slo's Monday poll - Sudoku

[slo]

Do you know how to play Sudoku?



I have no idea how to play Sudoku
I don't know the first thing about it
I would like to learn someday though, because I enjoy doing other types of puzzles.



Poll coming!!!

 

[highland3]

Any puzzle based on math is on my "avoid at all costs" list!!

 

[helenabear]

I know how to play, but I really do not like the game at all. Not good with numbers here.

 

[Savsmommy]

My mom got me hooked on playing it last year. I haven't done one in a while though. I can usually do all the easier level ones. But, once it's at a harder level I always get stuck.

 

[snowwite]

Do you know how to play Sudoku?



I have no idea how to play Sudoku
I don't know the first thing about it
I would like to learn someday though, because I enjoy doing other types of puzzles.



Poll coming!!!

My DH and DD find it addicting.I find it frustrating. They have books in varying degress of difficukty at Barnes & Noble

 

[I'mNoPrince]

I will knock out one for DD was hse ca't get it. But other then that I just pass it by.

 

[robinc71]

OMG! My sister and I are addicted to it. The harder they are the more we like it. It's easy to get started and there really is no math involved, just logic. Each row, column, and square has to contain numbers 1-9. Start out by going thru the numbers 1 by 1 and deciding if you can find numbers that are missing that way. Try one of they books on sale as they have an easy section adnthey explain things on how to complete puzzles

 

[T1130]

I tried it once and that was enough for me.

 

[DisneyFan06]

I am so addicted to Sudoko!

 

[jen0610]

DS loves these. He has asked for the Sudoku game for his gameboy DS, so I think we'll be getting that for his birthday. I'll do the ones marked easy in the game books, but leave the difficult/hard ones alone.

 

[slo]

 

[piratesmate]

DD & I love Sudoku! We both have books in the car to do - among other places. LOL She recently picked up a Dummies book at Wal-Mart - not because she wanted to know how, but because it included some really, really difficult ones! The directions are very good and gave us both a few tips that we hadn't thought of for those hard ones.

I have to laugh at the books aimed at kids, though. Instead of numbers, they use shapes. I can't do those at all!! I need the numeric sequence to keep track of what's been used.

 

[DISUNC]

When not DIS'ing I am Sudokuing! VERY EASY! Very Addicting!

 

[Mrs.Toad]

Any puzzle based on math is on my "avoid at all costs" list!!

Sudoku isn't based on math. It just happens to use numbers, but the puzzle would be exactly the same if letters or pictures were used. Like someone said, it's logic, really.

I have to laugh at the books aimed at kids, though. Instead of numbers, they use shapes. I can't do those at all!! I need the numeric sequence to keep track of what's been used.

Me, too! The really little kid ones are fine, when there's just 4 shapes, but I was helping dd do one with nine different sports pictures. Not only was it hard to remember what was missing, but drawing a little picture in each square was torture!

slo -- I'll second some of the others suggestions. Find a book that explains how to do it. It's really pretty simple once you get the hang of it. I always start with 1's, then 2's, etc, and look for boxes where the number will work in only one square. Then, I do the same with columns and rows. Then, I'll start looking at individual squares to see what numbers will work there.

For harder puzzles, you're not going to get only one number working in a square very often, so I'll write in the possibilities real tiny at the top of the square. Here's a hint: If you have two squares in a box, row or column where the same two numbers are the only ones that could work, (say 2 and 5), then you know that those two numbers have to go in those two squares, and you know that 2 and 5 are not possibilities for any other squares in that row, column or box. You can help narrow down possibilities that way.

Have fun!

 

[KarenB]

Yes, I enjoy Sudoku. I can do the easy ones with not problem and some of the medium. That is all the farther I can get.

Karen

 

[Cool-Beans]

I figured it out, but don't enjoy it. Once you figure out what they are doing, it is pretty easy - too easy to be fun, IMO.

 

[Bunchkin]

I have played it.
But DH and Dd are addicted to it. They have books and electronic games of it. DH actually annoys me with how much he plays it some days!!!!
And I've hid his electronic one on him before!!!

 

[Kimmumum]

Dh and I are both addicted! We fight over which one of us gets to do the one in the paper everyday

 

[jusmom]

Sudo-what?
My DH is a big fan, I am not.

 

[piratesmate]

<snip>
slo -- I'll second some of the others suggestions. Find a book that explains how to do it. It's really pretty simple once you get the hang of it. I always start with 1's, then 2's, etc, and look for boxes where the number will work in only one square. Then, I do the same with columns and rows. Then, I'll start looking at individual squares to see what numbers will work there.

For harder puzzles, you're not going to get only one number working in a square very often, so I'll write in the possibilities real tiny at the top of the square. Here's a hint: If you have two squares in a box, row or column where the same two numbers are the only ones that could work, (say 2 and 5), then you know that those two numbers have to go in those two squares, and you know that 2 and 5 are not possibilities for any other squares in that row, column or box. You can help narrow down possibilities that way.

Have fun!

This sounds similar to what DD does to solve them. I do them an entirely different way though. I look across each "tier" (3 rows) for duplicates and see if there is something blocking vertically. Then I do the vertical duplicates - re-checking horizontally as I add numbers. After that look for "triples" or where a block has all 3 filled in either direction. From there I either check by block or by row/column. Only on the very difficult puzzles do I get stuck putting tiny possibilities in the corner to see what gets ruled out.