August, 2007:

There’s this new craze in the field of puzzles and games of logic, which comes in the name Sudoku. The game, meaning “single digits” is a number placement puzzle based on logic. There is a partly complete 9×9 grid and the player’s aim is to fill that grid wherein each column, each row, and each of the nine 3×3 blocks or regions will include the digits from 1 to 9.

The game became an international hit in 2005, and has been entertaining people around the world since then. Dell Magazine originated the game, calling it Number Place. The game eventually became popular in Japan and thus given the name Sudoku.

The rule of the game is simple, yet analysis necessary to solve the puzzle can be complicated. It can be distinguished into different levels, from easy to intermediate, hard to challenging. You can scan an easy puzzle, use markup to solve an intermediate puzzle, and take considerable analysis to answer a hard or challenging Sudoku.

Sudoku is a fun and addictive game which will surely get you hooked. It’s something easy to learn and challenging to master! Its popularity has gained the game variations, like a nonomino Sudoku or Jigsaw Sudoku, Monster Sudoku, Dodeka Sudoku, Sudoku the Giant, Samurai Sudoku, Number Place Challenger, Sudoku X and Hypersudoku puzzle. There is also a Sudoku version of the Rubik’s Cube, named Sudokube. Sudoku has been included in many newspapers and can even be played online. There’s even Sudoku competitions, Sudoku shows on TV, and Sudoku softwares on PCs, websites, mobile phones, and video game handhelds.

If you can’t get enough of Sudoku in newspapers offering Sudoku puzzle a day, then get a magazine full of Sudoku fun! There are various Sudoku magazines available, including of course its originator Dell. There’s Dell Original Sudoku Magazine, Dell Extreme Sudoku Magazine  with more hard and challenging puzzle levels and World of Sudoku Magazine.

C’mon, join in the Sudoku madness!

I love doing crossword puzzles. Every time the daily newspaper arrives, I search for the comic page where I can read my everyday dose of Calvin & Hobbes, Peanuts, The Far Side, anagram riddles and of course, my well-liked crosswords. There are days I get to fill in the entire boxes, there are days I get to answer less than ten words. Nevertheless, doing crossword puzzles is fun, and I learn a lot of words along the way. Also, answering crossword puzzles is a good exercise; it reduces memory loss and even the risk of dementia or Alzheimer’s. (:

For crossword puzzle fanatics, there are a lot of magazines in print which primarily contain tons of crossword puzzles to fill up. There is the Collector’s Crosswords Magazine  which has 126 Sunday-size puzzles, including crosswords with themes and with different levels of difficulty. If you are a member of the Crosswords Club, you can receive the Crosswords Club Magazine and the Crossword Club – Large Print Magazine  with six puzzles each month ranging from puzzles with different themes including trivia and general knowledge hints. There are also the famous Dell Crossword Puzzles Magazine  and Dell Crosswords Special Magazine which offers puzzles in varying difficulties and many pages of big puzzles and other delightful word games.

If you are a beginner, you can start with amusing and simple crosswords that are easy to finish, even without consulting the dictionary. Magazines like Easy as ABC Crosswords Magazine, Easy Fast ‘N’ Fun Crosswords Magazine, Fun N Easy Crosswords Magazine  present simple brainteasers that will enhance your word bank.

Now if you are a pro, try NY Herald Tribune Crossword Puzzles Magazine  which is a set of specially selected stimulating crossword puzzles intended for excellent crossword puzzlers. There is also the USA Crosswords Jumbo Magazine which is packed with exciting puzzles with fascinating clues. Or if you want to have a copy of crossword puzzles anywhere you go, you might as well get a Pocket Crossword Puzzles Magazine.

Have fun crossword puzzling!

A number of analysts in the magazine industry refer to the Web as among the major threats to teen magazine readership, whereas some imply that going from side to side between print and online domains is turning out to be a vital element of life for readers of teen magazines.

There are plenty of magazines having websites, to promote an existence in cyberspace, and to nourish Internet-techies-slash-readers’ interests between print editions. Editors of teen magazines say that a good number of their site guests have previously read their magazine. They check their websites to get more pieces of writing and other cool stuff they offer online along with their print copies.
 
These teen magazines also make use of their websites to ask for reader comments and responses and put up a loyal following. Their websites have surveys, polls, and message boards made available for readers to have a chance to articulate their outlook, opinions and the experiences they go through, and to throw in their thoughts and ideas to the published edition. Since in the Internet there are limitless possibilities when it comes to multimedia like video streaming, moving pictures and animation, they also make use of their websites for advertising, promotion and marketing. They have online campaigns and promotions, special events and movie previews through streaming video.

These magazines especially fashioned for teens also use the Internet to enlist cool hunters to keep them informed about the up-and-coming drifts, fads and craze in the youth culture. For instance, a teen magazine has an access to thousands of trend spotters across the country through their website that makes their staff well-informed about teen affairs and interests.

During times of crisis, the Internet has likewise grown to be a place where teen magazines offer encouragement and assistance to their readers. Adding up special sections and reaching out online to readers are just some of the ways they provide support to their followers. Their bulletin boards and message boards are likewise used to be a venue for discussions and reinforcement to fellow readers.