This tutorial will show you how to get started with Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes. When you select the Geometric Mazes module in Puzzle Maker Pro (1), you'll see a window similar to this screenshot: ![01 Mazes 2D - Initial View (2).png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/WHaX9pO8oC/01%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Initial%20View.png) In this window you can: * Set the type of maze you want, and set the size for your maze (2), * Configure how your maze will be generated (4), * Set additional Maze properties such as style and Colors (3) * Use future add-ons for Geometric Mazes (3) * And finally - Create or Preview your maze (5). ## Different shape types Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes offers 4 different shape types, which are enabled depending on your license. (Read more about Geometric Mazes licenses [here](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/geometric-mazes-purchase-information)). ### Squares Mazes with squares are the most easy to understand: You can set the number of rows and the number of columns for the total maze grid, and the software will generate a nice meandering path using some of these squares. An example is the screenshot at the top of this page. ### Triangles Triangles mazes are made up from triangles, alternatingly pointing up and down. A triangle based maze can never be fully square in size (unless you do some advanced math). ![03 Mazes 2D - Triangles.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/qW45nPAk0J/03%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Triangles.png) You can see in this image that a triangles maze with 20x20 triangles is not exactly rectangular. ### Circle A circle maze consist of several concentric circles. The number of maze 'cells' in each larger circle will be larger than the smaller circles, to make sure all the cells are more or less the same size. ![02 Mazes 2D - Circle.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/aJ5l2Ta3DI/02%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Circle.png) The number of rows and columns for circle mazes have a special logic: * Rows: The number of rings you encounter when you count from top to bottom or left to right. This setting is actually double the number of circles that are drawn. * Columns: This is the number of parts of the center circle, which can have a value ranging from 3 to 10. (This is a UNIQUE feature that you won't find in any other maze software). 4 or 6 are great values to work with, but you can experiment with the other numbers. (The math: The total circumference of a circle is 360 degrees. When you set the columns to 3, you get three parts of 120 degrees each. With 10 columns, you get 10 parts with 36 degrees each). ### Hexagons Hexagons are shapes with 6 sides. An example can be seen in this screenshot: ![04 Mazes 2D - Hexagons.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/iClafwvPIm/04%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Hexagons.png) The number of columns that are drawn for hexagons will always be odd, to add corner shapes for bether esthetics. Links to tutorials to configure all the different settings for Geometric Mazes can be found at the bottom of this page. ## Save and Preview For new Puzzle Maker Pro users: At the bottom of the window, you can see three buttons and an option (checkbox) * "Create" will create new mazes. This will use the quantity setting (Basic Options, at the top of the Puzzle Settings tab), to create 1, 2, 5 up to 1000's of maze puzzles. Each puzzle consists of a puzzle image and a solution image. WARNING: for large puzzle sizes (70-100) this may take a while for each puzzle. * "Next Preview" will generate a new maze that is shown in the preview panel (the big maze image at the right side of the Puzzle Maker Pro window). This is not saved to disk, but is an easy and interactive way to play with the settings and see what happens. * "Save Preview" will save the current preview. * "Preview Solution" can be used to toggle the preview panel from solution to puzzle. For mazes it's usually convenient to preview the solution (otherwise you won't see the solution path). ## More Tutorials * [Maze Generator Options](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/geometric-mazes-generator-options) * [Style Options](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/geometric-mazes-style) * [Color Options](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/geometric-mazes-colors) * Add-Ons: Masks, Rooms and Crossings, Breadcrumbs. (These tutorials will be added once the add-ons have been released).

This tutorial will show you how to get started with Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes. When you select the Geometric Mazes module in Puzzle Maker Pro (1), you'll see a window similar to this screenshot: ![01 Mazes 2D - Initial View (2).png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/WHaX9pO8oC/01%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Initial%20View.png) In this window you can: * Set the type of maze you want, and set the size for your maze (2), * Configure how your maze will be generated (4), * Set additional Maze properties such as style and Colors (3) * Use future add-ons for Geometric Mazes (3) * And finally - Create or Preview your maze (5). ## Different shape types Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes offers 4 different shape types, which are enabled depending on your license. (Read more about Geometric Mazes licenses [here](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/geometric-mazes-purchase-information)). ### Squares Mazes with squares are the most easy to understand: You can set the number of rows and the number of columns for the total maze grid, and the software will generate a nice meandering path using some of these squares. An example is the screenshot at the top of this page. ### Triangles Triangles mazes are made up from triangles, alternatingly pointing up and down. A triangle based maze can never be fully square in size (unless you do some advanced math). ![03 Mazes 2D - Triangles.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/qW45nPAk0J/03%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Triangles.png) You can see in this image that a triangles maze with 20x20 triangles is not exactly rectangular. ### Circle A circle maze consist of several concentric circles. The number of maze 'cells' in each larger circle will be larger than the smaller circles, to make sure all the cells are more or less the same size. ![02 Mazes 2D - Circle.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/aJ5l2Ta3DI/02%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Circle.png) The number of rows and columns for circle mazes have a special logic: * Rows: The number of rings you encounter when you count from top to bottom or left to right. This setting is actually double the number of circles that are drawn. * Columns: This is the number of parts of the center circle, which can have a value ranging from 3 to 10. (This is a UNIQUE feature that you won't find in any other maze software). 4 or 6 are great values to work with, but you can experiment with the other numbers. (The math: The total circumference of a circle is 360 degrees. When you set the columns to 3, you get three parts of 120 degrees each. With 10 columns, you get 10 parts with 36 degrees each). ### Hexagons Hexagons are shapes with 6 sides. An example can be seen in this screenshot: ![04 Mazes 2D - Hexagons.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/iClafwvPIm/04%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Hexagons.png) The number of columns that are drawn for hexagons will always be odd, to add corner shapes for bether esthetics. Links to tutorials to configure all the different settings for Geometric Mazes can be found at the bottom of this page. ## Save and Preview For new Puzzle Maker Pro users: At the bottom of the window, you can see three buttons and an option (checkbox) * "Create" will create new mazes. This will use the quantity setting (Basic Options, at the top of the Puzzle Settings tab), to create 1, 2, 5 up to 1000's of maze puzzles. Each puzzle consists of a puzzle image and a solution image. WARNING: for large puzzle sizes (70-100) this may take a while for each puzzle. * "Next Preview" will generate a new maze that is shown in the preview panel (the big maze image at the right side of the Puzzle Maker Pro window). This is not saved to disk, but is an easy and interactive way to play with the settings and see what happens. * "Save Preview" will save the current preview. * "Preview Solution" can be used to toggle the preview panel from solution to puzzle. For mazes it's usually convenient to preview the solution (otherwise you won't see the solution path). ## More Tutorials * [Maze Generator Options](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/geometric-mazes-generator-options) * [Style Options](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/geometric-mazes-style) * [Color Options](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/geometric-mazes-colors) * Add-Ons: Masks, Rooms and Crossings, Breadcrumbs. (These tutorials will be added once the add-ons have been released).

