"Bar Code" by AJK and Wendy Walker

A weekly meta crossword created by members of the forum. Difficulty levels will vary. Hints are usually available starting Wednesday, and solutions are posted on Sunday.
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Wendy Walker
Posts: 1720
Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 7:44 pm
Location: Unionville, PA

"Bar Code" by AJK and Wendy Walker

#1

Post by Wendy Walker »

Greetings, Muggles!

This meta puzzle was inspired by a rabbit hole that Wendy went down while trying to solve a Gaffney WSJ puzzle a few weeks ago. She thought it would make a nifty metanism for a future puzzle, and mentioned it to Alan, who within hours had devised two ideas for putting it into play, complete with themers. We hope you enjoy solving it as much as we did creating it.

Thank you to @Abide for test solving and to @Joe Ross for his formatting wizardry.

Cheers!



Bar Code crosshare

Bar Code PUZ

Bar Code PDF

Bar Code spreadsheet


Image
Good luck, fellow Muggles!
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jhseeman
Posts: 493
Joined: Sun Dec 13, 2020 3:33 pm
Location: Charleston, SC

#2

Post by jhseeman »

Great way to start the week off..... fun one thanks to both of you....
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SamKat9
Posts: 270
Joined: Sat Aug 19, 2023 7:45 pm
Location: Southeast Florida

#3

Post by SamKat9 »

OTC, fun puzzle, thank you!
Shannon 🐱
PS: If you want help with a meta, PM what you have so I can help without spoiling too much. I've received lots of help in the beginning and I love to pay it forward!
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boharr
Moderator
Posts: 3208
Joined: Fri Sep 06, 2019 8:57 am
Location: Westchester, NY

#4

Post by boharr »

OTC. Thanks for a fun puzzle.
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Ergcat
Posts: 785
Joined: Mon Jun 22, 2020 8:12 pm
Location: Seneca SC

#5

Post by Ergcat »

Off the coach! Thank you for a fun start to the Meta-week!
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hcbirker
Posts: 2017
Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 7:24 pm
Location: Studio City, CA

#6

Post by hcbirker »

OTC! Very cute!
Heidi
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MatthewL
Posts: 766
Joined: Thu Dec 31, 2020 11:57 am
Location: Atlanta, GA

#7

Post by MatthewL »

Off the couch. Great puzzle! Thanks you two!
Matthew
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Meg
Posts: 2165
Joined: Tue Apr 09, 2019 1:41 pm
Location: St. Petersburg, FL

#8

Post by Meg »

OTC. Now I see the elegance!
Check out and support http://CrosswordsForCancer.com.
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BarbaraK
Posts: 2614
Joined: Tue Apr 09, 2019 2:37 pm
Location: Virginia

#9

Post by BarbaraK »

Off the couch with significant help from google. Good one!
If you want help with a meta, feel free to PM me. The more specific you are about what you have and what you want, the more likely I can help without spoiling.

(And if I help you win a mug, I’ll be especially delighted.)
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woozy
Posts: 2214
Joined: Mon Aug 10, 2020 12:40 am

#10

Post by woozy »

Haven't got it but I'm 87% of the way there (I just know it) and I just want to say: See folks? *THIS* is a what a meta is supposed to be! This is the perfect thought process a meta should have!

... of course, maybe I should wait until I actually solve it before I make such declarations.

EDIT: Of the couch of course! Perfect quintessential example of what a meta can and should be.
Last edited by woozy on Mon Oct 02, 2023 4:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Funny story. I was all set to enter Par for the course for the CrossHare midi contest for April but I mistakenly thought midi meant 7x 7 and not 11 x 11. Oops. Well.... Here's a complex but **small** meta on the subject of golf.
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MarkWoychick
Site Admin
Posts: 612
Joined: Sun Jun 13, 2021 6:15 pm
Location: Boise, ID

#11

Post by MarkWoychick »

Off the couch - very fun - well conceived and executed. Thanks, Wendy and Alan!
Contest Crosswords Combating Cancer (CCCC) is a bundle of 16 contest-style (meta) crosswords that we've created to help raise money for cancer-related organizations - get the bundle at http://crosswordsforcancer.com
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ChrisKochmanski
Posts: 2199
Joined: Tue Apr 09, 2019 9:51 pm
Location: Saline, Michigan

#12

Post by ChrisKochmanski »

OTC!
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Eric Porter
Posts: 479
Joined: Sun May 05, 2019 2:19 am
Location: Nashville, TN

#13

Post by Eric Porter »

OTC! Nice puzzle.
I didn't quite understand my answer until I looked through the comments on Crosshare because I'd actually done it slightly wrong. Finding out the correct mechanism gives me a greater appreciation of it. I probably would have noticed it if I'd printed the puzzle out.
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Berto
Posts: 351
Joined: Sat Feb 05, 2022 4:10 pm

#14

Post by Berto »

OTC - very neat..(!)
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whimsy
Posts: 2786
Joined: Sun Jun 21, 2020 9:51 am
Location: Hopkinton MA

#15

Post by whimsy »

Off the couch since earlier this AM, but didn't really have a clear picture regarding the meta at first; it was a bit grainy.
Untitledcouch.png
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lbray53
Posts: 1223
Joined: Fri May 08, 2020 8:34 am
Location: Elkhorn, WI

#16

Post by lbray53 »

Berto wrote: ↑Mon Oct 02, 2023 4:48 pm OTC - very neat..(!)
I see what you did there!
My avatar proves that it is sometimes better to be lucky than good!
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lbray53
Posts: 1223
Joined: Fri May 08, 2020 8:34 am
Location: Elkhorn, WI

#17

Post by lbray53 »

OTC. Great meta. Hard. Then easy. Then hard. Finally the aha moment!
My avatar proves that it is sometimes better to be lucky than good!
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Anita
Posts: 437
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2019 1:55 am

#18

Post by Anita »

Off the couch! Fun one!
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Wendy Walker
Posts: 1720
Joined: Thu Apr 11, 2019 7:44 pm
Location: Unionville, PA

#19

Post by Wendy Walker »

Tuesday morning leaderboard, in, uh, order of appearance:

[TS] Abide
JHSeeman
SamKat9
Pair O Ducks
whimsy
boharr
JM
Ergcat
Meg
heidi
MatthewL
Laura M
BarbaraK
Mwoychick
I K Snamhcok
Berto
Carolyn
Eric Porter
woozy
Philip Chow
Tyrpmom
lbray53
dannyvee
Anita and Steve

And now here are some nudges:
The word that gave Wendy the entire idea for this puzzle is in the clue for 25D.
How else could you interpret that word, given the first word of the title ...
... and the last across entry in the grid?
In my intro I neglected to thank @capn Rick for his unwitting help with the title. He and I were creating another puzzle, and one of his clues was BAR CODE. In the schoolmarm-ish way that all of my co-creators have had to deal with, I told him that BARCODE should be one word, not two, and then realized BAR CODE would make a perfect title for THIS puzzle. Thanks, Rick!
Good luck, fellow Muggles!
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rjy
Posts: 1032
Joined: Fri Oct 08, 2021 12:52 pm
Location: Gaithersburg, MD

#20

Post by rjy »

Clever concept and really well executed, with a fun aha, so in my wheelhouse - and evidently Alan's too! Still pretty amazed by the output and creativity of Wendy's rookie season... Thanks W&A!
Last edited by rjy on Tue Oct 03, 2023 11:39 am, edited 1 time in total.
Ray
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