@ 2013-09-30 6:28 AM (#12950 - in reply to #12880) (#12950) TopPosts: 187
Country : New Zealand
kiwijam posted @ 2013-09-30 6:28 AM
Looks like a great set of puzzles. Unfortunately with WSC/WPC starting in less than 2 weeks, we have ~150 types to learn for that, so many competitors won't have much spare time to learn these other new variants. Can we make this test non-rated? (or allow a 3 week window to compete? ;) )
@ 2013-09-30 7:38 AM (#12951 - in reply to #12880) (#12951) TopPosts: 668
Country : India
swaroop2011 posted @ 2013-09-30 7:38 AM
Can we make this competition extended even after week of WSC or WPC ?
Secondly in HEX STAR BATTLE can the thick border be of some other color as Dark Black in Hex is giving confusion to view. I don't know if anyone else facing the same problem. :)
Secondly in HEX STAR BATTLE can the thick border be of some other color as Dark Black in Hex is giving confusion to view. I don't know if anyone else facing the same problem. :)
@ 2013-09-30 8:48 AM (#12952 - in reply to #12880) (#12952) TopPosts: 542
Country : India
rajeshk posted @ 2013-09-30 8:48 AM
Yes, agree with others if this test can be postponed to after WSC/WPC?
@ 2013-09-30 10:47 AM (#12955 - in reply to #12880) (#12955) TopPosts: 1801
Country : India
prasanna16391 posted @ 2013-09-30 10:47 AM
I think (hope) James was only joking about the three week extension. Looking at what Deb posted on the TVC topic, its obvious that there's more contests to come and extending any one will cause a real problem in the schedule.
About keeping it non-rated, well maybe that can be done but I don't think its necessary. In my personal opinion though, a WPC is hardly 150+ new types to learn. It'll be a lot of classic stuff, some variations, some innovatives. I think at least the classic part of this test will be good direct practice. It will also be good practice to solve Hexed grids which are usually a good part of the WPC. Indirectly, I believe competitive solving always helps. Its not like even the new variants here will cover completely different logic than anything that will appear on a WPC.
About keeping it non-rated, well maybe that can be done but I don't think its necessary. In my personal opinion though, a WPC is hardly 150+ new types to learn. It'll be a lot of classic stuff, some variations, some innovatives. I think at least the classic part of this test will be good direct practice. It will also be good practice to solve Hexed grids which are usually a good part of the WPC. Indirectly, I believe competitive solving always helps. Its not like even the new variants here will cover completely different logic than anything that will appear on a WPC.
@ 2013-09-30 11:25 AM (#12958 - in reply to #12951) (#12958) TopPosts: 145
Country : France
auroux posted @ 2013-09-30 11:25 AM
swaroop2011 - 2013-09-29 6:38 PMCan we make this competition extended even after week of WSC or WPC ?
I am not sure this is possible -- according to Deb Mohanty, this might not even be the last LMI test before the WSC/WPC. However I'll defer to Deb and other people with more experience of LMI -- I'm flexible and mostly want people to have fun with this puzzle round.Still, I haven't seen any of the WSC/WPC instruction booklets except for the "around the world in 80 puzzles" (are they out yet?), and given the flavor of that one (more variants on classics) I'd think playing "Hexed & remixed" for extra practice before the WPC could be more helpful than harmful, as pointed out by Prasanna.Secondly in HEX STAR BATTLE can the thick border be of some other color as Dark Black in Hex is giving confusion to view. I don't know if anyone else facing the same problem. :)
A different color for the thick borders is probably not a good idea though -- I for example don't have a color printer, so a non-black color will just appear as a shade of grey and it'll be less visible. I guess the thinner lines could be made gray instead of black, though I'm not sure it helps much, and it might decrease the visibility of the grid for everyone else? Any other comments on this? If Swaroop is the only person in the entire world with that problem, I'm not sure I want to fix it at the expense of everyone else -- but if others think that making the base grid gray instead of black would help, it can be done.Denis @ 2013-09-30 2:58 PM (#12961 - in reply to #12880) (#12961) TopPosts: 8
Country : Hong Kong
edderiofer posted @ 2013-09-30 2:58 PM
In puzzle 18 (Pentomino Blackout Dominoes), must the dominoes necessarily all be connected?
