Duplikat for MacOS
© Matthieu Leschemelle 2017-2024
Version 3.4.1

With Duplikat you will have fun developing your skills in all those word games where you have to combine letters to form crosswords.
At the beginning of the game, the app displays 7 letters drawn from the "bag". You then try to find the highest scoring word and place it on the game board. When you have decided or at the end of the thinking time (when you are playing a timed game), you tapclick "Validate" to enter your move. At this point the app announces the "max score", i. e. the word that gives the highest score in context and places it on the board. You only score the number of points corresponding to the word that you have found. The app then draws the new letters from the bag, and the game continues.
There must be at least two vowels and two consonants up to the 15th move then one vowel and one consonnant from the 16th move. If the seven letters selected do not respect these constaints, they are put back in the bag and seven new letters are chosen. If there are no more consonants or no more vowels in the bag, the game ends.

The Menu tab

There are two main game formats:

Random Games:
To start a new duplicate game, tapclick one of the buttons showing a board type. The free version allows you to play only the first 8 moves of a random game. Duplikat Pro allows you to play to the end of the game.
In this mode, the letters are drawn randomly and the app calculates the highest-scoring move possible. To start a new game, tapclick one of the buttons representing a board type. Duplikate LE allows you to play only the first 8 moves of a random game. Duplikat Pro will take you to the end of the game.
By default, Duplikat draws the letters and places the best word (the top) on the board. The special rules allow you to change this default behavior. They are only available in the Pro version. Just tapclick the "Automatic mode" button to make them appear successively:

  • In "Manual Letter Entry" mode, you enter the drawn letters yourself using the "Edit" button. This mode allows multiple players to play the same game. One will be in automatic mode and will communicate to the others the draws.
  • In "Place player's word" mode, it is the word found by the player that is placed on the board even if it pays less than the top found by Duplikat.
  • The "Free Game" mode combines the two previous modalities. In addition, Duplikat does not check the validity of the words played. In particular, this mode allows you to analyze a real game you played and see the moves you missed. Another way to use this mode is to play a real game and record your opponent's moves and your draws as you go along. You should win without difficulty...

Saved Games:
Duplikat allows you to replay completed games. In this mode, the drawn letters are determined from the beginning to the end of the game. But you can try to find better moves.
To start one of these games, tapclick the "Select a saved game" button to select the game in the game manager. If you have already started to replay the selected game, it will be resumed at the point where you left it. You can go back with the "Previous" button of the Board tab. The app is delivered with a small number of complete games selected for their interest.

Recording the game
Duplikat always records the progress of the current game, i. e. your moves and scores. When you're about to leave a random game, you'll be explicitly asked if you want to save the game.

The Game Manager
The game manager allows you to select one of the saved games. A flag indicates the dictionary used by the game.
Once you have selected the game, tapclick the toolbar button to open it.
The button allows you to delete unwanted game(s). The button emails the selected game as attachment (in csv text format).
The blue button , next to the search area, opens an explorer that allows you to select files located outside Duplikat, for example on the cloud.
The button allows you to exit the file explorer without doing anything.

Transfering a game from one device to another
From the source device, email the game with the Game Manager. Then open the email attachment on the destination device. Select ALL text and copy it to the clipboard. When you activate the Menu tab, the "Import" button appears at the top left of the Menu tab.

