Writer Confesses To Cheating at Online Scrabble

by Terrence O'Brien on December 26, 2007 at 04:06 PM

Nothing sucks the fun out of a game of wits like cheating. And when playing games online, cheating is so easy it's hard not to do, as one Wired writer found out when she added the Scrabulous application to her Facebook page. Scrabulous allows members to play a Scrabble-like game (Scrabble is a copyright of Parker Brothers) with their Facebook friends.

Sarah Fallon (the writer in question) became addicted to a little online app called Scrabble Word Finder which searches through the letters in your hand for words you can form, revealing those obscure high-point, seven-letter bingo phrases that humiliate an opponent.

But in the end, our online Scrabble cheat saw the error of her ways and cast off her nasty habit. She even noted that Scrabble Word Finder did have some shortcomings, ignoring simple elegant plays like tacking an 'S' on to the intersection of 'quill' and 'combo' for quite respectable 27 points.

Playing games online allows people from all over the country and world to connect and compete. But remember, despite our cultural differences, one thing remains the same, nobody likes a cheat.

From Wired

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Tags: board game, BoardGame, cheat, cheating, facebook, scrabble

Comments

ChristiApr 7th 2009 1:03PM

Neutral

Started playing a few weeks ago with a neighbor. First few games were fun. Then my neighbor started using very obscure words and getting mega points with those words and that mingled with 2 letter combos (which aren't words in my book--granted my book is a 1965 edition of Webster's). When I asked where she had ever seen these words, the response was "in an online dictionary". The next game I played with her, I used Scrabble Word Finder, which is what she was probably using as well. Amazing how our scores were very competitive. I don't care for cheaters, so I won't be playing with her anymore.

I'll stick with someone willing to play with real words--maybe even a real board and real tiles and a dictionary--the good old fashioned way.

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DaveOct 4th 2010 1:23AM

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Cheating can be a force for good sometimes - check out this story: http://vjarmy.com/archives/2005/10/cheat_to_win.php - The guy met his wife via a bit of scrabble cheating. :) I've got an alternative scrabble cheater here: http://www.scrabblefinder.com - No marriages guaranteed.

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lardeyvictoryApr 12th 2012 11:31PM

Neutral

My family and friends love to play scrabble, it is the best way to bond and get close with your friends. We always have a wonderful time playing scrabble. Since we are not familiar with all the words, we always have a word finder through a dictionary. But scrabble cheat have no room for us. We just play and play and have fun..

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cesarbielichJun 23rd 2012 3:25AM

Neutral

That article about how the guy met his wife is CRAZY!!! I do love scrabble but in no way would I every meet someone like that. When it comes to a cheating word finder I tend to use http://www.freescrabblewordfinder.com because of the extensive word lists.

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johnwood124Aug 30th 2012 9:02AM

Neutral

I want to win every game in scrabble. Cheats are not such a bad thing to get high points.
http://www.scrabblecheats.com/
Very similar to hasbro.

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betgod6Dec 26th 2007 5:42PM

Neutral

This might be a good way to learn the game better. I always lose to my grandchildren when playing face-to-face. Would playing this online then aid me in become a better player? Perhaps this information will turn out to be very helpful to me. Thanks.

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BrockeimDec 26th 2007 9:42PM

Neutral

Good words are hard to find, and, if only as a training device, why not? But, if the opponent believes he or she is being taken seriously in a battle of verbal strength and creativity, then is just another bit of cheating in this generation.

Barry Bonds.
Marion Jones.
That NYT reporter.
That Boston Globe reporter.

And this one here.

--Brockeim
http://Brockeim.com
http://brockeim-nonsense.blogspot.com/

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yapiyoDec 26th 2007 11:38PM

Neutral

goood...

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SimzeeeeDec 27th 2007 9:37AM

Neutral

I don't cheat even though I always lose. It's a good thing I love to lose.

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DonJan 1st 2008 3:46PM

Neutral

like who really cares...it's a game.

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offoaJan 1st 2008 4:23PM

Neutral

Its just a game....

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carolJan 1st 2008 4:28PM

Neutral

I could never figure out the scrabalicious site but isc.wordbiz has a program running in the background that ferrets out those using anagram progrms. Don't know about the one she used but what's the fun when you cheat?

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tellitallJan 1st 2008 5:26PM

Neutral

hey Brockeim let's not forget about Roger Clemens
Pete Rose,Randy Pettite,Mark Mcguire, Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton. I could go on you get the message.

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KathyJan 1st 2008 6:14PM

Neutral

I play scrabble online. I have 12 games going right now. I don't cheat by using word generators like the one mentioned here. I quit games against players who do cheat by using them. You can always tell the cheaters because the consistantly use obscure words. It's no fun to play a cheater.

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