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Magic Fill

Objective
  • Learn about the Magic Fill AI based puzzle creation tool

Magic Fill​

Magic Fill is an AI-powered tool designed to help you quickly create crossword puzzles with dense grids. It is useful for both experienced crossword constructors and beginners, especially for creating smaller puzzles.

Magic Fill allows you to start with a blank crossword grid or a grid with some pre-filled letters and black boxes. You can then customize various options to guide the AI in generating puzzle grids. This includes selecting from built-in dictionaries or uploading your own custom word lists.

PuzzleMe's Magic Fill offers flexibility beyond standard crossword construction tools. You can specify important words to be included in the grid without fixing their exact positions. You can also set limits on the number of black boxes without predetermining their locations. Setting a limit on black boxes is important because it gives you control over the puzzle's difficulty and grid density. By limiting black boxes, you encourage Magic Fill to create grids with more interconnected words, often resulting in a smoother and more satisfying solving experience.

PuzzleMe's Magic Fill is the first program to support crossword construction in Indic scripts and barred grids, in which cell bars indicate word boundaries. Barred grids are valuable because they clearly separate words within the grid using visual bars instead of relying solely on black boxes. This can be particularly useful for languages or puzzle styles where word separation needs to be very distinct. Barred grids can also offer a different aesthetic and solving experience compared to traditional black box grids.

Using Magic Fill​

  1. Start by creating a new crossword puzzle or editing an existing one.
  2. Navigate to the grid editing area. You can begin with:
    • An empty grid.
    • A grid where you have already placed some starting letters.
    • A grid with some black boxes already positioned.
  3. Locate the Magic Fill panel, usually on the right side of the screen.
  4. Click Create Game. You'll be taken to the Magic Fill configuration panel within the crossword editor.

Configuring Magic Fill​

Once you click the "Create Game" button, the Magic Fill configuration interface appears, allowing you to set the parameters for your grid generation:

  • Dictionaries: Select the word lists that Magic Fill should draw words from. You can use PuzzleMe's built-in dictionaries, or add your own personal dictionaries.
  • Minimum floating black boxes: The minimum number of isolated black squares allowed in the grid.
  • Maximum floating black boxes: The maximum number of isolated black squares allowed.
  • Minimum word length: The shortest word length allowed in the grid.
  • Must Have Words: These are the words that Magic Fill must include in the generated grid. Separate multiple words with commas.
  • Start: Click this button to begin the grid generation process.

Generating and Selecting a Grid​

Magic Fill will present you with several grid options. Review these options:

  • Visual Grid: See the layout of the potential crossword.
  • Metadata: View details like the number of black boxes, word count, and average word length.

If none of the initial grids meet your needs, you can click the Generate More button within the Magic Fill panel to get additional options.

Once you find a grid you like, click the Use this grid button.

Word List Scoring​

Magic Fill uses dictionaries to select words for your crossword grid. These dictionaries can be:

  • Built-in dictionaries: PuzzleMe provides curated dictionaries from various sources. The available built-in dictionaries depend on the puzzle's language settings. For example, a Hindi dictionary will be available if the puzzle is set to the Hindi locale.
  • Custom dictionaries: You can upload your own word lists for Magic Fill to use.

Each word in these dictionaries has a score.

  • Curated scores: Many built-in dictionaries include scores assigned by the dictionary curator, reflecting word frequency or suitability for crosswords.
  • Default score: If a word does not have a curator-assigned score, it is given a default score of 50.
  • Combined scores: If a word appears in multiple selected dictionaries, its total score is the sum of its scores from each dictionary.

Word scores influence Magic Fill's grid generation, with higher-scoring words generally being preferred.

Score Cutoffs​

Score cutoffs are used to filter word lists and remove less desirable words before Magic Fill starts generating grids. This helps to refine the puzzle creation process and focus on higher-quality word options.

  • Score cutoffs allow you to set a minimum score threshold. Words with scores below this threshold will not be considered by Magic Fill.
  • Using score cutoffs can improve Magic Fill's efficiency by reducing the number of words it needs to process.
  • While you can also filter words after grid generation using the filter panel, using score cutoffs is a more efficient way to pre-filter words.
note

You cannot export your files as PUZ or XML/JPZ format.

