Black Ink 2.1.1: Unusual Puzzle Support

January 20th, 2021

Black Ink 2.1.1 is now available on the Black Ink site and the Mac App Store.

This update includes a fix for an unusual edge case in puzzles that use the Across Lite puzzle format, but specify “unused” squares in a way that is typically reserved for diagramless puzzles. Why might you care about this fix? Good question! I only came upon an example of such a puzzle a few weeks ago, and set about ensuring that Black Ink would support it. Here’s how it looks:

Crossword puzzle grid in the shape of a pile of poo emoji.

This bit of inspired puzzle design was created by Brian Thomas and published on his Puzzles That Need a Home blog:

Download Puzzle #53: “2020”

If you don’t already have Black Ink 2.1.1 installed, be sure to download it or update to the latest version before opening the puzzle!

This update also includes a few other bug fixes and enhancements. Here’s the complete list of changes:

  • Adapt to support puzzles that mix diagramless and regular formats
  • Fix a bug that prevented puzzle window from being resized by dragging the window’s edge
  • Selected clue is now scrolled to visible with a little buffer area around it in the clue list
  • Now marks any incorrect answers in the puzzle when enabling the “Automatic Correction” preference
  • Remove “move to unsolved after switching direction” preference as it was not behaving well

If you enjoy Black Ink, please consider writing a review or rating the app on the Mac App Store, spreading the word on Facebook or Twitter! Thanks for your support.