Excalibur 455D User manual

Excalibur
Electronics
Crossword
Puzzle
Deluxe Edition
Model No. 455D-B
www.ExcaliburElectronics.com
Touch-Screen

Congratulations on your purchase of Excalibur
Electronics’ New York Times Touch-Screen Crossword
Puzzle, Deluxe Edition! Now you can take the best
crosswords in English with you anywhere! You don’t need paper,
pencil, or eraser. The included stylus and The New York Times
Deluxe Crossword’s technology do it all.
To get the most out of your new purchase, please read the com-
plete manual carefully, especially noting the safety, care and bat-
tery information. Keep your manual for future reference.
Although Excalibur Electronics can’t
claim the magical secrets of Merlin,
King Arthur’s court wizard, sometimes
our patented technology may make it
seem as if we could. The New York Times
Touch-Screen Crossword Puzzle, Deluxe Edition
is another unmatched innovation of
Excalibur Electronics.
We make you think.
Installing Batteries
Batteries should always be
installed by an adult. Your unit
requires 2 AAA batteries, not
included. Be sure to review
“Battery Information” on page
10. Carefully turn the unit over so
that the LCD screen side is face-
down on a soft surface, such as a
towel or magazine. You’ll find the
battery compartment on the unit’s
back. Slide off the battery com-
partment lid. Install 2 AAA bat-
teries, making sure to match the
polarity (+ and -) with the dia-
gram inside the battery compart-
ment. (See diagram below.) Place
the battery
compart-
ment lid’s
tabs in their
slots and
snap the
compartment door back on.
Layout of The New York Times Deluxe Crossword
RESET Button
(on back)
3
QWERTY Keyboard
Crossword Puzzle
The legendary King Arthur brandished a
magic sword, Excalibur, from which we
take our company name. With this unique
weapon in his hands, he could not be vanquished.
Table of Contents
Installing Batteries . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 3
Layout of the Unit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Layout of the Onscreen Keyboard . . . 4
Functions of the Icons . . . . . . . . . . .. 4
Locating & Using Your Stylus . . . . . . 5
Using Your NY Times Crossword . . . .5
Getting started (5), Choosing the level (5),
Choosing the puzzle (6), Working a puzzle
(6), Viewing clues (6), Solving letters,
words & puzzle (7), Deleting or erasing (7),
Using the check function (7), Completing
the puzzle (8), Starting a new puzzle (8),
ON/OFF button (8), Auto power-off (8), Light
button (8), Contrast (8), Sound on/off (8),
Competing against friends (9)
Special Care & Handling . . . . . . . . .10
Battery Information . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
90-Day Limited Warranty . . . . . . . . 11
LIGHT Button
©2003 The New York Times Company.
The New York Times logo is a registered trademark of
The New York Times Company.
Clues

Your stylus is the key to commu-
nicating with your New York
Times Touch-Screen Crossword
Puzzle, Deluxe Edition. On the
back, left-hand side of your unit,
you’ll find a recessed cradle.
Inside is the stylus. Carefully
remove the stylus by pressing
gently on the tab near its top and
pushing it up until you can hold
the stylus easily and pull it out
completely.
Note: Remove the stylus by
pulling away from its cradle
until its tip clears the brace at
the top of the indentation.
When you want to store your
stylus again, just slide it back
into its cradle, pointed-end
first.
Locating & Using Your Stylus
Using Your New York Times Crossword
4 5
Getting started
Gently touch the pointed end of
the stylus to the ON/OFF icon at the
bottom left of the keyboard. The
first time you do this after
installing batteries or pushing the
RESET button, your screen will
display:
NEW YORK TIMES
CROSSWORD
PUZZLE
BY EXCALIBUR
Choosing the level
Next, use your stylus to press the
NEW GAME button. Your display
will show the screen at right.
Use your stylus to touch the box
corresponding to the level of chal-
lenge you want. (Selecting
“MIXED” will give you a variety
of puzzles, from easy to hard. We
suggest, unless you are a very
experienced crossword player,
that you choose the “EASY” level
to get started.)
Functions of the Icons (Onscreen Buttons)
Your unit’s buttons are easy to
use. Always use your stylus to
gently touch the onscreen buttons.
ON/OFF: Touch this key to turn
the unit on and off.
NEW GAME: Touch to start a new
puzzle.
SOUND: Touch to turn the sound
on or off.
CONTRAST: Touch to adjust the
contrast of the screen.
CHECK: Once you’ve filled in one
or more letters, tap and hold this
key to check your answers. Any
letter that is incorrect will be
marked with a spell-check icon.
Once you release this key, the
original letters will return.
DEL: Press to delete letters filled
in on the selected letter, a whole
word, or all letters filled in on the
entire puzzle.
PUZZLE: Press this key to solve
the entire puzzle.
WORD: Press this key to solve the
selected word.
LETTER: Press this key to solve
the selected letter.
A-Z: Use these keys to enter your
answers.
Other buttons
RESET: Press this button if your
unit functions improperly.
LIGHT: Press and hold for one sec-
ond to turn backlighting on to use
the game in low-light areas. Press
and hold again to turn it off.
Layout of Onscreen Keyboard
“QWERTY” Keyboard
DEL Key
CHECK Key
CONTRAST Key
Solve LETTER Key
Solve WORD Key
ON/OFF Key
NEW GAME
Solve PUZZLE Key
SOUND Key
Your unit uses a touch-screen “QWERTY” keyboard. A “QWERTY” keyboard arranges
the letter-keys just like your home, school, or work computer keyboard does.