Browsing Grids​

After Magic Fill generates potential crossword grids, you can browse through them and select the best option.

Sorting Grids​

Grids are initially sorted by the minimum word score. This means grids where the lowest-scoring word has a higher score will be displayed first.

  • This sorting prioritizes grids with generally higher quality words, as the lowest-scoring word often indicates the overall quality of a grid.
  • If multiple grids have the same minimum word score, they are then sorted by the total grid score, which is the sum of scores of all words in the grid.

Filtering Grids​

Several filters are available to help you narrow down the grid options:

  • Words In: Filter grids to only show those that include specific words.
  • Words Out: Filter grids to exclude those that contain certain words.
  • Black Boxes: Filter grids based on the number of black boxes they contain. You can specify a range or a maximum number of black boxes.
  • Grid Score: Filter grids based on their total grid score. You can set a minimum score to only see grids that meet a certain quality level.
  • Word Score: Filter grids based on the minimum word score. This allows you to focus on grids where even the "worst" word meets a certain score threshold.
  • Pinned Solutions: You can "pin" grids you like by clicking the star icon next to them. Use the star filter to view only your pinned grids. This is helpful for bookmarking and comparing promising grids.

Exporting a Puzzle​

To export clues and answers from a PuzzleMe puzzle, including those created with Magic Fill:

  1. Go to your Dashboard.
  2. Find the puzzle you want to export and click the Analytics icon next to it.
  3. On the analytics page, locate and click the Download Puzzle as CSV button.
  4. A CSV file containing the puzzle's grid, answers, and clues will be downloaded to your computer.
note

PuzzleMe does not currently support exporting puzzles in PUZ or XML/JPZ formats.

Indic Puzzle Creation​

PuzzleMe's Magic Fill is designed to support puzzle creation in multiple languages, including Indic languages.

  • Built-in dictionaries are language-specific. Ensure you set the correct language for your puzzle to access relevant dictionaries.
  • Magic Fill can handle Indic scripts where multiple letters combine to form a single grapheme that fits into one grid box.
  • You can upload custom dictionaries for Indic languages to further enhance puzzle generation in these scripts.

Using Clue Databases​

PuzzleMe provides access to a clue database, powered by Matt Ginsburg's database, to assist with clue creation. Matt Ginsburg is a renowned crossword puzzle constructor and programmer, and his clue database is a valuable resource containing a vast collection of crossword clues. This database can provide inspiration and ensure the quality and relevance of your clues.

  1. After generating a grid with Magic Fill, click the Edit Clues option.
  2. In the clue editing interface, you can:
    • Edit existing clues.
    • View previously used clues for a given word from the clue database for inspiration.
    • PuzzleMe allows you to enhance clues by adding media links (pictures, videos, or audio) to make them more engaging.

Advanced Tips for Magic Fill​

  • Mini Puzzles: Magic Fill is most effective for creating smaller puzzles (5x5 or 7x7 grids).
  • Larger Themed Puzzles (15x15): For larger, themed puzzles:
    • Manually place your themed entries directly into the grid.
    • Position most of the black boxes related to your theme.
    • Use Magic Fill with "floating" black boxes to optimize the placement of remaining black boxes and fill the grid around your theme entries. This allows Magic Fill to fine-tune the grid fill and black box arrangement while ensuring your thematic content is prioritized.

Magic Fill is continuously being improved to make it even more powerful and capable of producing larger and more complex grids.

Troubleshooting​

If Magic Fill struggles to incorporate all "Must Have" words, consider the following:

  • Relaxing constraints: Try allowing more black boxes or a shorter minimum word length.
  • Adjusting "Must Have" words: Check for typos or try alternative related words.
  • Using different dictionaries: Experiment with different word lists.
  • Changing grid size: A slightly larger grid might provide more flexibility.

If the generated grids consistently lack density or desired complexity:

  • Review Dictionaries: Ensure your selected dictionaries are comprehensive and appropriate for the desired style.