Tip for solving hard puzzles
List of contributions in 'Labyrinth Tip'
| Labyrinth Tip contributed by Alexander |
| If you are solving a puzzle using a bit of trial and error - by following one possibility and seeing if it gives a solution it is quite convenient to use SudokuDragon to mark the point where you made the guess. The easiest way to do this is use is to use CTRL key + number, so just click on the guessed number (say '4' if there is a choice between 4 and 6). If the route does not prove fruitful you can use the Undo feature to take you back to when you allocated the marked square (which conveniently has a 4 in the corner) and then you know to change the '4' into a '6' and try that alternative possibility.
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| Submit865 (re: Labyrinth Tip) contributed by Lynne |
Here's an example of a 'hard' puzzle that I can't find a way of solving without using backtracking Download this puzzle Click here to download this puzzle
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| Submit920 (re: Labyrinth Tip) contributed by Hamish McW |
| It might be worth mentioning the origins of the Labyrinth tip. It takes it's name from the ancient Greek tale of Theseus and the Minotaur. While trying to escape the Minotaur (a monster half bull and half man). Ariadne gave a ball of thread to Theseus to mark his way to the Minotaur through the Labyrinth and then back out again. Most people latch on to the use of the thread to find your way back as you just follow the thread and you can backtrack, however according to the myth the ball of thread helped find the Minotaur as well.
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| Labyrinth Ban (re: Labyrinth Tip) contributed by Prudence |
| I have heard and read that puzzles that require the use of a trial and error strategy are not considered genuine Sudoku puzzles. This page on Labyrinth Discussion goes into the ins and outs as to why one web site has decided to no longer offer puzzles that require a backtrack. Basically if a puzzle cant be solved by logical reasoning it shouldn't count as a Sudoku puzzle. Does SudokuDragon make this distinction I wonder?
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| Labyrinth Policy (re: Labyrinth Ban) contributed by SudokuDragon |
| It's a subject we are actively reviewing. With Release 2.7 (14) we have made sure none of our Moderate puzzles can ever require any backtracking. Many of the more difficult puzzles are also solvable using the straightforward Sudoku strategies (only place, forced choice, excluded subgroups and excluded twins). However some truly challenging puzzles although having a single solution may not be solvable using these techniques alone. Let us know what you would like to see. We are thinking of introducing an extra hard level of difficulty rather than banning the backtrack/labyrinth altogether.
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| Labyrinth Policy (2838) (re: Labyrinth Policy) contributed by SG |
| I prefer the puzzles to be able to be solved by logic. Using a trial and error method detracts from the game. I also owned a timed version of Sudoku and I spend considerable time on trying to find the logic to rationalize the answer. Having an extra hard category for logical puzzles without a stripe would be nice.
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| No backtracking (re: Labyrinth Policy (2838)) contributed by Alexander |
| Yes, I agree it's most frustrating to find out that there was no proper solution after all and have to resort to guessing rather than using pure logic to solve the puzzle. The vast majority of puzzles are now machine generated and perhaps that has something to do with it.
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