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Difficulty: Easy Saturday, April 14, 2007

Not Completed Play This Puzzle

CHAT LOG for Saturday, April 14, 2007

12:12 am
Marzipan

That was kind of complicated for an easy, to me
12:12 am
phenakis

i thought so too
12:40 am
WHB

Done. It took a lot of green.
2:09 am
h

go
2:22 am
h

12 filled going green
2:28 am
h

done
2:41 am
amd

slow start
2:46 am
sandbox74

what a meaty easy.. I liked it
2:47 am
amd

what does 'going green' mean?
5:24 am
sprite

using shift to fill in the possibles, or using a script to do it for you.
7:55 am
peternl

hi all
7:59 am
peternl

not too bad
8:08 am
chebuctonian

good morning
8:16 am
peternl

back up to date
8:22 am
chebuctonian

wow, meaty easy indeed
9:15 am
drwho

Difficulty score 28. I think it was more difficult than usual for an easy because there was a lot of need for missing digit scans.
9:25 am
UnikeTheHunter

What you mean by missing digit?
9:32 am
UnikeTheHunter

This is an easy? I've been looking at it five minutes without finding any crosshatch or loner.
9:32 am
shoupart

yeah, this is pretty tough!!
9:32 am
artlady

Thank you! I thought a few days away had rotted my brain!
9:35 am
UnikeTheHunter

Found just one crosshatch. Going green. What a disgrace!
9:35 am
UnikeTheHunter

Rats. I missed a loner.
9:40 am
drwho

UTH--missing digit scan is probably what you mean by loner. When an empty cell has 8 of the 9 digits in its set of buddies, then the missing digit must go in the empty cell.
9:40 am
UnikeTheHunter

Okay.
9:41 am
hurshy

but loner conjures up those high school memories more vividly...
9:41 am
drwho

And that's a good thing?
9:41 am
artlady

lol
9:41 am
UnikeTheHunter

DrWho, loners are hard to find at first, but very easy later on. Does your program score for that difference?
9:42 am
artlady

I've put them behind me!
9:42 am
drwho

No.
9:42 am
UnikeTheHunter

It should.
9:42 am
drwho

However, it usually finds the later loners by cross-hatching.
9:45 am
drwho

I did think about having a couple different levels of difficulty assigned to the missing digit scan, but I just didn't see any easy way to distinguish a hard missing digit from an easy.
9:47 am
hurshy

i adore unique rectangles
9:47 am
drwho

How about squares?
9:48 am
UnikeTheHunter

How about scoring by the number of filled spaces in one constituency? They are difficult to find at first because the buddies are distributed among rather sparce looking rows, columns, and blocks.
9:49 am
drwho

Well, the obvious test would be if there were no more than 3 digits filled in in the row, column and block. But it seemed more work to test for that than it was worth.
9:51 am
UnikeTheHunter

The number of unfilled cells in the most filled constituency is the telling point of difficulty. How about just multiplying by some factor based upoon that?
9:52 am
UnikeTheHunter

Anyway, I'm done with today's. After the loner and a triplet it became really easy with greens.
9:55 am
drwho

My scores don't have that much granularity in them to begin with. It's an interesting idea, but the result would be a totally different scoring system.
9:56 am
UnikeTheHunter

So the new scores wouldn't be comparable to the old ones...?
9:56 am
drwho

Probably not even close.
9:57 am
drwho

It would probably raise all the scores
9:57 am
UnikeTheHunter

Compared to a crosshatch, how much score does a loner get?
9:57 am
drwho

perhaps by as much as a factor of 2.
9:58 am
drwho

http://pauls-pc-repair.com/sudoku/
9:58 am
UnikeTheHunter

Well, maybe that's about right, averaged over the game.
10:00 am
UnikeTheHunter

I just have to get better at finding loners. I think some of you can see these things immediately. I need to go through the digits 1 to 9 and carefully check candidate cells.
10:04 am
UnikeTheHunter

DrWho, I've never seen mention of what I call "needs based thought." Such as "This row needs a 3. It can't go here, here or here, therefore it must go here." Does your program do any of that?
10:04 am
drwho

That is cross-hatching.
10:05 am
UnikeTheHunter

But it is different when you say "this block needs a 3"... different from "this row needs a 3."
10:06 am
drwho

Yes, I do distinguish between cross-hatching rows and columns from cross-hatching a block.
10:06 am
drwho

However the logic is totally the same.
10:07 am
UnikeTheHunter

But the blocks are easier to find.
10:07 am
drwho

It just seems to me it is more natural and easy for me to cross-hatch blocks.
10:08 am
drwho

