SCRABBLE Resources

There are many study tools to help tournament SCRABBLE players hone their skills, including a number of programs that can be downloaded for free. This section will offer suggestions and links, plus feature each month a different SCRABBLE resource. This month’s focus will be on two interactive Yahoo discussion groups, crossword-games-pro (cgp) and OSPD. Readers are welcome to suggest additions to this section.

A VOICE FOR THE SCRABBLE COMMUNITY

cgp: When Sherrie Saint John started the Yahoo Groups crossword-games pro fifteen years ago, she hoped to provide a forum where SCRABBLE tournament players could share ideas and keep up with news about SCRABBLE. Today, with approximately 1,250 members from 24 different countries, cgp is the largest online SCRABBLE group, and most of the top tournament players use it to stay in touch with what is going on in the SCRABBLE world.

Sherrie started two groups in early 1994, crossword-games-pro (cgp) and crossword-games (cg), with crossword-games-pro a forum for tournament SCRABBLE players and crossword-games for more general, “living room” players. Today crossword-games-pro, commonly referred to as cgp, is the more popular site. For up-to-the-minute SCRABBLE news, cgp is a valuable resource. It also is a place where SCRABBLE players can voice their opinions and get reactions from fellow players.

Subscribers to cgp get their information in one of three ways: 1) they can get individual messages by email; 2) they can get a daily digest, where messages for the day are “batched” in one or two emails; or 3) they get no emails, but can log read cgp at Yahoo groups (http://groups.yahoo.com) and read the cgp messages posted there (current messages as well as those in the archives). To read the cgp messages at Yahoo groups, players must set up an account to get a Yahoo ID and password. Sherrie remains the list administrator, retaining the right to censor posts or to remove players from the group if they submit inappropriate postings.

In addition to news, postings on cgp include tournament results, word puzzles, discussions on SCRABBLE-related topics, and much more.

Members of the crossword-games-pro group are required to be NSA or NASPA members, or have an international rating. The crossword-games group, which is for casual players, is not as active.

To join cgp, take the following steps:

Send an empty email message to crossword-games-pro-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
Send another email message to crossword-games-pro-owner@yahoogroups.com and include the following information:

Your full name

Your NSA and/or NASPA rating and membership number. If you are not from North America, just send your rating (online ratings don’t count)

For more information on cgp, go to the official web site: http://sasj.com/cgp, where you will also find many interesting SCRABBLE-related links.

OSPD: OSPD,(ospd-scrabble@yahoogroups.com) which takes its name from The Official SCRABBLE Players’ Dictionary, is a discussion group for players using that dictionary. Founded in 1999 by Jim Miller, it is now owned, supervised, and moderated by Cheryl L. Cadieux of Au Gres, Michigan and New Port Richey, Florida, a congenial tournament player better known to OSPD group members as “Stella.”

OSPD offers discussion of the SCRABBLE Brand Crossword Game as played in North America using The Official SCRABBLE Players’ Dictionary, 4th Edition. Postings include strategy tips, daily word lists, club and tournament news, anecdotes and jokes, the word of the day, mystery racks, and other topics relating to North American SCRABBLE. Billed early on as “your stress-free SCRABBLE channel,” the group has an added emphasis on easing informal home players into the club scene.

OSPD is informative but also light-hearted. Each daily word list concludes with Stella’s points to ponder, called “Stellaisms For Your Day,” such as the following quote from Danny Kaye: “Life is a great big canvas, and you should throw all the paint on it you can.”

To join OSPD, simply send an email to ospd-scrabble-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. This is a SCRABBLE community for SCRABBLE players to communicate with other SCRABBLE players. Everyone is welcome, but posts must be user-friendly and no spamming is allowed.

OTHER SCRABBLE RESOURCE LINKS

Play SCRABBLE On Line

POGO SCRABBLE

The official SCRABBLE online game. Created under agreement with Hasbro in 2008.

SCRABBLE ON FACEBOOK

Click the SCRABBLE tile icon on the bottom of the Facebook home page to play the official SCRABBLE game. Various groups hold tournaments at this site, including a group called “Mad Scrabblers.”

INTERNET SCRABBLE CLUB

A Romanian site for interactive games.

Play Live Scrabble

CROSS-TABLES

Lists all upcoming tournaments, as well as results of past tournaments. Has SCRABBLE tournament aids.

NASPA CLUB LISTINGS

Lists clubs throughout North America with their meeting times and locations.

NSA CLUB LISTINGS

Lists casual clubs throughout North America with their meeting times and locations.

Free Anagramming and Practice Tools

JUMBLE TIME

A web site for practicing anagramming skills.

AEROLITH

A web site for practicing anagramming skills and learning words.

QUACKLE

A web site for playing, simulating, and analyzing games.

ZYZZYVA

A web site for practicing anagramming skills and learning words. Also has Word Judge capabilities.