There’s sort of a weekend tradition in L’s family; doing a crossword puzzle. They never did anything for me growing up, but now staring blankly at the WSJ crossword puzzle is something I could get used to. The thing is, the Online Journal’s version of the puzzle is a Java applet, which just isn’t the same.

I spotted this in the Online Journal’s FAQ:

On Friday’s you’ll find the full contents of the Weekend Journal, including the ever-challenging Crossword Puzzle.

So, being the high-tech tangle of contradiction that I am, that sort of got to me, I e-mailed a response to that FAQ entry to the Online Journal’s customer support people:

While I suppose that is technically true; the Java applet (presumably) represents the same puzzle that appears in print, I don’t entirely agree with it. Most of the Online Journal has “format for printing” links, but not the puzzle. Perhaps for you, relaxing on the weekend with a crossword puzzle evokes images of a web browser and a java applet, but for me it evokes images of a pencil, paper, and the sofa. Is the puzzle there in a more low-tech format that I’m just not seeing? (it seems silly to have online subscribers also buying the print edition for only the crossword puzzle)

Their response:

Dear Ignats,

Thank you for your email message. The crossword puzzle cannot be printed off in its entirety to be completed. It needs to be done on the computer with an active internet connection. Your request that the puzzle be made available for printing has been forwarded to the appropriate department for consideration.

No, I didn’t actually subscribe under the name “Ignats”. While I’m not exactly holding my breath to see if the “appropriate department” actually does something, at least they thanked me for giving them the opportunity to say no. :)

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