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I have been following the daily CCC posts here but I have come to accept that it seems I shall never come to figure out how people work out their solutions.
Just below, I was trying hard to understand @Randor's explanation of how he worked out today's solution but uhhhhh it felt like alien speak.
So does this mean am too dump, am beginning to feel inferior 
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I found it hard to get into, and I'm still better at setting them than solving them! At first, I never thought I'd figure it out, but then I discovered there are actually some rules. For one thing, the definition (as in a regular crossword) has to be first or last, not in the middle, and the additional words help you figure it out, because it'd usually be too hard as just a straight crossword clue. One or more of the other words will be an "indicator" that specifies whether the solution involves an anagram, homophone, adding or subtracting letters, or something else.
Here are a couple of links:
Cryptic crossword[^]
Cryptipedia[^]
modified 3-Dec-20 8:25am.
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devenv.exe wrote: So does this mean am too dump
I hope not, that would make me the second one... 
I just skip the CCC posts, because I can't get started with it.
But....
In our defense we can say we are not native speakers (at least I am not) 
I am already happy getting many of the "puns" here in the lounge.
M.D.V. 
If something has a solution... Why do we have to worry about?. If it has no solution... For what reason do we have to worry about?
Help me to understand what I'm saying, and I'll explain it better to you
Rating helpful answers is nice, but saying thanks can be even nicer.
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devenv.exe wrote: beginning to feel inferior
No, it means that you are completely normal. People that are really good at solving puzzles tend to rate very high on the apophenia[^] scale. You have probably heard that there is a fine line between genius and madness. This is what they are referring to.
John Nash[^] is a great example of a guy that could solve equations (and puzzles) but could barely tie his own shoes. Unfortunately after many years John Nash began to see Aesopian[^] in everything he read.
.
Best Wishes,
-David Delaune
modified 3-Dec-20 9:45am.
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I was going to say that lateral thinking or the ability to think outside the box is helpful, but you took it a step farther. 
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I actually now feel normal.
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I have been trying to solve them since ever they were introduced by the Dalek, and I solved my first one a couple of weeks ago (I think Griff took it from a kindergarten book, which explains my success). And there were much rejoicing.
I then had to write one and failed miserably, and I rewrote what I thought were good ones and they were solved almost even before the hamsters rendered my post properly.
English is not my first language and I think I am lacking the culture pieces bound to the language needed to understand and be able to solve CCCs 
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They sometimes involve British culture because they're an art form there, whereas regular crosswords are far more common on this side of the pond. You have to be alert to this. For example, team is a clue to include the letters XI, the number of players on what Brits usually consider a team, whereas any Canadian knows that it should clue for VI.
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It means you should listen more to the music of Creedence Clearwater Coder!
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RickZeeland wrote: Creedence Clearwater Coder!
Now you are just complicating my situation.
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You are not alone.
I have decided that I do NOT have an inferiority complex, I am just inferior.
If you can keep your head while those about you are losing theirs, perhaps you don't understand the situation.
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theoldfool wrote: inferiority complex, I am just inferior.
I would prefer the one with the word complex. The word complex makes me feel important.
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Quote: I am just inferior
Welcome to the human race. We all are inferior (compared to the rest) in some respect or the other. But we are also better in some respects! Let's focus on that!
Get me coffee and no one gets hurt!
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Keep at it 
I'm only new this them myself this year and I felt feel like I should be sitting in a corner with a dunce hat on.
After a while you build up an arsenal that you can use to crack them. Yesterday's one used homophones which I'd never thought of, it goes into the arsenal with the anagram indicators, abbreviations, word substitutions, word plays etc.
I've found that the thesaurus is your best friend.
// TODO: Insert something here
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If today, you had a computer like C64, would you love it to start with BASIC or there is an other language you would prefer for the prompt?
"The only place where Success comes before Work is in the dictionary." Vidal Sassoon, 1928 - 2012
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Cough, coughKornfeld Eliyahu Peter wrote: If today, you had a computer like C64 ZX Spectrum
I would probably jump right in to using assembly or the closest thing to it as the memory restrictions meant that the database I designed, using BASIC, for my ZX Spectrum back in 1984 only held twelve aircraft.
But for the command line, yes BASIC would be fine as a launching point.
“That which can be asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence.”
― Christopher Hitchens
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Be careful what you wish for!!!
"The only place where Success comes before Work is in the dictionary." Vidal Sassoon, 1928 - 2012
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Then this[^] might be for you  
M.D.V. 
If something has a solution... Why do we have to worry about?. If it has no solution... For what reason do we have to worry about?
Help me to understand what I'm saying, and I'll explain it better to you
Rating helpful answers is nice, but saying thanks can be even nicer.
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VB6 rules!
Haters are going to Hate!
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I'd be too busy crying because VS won't run on it to care ...
"I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
"Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt
AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!
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So you think VS is the perfect tool to start with? Or just getting old and comfy?
"The only place where Success comes before Work is in the dictionary." Vidal Sassoon, 1928 - 2012
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It's not what I started with - punched cards - but that doesn't mean I want to go back to 'em! 
"I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
"Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt
AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!
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Of course, not. But I think the generation that started without the luxury of IDEs gained something the youngers have not. The fact that you had only assembly for serious use and BASIC for playing around forced you to learn (and not event internet  )...
So if you had the same experience today (as being beginner) would BASIC do it or maybe another language we have today would work better?
"The only place where Success comes before Work is in the dictionary." Vidal Sassoon, 1928 - 2012
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No, because Basic teaches you bad habits that become engrained. Go with a strongly typed language if you want to develop seriously, weakly typed if you want to play at it (and don't mind the computer getting it wrong in annoying ways from time to time).
C# is a good starter language for people who want to do this for a living! 
"I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
"Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt
AntiTwitter: @DalekDave is now a follower!
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