Zyzzyva: The Last Word in Word Study

Zyzzyva News

Zyzzyva 2.1.5 has been released. This is a bug-fix update. I would especially like to thank Leighton 'Sandy' Gelling for going far beyond what could reasonably be expected in helping me track down and fix a number of irksome issues on 64-bit Linux. Thank you!

Here is the full list of changes in this version:

• Account for screen size when displaying Word Judge
• Add user preference for hyphens to denote inner hooks
• Enlarge CSW copyright notice
• Fix a bug when loading saved searches and quizzes containing umlauts
• Fix a bug that caused blank lexicon names to appear in lexicon list
• Fix multiple bugs that caused failures on 64-bit Linux
• Word definition fixes

This will probably be the last update for a few months as I'm trying to focus my efforts on the Zyzzyva iPhone project. However, if any critical bugs are found, I will fix them.

Zyzzyva 2.1.2 has been released. This is a small update with mostly bug fixes and word definition fixes.

Here is the full list of changes in this version:

• Fix a Words With Friends lexicon error
• Fix a bug when saving multi-line word definitions

Zyzzyva 2.1.1 has been released. This is a small update with mostly bug fixes and word definition fixes.

Here is the full list of changes in this version:

• New logo created by Jeremy Hildebrand
• Use . and @ as alternatives to ? and *, respectively
• Save alphagrams from a word list
• Load quiz tile images other than just A-Z
• Fix a bug that corrupted some long word definitions
• Fix Help system on OS X (mostly)
• Words With Friends lexicon
• Many word definition fixes - thanks to Dominick Mancine for additional definitions of long words
• Various bug fixes

Zyzzyva 2.1.0 has been released. This is a medium-sized update with a few new features. The main feature is the addition of John O'Laughlin's playability values for North American and British word lists. You can now search for words by playability, and order quiz questions by playability too. Zyzzyva 2.1.0 also allows you to specify how many blanks to use when calculating probability, whereas previously it always used two blanks.

Because of these new features, Zyzzyva's internal database format has changed. You will need to allow Zyzzyva to rebuild its databases after installing Zyzzyva 2.1.0.

Here is the full list of changes in this version:

• Search and quiz ordering by Playability (CSW, OWL2, and OSPD4 only)
• Specify 0, 1, or 2 blanks when calculating Probability
• Negation of Anagram, Pattern, and Subanagram search conditions
• Many word definition fixes - and thanks to Michael McKenna for CSW long definitions
• Italian and Dutch lexicons - thanks to Hervé Bohbot, Diego de Landro, and Bertrand De Bouvere
• BOOBIES is now acceptable in OSPD4 lexicon
• Restore Defaults button on Preferences dialog
• Subanagram search results are now sorted with longest words first
• Many various bug fixes

The Zyzzyva web site has been completely redesigned to make it easier to navigate and more visually appealing. I hope you like it!

Michael was recently interviewed about Zyzzyva on Word-Buff.com. Find out more details behind the program and its creator! And don't forget to browse the rest of the Word-Buff.com site for lots of other great word information.

Zyzzyva 2.0.5 has been released. This is a minor update with one main new feature. The Word Judge now prompts the challenger for the number of words to be challenged before displaying the input screen, and will not adjudicate the challenge until the correct number of words are entered. This feature is intended to eliminate accidental adjudications triggered by hitting the Tab key prematurely. This should particularly help players in North America, where the penalty for premature adjudication is severe!

Here is the full list of changes in this version:

• Word Judge now prompts for number of challenged words.
• Allow input, sorting, etc. for some characters other than A-Z.
• Fix reading of DAWG files so they are loadable on 64-bit machines.
• Fix some word definitions.

Buy Zyzzyva Stuff!

You can buy Zyzzyva T-shirts, sweatshirts, mugs and more at the Zyzzyva Online Store. For every item you buy, a percentage goes to me to help continue Zyzzyva development. It's a great way to get some classy Zyzzyva gear while helping out the project at the same time!

*** SALE! ***

I have some items left over from the Zyzzyva fundraiser, and I'm selling them here. While supplies last, you can buy T-shirts directly from me cheaper than you can buy them at the CafePress store linked above. You can buy tile sets and lapel pins cheaply, too.

If you find Zyzzyva useful, I would be very happy to receive a donation via PayPal, which you can do by clicking the button below. Thank you for your support!

This web site was designed and written by Michael Thelen. All markup code and text on this web site are Copyright © 2004-2012 Michael Thelen. All rights reserved.