@ 2013-09-30 8:44 PM (#12973 - in reply to #12961) (#12973) TopPosts: 145
Country : France
auroux posted @ 2013-09-30 8:44 PM
In puzzle 18 (Pentomino Blackout Dominoes), must the dominoes necessarily all be connected?
No, the dominoes need not all be connected. A pentomino may separate some dominoes from the rest of the grid. (But that's about all that can happen, since the pentominoes don't touch each other even diagonally). -- Denis @ 2013-10-02 4:05 AM (#12990 - in reply to #12955) (#12990) TopPosts: 187
Country : New Zealand
kiwijam posted @ 2013-10-02 4:05 AM
prasanna16391 - 2013-09-30 5:47 PM
I think (hope) James was only joking about the three week extension.
I think (hope) James was only joking about the three week extension.
(yes, I wasn't serious, I included a wink-smiley: ";)" )
@ 2013-10-03 1:58 AM (#13006 - in reply to #12880) (#13006) TopPosts: 15
Country : United States
cyberx60 posted @ 2013-10-03 1:58 AM
Rules clarification for Hex Tents:
The rules say "every tree is next to exactly one tent," however in the example solution several trees are next to more than one tent. Is rule meant to say "at least one tent?"
The rules say "every tree is next to exactly one tent," however in the example solution several trees are next to more than one tent. Is rule meant to say "at least one tent?"
@ 2013-10-03 2:17 AM (#13007 - in reply to #12880) (#13007) TopPosts: 145
Country : France
auroux posted @ 2013-10-03 2:17 AM
The rule says "every tree is *connected* to exactly one tent" -- in this classic puzzle type, "connected" is to be understood as "connected by a line", not just "adjacent". So there is a way to assign to each tree exactly one tent that lies next to it, in such a way that all trees and tents are paired together. There can however exist some other tents besides the one attached to the tree that also lie next to it (but are attached to a different tree).
Unfortunately, the solution example doesn't show the connections between each tree and the corresponding tent, but you can probably reconstruct them yourself.
Hope this clarifies things -- if it's still unclear, don't hesitate to ask again.
Unfortunately, the solution example doesn't show the connections between each tree and the corresponding tent, but you can probably reconstruct them yourself.
Hope this clarifies things -- if it's still unclear, don't hesitate to ask again.
@ 2013-10-03 2:20 AM (#13008 - in reply to #13006) (#13008) TopPosts: 1801
Country : India
prasanna16391 posted @ 2013-10-03 2:20 AM
cyberx60 - 2013-10-03 1:58 AM
Rules clarification for Hex Tents:
The rules say "every tree is next to exactly one tent," however in the example solution several trees are next to more than one tent. Is rule meant to say "at least one tent?"
Rules clarification for Hex Tents:
The rules say "every tree is next to exactly one tent," however in the example solution several trees are next to more than one tent. Is rule meant to say "at least one tent?"
What the rule means is, every tree has it's own tent. If you connect each tent to just one tree, there should be just one way you can do that such that each tree has a tent.
@ 2013-10-05 7:12 AM (#13040 - in reply to #12958) (#13040) TopPosts: 668
Country : India
swaroop2011 posted @ 2013-10-05 7:12 AM
Hey thanks for reply,
yeah it will help for WPC so its fine.
And regarding Hex star Battle it seems only i was facing problem, so will see try for some different settings for printing :)
yeah it will help for WPC so its fine.
And regarding Hex star Battle it seems only i was facing problem, so will see try for some different settings for printing :)
auroux - 2013-09-30 11:25 AM
swaroop2011 - 2013-09-29 6:38 PMCan we make this competition extended even after week of WSC or WPC ?