This overview explains the different Colors options for Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes? ![30 Mazes 2D - Overview.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/61ZncrdL5X/30%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Overview.png) There are two different sets of options on the Colors tab: 1. Colors for the canvas, floors, walls and solution 2. Settings for the Start and End points. ## Color Settings ![31 Mazes 2D - Transparent Canvas.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/Yrs6RV7i10/31%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Transparent%20Canvas.png) ### Canvas The canvas is the background of the image, on which the maze will be drawn. For square or rectangular mazes this won't be visible. For other shape types, and with (future) add-ons like the Masks and the Crossings, it will have a major impact on your maze. To create a Transparent canvas, as shown in the screenshot, you will need to select Transparent PNG is the file type (Output Settings --> Puzzle Files --> Puzzle Output Format). Otherwise the transparent background will be shown as black. ### Floors The floors, the contents of each cell in the maze, can be any color, or you can make them transparent. In which case the canvas color will be shown instead. There is no limit to color combinations you can use. An example is the screenshot below, using black for the floors and white for the walls: ![32 Mazes 2D - Reverse Colors.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/0fOczbSr6x/32%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Reverse%20Colors.png) ### Walls and Solution Path The colors for the Walls and the Solution Path can also be set to any color. Depending on the colors you use, you may need to adjust the Wall Thickness or Solution Line Thickness on the Style tab. ## Start / End Point Settings In Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes you can fully customize the Start and End point indicators. By default these will be printed as Text ("S" for Start, "E" for End) in black, using the Arial Font style. You can change the font by clicking the font preview panel (which shows "Arial" in the screenshot below, or by clicking the small looking glass on top of the panel). ### Outside Passage Open ![33 Mazes 2D - Start End Points.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/TYNEdjuza9/33%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Start%20End%20Points.png) You can set the "Outside Passage Open" to enable make it possible to actually enter and leave the maze. ### Using Images You can also use images instead of text, to indicate the Start and End points for the maze. ![34 Mazes 2D - Start End Images.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/vcbdxwYKcP/34%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Start%20End%20Images.png) First click the option "Images". This will display the two white panels where you can select the images you want to use. You can either click each panel and select an image (on your computer), or drag and drop an image onto the panel. (You can also drag and drop two images at once, dropping them on the left panel). You can use images for any shape type, here's an example of a hexagons maze with the same images: ![35 Mazes 2D - Hex Start End Images.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/nJc1FBSaeB/35%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Hex%20Start%20End%20Images.png)

This overview explains the different Colors options for Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes? ![30 Mazes 2D - Overview.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/61ZncrdL5X/30%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Overview.png) There are two different sets of options on the Colors tab: 1. Colors for the canvas, floors, walls and solution 2. Settings for the Start and End points. ## Color Settings ![31 Mazes 2D - Transparent Canvas.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/Yrs6RV7i10/31%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Transparent%20Canvas.png) ### Canvas The canvas is the background of the image, on which the maze will be drawn. For square or rectangular mazes this won't be visible. For other shape types, and with (future) add-ons like the Masks and the Crossings, it will have a major impact on your maze. To create a Transparent canvas, as shown in the screenshot, you will need to select Transparent PNG is the file type (Output Settings --> Puzzle Files --> Puzzle Output Format). Otherwise the transparent background will be shown as black. ### Floors The floors, the contents of each cell in the maze, can be any color, or you can make them transparent. In which case the canvas color will be shown instead. There is no limit to color combinations you can use. An example is the screenshot below, using black for the floors and white for the walls: ![32 Mazes 2D - Reverse Colors.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/0fOczbSr6x/32%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Reverse%20Colors.png) ### Walls and Solution Path The colors for the Walls and the Solution Path can also be set to any color. Depending on the colors you use, you may need to adjust the Wall Thickness or Solution Line Thickness on the Style tab. ## Start / End Point Settings In Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes you can fully customize the Start and End point indicators. By default these will be printed as Text ("S" for Start, "E" for End) in black, using the Arial Font style. You can change the font by clicking the font preview panel (which shows "Arial" in the screenshot below, or by clicking the small looking glass on top of the panel). ### Outside Passage Open ![33 Mazes 2D - Start End Points.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/TYNEdjuza9/33%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Start%20End%20Points.png) You can set the "Outside Passage Open" to enable make it possible to actually enter and leave the maze. ### Using Images You can also use images instead of text, to indicate the Start and End points for the maze. ![34 Mazes 2D - Start End Images.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/vcbdxwYKcP/34%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Start%20End%20Images.png) First click the option "Images". This will display the two white panels where you can select the images you want to use. You can either click each panel and select an image (on your computer), or drag and drop an image onto the panel. (You can also drag and drop two images at once, dropping them on the left panel). You can use images for any shape type, here's an example of a hexagons maze with the same images: ![35 Mazes 2D - Hex Start End Images.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/nJc1FBSaeB/35%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Hex%20Start%20End%20Images.png)

This overview will explain the different Maze Generator options. Mazes are always constructed completely random. However, there two ways to control the randomness: * Controlling the algorithm * Controlling the type of path ##Controlling the algorithm ![10 Mazes 2D - Path Complexity.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/EA389U4UK4/10%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Path%20Complexity.png) Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes contains a combination of different algorithms (rules) to create the maze. It's always random, but some algorithms create longer, meandering paths, while other algorithms create more direct paths. In the screen shot you can see the slider for "Solution Complexity". When you slide it to the left, it will create straightforward paths, when you slide it to the right, the paths will be more complex. However, it's always random. ## Controlling the type of path In addition to the maze generator algorithm, you can also choose how you want the path to run through the maze, by setting the start and end points. By default it runs from top left to bottom right, or in the case of circles, from top to bottom. ### Random Path ![11 Mazes 2D - Solution Path Style Random.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/r8Le03N96R/11%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Solution%20Path%20Style%20Random.png) The "Random" Path option will randomly set the start and end points at opposite sides of the maze, as can be seen in the screenshot. ### Longest Path ![12 Mazes 2D - Longest Path.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/1mUrVzte4o/12%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Longest%20Path.png) The "Longest Path" option will look over the generated maze, and find two points that have the longest distance to each other (the highest number of intermediate cells to pass), and choose them as start and end points. In most cases the start and end points will be somewhere in the middle of the maze.

This overview will explain the different Maze Generator options. Mazes are always constructed completely random. However, there two ways to control the randomness: * Controlling the algorithm * Controlling the type of path ##Controlling the algorithm ![10 Mazes 2D - Path Complexity.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/EA389U4UK4/10%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Path%20Complexity.png) Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes contains a combination of different algorithms (rules) to create the maze. It's always random, but some algorithms create longer, meandering paths, while other algorithms create more direct paths. In the screen shot you can see the slider for "Solution Complexity". When you slide it to the left, it will create straightforward paths, when you slide it to the right, the paths will be more complex. However, it's always random. ## Controlling the type of path In addition to the maze generator algorithm, you can also choose how you want the path to run through the maze, by setting the start and end points. By default it runs from top left to bottom right, or in the case of circles, from top to bottom. ### Random Path ![11 Mazes 2D - Solution Path Style Random.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/r8Le03N96R/11%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Solution%20Path%20Style%20Random.png) The "Random" Path option will randomly set the start and end points at opposite sides of the maze, as can be seen in the screenshot. ### Longest Path ![12 Mazes 2D - Longest Path.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/1mUrVzte4o/12%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Longest%20Path.png) The "Longest Path" option will look over the generated maze, and find two points that have the longest distance to each other (the highest number of intermediate cells to pass), and choose them as start and end points. In most cases the start and end points will be somewhere in the middle of the maze.