Options

  • You can know anytime the score to aim for. Check the box "Reveal the current max score". The target to reach will be displayed in the Board tab. By tappingclicking the displayed number, you get a few more clues: the lenght of the word and its initial.
  • To have Duplikat calculate the score and validate the word you are placing, activate the "Scoring and word validation" option.
  • The app gives the possibility to play against the clock. Select the desired thinking time or "Unlimited". The last third time is signalled by a bell. You can regain time by tappingclicking the timer at the top of the screen.
  • The Topping mode allows you to play against time. Your score is made up for 20% of the ratio of your score with the top. If you have found the top, you get a 40% time bonus equal to the ratio between the remaining time and the maximum time and another 40% bonus proportional to the unused clues. For example if you used 1 of the 4 available clues using the button , your clue bonus will be 40 x 3 / 4 = 30. If you cheat by looking at the Anagram window, you don't score any point.
  • In a Joker game, for each move the program draws six letters (instead of seven) which are systematically accompanied by a joker. If the chosen solution uses the joker, the latter is replaced by the appropriate letter, provided that it is still present in the draw. Otherwise, the first joker remains on the board, and the game continues with the second joker, until the second joker is used. The game then ends as an usual duplicate game.
  • The app supports several languages: French, English, Spanish, German, Italian, Dutch and Romanian. You can instantly switch from one dictionary to another. You can get information about the current dictionary by tappingclicking its icon again.
  • For English, you can choose the dictionary to use. “Basic” uses a simplified dictionary (ENABLE) of 168850 words, and is suitable for those with a good knowledge of current English. “TWL” uses the US Turnament Word List dictionary of 188740 words. “CSW” uses the Collins Scrabble Words dictionary 2019 of 279496 words (ex SOWPODS). TWL and CSW are suitable for dedicated word-game enthusiasts, and include many obscure, regional and archaic words. If you are in doubt, start with “Basic”.
  • The button displays the coordinates of the cells and value of the different bonuses.
  • The T button allows to change the background color.
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  • Finally, you can choose between several board configurations: Scrabble™, Words With Friends, Wordfeud and Lexulous. The last button allows you to obtain a game board where the bonus squares are distributed randomly. Every other time, this random game board is symmetrical.
When you change the type of board or language, the app prompts you to save the current game. It then starts a new random game.

The Board

On the game board, you can move the letters from the rack with one fingerthe mouse. The app continuously checks the validity of the words thus formed and counts the points they bring. The placement of letters can be adjusted until the move is validated. Movable letters are distinguished from permanently placed letters by a background of a different colour.
To place the letters quickly, you can tapclick the empty cell where you want to start your word. An enlarged rack view is displayed and a yellow directional arrow appears in the cell where the letter will be inserted. Simply select the direction and then tapclick the letters to be placed.
The "Shuffle" button allows you to randomly re-arrange the letters of the rack.
The "Recall" button recalls the last tile placed. A long press A long click recalls all the remaining placed letters. In the case of a random game, if all the letters are already in the rack, this button causes a new set of letters to be displayed. You can select the letters you want to remove.
The "Prepare" button allows you to check the word, count the points and save it for future validation. You can "prepare" several words. If the new word earns more points, it will replace the previous word prepared at the bottom right. A long press of the button opens the word explorer window, with the letters on the rack as arguments. If these letters correspond to the beginning of a possible or valid word, Duplikat will display it. If not, you can browse the current dictionary by selecting the first letter, then the second, then the third etc... Each time, the word thus composed is displayed in green or red, depending on whether it's valid or not. If the word is valid, you can display its definition or continue. If no continuation is possible, Duplikat automatically displays the definition.
The "Validate" button validates the word you have placed on the board or the prepared word if this one earns more points. The app then places the highest scoring word on the board and displays the letters of the next run.
The "Back" button returns to the previous position.

Definition of a word
When you tapclick a letter belonging to a permanently placed word, Duplikat tries to find that word in Wiktionary or on the site https://1word.ws/. When the letter belongs to two words, Duplikat starts with the shortest word. If you tapclick the letter again, Duplikat will search for the other word.

The Game tab

The Game tab allows you to see the points of each move and the letters remaining in the bag.
The "E-Mail" button allows you to send an email containing the listing of the game, including the draws.
The "Save" button allows you to save the game in the game manager.

The Words tab

The Anagram tab allows you to search for words that can be formed from the letters entered in the "Selection" text box at the top left of the screen. By default this box is filled in with the current rack content, but, with Duplikat Pro, you can enter any sequence of letters you want. To enter a blank, enter a question mark.
In the "Filter" text box you can enter the constraints related to the grid. For example, to filter words containing the letter 'T', the filter is "*T*". To filter words beginning with any two letters and then 'T' in the third position, the filter is "??T*", etc...
The button resets the "Select" area with the letters of the current rack.
The button starts the word search.
When the "Reveal the current max score" option is active, a second page allows you to see the list of the 30 best possible moves. By tappingclicking the coordinates to the right, you can see where the word is placed.