I am not sure this is possible -- according to Deb Mohanty, this might not even be the last LMI test before the WSC/WPC. However I'll defer to Deb and other people with more experience of LMI -- I'm flexible and mostly want people to have fun with this puzzle round.Still, I haven't seen any of the WSC/WPC instruction booklets except for the "around the world in 80 puzzles" (are they out yet?), and given the flavor of that one (more variants on classics) I'd think playing "Hexed & remixed" for extra practice before the WPC could be more helpful than harmful, as pointed out by Prasanna.Secondly in HEX STAR BATTLE can the thick border be of some other color as Dark Black in Hex is giving confusion to view. I don't know if anyone else facing the same problem. :)
A different color for the thick borders is probably not a good idea though -- I for example don't have a color printer, so a non-black color will just appear as a shade of grey and it'll be less visible. I guess the thinner lines could be made gray instead of black, though I'm not sure it helps much, and it might decrease the visibility of the grid for everyone else? Any other comments on this? If Swaroop is the only person in the entire world with that problem, I'm not sure I want to fix it at the expense of everyone else -- but if others think that making the base grid gray instead of black would help, it can be done.Denis @ 2013-10-05 9:21 AM (#13041 - in reply to #12880) (#13041) Top
Country : India
debmohanty posted @ 2013-10-05 9:21 AM
@ 2013-10-05 11:54 AM (#13042 - in reply to #12880) (#13042) TopPosts: 31
Country : United States
RALehrer posted @ 2013-10-05 11:54 AM
| How balanced do you think the puzzle types of this test were? | Fairly balanced | |
| What was your opinion of the distribution of easy/hard puzzles? | Too many hard puzzles | |
| What did you think about the puzzle quality of the test? | Very nice | |
| What was your opinion about the answer key extraction? | Mostly perfect answer keys | |
| How did you feel about the length / time limit for this test? | Way too many puzzles (too little time) | |
| Of the puzzles you solved/attempted, how well did the point values reflect the difficulty? | Many puzzles were worth too much or too little | |
| What was your opinion of the booklet formatting and printing? | Too few pages / too small grids |
@ 2013-10-05 7:39 PM (#13043 - in reply to #12880) (#13043) TopAn LMI player
An LMI player posted @ 2013-10-05 7:39 PM
| How balanced do you think the puzzle types of this test were? | Fairly balanced | |
| What did you think about the puzzle quality of the test? | Very nice | |
| What was your opinion of the booklet formatting and printing? | Too few pages / too small grids |
@ 2013-10-06 6:18 AM (#13048 - in reply to #12880) (#13048) TopPosts: 80
Country : Canada
achan1058 posted @ 2013-10-06 6:18 AM
| How balanced do you think the puzzle types of this test were? | A bit skewed | |
| What was your opinion of the distribution of easy/hard puzzles? | Too many hard puzzles | |
| What did you think about the puzzle quality of the test? | Average | |
| What was your opinion about the answer key extraction? | Mostly perfect answer keys | |
| How did you feel about the length / time limit for this test? | A bit too many puzzles | |
| Of the puzzles you solved/attempted, how well did the point values reflect the difficulty? | Most puzzles were worth the right amount | |
| What was your opinion of the booklet formatting and printing? | Too few pages / too small grids |
The hex are too easy, and the remix are too hard. I would prefer it if things are balanced out more. One of the problems that showed up with the remix is clutter. By that, I mean that the notes/deduction written down for the 2 types interfere with each other in a nasty way. For example, in battleship minesweeper, you want to cross out cells to mark that they are not part of a ship, and you also want to cross out cells to mark that there are no mines. Even if you keep 2 sets of notations, it can get confusing which is which.
@ 2013-10-06 9:37 AM (#13049 - in reply to #12880) (#13049) TopPosts: 668
Country : India
swaroop2011 posted @ 2013-10-06 9:37 AM
After long time i felt , i performed little well.