This pages lists the different options for Geometric Mazes. At BookPublisherTools we work hard to preserve the value of your investment. Even though Geometric Mazes is a brand new module with new algorithms, the current owners of the Standard Mazes 2D module will be able to use the Squares option of Geometric Mazes without needing an additional purchase. ![Overview Geometric Mazes.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/k82wf3uELN/Overview%20Geometric%20Mazes.png) There are two new products to get started with Geometric Mazes: * "3 Shapes", as a sidegrade/upgrade for owners of Standard Mazes 2D (or Standard & Shaped Mazes 2D). You can also buy this module if you don't need the squares mazes at all. * "All Shapes" is for new customers, who haven't purchase our other Mazes products in the past. ## Differences between Standard Mazes 2D and Geometric Mazes In the (near) future, there will be two 2D mazes products in the product list in Puzzle Maker Pro: Standard Mazes 2D and Geometric Mazes. These modules use different algorithms to create the puzzles. While Geometric Mazes has some unique options (and will be getting additional add-on options), the Standard Mazes 2D product is more suitable for large mazes (100+ rows and columns) and is faster for batch creating lots of mazes. There's also a difference in the 'random wall thickness' option: Standard Mazes 2D randomizes for each wall, while Geometric Mazes will randomize for each cell, resulting in different, more natural looking patterns. ## (Future) Add-on's for Geometric Mazes Currently three different Add-on's are planned for Q4 2020: * Masks (for squares, triangles and hexagons) * Rooms and Crossings (Rooms are larger cells in a grid, only available for Squares. Crossings will be available for Squares, Triangles and Hexagons) * Breadcrumbs (text - words or phrases, or images, to add an additional challenge to the mazes)

This pages lists the different options for Geometric Mazes. At BookPublisherTools we work hard to preserve the value of your investment. Even though Geometric Mazes is a brand new module with new algorithms, the current owners of the Standard Mazes 2D module will be able to use the Squares option of Geometric Mazes without needing an additional purchase. ![Overview Geometric Mazes.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/k82wf3uELN/Overview%20Geometric%20Mazes.png) There are two new products to get started with Geometric Mazes: * "3 Shapes", as a sidegrade/upgrade for owners of Standard Mazes 2D (or Standard & Shaped Mazes 2D). You can also buy this module if you don't need the squares mazes at all. * "All Shapes" is for new customers, who haven't purchase our other Mazes products in the past. ## Differences between Standard Mazes 2D and Geometric Mazes In the (near) future, there will be two 2D mazes products in the product list in Puzzle Maker Pro: Standard Mazes 2D and Geometric Mazes. These modules use different algorithms to create the puzzles. While Geometric Mazes has some unique options (and will be getting additional add-on options), the Standard Mazes 2D product is more suitable for large mazes (100+ rows and columns) and is faster for batch creating lots of mazes. There's also a difference in the 'random wall thickness' option: Standard Mazes 2D randomizes for each wall, while Geometric Mazes will randomize for each cell, resulting in different, more natural looking patterns. ## (Future) Add-on's for Geometric Mazes Currently three different Add-on's are planned for Q4 2020: * Masks (for squares, triangles and hexagons) * Rooms and Crossings (Rooms are larger cells in a grid, only available for Squares. Crossings will be available for Squares, Triangles and Hexagons) * Breadcrumbs (text - words or phrases, or images, to add an additional challenge to the mazes)

You can easily create word search puzzles with numbers, using Puzzle Maker Pro - Word Search. ## Step 1 - Select a file with numbers or paste the list of numbers First of all, you need a list of numbers instead of words. The process is the same as for word search puzzles: ![Word Search - Number puzzles 2.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/haVcACKzjT/Word%20Search%20-%20Number%20puzzles%202.png) These numbers will be used to fill the grid with digits. You can click preview to see the result, and you may notice that the empty squares still contain letters. (Not visible in the screenshot). Step 2 will fix this. ## Step 2 - Enter the numbers for the empty squares ![Word Search - Number puzzles 2.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/haVcACKzjT/Word%20Search%20-%20Number%20puzzles%202.png) Find the 'Hidden Word' section on the Solution tab, make sure 'Random Characters' is selected, and enter enter 0123456789 in the text field. Click 'New Preview' again to verify that the result is what you want it to be. Of course you can also add only a 0 in this field, to fill every empty square with a 0. That's up to you. Right now the puzzle is correct, but there's one more step to make sure the PDF or PPT output looks good too: ## Step 3 - Set the sort order By default, words will be sorted in alphabetical (dictionary) order. You can do that for numbers too, but especially if you use numbers of different lengths, like 11 and 90210, you may want to use the numerical sort order. You can find this on the 'Style' tab, below the color settings. ![Word Search - Number puzzles 3.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/89vI8kQz01/Word%20Search%20-%20Number%20puzzles%203.png)

You can easily create word search puzzles with numbers, using Puzzle Maker Pro - Word Search. ## Step 1 - Select a file with numbers or paste the list of numbers First of all, you need a list of numbers instead of words. The process is the same as for word search puzzles: ![Word Search - Number puzzles 2.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/haVcACKzjT/Word%20Search%20-%20Number%20puzzles%202.png) These numbers will be used to fill the grid with digits. You can click preview to see the result, and you may notice that the empty squares still contain letters. (Not visible in the screenshot). Step 2 will fix this. ## Step 2 - Enter the numbers for the empty squares ![Word Search - Number puzzles 2.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/haVcACKzjT/Word%20Search%20-%20Number%20puzzles%202.png) Find the 'Hidden Word' section on the Solution tab, make sure 'Random Characters' is selected, and enter enter 0123456789 in the text field. Click 'New Preview' again to verify that the result is what you want it to be. Of course you can also add only a 0 in this field, to fill every empty square with a 0. That's up to you. Right now the puzzle is correct, but there's one more step to make sure the PDF or PPT output looks good too: ## Step 3 - Set the sort order By default, words will be sorted in alphabetical (dictionary) order. You can do that for numbers too, but especially if you use numbers of different lengths, like 11 and 90210, you may want to use the numerical sort order. You can find this on the 'Style' tab, below the color settings. ![Word Search - Number puzzles 3.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/89vI8kQz01/Word%20Search%20-%20Number%20puzzles%203.png)

Like the other Puzzle Maker Pro modules, the best way to create puzzles with Puzzle Maker Pro - Jigsaw is by quickly creating an initial preview and then customize the different options and settings. When you switch to Puzzle Maker Pro - Jigsaw, you'll see this view. (Details may be different in future updates of the software) ![Jigsaw 001 - Initial View.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/i6SyZtuvMp/Jigsaw%20001%20-%20Initial%20View.png) Click on the white area just below "Select Image", or drag and drop an image file on it. You can use JPG or PNG files that you have on your computer. After setting the file, click "Next Preview" at the bottom left, and you'll see a jigsaw puzzle, which can look a bit like this: ![Jigsaw 002 - First Preview - Solution.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/M456z7oFcV/Jigsaw%20002%20-%20First%20Preview%20-%20Solution.png) This will usually be the solution of the puzzle, because that makes the most sense for many puzzle types. To view the actual jigsaw puzzle and the jigsaw puzzle pieces, click the checkbox "Preview Solution" at the bottom right of the window. The view will change into something like this: ![Jigsaw 003 - First Preview - Puzzle and Pieces.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/lmbu7bT83K/Jigsaw%20003%20-%20First%20Preview%20-%20Puzzle%20and%20Pieces.png) If you want to save one or more puzzles with these settings, just click "Create". To generate several different puzzles at once, you can change the Quantity (which is by default set to 1). Further reading: [Changing the number of puzzle pieces](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/puzzle-maker-pro-jigsaw-pieces) [Changing the jigsaw piece Connectors](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/puzzle-maker-pro-jigsaw-connectors) [Using different Page Layouts](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/puzzle-maker-pro-jigsaw-page-layout) [Configure the puzzle Styling](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/puzzle-maker-pro-jigsaw-styling)