icon will change to a downward
arrow. Touching the downward
arrow will change the icon back
to a right arrow and the ACROSS
clue.
If you want to see the clues to a
different word of the puzzle, sim-
ply touch a letter in the word you
choose. The corresponding clues
will be instantly displayed.
Solving letters, words & puzzle
If you’re stumped about a word
on the puzzle you’re working,
you can ask for a specific letter,
word—or even the whole puz-
zle—to be solved. With your sty-
lus, just press LETTER, WORD or
PUZZLE under the SOLVE heading.
Suppose you touched WORD. Your
screen would look like this:
SOLVE WORD?
Y/N
By asking you this question, your
unit is safeguarding against giv-
ing you an answer you do not
want. If we confirm that we want
the answer by tapping “Y” with
our stylus, the word will be
solved. If the right-hand arrow
was displayed before the clue, the
ACROSS word will be solved. If
the downward arrow was dis-
played before the clue, the
DOWN word will be solved.
Deleting or erasing
This function is just like erasing
an answer you’ve made in a
paper-and-pencil crossword.
Place the cursor on the letter you
want to delete, and touch the DEL
key with the stylus. Three options
will appear on screen: “DELETE
LETTER,” “DELETE WORD,”
and “DELETE PUZZLE.” Simply
touch the option you want with
your stylus. Note: When you
select “DELETE WORD,” the
word deleted will be the ACROSS
word when the right arrow
appears to the left of the clue. The
DOWN word will be deleted
when the downward arrow
appears to the left of the clue.
Using the check function
Touch and hold the CHECK key
with your stylus to check all your
answers in the puzzle. All of the
incorrect letters will be replaced
by a spell-check icon, alerting
you that you’ve made a mistake,
without giving you the answer.
(Even wrong answers that are
spelled correctly will be indicat-
ed.)
When you release the CHECK key,
the spell-check icons will disap-
Choosing the puzzle
When you select a level, the num-
bers of the puzzles corresponding
to your selected level will appear
on the screen. Your display will
look like this:
Touch any of the numbers to dis-
play a puzzle.
This feature allows you to select
favorites, or avoid selecting puz-
zles you’ve already worked. It
also allows you to compete with
others, by seeing who can work
the same puzzle the fastest. (Note:
there are 1,000 puzzles in your
New York Times Touch-Screen
Crossword Puzzle, Deluxe
Edition, so it requires more than
one screen “page” to list the puz-
zles. Touch “NEXT PAGE” to
move through the screens. The
screen will display “LAST
PAGE” when the final page of
choices has been displayed.
Touch “PREVIOUS PAGE” at
the top of the screen to move
backward through the pages.)
Working a puzzle
As soon as you touch a number
with the stylus, your display will
fill with the chosen crossword
puzzle. Naturally, all “boxes”
(each indicating a single letter)
are blank. Blanks between words
are indicated by a solid black
“box,” just as in the puzzles print-
ed in The New York Times.
You’ll see the cursor flashing in
the first blank “box” at the top left
of the puzzle. You can move the
cursor to any open square you
want simply by touching that
square. You can’t move the cursor
to a blocked-out (black) square.
You can fill in any blank “box” by
touching one of the letters on your
onscreen QWERTY keyboard.
Viewing clues
Immediately below the onscreen
puzzle you’ve selected, you’ll see
the clue for the word you’ve
selected (by touching the word
with your stylus). The ACROSS
clue will display first. If you want
to see the DOWN clue, just touch
the right arrow displayed before
the clue with your stylus. The
6 7