Unfortunately did a typo while submitting one answer, well mistake is mistake.
Awesome puzzles, every puzzle had nice trick and logic.
Thanks to author for such wonderful test.
Solving Remixes was real tough time, hopefully got 4 of them, have to solve other 6 left.
I liked Hex Fences, Hitori Fences, Snake in the Tents and Hex skyscrapers a lot :)
I guess this is last test on LMI before WPC, hopefully lifted my confidence. :)
Unfortunately did a typo while submitting one answer, well mistake is mistake.
Awesome puzzles, every puzzle had nice trick and logic.
Thanks to author for such wonderful test.
Solving Remixes was real tough time, hopefully got 4 of them, have to solve other 6 left.
I liked Hex Fences, Hitori Fences, Snake in the Tents and Hex skyscrapers a lot :)
I guess this is last test on LMI before WPC, hopefully lifted my confidence. :)
@ 2013-10-06 9:42 AM (#13050 - in reply to #13049) (#13050) TopCountry : India
debmohanty posted @ 2013-10-06 9:42 AM
swaroop2011 - 2013-10-06 9:37 AM
I guess this is last test on LMI before WPC :)
Well that is not true. We have 2 more tests coming up before WPC/WSC, one Sudoku and one Puzzle. Both of them use puzzle types from WPC/WSC. Details will be published soon (in next 24 hours!)I guess this is last test on LMI before WPC :)
@ 2013-10-06 9:44 AM (#13051 - in reply to #12880) (#13051) TopPosts: 29
Country : Canada
ksun48 posted @ 2013-10-06 9:44 AM
| How balanced do you think the puzzle types of this test were? | Fairly balanced | |
| What was your opinion of the distribution of easy/hard puzzles? | Too many medium difficult puzzles | |
| What did you think about the puzzle quality of the test? | Very nice | |
| What was your opinion about the answer key extraction? | Mostly perfect answer keys | |
| How did you feel about the length / time limit for this test? | A bit too many puzzles | |
| Of the puzzles you solved/attempted, how well did the point values reflect the difficulty? | Most puzzles were worth the right amount | |
| What was your opinion of the booklet formatting and printing? | Just right |
@ 2013-10-06 10:32 AM (#13052 - in reply to #12920) (#13052) TopPosts: 43
Country : United States
davep posted @ 2013-10-06 10:32 AM
Denis - Enjoyed the puzzles very much, the ones I did not finish will help fill the time between football games tomorrow....
Thanks for putting these together, nice job!
Dave
Thanks for putting these together, nice job!
Dave
@ 2013-10-06 11:18 AM (#13055 - in reply to #13050) (#13055) TopPosts: 668
Country : India
swaroop2011 posted @ 2013-10-06 11:18 AM
Oh Wow ! :)
Seems to be tight schedule then.
And better way to get ready for Championships :)
Seems to be tight schedule then.
And better way to get ready for Championships :)
debmohanty - 2013-10-06 9:42 AM
swaroop2011 - 2013-10-06 9:37 AM
I guess this is last test on LMI before WPC :)
Well that is not true. We have 2 more tests coming up before WPC/WSC, one Sudoku and one Puzzle. Both of them use puzzle types from WPC/WSC. Details will be published soon (in next 24 hours!)I guess this is last test on LMI before WPC :)
@ 2013-10-06 1:53 PM (#13057 - in reply to #12880) (#13057) TopPosts: 241
Country : Indonesia
chaotic_iak posted @ 2013-10-06 1:53 PM
| How balanced do you think the puzzle types of this test were? | Perfectly balanced | |
| What was your opinion of the distribution of easy/hard puzzles? | Too many hard puzzles | |
| What did you think about the puzzle quality of the test? | Average | |
| What was your opinion about the answer key extraction? | Answer keys could have been better | |
| How did you feel about the length / time limit for this test? | Way too many puzzles (too little time) | |
| Of the puzzles you solved/attempted, how well did the point values reflect the difficulty? | Most puzzles were worth the right amount | |
| What was your opinion of the booklet formatting and printing? | Just right |
Regarding difficulty, it's obvious. When the top players don't even finish in time, you know something is wrong. (There are still one or two days though.)