Like the other Puzzle Maker Pro modules, the best way to create puzzles with Puzzle Maker Pro - Jigsaw is by quickly creating an initial preview and then customize the different options and settings. When you switch to Puzzle Maker Pro - Jigsaw, you'll see this view. (Details may be different in future updates of the software) ![Jigsaw 001 - Initial View.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/i6SyZtuvMp/Jigsaw%20001%20-%20Initial%20View.png) Click on the white area just below "Select Image", or drag and drop an image file on it. You can use JPG or PNG files that you have on your computer. After setting the file, click "Next Preview" at the bottom left, and you'll see a jigsaw puzzle, which can look a bit like this: ![Jigsaw 002 - First Preview - Solution.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/M456z7oFcV/Jigsaw%20002%20-%20First%20Preview%20-%20Solution.png) This will usually be the solution of the puzzle, because that makes the most sense for many puzzle types. To view the actual jigsaw puzzle and the jigsaw puzzle pieces, click the checkbox "Preview Solution" at the bottom right of the window. The view will change into something like this: ![Jigsaw 003 - First Preview - Puzzle and Pieces.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/lmbu7bT83K/Jigsaw%20003%20-%20First%20Preview%20-%20Puzzle%20and%20Pieces.png) If you want to save one or more puzzles with these settings, just click "Create". To generate several different puzzles at once, you can change the Quantity (which is by default set to 1). Further reading: [Changing the number of puzzle pieces](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/puzzle-maker-pro-jigsaw-pieces) [Changing the jigsaw piece Connectors](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/puzzle-maker-pro-jigsaw-connectors) [Using different Page Layouts](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/puzzle-maker-pro-jigsaw-page-layout) [Configure the puzzle Styling](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/puzzle-maker-pro-jigsaw-styling)

A question that often comes up, is the font size that's used for puzzles that are generated with Puzzle Maker Pro. Especially when you want to mark a book as Large Print on KDP/Amazon, you really want to know the font size in the books generated with Puzzle Maker Pro. This is not an easy question to answer, because there are several steps involved, and additionally, not all fonts have the same size at a given font size. (Which has nothing to do with Puzzle Maker Pro). In general, if you want to publish Large Print books, it also make sense to use a clear font like Arial, to improve readability. If you use a artful font with lots of embellishments, it may satisfy the requirements for Amazon, but still be hard to read for your target audience, resulting in negative reviews. # How are Fonts and DPI related to each other? First, lets discuss font size and DPI. DPI is an acronym for Dots Per Inch, and for print you’ll need 300 DPI. All Puzzle Maker Pro images are created at 300 DPI (unless you switch to 96DPI). You don’t have to worry about that. Font size is measured in points, not in dots or pixels: One point is 1/72th of an inch. Large print, 16 points or larger, means 16/72th of an inch, which is 0.222″ (or larger). Note: Different tools use different units. For example Microsoft Office uses points, while most image editing apps use pixels. # Which steps does Puzzle Maker Pro use to create a puzzle book? Puzzle Maker Pro uses two steps to create puzzle books: 1. Create the puzzles, 2. Create the puzzle book from these puzzles. [Find out more about the two-step approach of Puzzle Maker Pro](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/puzzle-maker-pro-workflow) # How can you find out the font size that's used for a puzzle? The font size that is used in your puzzles depends on the size of your puzzle, the puzzle type and the puzzle settings. ## How to set the Puzzle Size In puzzle Maker Pro, you can select how big you want your puzzle images to be. Starting at 300, up to 3000. With 300DPI that’s 1″ up to 10″. ## How to calculate the font size for a puzzle type The size of the characters that are used to print a puzzle, depends on the puzzle size you’ve selected. Let’s take regular 9×9 sudokus as an example: The total puzzle size (let’s say 2700 pixels) is split into 9 rows and 9 columns. Each row has a height of 2700/9, and each column has a width of 2700/9, which is 300 pixels. Which is 1″ Puzzle Maker Pro automatically calculates the font size for each square. By default it uses 80% of the height, leaving 10% on top and 10% at the bottom as margins. For some puzzle types you can modify this ratio, resulting in a different font size. To calculate the font size, take 80% of 300 pixels, this is 240 pixels (numbers are rounded here). This is not yet the font size in points. To go from pixels to points, we divide by 300 (300 pixels per inch) and multiply with 72 (72 points per inch). 240 / 300 * 72 = 57.6 points. Summarized: A 9×9 sudoku puzzle, rendered to a jpg of 2700 pixels, will use a font size of 57.6 points. However… That only applies when you would print the image at it’s actual size. ## How does the font size change when creating a puzzle book from your puzzles? When you create your puzzle book, the puzzle images will be resized, and usually the size will be reduced. For example, let’s create a 6×9″ book interior with 0.5″ margins left and right. 6″ minus 0.5″ (left margin) minus 0.5″ (right margin) leaves 5″ for the puzzle. 5″ at 300 DPI is 1500 pixels. Let's say we created a puzzle of 3000 pixels, resulting in a font size of 64 points. You can easily see that it needs to be reduced by 50% (1500 / 3000). In which case the font also will be 50% smaller. 64 points / 2 = 32 points. Still a lot more than 16. For the 9×9 sudoku puzzles, you’ll usually be fine, but for other sudoku puzzles, you’ll need to do the math, unfortunately. ## What are the steps to determine the font size? In most cases it's enough to approximate the font size, as long as it's clearly over 16 points. Here are the steps: 1. Calculate the page body width, which is the trim size minus the margins. Example: an 8x10" book with .5" margins has a width of 7" 2. Divide by the number of puzzles in a row. Example: let's print 2 rows of 2 puzzles on each page. 7" / 2 = 3.5". For simplicity, we'll ignore the 0.1" padding between the puzzles. 3. Calculate the number of pixels for each square in the puzzle. This depends on the puzzle type. Example: For Sudoku 9x9, we can divide 3.5" by 9, that's 0.3889". 4. Calculate the font size in pixels for each square. This is 80% of the square size (with 10% padding). Example: 0.3889" times 0.8 = 0.311" 5. Calculate the font size in points from the font size in pixels: inches * 72 = points. Example: 0.311" * 72 = 22.4 points. For some puzzles, for example Word Search and Bingo, you can further modify the font size for each font. In that case these calculations get a bit more difficult, but the slider for the font size also shows the percentage. You can use this percentage to calculate the resulting point size.

