The New Sudoku Players' Forum

[r.e.s.]

I don't understand why I seem to be alone on this.

You're not alone. I've argued the same point in other threads.

[angusj]

I've harped on this before -- I don't understand why I seem to be alone on this. He's also free to write a chess program that claims castling is "invalid".

tso, I think you need to put in perspective that Sudoku solving has progress a very long way since Pappocom released his programme.

I'm sure Pappocom (Wayne) can speak for himself but I'd be very surprised if he would still call puzzles requiring swordfish (as an example) invalid.

However, in the context of solving newspaper puzzles with paper and pencil - techniques such as swordfish, xy-wings etc would certainly seem beyond the realms of fun or pleasure for 'normal' people. Therefore, I can fully comprehend why he might have labelled anything of comparable complexity as equivalent to 'trial and error'.

[r.e.s.]

I'm sure Pappocom (Wayne) can speak for himself but I'd be very surprised if he would still call puzzles requiring swordfish (as an example) invalid.

Indeed, in http://forum.enjoysudoku.com/viewtopic.php?p=442&#442 (2005-03-31) ...

It would be easy for my program to create puzzles that demand a Nishio for solution. [...] But my belief is that such a puzzle, though valid, is unfair.

That's because I believe a puzzle should be an entertainment, not an exercise in mechanical and tedious plotting of numbers on paper.

(emphasis added)

[emm]

If he wants to call his dog an banana plant, he's certainly free to do so. It doesn't mean we'll have any bananas.

I love this line - trouble is it's your dog he's calling a banana plant and he's not the one eating the bananas.

I agree there might be a tinge of egomania in the ‘lookalike’ tag, but I still think that a Pappacom program has the right to call some puzzles 'invalid' - not ‘existentially invalid’ just ‘invalid for this program’ which truthfully they are, according to the outline, which even newbies can read. You sound like you feel responsible for all the confused and annoyed newbies who need to be taught why their imported puzzles are invalid? I can see that this would be exasperating – if I knew how to do that ‘here and here’ thing you did to me, I’d use that.