The New Sudoku Players' Forum

[AlexK]

I'm finding that the "easy" puzzles in this book are more easy-medium than straight easy... anyone else have this book and care to comment?

[AlexK]

Just as an update--I ran one of the diabolical puzzles through the Susser and it needed Nishio and Trebor's Tables to solve it... does that mean it's hard?

[PaulIQ164]

That means it's very very hard. In fact, it means that realistically it's too hard to be published in a book for the normal solver (not least one "for Dummies"). Nishio is a slightly trial-and-error technique frowned on my most (I think). Trebor's Tables, as I understand, is a highly complicated analytical technique that no-one could manage to do without a computer.

[AlexK]

Maybe this is a book which more experienced Sudoku players could enjoy then...

[PaulIQ164]

But presumably it doesn't go any way to explaining any more advanced techniques, it just has the puzzles? So it's no better than any program/publication that just produces puzzles with "unique solution" as their only criterion.

[AlexK]

Actually, the book does give some hints at the start for how to solve Sudoku puzzles, and the premise is that as you work your way through the book you should become progressively more capable. For what it's worth, the book's authors are Andrew Heron and Edmund James, if that means anything.

[tso]

I haven't seen the book -- but if it's true that it includes some puzzles -- clearly rated as diabolical -- that require the most advanced tactics and may be beyond the capabilities (and desires) of the casual solver -- GOOD! That solver can skip the hardest ones. Certainly this is better than the other extreme -- there is a book out now called "Black Belt Sudoku" -- part of a series of books rated in the same way the Japanes rate martial arts. The book is supposed to contain the very hardest puzzles and though I haven't looked in the book, the puzzle on the cover would be rated "Easy" by Pappocom.

I consider myself a puzzle expert. I have shelves of books of puzzles and mathematical recreations. Nearly all of these books contain some puzzles that are stumped me.

If you everyone can solve all the puzzles all the time -- they're not puzzle, they're coloring books.


Oh, it seems to me that the philosophy of the "Dummies" series is NOT to present only easy material, but to present challenging material in an easy way. Lots of the techniques one might pick up in this forum are much simpler than what a novice might assume based on the hit or miss, piecemeal way that information is presented here. If I had to learn *based on my own posts*, I'd be lost!