A question that often comes up, is the font size that's used for puzzles that are generated with Puzzle Maker Pro. Especially when you want to mark a book as Large Print on KDP/Amazon, you really want to know the font size in the books generated with Puzzle Maker Pro. This is not an easy question to answer, because there are several steps involved, and additionally, not all fonts have the same size at a given font size. (Which has nothing to do with Puzzle Maker Pro). In general, if you want to publish Large Print books, it also make sense to use a clear font like Arial, to improve readability. If you use a artful font with lots of embellishments, it may satisfy the requirements for Amazon, but still be hard to read for your target audience, resulting in negative reviews. # How are Fonts and DPI related to each other? First, lets discuss font size and DPI. DPI is an acronym for Dots Per Inch, and for print you’ll need 300 DPI. All Puzzle Maker Pro images are created at 300 DPI (unless you switch to 96DPI). You don’t have to worry about that. Font size is measured in points, not in dots or pixels: One point is 1/72th of an inch. Large print, 16 points or larger, means 16/72th of an inch, which is 0.222″ (or larger). Note: Different tools use different units. For example Microsoft Office uses points, while most image editing apps use pixels. # Which steps does Puzzle Maker Pro use to create a puzzle book? Puzzle Maker Pro uses two steps to create puzzle books: 1. Create the puzzles, 2. Create the puzzle book from these puzzles. [Find out more about the two-step approach of Puzzle Maker Pro](https://help.bookpublishertools.com/faqs/puzzle-maker-pro-workflow) # How can you find out the font size that's used for a puzzle? The font size that is used in your puzzles depends on the size of your puzzle, the puzzle type and the puzzle settings. ## How to set the Puzzle Size In puzzle Maker Pro, you can select how big you want your puzzle images to be. Starting at 300, up to 3000. With 300DPI that’s 1″ up to 10″. ## How to calculate the font size for a puzzle type The size of the characters that are used to print a puzzle, depends on the puzzle size you’ve selected. Let’s take regular 9×9 sudokus as an example: The total puzzle size (let’s say 2700 pixels) is split into 9 rows and 9 columns. Each row has a height of 2700/9, and each column has a width of 2700/9, which is 300 pixels. Which is 1″ Puzzle Maker Pro automatically calculates the font size for each square. By default it uses 80% of the height, leaving 10% on top and 10% at the bottom as margins. For some puzzle types you can modify this ratio, resulting in a different font size. To calculate the font size, take 80% of 300 pixels, this is 240 pixels (numbers are rounded here). This is not yet the font size in points. To go from pixels to points, we divide by 300 (300 pixels per inch) and multiply with 72 (72 points per inch). 240 / 300 * 72 = 57.6 points. Summarized: A 9×9 sudoku puzzle, rendered to a jpg of 2700 pixels, will use a font size of 57.6 points. However… That only applies when you would print the image at it’s actual size. ## How does the font size change when creating a puzzle book from your puzzles? When you create your puzzle book, the puzzle images will be resized, and usually the size will be reduced. For example, let’s create a 6×9″ book interior with 0.5″ margins left and right. 6″ minus 0.5″ (left margin) minus 0.5″ (right margin) leaves 5″ for the puzzle. 5″ at 300 DPI is 1500 pixels. Let's say we created a puzzle of 3000 pixels, resulting in a font size of 64 points. You can easily see that it needs to be reduced by 50% (1500 / 3000). In which case the font also will be 50% smaller. 64 points / 2 = 32 points. Still a lot more than 16. For the 9×9 sudoku puzzles, you’ll usually be fine, but for other sudoku puzzles, you’ll need to do the math, unfortunately. ## What are the steps to determine the font size? In most cases it's enough to approximate the font size, as long as it's clearly over 16 points. Here are the steps: 1. Calculate the page body width, which is the trim size minus the margins. Example: an 8x10" book with .5" margins has a width of 7" 2. Divide by the number of puzzles in a row. Example: let's print 2 rows of 2 puzzles on each page. 7" / 2 = 3.5". For simplicity, we'll ignore the 0.1" padding between the puzzles. 3. Calculate the number of pixels for each square in the puzzle. This depends on the puzzle type. Example: For Sudoku 9x9, we can divide 3.5" by 9, that's 0.3889". 4. Calculate the font size in pixels for each square. This is 80% of the square size (with 10% padding). Example: 0.3889" times 0.8 = 0.311" 5. Calculate the font size in points from the font size in pixels: inches * 72 = points. Example: 0.311" * 72 = 22.4 points. For some puzzles, for example Word Search and Bingo, you can further modify the font size for each font. In that case these calculations get a bit more difficult, but the slider for the font size also shows the percentage. You can use this percentage to calculate the resulting point size.

Puzzle Maker Pro can create puzzles, and additionally create puzzles books from these puzzles. It is a two-step approach on purpose: 1. Create the puzzles and solutions using the settings you selected for your puzzles, 2. Create a puzzle book from the puzzle and solution files you created in step 1 ## How to create Puzzles The primary function of Puzzle Maker Pro is to create puzzles for you. You can set the the resulting image size and file format on the Output Settings / Puzzle Files tab, and set all specific puzzle settings on the Puzzle Settings tab. ### Which files will be created by Puzzle Maker Pro? For most puzzle types this will result in * A file containing the puzzle image in JPG or PNG format (in the project/puzzles folder) * A file containing the solution image in JPG or PNG format (in the project/solutions folder) In some cases additional files will be created: * For Mazes, the SVG add-on will let you create the maze drawing in SVG format. This is an efficient vector format that can be used to display the puzzle on a web page, for further editing or styling in Adobe Illustrator, or to control cutter machines such as Silhouette * An XML file containing specific information about the puzzle, to use when you create puzzle books * A TXT file with the words used in a Word Search puzzle, and an additional file with the remaining words from your word list You can use these files in any way you like. There is no obligation to create your puzzle books with Puzzle Maker Pro. ## How to create Puzzle Books After creating your puzzles, Puzzle Maker Pro will automatically create a puzzle book for you. Consider this a friendly gesture of Puzzle Maker Pro - it does not aspire to compete with professional book layout software such as Adobe Indesign, Affinity Publisher or Microsoft Publisher. This is called "Additional Output". It will use the settings on the Output Settings / Additional Output tab, and the Output Settings / Page Format tab to create a PDF or Powerpoint file according to your specifications. If you have set the options to create additional output, it will do so immediately after creating the puzzles (when you click the Create button). ## How does the Time Saver fit in? The Time Saver extension allow you to create puzzles a lot faster, by creating puzzles with different settings in one go. It speeds up Step 1 (see above). It will create puzzles for each setting you specified, and will create a puzzle book after all the puzzles have been generated.

Puzzle Maker Pro can create puzzles, and additionally create puzzles books from these puzzles. It is a two-step approach on purpose: 1. Create the puzzles and solutions using the settings you selected for your puzzles, 2. Create a puzzle book from the puzzle and solution files you created in step 1 ## How to create Puzzles The primary function of Puzzle Maker Pro is to create puzzles for you. You can set the the resulting image size and file format on the Output Settings / Puzzle Files tab, and set all specific puzzle settings on the Puzzle Settings tab. ### Which files will be created by Puzzle Maker Pro? For most puzzle types this will result in * A file containing the puzzle image in JPG or PNG format (in the project/puzzles folder) * A file containing the solution image in JPG or PNG format (in the project/solutions folder) In some cases additional files will be created: * For Mazes, the SVG add-on will let you create the maze drawing in SVG format. This is an efficient vector format that can be used to display the puzzle on a web page, for further editing or styling in Adobe Illustrator, or to control cutter machines such as Silhouette * An XML file containing specific information about the puzzle, to use when you create puzzle books * A TXT file with the words used in a Word Search puzzle, and an additional file with the remaining words from your word list You can use these files in any way you like. There is no obligation to create your puzzle books with Puzzle Maker Pro. ## How to create Puzzle Books After creating your puzzles, Puzzle Maker Pro will automatically create a puzzle book for you. Consider this a friendly gesture of Puzzle Maker Pro - it does not aspire to compete with professional book layout software such as Adobe Indesign, Affinity Publisher or Microsoft Publisher. This is called "Additional Output". It will use the settings on the Output Settings / Additional Output tab, and the Output Settings / Page Format tab to create a PDF or Powerpoint file according to your specifications. If you have set the options to create additional output, it will do so immediately after creating the puzzles (when you click the Create button). ## How does the Time Saver fit in? The Time Saver extension allow you to create puzzles a lot faster, by creating puzzles with different settings in one go. It speeds up Step 1 (see above). It will create puzzles for each setting you specified, and will create a puzzle book after all the puzzles have been generated.