OFF” will show on the screen.
Competing against friends
By remembering the level and
number of the puzzle you select,
you can compete against others.
The one who solves the puzzle in
the least time wins!
You can allow a specific number
of letter and word auto-solutions
per player—the more experienced
the players, the fewer the auto-
solutions. Or you can make a rule
that each use of the solve letter
adds, for example, 10 seconds to
your time and each use of the
solve word adds a minute. You’ll
still want to establish a maximum
number of uses of each, however.
You can even compete against
players that are much more or less
experienced than you by selecting
puzzles at different levels. As the
more experienced player, you
may have to solve a puzzle in the
“MEDIUM” category, while your
less expert opponent gets to
choose from the “EASY” level.
pear and the original letters will
be displayed.
Completing the puzzle
A puzzle is completed when all of
the squares have been filled with
the correct letters. Whether you
complete the puzzle by using the
solve keys or by figuring each
word out, when you’re finished,
the clue screen will display:
PUZZLE
COMPLETED
TIME 045M025S
The third line tells you how long
it took to solve the puzzle, in total
minutes and seconds. This infor-
mation allows you to compete
against others, or against yourself.
Starting a new puzzle
You can begin a new puzzle any-
time by touching the NEW GAME
key. Your display will ask you to
confirm your choice—so that you
don’t lose your current game by
accident. Then the display will
give you the choice of levels.
ON/OFF button
Touch the ON/OFF key at any time
during game play to turn the game
off. Touch the ON/OFF key again to
turn the game on, and you will
continue playing the current
game.
Auto power-off
To save batteries, your unit will
automatically turn off after three
minutes of inactivity. (If you are
using the light, it will turn off as
well.) If this happens while you
are still playing, touch the ON/OFF
key to wake up the game. You
will continue playing the current
game. None of your answers will
be lost.
Light button
Press and hold the LIGHT button
for one second to turn on your
game’s backlighting to use your
unit in the dark. Press the button
again to turn it off.
Contrast
If you want to adjust your LCD’s
contrast to make it readable at
varying light levels, just use your
stylus to touch the CONTRAST key
at the right bottom of the unit.
The message “CONTRAST
ADJUSTMENT L H” will show
on the screen. You can touch the
letter “L” to reduce the contrast
or touch the “H” to increase the
contrast.
Sound on/off
Touch the SOUND key to toggle the
sound on and off. The message
“SOUND ON” or “SOUND
8 9
IF NO BUTTONS ARE PRESSED
FOR THREE MINUTES, YOUR
NEW YORK TIMES DELUXE CROSSWORD
WILL AUTOMATICALLY SHUT
OFF TO SAVE BATTERIES. SIMPLY TOUCH
“ON/OFF” WITH YOUR STYLUS TO RESUME
THE PUZZLE YOU WERE WORKING ON.

10 11
• Avoid rough handling such as bumping or dropping.
• Avoid moisture and extreme temperatures. For best results, use between the
temperatures of 39ºF and 100ºF (4º C and 38º C).
• Clean using only a slightly damp cloth. Do not use cleaners with chemical
agents.
Special Care & Handling
• Batteries should be installed or replaced only by an adult.
• Your New York Times Touch-Screen Crossword Puzzle, Deluxe
Edition uses 2 AAA batteries, not included.
• Do not mix alkaline, standard (carbon-zinc) or rechargeable (nick-
el- cadmium) batteries.
• Do not mix old and new batteries.
• Do not use rechargeable batteries.
• Remove exhausted batteries from the unit.
• Do not short circuit battery terminals.
• Remove batteries and store them in a cool, dry place when not in
use.
• To avoid explosion or leakage, do not dispose of batteries in a fire
or attempt to recharge alkaline or other non-rechargeable batteries.
Battery Information
EXCALIBUR ELECTRONICS,
INC., warrants to the original con-
sumer that its products are free from
any electrical or mechanical defects
for a period of 90 DAYS from the
date of purchase. If any such defect is
discovered within the warranty peri-
od, EXCALIBUR ELECTRONICS,
INC., will repair or replace the unit
free of charge upon receipt of the
unit, shipped postage prepaid and
insured to the factory address shown
at right.
The warranty covers normal con-
sumer use and does not cover damage
that occurs in shipment or failure that
results from alterations, accident,
misuse, abuse, neglect, wear and tear,
inadequate maintenance, commercial
use, or unreasonable use of the unit.
Removal of the top panel voids all
warranties. This warranty does not
cover cost of repairs made or attempt-
ed outside of the factory.
Any applicable implied warranties,
including warranties of merchantabil-
ity and fitness, are hereby limited to
90 DAYS from the date of purchase.
Consequential or incidental damages
resulting from a breach of any appli-
cable express or implied warranties
are hereby excluded. Some states do
not allow limitations on the duration
of implied warranties and do not
allow exclusion of incidental or con-
sequential damages, so the above lim-
itations and exclusions in these
instances may not apply.
The only authorized service center in
the United States is:
Excalibur Electronics, Inc.
13755 SW 119th Ave
Miami, Florida 33186 U.S.A.
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
www.ExcaliburElectronics.com
Ship the unit carefully packed, prefer-
ably in the original carton, and send it
prepaid, and adequately insured.
Include a letter, detailing the com-
plaint and including your daytime
telephone number, inside the shipping
carton.
If your warranty has expired and you
want an estimated fee for service,
write to the above address, specifying
the model and the problem.
PLEASE DO NOT SEND
YOUR UNIT WITHOUT
RECEIVING AN ESTIMATE FOR
SERVICING. WE CANNOT
STORE YOUR UNIT!
90-Day Limited Warranty
Due to continuing improvements,
actual product may differ slightly
from the product described herein.

.
Excalibur Electronics, Inc.
13755 SW 119th Ave
Miami, Florida 33186 U.S.A.
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Play games live at:
www.ExcaliburElectronics.com
We make you think.