question for really fast solvers

[mikehallbackhoe]

okay, I just solved a puzzle in 19 seconds, only to find that Nanrich solved it in 4 seconds!!! the question is not can he read a puzzle before solving it, but is he also psychic?

[gryhnd51]

Mike, what makes you think Nanrich is "he"??

And Contrary....how does ANYONE sit and solve for 3 hours??? My longest is perhaps an hour and then I have to do something else. It seems to refresh and refocus my brain when I leave it for a bit

I'm not sure if anyone has mentioned that we should ALL be playing because it's FUN...??? I try to make my biggest competitor myself, and when it stops being fun to play, I'll quit.

[wvwoman]

how would mike know nanrich's gender?!

[mikehallbackhoe]

I assumed nanrich was a guy from the avatar of what I percieved was a guy playing in the snow. If I guessed wrong, I am sorry. by the way, who said playing wasn't fun? my biggest competitor is myself also. quite often I keep playing because I am trying to reach a certain average time, or a certain number of games played, or just because I can't sleep. I don't expect to ever be as fast as some players, my eyes don't work like they used to, and I could care less about learning how to type' but for some reason, I love to solve cryptos

[gryhnd51]

Mike, it doesn't matter if you "guessed wrong"....until Nanrich tells us, who's to know?

So glad you're having fun!

I still buy cryptogram books when I can find them. I really think they help me to solve the hardest ones.

I also agree with nanrich that the "easier" very long quotes are sometimes the hardest to solve. I have always had much better luck w/ the shorter ones....it's easier to see a "pattern" in them.

[contrary]

It's less of a problem of focusing my brain and more of a problem of unfocusing it. The game is fun for me for ~3 hours, then I start to lose focus, and then look up at the clock and realize that the day is gone. In the meanwhile, I LOVE it when I can see a long word with a few letters in it and recognize the patterns of the letters that are still missing.

(A few years ago I sat down to improve my minesweeper times. I looked back up at the clock and five hours had gone by.)

[Barnabas]

I love the first couple days of the month when the board is so dynamic. You can be in 3rd place and get up for a cup of tea, and come back and be in 12th place. It's only at the beginning of the month that I've ever hopped into first place for a minute or two. It didn't last but it was fun sitting there for a minute.

I recall some months back (can't point to the exact month), but it was midnight {puzzlebaron time} and the monthly clock started anew. I started solving puzzles as fast as I could. I believe it was Gryhnd who was among a few of the others onboard at the time, and no matter how many or how I fast was solving there was just no way I was going to be able to jump into that number 1 spot even for a moment. I just couldn't keep up with someone in her/his league (Gryhnd, I'm not sure why, but even though your avatar shouldn't steer me one direction or the other by simply looking at it, for some reason with me it says Gryhnd is a she not a he. Again, like others here, my apologies if I'm wrong and/or if that offends you in any way. Offense is certainly not intended). But anyway, I don't know if Gryhnd happened to notice what I was trying to accomplish or not, but all of a sudden she/he just quit playing for about 10 minutes, and for a brief period of time there I was at the top of the scoreboard. I eventually quit and went to bed, and the next morning Gryhnd was rightfully at the top. If my interpretation of how I arrived briefly at the top is correct, Gryhnd, and if you actively participated in allowing me my moment... well, I thank you.

As to the viruses, Rochester (MN) seems to have been hit with a nasty cold virus. It gets hold of you and won't let go. After I'd had mine for more than 2 weeks, I started to ask around about how long I should expect to be harboring this thing. The reply was 4 to 5 weeks! Yuck! Anyway, I am now on day 26... still have it, and hoping it'll be gone before I leave for Mexico on the 17th.

Oh, one other thing, with regard to perceptions about names and avatars... Michaellbackhoe, your guitar avatar, combined with your moniker, always makes me think you're a Nickelback fan. And the backhoe part of your name makes me believe you're comfortable working outdoors with heavy machinery. How did I do?

[abra]

I think I do understand "taking stabs at things". It would describe my method .

[mikehallbackhoe]

barnabas, you got it half right, I do indeed run heavy equipment, but I don't even know what a nickleback is. I will admit that I am a guy.

[wvwoman]

yeah, barnabas, what gave you the nickelback (band) connection? (this is so interesting!)

[Barnabas]

barnabas, you got it half right, I do indeed run heavy equipment, but I don't even know what a nickleback is. I will admit that I am a guy.

I'm not that disappointed to learn you're not a Nickleback fan. I don't really care for them myself... just happen to know who they are. But I gotta believe you're a music fan of wide-ranging tastes what with the guitar avatar. What's been in my car's CD player of late has been Dave Alvin - Eleven Eleven, a very good album which blends rock, blues, and country about as well as they can be blended. But then, I'm just as apt to playing Pink Floyd, Zeppelin, The Beatles, etc. as I am... say Little Feat, James McMurtry, Dave Alvin, etc. Ummmmm, what was this thread about again???

[damsel22]

question for really fast solvers

I don't know about you all, but I have to have a pretty regular amount of solving time in order to keep solving quickly. It usually takes me ~30 minutes to get in a groove, then I can stay focused for about 3 hours, and then solving and focusing becomes impossible. And I need to do this at least 3 times a week or I start to lose my ability to 'see' the puzzles quickly.

As a side note, this is why you see me with sporadically heavy months. I don't know how you regulars don't burn out.

I also need consistent solving to stay sharp; however, I could never imagine playing for three hours straight. I do much better with speed if I keep short sessions, maybe 20 minutes at a time. Otherwise, I start to lose focus and slow down.

[mikehallbackhoe]

I find myself sometimes playing for 3 or four hours straight, but my solve times do suffer. when I start overlooking words like "nothing" and "people" it is time to take a break

[mikehallbackhoe]

by the way, I do play the guitar,some banjo, and some piano, but I really don't have a love for music. I play more for the challenge, just like cryptograms. if these puzzles ever get too easy, I would quit playing

[universalmom]

I'm not that disappointed to learn you're not a Nickleback fan. I don't really care for them myself... just happen to know who they are. But I gotta believe you're a music fan of wide-ranging tastes what with the guitar avatar. What's been in my car's CD player of late has been Dave Alvin - Eleven Eleven, a very good album which blends rock, blues, and country about as well as they can be blended. But then, I'm just as apt to playing Pink Floyd, Zeppelin, The Beatles, etc. as I am... say Little Feat, James McMurtry, Dave Alvin, etc. Ummmmm, what was this thread about again???

Any Steely Dan in there?