So I give a higher score to cross-hatching rows and columns.
10:08 am
UnikeTheHunter

Good.
10:11 am
UnikeTheHunter

Then there is sometimes the other way of thinking. "This row needs a 3, 5, 8. But this cell cannot be 3 or 8, therefore it must be 5." What is that called?
10:12 am
drwho

That is the missing digit scan.
10:12 am
UnikeTheHunter

I guess so, but come at it in a different way.
10:13 am
drwho

Although you may have used more indirect means to eliminate the 3 and 8, it is the same logic as if you could point to an actual 3 and 8 in the cells buddies.
10:14 am
UnikeTheHunter

Anyway, thanks for the discussion. I'll go make breakfast for my daughter now.
10:15 am
drwho

You're welcome.
10:23 am
drwho

UTH--if you're still monitoring this, I remember why I rejected the idea of more than one level of difficulty for missing digit scans -- it seems that it is about as hard to do in most cases. The factor you mentioned is more a measure of whether I will try a missing digit scan on a cell when I am manually solving the puzzle than an actual measure of the difficulty of the scan.
10:25 am
Pelly

blah
10:30 am
Pelly

khykjttyop jmyd
10:56 am
ypsigirl

BLAH
11:26 am
brittlefish.com

go
11:31 am
brittlefish.com

easy?
11:40 am
brittlefish.com

tricky tricky
11:43 am
brittlefish.com

done but the "loner" escaped me until i read the comments and went looking for it. this felt like a medium. dang it.
1:32 pm
Andy

go
1:50 pm
Andy

done.
1:51 pm
Andy

tired. used greens.
2:56 pm
himuran

done
5:18 pm
helenkeller

go
5:27 pm
dorens

this was the third one in a row that I found difficult, yet I could go into the archives and knock off a "hard" in ten minutes. I must need help!!
5:28 pm
spreadeagle

No, your just like many of the rest of us...
5:28 pm
helenkeller

dorens - so glad you said that - i'm having trouble with this one & same thing the last 2 also!
5:29 pm
dorens

strength in numbers, helen. So I'm not totally insane?
5:29 pm
helenkeller

we're all insane together - bwa - ha - ha!
5:30 pm
helenkeller

yesterday i was saying i thought i needed a brain ct
5:30 pm
dorens

but why does today's seem so much more difficult than an easy should? I know I am lacking in strategies... still don't recognize a unique rectangle, etc.
5:30 pm
dorens

haha... well, helen, between this and babble... i think maybe I do need my head examined..... ii do nothing but sit at this computer in my free time, or at least it seems that way
5:33 pm
helenkeller

i don't know what a 'unique rectangle' is, or x-wing or any of that other stuff, but i do know & can apply logic pretty well & this one & last 2 have been more difficult than what they're rated, at least that's what i think
5:33 pm
dorens

i always knew i liked you helen!!!
5:33 pm
helenkeller

i like you right back :))
5:33 pm
dorens

Yay us!
5:34 pm
helenkeller

LOL
5:34 pm
fit1

wow dorens. I do the same thing. Babble and sudoku. An all day affair almost
5:34 pm
dorens

haven't done babble yet today... you?
5:34 pm
dorens

we all joke about being addicted, fit1--- but sometimes I don't think it's such a funny joke, if you know what I mean
5:34 pm
helenkeller

nope haven
5:35 pm
helenkeller

t been there yet today - can't remember if i started it or just looked at the size of it last night
5:35 pm
fit1

I know exactly what you mean. Done my babble for today.
5:36 pm
dorens

i looked at it this morning and took a quick pass.. then went out and lived my life a bit. now looking at tons of stuff i should do around the house, but need to babble first... absolute compulsion... yet my new obsession (this one) forces me to do at least one extra puzzle each day, so am in the archives now..then will babble soon
5:36 pm
helenkeller

starting to green this puppy in now
5:37 pm
fit1

babble is a biggie today.
5:37 pm
dorens

i found it hard even with the greens helen
5:37 pm
dorens

not over 300, i hope... don't remember
5:37 pm
fit1

I seem to worse on "easy" than on any others
5:37 pm
fit1

no not over 300
5:38 pm
fit1

under two I think, not huge, but time consuming
5:38 pm
helenkeller

nope, it's 182 - seems i just looked at it last night & didn't start it :(
5:38 pm
dorens

cool, i can handle that.... and another day of not cooking dinner, but scrounging in the fridge
5:38 pm
fit1

