let's see here...

hey andy

hi

i've been plugging away for 7 minutes ...

moo!

i like to not plug away. this game can be really soothing when you let it be :)

ahh, i think i'm wanting to complete at least ONE thing today ...

Done .... now off to work!

done :D yay

done

there's always one really obvious move that i miss when i don't use greens

yeah, i know what you mean

finally done

man, i'm so exhausted

i'm gonna finish this tomorrow

me too

Difficulty score 24. Tougher than yesterday's (a 22 which I think was too high), but still no green. Cross hatching and region intersection analysis will do it.

what's region intersection analysis?

Two regions intersect, i.e. a row and a 3x3 block or a column and a 3x3 block. The 3 cells where they intersect are significant. For instance, if you examine a row and find that the digit 3 can only go in 2 cells of that row, if the 2 cells are both in the intersection of the row and a block, then the digit 3 cannot go in any other cells of the block.

thanks

I hope that made sense.

If you think about it long enough it should.

it did

The technique can start with a 3x3 block and then reduce the possibilities for a row or column too.

Just as long as you have reduced the possible locations of a particular digit in a particular region the the intersection of 2 regions. In that case the digit is limited to the same cells for both regions.

i'm not sure i understood that last bit

but i've finished. :) finally

When examining any region (a row, column or block) if you find you can limit a digit to a the 2 or 3 cells where that region intersects another, then the digit is limited to the same cells for the other region too.

ok that makes sense. thanks

You're welcome.

The technique works because if a digit appears in the intersection of 2 regions, it satisfies the requirement that the digit appear at least once in each region. If it appeared anywhere else in either region then it would appear twice in at least one of them violating the requirement of only appearing once in any region.

Hey drwho, I've tried to follow what you're explaining without much luck. Maybe I need to see an example.

Look more closely at the last statement. All the digits appearing in the intersection of a row and block appear in both the row and the block.

So, they cannot appear twice in either the row or the block.

This means, when you have determined that a digit can only go in the intersection of a row and a block, it can go nowhere else. If you started by looking at the row, then you can eliminate all the other cells in the block as possible locations for that digit.

For example, suppose I examined the top row and determined that the digit 1 could only go in the 3 left most cells of that row. Those three cells also belong the the upper left 3x3 block. Now examining the block might reveal other places the digit 1 could go, but I can eliminate them because it must go in the first row. If it goes anywhere else it will appear twice in the block.

how do you come up with the numerical measure of difficulty? What's a 24 out of?

OK, now I see. I was not following what you meant by intersecting. I was picturing a row adjacent to a block, not within it. Thanks.

The score is computer generated. It can best be viewed as a measure of how long the puzzle might take to solve.

what's the highest maximum score?

No, not 24 minutes. It depends on your skill level. And I am not too sure the correlation between scores and times are that good. I am collecting data and when I have enough I will try to evaluate how well the scores correlate with times.

How long will the hardest puzzle take? No one knows.

I guess the scoring system I have devised could in the worst case give a score of 6,480. But no puzzle has come close. The hardest was a 76, I think.

is there any way that we can help in the data collection?

like those people who post their start and end times

That's where I'm getting my data.

well I thought that they were bragging. but now that I know it's for science, I'll start the practice

They didn't know I was keeping tabs on them :-).

The trouble is, those of us that multitask while working Sudokus would skew your data ;)

Naw, everyone will get their own correlation factor. I cannot mix your times with someone elses. We all get done in our own time. Some fast, some slow, like me.

as well as those who are easily distracted. hey, you can make the tiles a bunny!

Easily distracted, or is that your kids distracting you?

my kids had better be asleep. just for good measure I yelled not to make me go in there.

*grin* Ahh, the joys of parenthood ;)

The nice thing about all your kids being furry is, if they refuse to go to bed, you can lock 'em in a crate without anyone calling Child Protective Services ;)

there's still animal control

They usually advocate crate training ;)

You haven't watched Animal Planet lately. The Animal Cops will be knocking on your door.

who will give you a ticket for $200 per pet if you don't have your vaccination records up to date

They'd see one house full of spoiled critters if they did! :) Generally, they crash long before I do, though. :) I've got critters firing sleep-vibes at me from all over the room currently....

but that you can wave by taking a $30 SPCA class

Is the giraffe in the back yard?

Heh, voice of experience, Austin?

Yeah. We wanted to keep him in the attic, but we couldn't figure out how to fit him in without making the roof leak...

you know, people talk, you hear things.

but I think my wife will be taking her responsibilities a little more seriously from now on

Heh

Bangping, I think you and my sister would get along fine.

I ran a rescue for a few years, and am still active in rescue, and my roommate's as nutty about critters as I am.

Between us, we have a houseful :)

My sister used to take in all the pet shop rejects when her friend was a manager there.

*nod* Not a job I could ever do

They'd fire me within 3 days ;)

If I lasted that long...

Do you have any experience rescuing bats?

Hmm, no :)

Never done wildlife rescue, only domestic critters :)

An iguana is about as wild as I've ever gotten.

Fascinating little guys, not rodents!

Dogs, cats, a guinea pig (I still have her), iguana, a parrot or two, some cockatiels, a ferret once

Yeah, I've always been fascinated by 'em :)

done!

Currently, my sister only has a 3 legged cat. But she used to have a cripple cockatiel, a rabbit, a turtle and a dog too (at the same time).

Between us, my roomie and I have 5 cats, 4 dogs, and 3 guinea pigs.

2 humans - we've joked that we now just need a partridge in a pear tree :)

there are lots of bats in the Austin area, as there is the largest Mexican free colony living under the Ann Richards Congress bridge

and everyone knows not to touch

I've seen pictures of that colony, Austin - absolutely amazing stuff!

And I'm betting not a mosquito within a mile or two of there! ;)

not as many, that

not as many, that's for sure.

well good night, and good luck

Goodnight :)

Good night. Time for me to turn in too.

Take care, Doc :)

Thanks for all you do :)

go

done

no greens for me for a change

today

go

bunnybunnybunny

Howdy

what up my little quadraped?

Home with two sick little bunnies, tummy bugs. Make for a happy day.

awwwwww. *sends bunnies cinnamon toast & pedialyte* that's what my momma bunny gave me when I was sick.

About to take the twins to their half day at pre-K, won't be so bad then. They are bein' little buggers today! Cabin fever.

done

See ya later!
(You oughtta try babble sometime).

k. will do. later bunny

Done! Easy! Only one guess needed.

go

Done. No green. Petcar, don't overthink it.

go

done

DONE :)

go

done

done. skizzzyyyyy!!