Regarding puzzle quality. The one that I can most remember is Hitori Fences. I solved the Hitori before I started working with Fences, so it's just putting two puzzles in one. Another one is the lack of interesting features of the puzzles. The aesthetics are just average (not even rotational symmetry), and the solutions to the puzzles (at least those I attempted) don't really have nice tricks. Perhaps there are a few, but it's much less than what I expect about puzzles that ignore aesthetics.
Regarding answer keys. Seems like a few answer keys are too weird and can be replaced by better ones, but might be only my rant. I'll try to review over them again first before deciding.
So, yeah. Not really enjoyable test. Not utterly terrible, but not great either.
Edited by chaotic_iak 2013-10-06 2:03 PM
@ 2013-10-06 2:00 PM (#13058 - in reply to #12880) (#13058) TopPosts: 83
Country : Czech Republic
Gotroch posted @ 2013-10-06 2:00 PM
| How balanced do you think the puzzle types of this test were? | Fairly balanced | |
| What was your opinion of the distribution of easy/hard puzzles? | Just right | |
| What did you think about the puzzle quality of the test? | Very nice | |
| What was your opinion about the answer key extraction? | Perfect answer keys | |
| How did you feel about the length / time limit for this test? | A bit too many puzzles | |
| Of the puzzles you solved/attempted, how well did the point values reflect the difficulty? | Many puzzles were worth too much or too little | |
| What was your opinion of the booklet formatting and printing? | Just right |
Great puzzles in second part!
@ 2013-10-06 2:55 PM (#13060 - in reply to #12880) (#13060) TopPosts: 183
Country : Turkey
yureklis posted @ 2013-10-06 2:55 PM
| How balanced do you think the puzzle types of this test were? | A bit skewed | |
| What was your opinion of the distribution of easy/hard puzzles? | Too many hard puzzles | |
| What did you think about the puzzle quality of the test? | Fairly Nice | |
| What was your opinion about the answer key extraction? | Answer keys could have been better | |
| How did you feel about the length / time limit for this test? | A bit too many puzzles | |
| What was your opinion of the booklet formatting and printing? | Just right |
@ 2013-10-06 4:23 PM (#13062 - in reply to #12880) (#13062) TopPosts: 225
Country : Thailand
tamz29 posted @ 2013-10-06 4:23 PM
The puzzles by themselves were great. But I'm not sure if these are suitable for a competition.
I think they require a lot of trying-out-all-the-combinations-type logic.
The second part was brutal, puzzles taking 30+ minutes.
I feel that I'd enjoy them if they were for leisure solving (some beautiful deductions needed),
but the competitive environment killed the puzzles.
Too many hard puzzles in too little time (even though the test was a lengthy 135 minutes).
The terrible answer keys didn't help either. We have 20 completely different types which makes too many different answer-keys formatting.
I'm not blaming the puzzles (I like a lot of them), but the way it is presented (in a timed condition) made it a harsh experience.
If these were in puzzle magazine or other casual-solving medium, I'd love them!
I think they require a lot of trying-out-all-the-combinations-type logic.
The second part was brutal, puzzles taking 30+ minutes.
I feel that I'd enjoy them if they were for leisure solving (some beautiful deductions needed),
but the competitive environment killed the puzzles.
Too many hard puzzles in too little time (even though the test was a lengthy 135 minutes).
The terrible answer keys didn't help either. We have 20 completely different types which makes too many different answer-keys formatting.
I'm not blaming the puzzles (I like a lot of them), but the way it is presented (in a timed condition) made it a harsh experience.
If these were in puzzle magazine or other casual-solving medium, I'd love them!