New feature - input needed!

[universalmom]

I think it should be left as it is...I like it that it's up to me to figure out if I've used the same letter twice! The only way I'll make that mistake less and less is to have to find it myself.

Here's a feature I'd love to see though...I'm still seeing most of these quotes for the first time, and I wish I could compare my first time to everyone else's first time, in addition to the current stats. At my fastest, I'm about 3 times bansai or lurker's record time, and I'm actually pretty proud of that

[imported_Lurker]

Wow, a subset of stats for the first time everyone sees a quote? I'm not even sure how to write the program for that one.

What I would love to see on that side bar where the average time is listed is the solve rate percentage.

And you SHOULD be proud of every quote you solve, regardless of the time it took. I'm happy every time I come in under the average time.

[fredsevent]

What I would love to see on that side bar where the average time is listed is the solve rate percentage.

Do you mean the Success rate which is already there (first row)?

This Cryptogram's Statistics
Success Rate: 23.3%
Average Time: 72 seconds
Record Time: 18 seconds (Lurker)
Your Time: 39 seconds
Performance: Above Average

[imported_Lurker]

No, the bar on the right while you're solving the quote. It lists letter frequencies, difficulty rating, average solve time, the time you started to solve it, and a link to print.

Basically, if I saw a quote had a success rate under 10%, I wouldn't feel as bad about giving up on it. Or, maybe I'd become more determined to become one of the 10%. You never know.

[fredsevent]

No, the bar on the right while you're solving the quote. It lists letter frequencies, difficulty rating, average solve time, the time you started to solve it, and a link to print.

Basically, if I saw a quote had a success rate under 10%, I wouldn't feel as bad about giving up on it. Or, maybe I'd become more determined to become one of the 10%. You never know.

Sorry, for my confusion. In fact, (hilariously) I've never noticed the stuff to the right at all.

[shivawn]

uh

what stuff tothe right??

[pootie49]

The box on the right...the grey one.

[maggiemouse]

Stephen, If all players old and new, are competing against each other in time and % solved, it would be unfair to the best players (who don't often designate two different letters for the unknown) to give the advantage to slower players of having the program tell them when they have made a mistake. As soon as there are two different options at a point of decision, the race course becomes easier for some players who wouldn't otherwise be able to compete with the best players. I would personally like to see the "pink" option when I am only playing against myself because it would make solving puzzles easier. If that option were available during competitive play, would give an unfair advantage to us newbies.

[margio]

Don't Change It!

Don't fix what's not broken. It works just fine. Part of the puzzle if you put the same letter in twice is to figure that out. Leave it be!

[Kgun5]

Just a few suggestions for future updates, should any be forthcoming:

1) A "Currently Held Records" stat on each user's My Scores page. This assumes the site won't crash when calculating Bansai's total.

2) Along side the record time on each quote page, display the date it was set.

3) Alert a user if they have unfinished puzzles from the prior two hours (once for each puzzle.

Thanks,
Steve

[chopstix]

completion times in the comments section

I've noticed lately that there is a newer player who seems to be posting their completion time in the comments section - there's just the player's name and 52 secs., or whatever.

I don't think the comments area is a good place for this person's record keeping, as, if everybody started doing the same, the comments would become cluttered with completion times.

However, I do see and understand what this player is doing - which is to keep track of their personal achievements. I kind of like the idea, just not in the comments section, but then there's really no other way to do it.

Perhaps there is some way to add a feature which would track a player's personal information, just for that player to see?

Hmmm, I don't know enough about web sites to know if this would be possible...

[jnoodles]

leave it the way it is

Hi folks -

A common request for cryptograms.org is to make it so that a user can't use the same letter twice on the same puzzle. Right now the system will allow you to make A into T and B into T, and won't show you there's an error. Some find this annoying because the error often won't become apparent until they hit submit.

I'm working on two fixes for this, and would like your input on which you feel is most beneficial (and least intrusive) for gameplay. You can try out the two options via the urls given below, but note that these urls are STILL TIED INTO COMPETITION. If you want to test them out and are worried the change in gameplay may affect your solve times, be sure to log out first before trying any of these test urls.

First option: If a letter is re-used, it is placed into the new box(es) and automatically removed from all previous placements. (If A was already T, and you mark B as now also being T, all A's will revert to blanks.) No warning or error message acknowledges the change.

Test this at: http://www.cryptograms.org/play8.php

Second option: If a letter is re-used, all previous placements of that same letter are shaded in pink to give visual indication of the double-usage. But both old and new placements retain the same letter - the user must make a decision to remove one or the other manually.

Test this at: http://www.cryptograms.org/play9.php

I'm including a poll on this thread to allow you to vote for your preferred method - either "Auto Replacement" (1st option), "Visual Indication" (2nd option) or "Leave it the Heck Alone" (if you prefer things as they are).

Thanks for your input!

Stephen

[momof7]

Option #2

Please don't go with option #1.
Just because I've doubled up a letter accidentally, doesn't mean I prefer to remove the first one. Shading it in in pink would be a lot more helpful.
I'm also fine with leaving things the way they are.

[madrone]

I like visual indication. Thanks for asking.

[damsel22]

New feature - input needed!

I like the visual indication as well