I was away for 2 1/2 weeks, and my babble ranking went straight south :)
5:39 pm
spreadeagle

12 filled in, going green
5:39 pm
helenkeller

i don't bother with the babble rankings anymore\
5:39 pm
dorens

i understand that.... i was away for a week and it screwed me up. i shouldn't care. i know i shouldn't care!
good luck green
5:39 pm
fit1

nah, I just check once in awhile. :)
5:39 pm
helenkeller

spread - huh, that's what i had when i started greening too - 12
5:40 pm
fit1

well, I'm sitting here with green and scratching my head LOL
5:40 pm
dorens

no, they really are silly.... i satisfied myself that i could be 1030 for a while.... did it enough... and now I'm almost at the point of not caring.

by the way, that was supposed to be good luck with the greens, spreadeagle.... still a tough one for me... but i am done
5:41 pm
spreadeagle

The 4's seem to be the key
5:41 pm
helenkeller

i've been at this sucker for over 20 minutes now - that makes it officially "NOT easy"
5:42 pm
fit1

As I said, when it's marked "easy" that seems to be my downfall :)
5:42 pm
dorens

you may be right about that... my mind's a sieve.... i finished it about 20 minutes ago? don't remember how i did it now (think it was a guess... hope the sudoku police don't read that0
5:45 pm
spreadeagle

Done, really needed the greens tho.......
5:46 pm
dorens

congratulations spreadeagle!
5:46 pm
fit1

good job, spread
5:46 pm
helenkeller

wd spread!
5:47 pm
dorens

look at us babblers!!!!
5:47 pm
fit1

spread, can you come to my house and finish mine for me. I'm stuck. LOL
5:51 pm
helenkeller

done
5:51 pm
dorens

YAY helen!
5:52 pm
helenkeller

what a pain! good luck in the archives dorens, must go look after pups now
5:52 pm
helenkeller

see you all later - bye
5:53 pm
dorens

enjoy helen.. maybe see you in babble - i'll be there in a few minutes
5:53 pm
dorens

fit... any particularly good clues for babble? :) just kidding
5:54 pm
fit1

I use my trusty Lickety and a2z wordfinder when I'm stuck. It's called "research" :)
5:55 pm
dorens

hahaha... i use morewords.... think it's similar to a2z... and once in a while i ask for a clue for fun
5:55 pm
dorens

or to save time, it depends on the situation
5:55 pm
fit1

me too. sometimes a2z lets me down
5:57 pm
dorens

made a mistke in my archive, thought i was done.. now am here for a while longer
5:57 pm
fit1

I took a huge guess, and I may have guessed wrong. I may give up
5:58 pm
dorens

no, no don't give up... i can always look and give y ou a clue if you really need one
5:58 pm
fit1

the thing is I don't have the pro. so it means starting again :(
5:59 pm
dorens

i figured the $15 was worth it when you think about how much enjoyment you get from this (and time spent on it!)
5:59 pm
fit1

yup
6:00 pm
fit1

just didn't do it. I was away a lot recently. So I figgered I'd wait
6:00 pm
dorens

understandable
6:00 pm
fit1

but I have officially screwed up. so I need to take a break
6:01 pm
dorens

ok.... see you again another time... good luck
6:01 pm
fit1

thanks dorens. Nice chatting with you
6:01 pm
dorens

you too
6:36 pm
smooth_pappa

go!
6:42 pm
smooth_pappa

done
6:56 pm
spazzy

hm... i couldhave sworn i did this one today
7:04 pm
spazzy

damn. i remember. and NOOOOO!!! NOT AGAIN!!!
7:04 pm
spazzy

all this for 1 lousy point. i give up
7:49 pm
twstedangel

evening all!
7:49 pm
OrangeSlice

Hi there.
7:56 pm
twstedangel

hey Orange!
7:56 pm
twstedangel

how've you been?
7:57 pm
OrangeSlice

Reasonably well. Yourself?
7:59 pm
twstedangel

pretty good. waiting for Spring up here in MA... it gets warm for a couple of days and then out of the blue it gets really cold
7:59 pm
twstedangel

we've got another Spring Noreaster watch going on right now... supposed to be getting snow
8:00 pm
OrangeSlice

Ick. It finally quit freezing at night out here a couple weeks ago, starting to look like Spring at last.
8:01 pm
OrangeSlice

However, being Seattle, it still rains all the time.
8:08 pm
twstedangel

I wish it was raining... I mean at least then it would feel semi-springish
8:16 pm
OrangeSlice

Well, it will warm up soon.
9:51 pm
Minski

Done. A lot of work for an easy.