This tutorial shows how to use the How do I use the Style options for Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes. ![20 Mazes 2D - Style.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/BRrfm2NtMl/20%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Style.png) There are three major ways to change the style of the maze: 1. Changing the passages (or 'doors') between the different maze cells 2. Changing the walls between the maze cells 3. Changing the solution path These Style settings will work closely together with the Colors settings. ## Passage Settings By default the passages are fully open. However, you can change that. Use the slider to set the passage to a percentage of the cell size. (A percentage instead of a fixed number of pixels will preserve settings when you use a different image size or resolution). ![21 Mazes 2D - Passage Width.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/kI3Ss9XXLE/21%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Passage%20Width.png) By setting the Passage Width to approx 50% you get a different type of maze, it will seem to be more complex, even though it has the same number of cells as the first screenshot on this page. Using very small values for Passage Width may interfere with the Wall Thickness and Colors settings - in some cases the passage will be drawn as closed because the walls are too thick. Always check the results of your settings visually before creating a large number of mazes. ### Randomize Passage Position ![22 Mazes 2D - Randomize Passage Position.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/B9kHdIV5Ca/22%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Randomize%20Passage%20Position.png) As you can see in the screenshot, randomizing the passage position will move it slightly to the left or right, creating a more complex maze. This option will have no effect when the passages are fully open. ### Randomize Passage Width and Position Randomizing the Passage Width will randomly add or subtract up to 50% of the Passage Width, creating a more chaotic maze. ![23 Mazes 2D - Randomize Passage Width and Position.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/gIo9ImI8LV/23%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Randomize%20Passage%20Width%20and%20Position.png) In the screenshot we've randomized both the Width and the Position, you can also randomize either of them separately. ## Wall Settings The Wall Thickness has a huge impact on the look and feel of a maze, even without changing the colors. ![24 Mazes 2D - Wall Thickness.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/0wAIJpwJCd/24%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Wall%20Thickness.png) Just like the Passage Width, the Wall Thickness is also set as a percentage of the cell size. ### Randomize Wall Thickness You can randomize the Wall Thickness, this add or subtract up to 50% of the Wall Thickness. This will make it look quite chaotic. ![25 Mazes 2D - Random Wall Thickness.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/CWMYcjulwL/25%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Random%20Wall%20Thickness.png) The randomization will be done on a cell by cell basis. This means that all walls of a cell will have the same weight (thickness), unless a neighboring cell has even thicker walls. You can see in the screenshot that this results in an organic look and feel of the maze. If you use a low value for the Wall Thickness, combined with randomization, the result may look a bit like a hand-drawn maze. ## Solution Line Settings The Solution Line is the line through the maze that connects the Start and End points. ![26 Mazes 2D - Solution Line.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/P43YQOdQ6J/26%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Solution%20Line.png) First of all, you can change the width (weight, thickness), again as a percentage of the average cell size. ### Curved Solution Path If you don't like the more angular style of the default solution line, you can change it to Curved: ![27 Mazes - Solution Line Curved.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/xCmQ9kZMIl/27%20Mazes%20-%20Solution%20Line%20Curved.png) Curved solution paths look more smooth and natural, the way someone would manually draw the path in a maze. ### Dashed Solution Path Finally you can change the continuous line into a dashed (dotted) path: ![28 Mazes 2D - Solution Line Curved Dotted.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/xifqUhEviK/28%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Solution%20Line%20Curved%20Dotted.png) This will make it look more like footsteps or breadcrumbs in your maze. ## Warning Especially at more extreme settings (small passage width, large wall thickness, large solution line thickness, and randomization) you'll have to really visually check if the mazes look good, using the colors you selected. There are many customization options allowing you to create beautiful mazes, but they will also allow you to create mazes that are less esthetically pleasing.

This tutorial shows how to use the How do I use the Style options for Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes. ![20 Mazes 2D - Style.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/BRrfm2NtMl/20%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Style.png) There are three major ways to change the style of the maze: 1. Changing the passages (or 'doors') between the different maze cells 2. Changing the walls between the maze cells 3. Changing the solution path These Style settings will work closely together with the Colors settings. ## Passage Settings By default the passages are fully open. However, you can change that. Use the slider to set the passage to a percentage of the cell size. (A percentage instead of a fixed number of pixels will preserve settings when you use a different image size or resolution). ![21 Mazes 2D - Passage Width.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/kI3Ss9XXLE/21%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Passage%20Width.png) By setting the Passage Width to approx 50% you get a different type of maze, it will seem to be more complex, even though it has the same number of cells as the first screenshot on this page. Using very small values for Passage Width may interfere with the Wall Thickness and Colors settings - in some cases the passage will be drawn as closed because the walls are too thick. Always check the results of your settings visually before creating a large number of mazes. ### Randomize Passage Position ![22 Mazes 2D - Randomize Passage Position.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/B9kHdIV5Ca/22%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Randomize%20Passage%20Position.png) As you can see in the screenshot, randomizing the passage position will move it slightly to the left or right, creating a more complex maze. This option will have no effect when the passages are fully open. ### Randomize Passage Width and Position Randomizing the Passage Width will randomly add or subtract up to 50% of the Passage Width, creating a more chaotic maze. ![23 Mazes 2D - Randomize Passage Width and Position.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/gIo9ImI8LV/23%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Randomize%20Passage%20Width%20and%20Position.png) In the screenshot we've randomized both the Width and the Position, you can also randomize either of them separately. ## Wall Settings The Wall Thickness has a huge impact on the look and feel of a maze, even without changing the colors. ![24 Mazes 2D - Wall Thickness.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/0wAIJpwJCd/24%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Wall%20Thickness.png) Just like the Passage Width, the Wall Thickness is also set as a percentage of the cell size. ### Randomize Wall Thickness You can randomize the Wall Thickness, this add or subtract up to 50% of the Wall Thickness. This will make it look quite chaotic. ![25 Mazes 2D - Random Wall Thickness.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/CWMYcjulwL/25%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Random%20Wall%20Thickness.png) The randomization will be done on a cell by cell basis. This means that all walls of a cell will have the same weight (thickness), unless a neighboring cell has even thicker walls. You can see in the screenshot that this results in an organic look and feel of the maze. If you use a low value for the Wall Thickness, combined with randomization, the result may look a bit like a hand-drawn maze. ## Solution Line Settings The Solution Line is the line through the maze that connects the Start and End points. ![26 Mazes 2D - Solution Line.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/P43YQOdQ6J/26%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Solution%20Line.png) First of all, you can change the width (weight, thickness), again as a percentage of the average cell size. ### Curved Solution Path If you don't like the more angular style of the default solution line, you can change it to Curved: ![27 Mazes - Solution Line Curved.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/xCmQ9kZMIl/27%20Mazes%20-%20Solution%20Line%20Curved.png) Curved solution paths look more smooth and natural, the way someone would manually draw the path in a maze. ### Dashed Solution Path Finally you can change the continuous line into a dashed (dotted) path: ![28 Mazes 2D - Solution Line Curved Dotted.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/xifqUhEviK/28%20Mazes%202D%20-%20Solution%20Line%20Curved%20Dotted.png) This will make it look more like footsteps or breadcrumbs in your maze. ## Warning Especially at more extreme settings (small passage width, large wall thickness, large solution line thickness, and randomization) you'll have to really visually check if the mazes look good, using the colors you selected. There are many customization options allowing you to create beautiful mazes, but they will also allow you to create mazes that are less esthetically pleasing.

