in the Independent today:

 http://news.independent.co.uk/media/article3255986.ece

It’s a bit depressing really.

It’s just occurred to me that this blog is one year old this week (I can’t remember our exact birthday; it might be the 7th). I’d like to thank bloggers and readers alike for helping us get to where we are today and for all your words of encouragement and support along the way.

But what I’d really like to know is: how’s it been for you? How and when did you find us and how often do you visit here? Would you change anything  - is there anything you’d like us to do or something you want us to stop doing?

 Don’t be shy now…

A few of us bloggers are on Facebook and I recently set up a Fifteensquared group there. If you fancy joining us, just go to www.facebook.com, create a profile (if you haven’t got one already) and then do a search for “fifteensquared”. If you’re wondering what on earth I’m talking about, take a look at this.

I thought I’d take this opportunity to address some issues that have come under discussion on the blog recently.

Missing/Late Posts

There have been a few occasions where we haven’t been able to blog puzzles, or where we’ve posted late, and this usually attracts some commments. I’ve explained this elsewhere but it’s worth repeating: if we don’t blog a puzzle it’s not because we can’t be bothered. It’s much more likely that real-life has got in the way somewhere along the line - you know, families, jobs - that kind of thing. Also, internet connections fail and sometimes people are sick. All of which can contribute to puzzles not appearing. It doesn’t happen very often and I know it can be annoying, especially if you’re a setter looking for some feedback or a solver needing some help but really, there’s not a great deal we can do about it. All I can ask is for you to be patient: if someone can blog a puzzle, they will. If no-one’s available, they won’t.

Commenting in the wrong place

This is sort of connected to the first point: we’ve had a few people asking about the whereabouts of a particular puzzle by adding a comment to another puzzle. Some other people reply to that comment and soon enough we have a mini-discussion happening in the wrong place. This is not a good idea for two reasons: first, bloggers are automatically emailed all the comments on their posts and they don’t want to read comments on other puzzles (well, they might, but they’d rather read them on the blog itself, rather than having their inbox clogged up); second, if the missing puzzle is finally blogged those comments are now in the wrong place and may not get read by others. So from now on, comments in the wrong place will be silently deleted. You have been warned. If you really can’t help yourself and absolutely have to enquire about a missing post (despite the first point above) send an email to blogging@fifteensquared.net.

Unexplained clues

We don’t explain all the clues in a given puzzle. The reason for this is explained elsewhere (I’ll give you a clue - it’s a question I’m frequently asked) but it can be a tricky business deciding which clues to explain and which to leave out. What’s obvious to some is impenetrable to others. If we haven’t explained a clue you’re stuck on or don’t understand please don’t post a grumpy sounding comment along the lines of “What about 5D?” or “You missed 17A and it’s driving me mad”. Instead, post the full clue complete with enumeration along with a polite request for assistance. That way, someone who didn’t solve the puzzle will be able to help you, as well as those that did.

Situations Vacant

It’s probably obvious by now that we simply don’t have enough people with enough time on their hands to blog all the puzzles we’d like to. So, if you’ve ever fancied trying your hand at blogging, now’s your chance. The first thing to say is that you don’t need to be a speedy solver; if you can finish most puzzles you start, that’s the most important thing, along with being able to explain most of the wordplay in a puzzle. It’s perfectly ok occasionally to say “I don’t understand this clue” (I do it all the time) or “I couldn’t get this answer”. If you’re interested, but not sure if you’ll be any good at it then the best thing I can suggest is just to try it: solve a puzzle and then sit down and write your own blog, in a similar style to what you read here. If you want a second opinion, I’ll be happy to read it, just send it to me at blogging@fifteensquared.net.

We need bloggers to cover the following puzzles:

Independent: we need two people to take a rotating daily slot and one or two subs to cover absences like holidays.

Financial Times: same as Independent - two people for a rotating daily slot and a couple of subs.

Beelzebub: currently covered by one person (me) so it would be useful to have one or two others to rotate it between.

Any others: if you’re interesting in blogging a puzzle that we cover but which I haven’t mentioned here, send me a mail anyway - we’ll probably be able to work something out.

All offers to help, questions etc should be sent to blogging@fifteensquared.net.