Puzzle Maker Pro - JigSaw Circles supports most of the features of JigSaw Squares (for which there are a lot of tutorials). However, some things are very specific for Circles. ## Circles First of all, the JigSaw Circles will only create a circle (or oval), it will not fill out the empty space along the border of the image. That means a significant part of your image will be cut off - it makes sense to prepare images that have the actual image centered. ![Jigsaw 025 - Blank Circles Puzzle.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/sOnRU71cz1/Jigsaw%20025%20-%20Blank%20Circles%20Puzzle.png) ## Number of concentric circles In general, the number of concentric "Circles" should be 2 or 3. Due to the nature of these puzzles, pieces will be quite small when you have 4, 5 or more concentric circles. ## Circles and Ovals The option "Perfect Circle" will enforce the resulting puzzle to be an actual circle. Without this option, it may be an oval. This can be used in some cases, but since it easily gets ugly (esthetically), Puzzle Maker Pro - JigSaw Circles has not been optimized for extreme settings. The screenshot below illustrates the effects of using an oval where the height and width differ a lot: ![Jigsaw 036 - Circles - Oval Shapes.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/27rrCZUA1M/Jigsaw%20036%20-%20Circles%20-%20Oval%20Shapes.png) In addition to this esthetic effect, the puzzle page (showing the separate puzzle pieces) may show overlapping pieces, because the sizes of the pieces differ too much.

Puzzle Maker Pro - JigSaw Circles supports most of the features of JigSaw Squares (for which there are a lot of tutorials). However, some things are very specific for Circles. ## Circles First of all, the JigSaw Circles will only create a circle (or oval), it will not fill out the empty space along the border of the image. That means a significant part of your image will be cut off - it makes sense to prepare images that have the actual image centered. ![Jigsaw 025 - Blank Circles Puzzle.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/sOnRU71cz1/Jigsaw%20025%20-%20Blank%20Circles%20Puzzle.png) ## Number of concentric circles In general, the number of concentric "Circles" should be 2 or 3. Due to the nature of these puzzles, pieces will be quite small when you have 4, 5 or more concentric circles. ## Circles and Ovals The option "Perfect Circle" will enforce the resulting puzzle to be an actual circle. Without this option, it may be an oval. This can be used in some cases, but since it easily gets ugly (esthetically), Puzzle Maker Pro - JigSaw Circles has not been optimized for extreme settings. The screenshot below illustrates the effects of using an oval where the height and width differ a lot: ![Jigsaw 036 - Circles - Oval Shapes.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/27rrCZUA1M/Jigsaw%20036%20-%20Circles%20-%20Oval%20Shapes.png) In addition to this esthetic effect, the puzzle page (showing the separate puzzle pieces) may show overlapping pieces, because the sizes of the pieces differ too much.

## Basics To use the Time Saver for JigSaw, you need to select the "Time Saver" tab, and then check the box "Use Time Saver to generate Puzzles" at the top. ![Jigsaw 040 - Time Saver Overview.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/nQFCAF35W4/Jigsaw%20040%20-%20Time%20Saver%20Overview.png) There are two ways to use this Time Saver, which can be combined: * Using Images (the "Fast" mode) * Using (JigSaw) Presets In addition to the "Use Time Saver" option, you'll need to check the options you want to use, e.g. the "Use Time Saver - Fast" option in the screenshot. ## Using Images In the Fast Mode you can just select a number of images and adjust some of the settings for each image. (All the other settings will be copied from the 'Puzzle Settings' tab. ![Jigsaw 041 - Time Saver Fast Mode.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/XL3HqEShIN/Jigsaw%20041%20-%20Time%20Saver%20Fast%20Mode.png) ### Add Images At the bottom of the window ([1] in the screenshot), you can see a button "Add Images". This will allow you to select a number of images on your computer, that will be used for puzzles. These images will be added to the table. Using the "Delete Rows" button you can remove rows that you have selected (by clicking on them), "Delete All" will remove all the rows from this table. ### Set default values You can set a couple of default values ([2] in the screenshot) for each set of images you import, such as the puzzle type, the number of rows and columns, "Perfect", and the connector type. This will allow you to very quickly create a list of puzzles to create. ### Editing the table For each image you can edit the settings in the table. Once you're done, click "Create" to create your puzzles and/or puzzle book. Note: "Next Preview" and "Save Preview" have no use for the Time Saver. ## Using Presets The other option for the Time Saver is using Presets. These are presets you have created for JigSaw. ![Jigsaw 042 - Puzzle Presets.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/EDacC7DyTl/Jigsaw%20042%20-%20Puzzle%20Presets.png) In the Time Saver you can see all the presets you have created, and select the ones you want to use to create puzzles (for your puzzle book). Everytime you use a preset, it will create a new randomized puzzle, based on the preset settings. ![Jigsaw 043 - Time Saver with Presets.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/Zm6scty1QK/Jigsaw%20043%20-%20Time%20Saver%20with%20Presets.png)

## Basics To use the Time Saver for JigSaw, you need to select the "Time Saver" tab, and then check the box "Use Time Saver to generate Puzzles" at the top. ![Jigsaw 040 - Time Saver Overview.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/nQFCAF35W4/Jigsaw%20040%20-%20Time%20Saver%20Overview.png) There are two ways to use this Time Saver, which can be combined: * Using Images (the "Fast" mode) * Using (JigSaw) Presets In addition to the "Use Time Saver" option, you'll need to check the options you want to use, e.g. the "Use Time Saver - Fast" option in the screenshot. ## Using Images In the Fast Mode you can just select a number of images and adjust some of the settings for each image. (All the other settings will be copied from the 'Puzzle Settings' tab. ![Jigsaw 041 - Time Saver Fast Mode.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/XL3HqEShIN/Jigsaw%20041%20-%20Time%20Saver%20Fast%20Mode.png) ### Add Images At the bottom of the window ([1] in the screenshot), you can see a button "Add Images". This will allow you to select a number of images on your computer, that will be used for puzzles. These images will be added to the table. Using the "Delete Rows" button you can remove rows that you have selected (by clicking on them), "Delete All" will remove all the rows from this table. ### Set default values You can set a couple of default values ([2] in the screenshot) for each set of images you import, such as the puzzle type, the number of rows and columns, "Perfect", and the connector type. This will allow you to very quickly create a list of puzzles to create. ### Editing the table For each image you can edit the settings in the table. Once you're done, click "Create" to create your puzzles and/or puzzle book. Note: "Next Preview" and "Save Preview" have no use for the Time Saver. ## Using Presets The other option for the Time Saver is using Presets. These are presets you have created for JigSaw. ![Jigsaw 042 - Puzzle Presets.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/EDacC7DyTl/Jigsaw%20042%20-%20Puzzle%20Presets.png) In the Time Saver you can see all the presets you have created, and select the ones you want to use to create puzzles (for your puzzle book). Everytime you use a preset, it will create a new randomized puzzle, based on the preset settings. ![Jigsaw 043 - Time Saver with Presets.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/Zm6scty1QK/Jigsaw%20043%20-%20Time%20Saver%20with%20Presets.png)

Puzzle Maker Pro - JigSaw Triangles supports most of the features of JigSaw Squares, but of course some things are different because of the triangle shape. ## Triangle Shapes Unlike Squares, Triangle shapes can never perfectly fill a square or rectangular image. As you can see in this screenshot, there will always be some partial (half) triangles at the left and right edges. ![Jigsaw 024 - Blank Triangles Puzzle.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/zDuptu3kaS/Jigsaw%20024%20-%20Blank%20Triangles%20Puzzle.png) ## Connector Types Triangles work best with Triangle or JigSaw connector types (or no connectors at all). With Square connectors you have to test and configure the length settings carefully, to make sure the connectors do not overlap. ![Jigsaw 039 - Triangles with Square Connectors.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/7OhLaL94uU/Jigsaw%20039%20-%20Triangles%20with%20Square%20Connectors.png) ## Perfect Triangles Most screenshots for JigSaw Triangles use the "Perfect Triangles" option, since this usually looks good. This will create equilateral triangles. If you switch it off, you'll get isosceles triangles. ![Jigsaw 038 - Non-perfect Triangles.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/AmrroinCDV/Jigsaw%20038%20-%20Non-perfect%20Triangles.png) ## Pyramid Only A special type of Triangles puzzle is the big triangle (called 'Pyramid' in this module). ![Jigsaw 033 - Triangles Pyramid Only.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/SUuD6VNKZh/Jigsaw%20033%20-%20Triangles%20Pyramid%20Only.png) As you can see in the screenshot, this will remove quite a few of the triangles (almost 50%), leaving a nice big pyramid in place. However, this will also leave a large part of your original image out of the puzzle. ![Jigsaw 037 - Triangle Pyramid Image Cut Off.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/OmW95kW73D/Jigsaw%20037%20-%20Triangle%20Pyramid%20Image%20Cut%20Off.png) ## Triangles Coordinates Using Coordinates for Triangles puzzles is almost as easy as for Squares puzzles. ![Jigsaw 032 - Triangle Coordinates.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/iNgphDtBtf/Jigsaw%20032%20-%20Triangle%20Coordinates.png) The Rows will be numbered A, B, C, ... Columns will be numbered 1, 2, 3, ... where 1 is the first column of half triangles. When you use the pyramid option, many of the coordinates (positions) will not be used: ![Jigsaw 034 - Triangles Pyramid Puzzle Page.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/DFhREZkYSZ/Jigsaw%20034%20-%20Triangles%20Pyramid%20Puzzle%20Page.png)

Puzzle Maker Pro - JigSaw Triangles supports most of the features of JigSaw Squares, but of course some things are different because of the triangle shape. ## Triangle Shapes Unlike Squares, Triangle shapes can never perfectly fill a square or rectangular image. As you can see in this screenshot, there will always be some partial (half) triangles at the left and right edges. ![Jigsaw 024 - Blank Triangles Puzzle.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/zDuptu3kaS/Jigsaw%20024%20-%20Blank%20Triangles%20Puzzle.png) ## Connector Types Triangles work best with Triangle or JigSaw connector types (or no connectors at all). With Square connectors you have to test and configure the length settings carefully, to make sure the connectors do not overlap. ![Jigsaw 039 - Triangles with Square Connectors.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/7OhLaL94uU/Jigsaw%20039%20-%20Triangles%20with%20Square%20Connectors.png) ## Perfect Triangles Most screenshots for JigSaw Triangles use the "Perfect Triangles" option, since this usually looks good. This will create equilateral triangles. If you switch it off, you'll get isosceles triangles. ![Jigsaw 038 - Non-perfect Triangles.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/AmrroinCDV/Jigsaw%20038%20-%20Non-perfect%20Triangles.png) ## Pyramid Only A special type of Triangles puzzle is the big triangle (called 'Pyramid' in this module). ![Jigsaw 033 - Triangles Pyramid Only.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/SUuD6VNKZh/Jigsaw%20033%20-%20Triangles%20Pyramid%20Only.png) As you can see in the screenshot, this will remove quite a few of the triangles (almost 50%), leaving a nice big pyramid in place. However, this will also leave a large part of your original image out of the puzzle. ![Jigsaw 037 - Triangle Pyramid Image Cut Off.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/OmW95kW73D/Jigsaw%20037%20-%20Triangle%20Pyramid%20Image%20Cut%20Off.png) ## Triangles Coordinates Using Coordinates for Triangles puzzles is almost as easy as for Squares puzzles. ![Jigsaw 032 - Triangle Coordinates.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/iNgphDtBtf/Jigsaw%20032%20-%20Triangle%20Coordinates.png) The Rows will be numbered A, B, C, ... Columns will be numbered 1, 2, 3, ... where 1 is the first column of half triangles. When you use the pyramid option, many of the coordinates (positions) will not be used: ![Jigsaw 034 - Triangles Pyramid Puzzle Page.png](https://malcolm-en-gb.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/instances/wuGqS3zSeN/resources/DFhREZkYSZ/Jigsaw%20034%20-%20Triangles%20Pyramid%20Puzzle%20Page.png)

Puzzle Maker Pro

How to Get Started with Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes

This tutorial will show you how to get started with Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes.

Circle Mazes Create Geometric Mazes Hexagon Mazes Mazes Preview Triangles Mazes

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How do I use the Colors options for Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes?

This overview explains the different Colors options for Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes?

Geometric Mazes Open Start Point Outside Passage Open Start and End Points Start Point Font Settings Start Point Image

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How do I use the different Maze Generator options for Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes?

This overview will explain the different Maze Generator options.

Default Path Longest Path Mazes Meandering Random Path Solution Complexity Start and End Points

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Which Product do I need to Purchase for Geometric Mazes

This pages lists the different options for Geometric Mazes

Breadcrumbs Circle Crossings Geometric Mazes Hexagons License Rooms Squares Triangles

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Can you create puzzles with numbers using Puzzle Maker Pro - Word Search

This short tutorial shows the steps to create word search puzzles with numbers.

Fill Empty Squares Numbers Puzzle Maker Pro Sort Order Word Search

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How to Use Puzzle Maker Pro - JigSaw?

This overview demonstrates the steps to create JigSaw puzzles with Puzzle Maker Pro.

Create Puzzle Books Image Slice Puzzles JigSaw Puzzles

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How to use SVG files in Connect the Dots

This tutorial demonstrates the use of SVG files in Puzzle Maker Pro - Connect the Dots

Connect the Dots Import SVG SVG Youtube

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How to create Word Search puzzles

This video tutorial will show you how to create Word Search puzzles using Puzzle Maker Pro

video tutorial Word Search Youtube

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How to create shaped mazes from silhouette images

This video tutorial will show you how to create a shaped maze.

Mazes Puzzle Maker Pro Shaped Mazes Silhouette Youtube

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How can I create Large Print books using Puzzle Maker Pro?

You can make Large Print books using Puzzle Maker Pro. However, it takes some understanding of font sizes, image sizes and DPI, to get the results you want.

Font Size Large Print Puzzle Maker Pro

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How to create puzzles and puzzle books with Puzzle Maker Pro

Find out how Puzzle Maker Pro creates your puzzles and puzzle books. This article will help you understand how the different parts work together.

Create Create Puzzle Books Create Puzzles File Formats Puzzle Maker Pro

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How do I use the Style options for Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes?

This tutorial shows how to use the How do I use the Style options for Puzzle Maker Pro - Geometric Mazes

Curved Solution Path Geometric Mazes Passage Width Randomize Solution Line Wall Thickness

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How can I create Circle JigSaw Puzzles?

This tutorial builds on the basic JigSaw tutorials and illustrates the specific options for Circle JigSaw puzzles.

Circles concentric JigSaw oval

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How do I use the Time Saver for JigSaw?

This tutorial shows how to use the Time Saver for JigSaw

Time Saver Time Saver Images Time Saver JigSaw Using Images

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How can I create Triangle JigSaw Puzzles?

Most of the 'Squares' JigSaw tutorials apply to Triangles as well. In this tutorial we will show you the specifics of Triangle JigSaw puzzles.

JigSaw Triangles Perfect Triangles Pyramid Triangles Triangles Connectors Triangles Coordinates

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