The Sphinx's Lair

12:23 AM

@TheGreatEscaper In Tapa-like, can the clues affect other genres? E.g the 2 2 at the bottom right, does that stop stuff happening in the grid below?

Wen1now

12:53 AM

@TheGreatEscaper Also, in myopia what happens if a clue doesn't point to anything? Is it considered always white/grey? (like, there is no closest loops segment)

boboquack

2:05 AM

Welp, with ludicrous loops out I'm not going to able to finish my grid-deduction puzzle before the FTC is over.

TheGreatEscaper

3:09 AM

@Wen1now answered both of those in an edit

Wen1now

THanks

Wen1now

4:11 AM

How are you guys going with Ludicrous Loop?

TheGreatEscaper

4:39 AM

A tester has just finished 10/16 areas.

I think their total solving time right now is at least 6-7 hours

Wen1now

10 out of 16?

TheGreatEscaper

Yeah.

Wen1now

I'm on something like 1 area

2 halves

TheGreatEscaper

Which area?

There are a few places where the puzzle can start to crack open.

Wen1now

I'll PM you on google

Wen1now

4:51 AM

@TheGreatEscaper?

humn

5:20 AM

@ffao , what about "about"? What about "what." What "the"? How I love language.

Someone please do something about language. It's a riddle befuddled by a muddle.

(Sorry about that outburst. I was diverted to Writers SE but nobody was reading.)

(Now I want to hide at Corner SE. But ever since someone said this room can survive randomness during quiet moments, here is where i Brown out.)

(... still working up a puzzle based on different kinds of noise: white, pink, brown, black, call the cops)

(those are technical terms, in case it looks like i'm racist)

(I barely qualify as a tortoise, on an outgoing day, but, yes, politics get my fingers out of their sheaths)

Any sound engineers here? (I truly believe this place eddies the best bubbles.)

Seems like half the s*** (stuff) on TV is sped up nowadays.

I have recordings from ages ago and they go at normal speed.

There's much room for comprssn vrwhr!

But whyyyyyyyyy botherrrrrrrrrrrrr?

What's the opposite of compression? Expansion? Expression?

Exasperation? (Signed, language lover)

Wen1now

5:52 AM

Expansion, of course

boboquack

decompression

humn

Thank youse!

Exhilaration.

boboquack

(and don't forget to mark an answer as ✔ Accepted!)

humn

Someone answer one of mine in the last few days? You again? I lost all my tabs.

Or are you talking about correct answers here? The best kind!

boboquack

10 mins ago, by humn

What's the opposite of compression? Expansion? Expression?

humn

5:57 AM

✔

boboquack

(but whose?)

humn

Funny topic, I got a gold star for upvotes without even knowing that was a badge.

Global warming!

✔ oppopression.

(not opression!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

Wen1now

I'm kind of stuck now on LL

Sid

@humn Goes to upvote every question and answer seen to get a badge. :P

Humph, wasn't Global Warming supposed to be a hoax? :P

humn

Yeamph, that would have been nice.

boboquack

6:07 AM

@Sid it's for 600 question votes and a >=1:3 question:answer vote ratio

humn

Doesn't take long when you don't know what's up.

Wen1now

Ooh, 1:3. That's pretty clever

boboquack

why?

humn

^ good question

boboquack

I'm at 53:47 :P (a bit over...)

Wen1now

6:09 AM

Oh, because most people seeing 25% go 25% -> 1/4 -> 1:4

boboquack

Welp - you've got 33:17

Wen1now

(I've got to admit, I was one of those people)

humn

@Wen1now , love the typography!

Sid

@boboquack duh.. That sounds tedious..

Beastly Gerbil

is this electorate?

boboquack

6:10 AM

yep

Beastly Gerbil

whos hunting it down?

Wen1now

I am, a bit

boboquack

I'm about halfway there

Wen1now

Same

But we were talking about how humn got it

boboquack

(because I'm never going to get fanatic at this rate - I've just got too many interruptions)

Beastly Gerbil

6:11 AM

good luck all. Its a nice one to get - i got mine last october

Wen1now

What about after the IMO?

Beastly Gerbil

You know who you can make it easier to get? Upvote all my questions ;)

humn

I wore out doing that!

Wen1now

Ooh, good point!

Sid

Do downvotes also count towards electorate?

humn

6:13 AM

@BeastlyGerbil , thank you

boboquack

Think so

humn

It's such a fine edge, between love and hate. Which helps more?

A pat on the back or a kick in the butt? (borrowed quotes)

Beastly Gerbil

yeah downvotes count

Sid

I don't understand 600 question votes. Does that mean voting on 600 different questions or upvoting/downvoting 600 questions only?

Wen1now

First

Vote 600 times, on questions

Sid

6:18 AM

Wow, I never realised I have voted >700 times already. I thought it might be far less..

Beastly Gerbil

too many answers then?

Sid

329 questions, 414 answers,,

humn

The Pretenders - Thin Line Between Love And Hate

►

between ^vote and v-vote

Wen1now

Okay, recommendations:

Should I vote on every puzzle I look at?

Beastly Gerbil

no

Sid

6:20 AM

NO

humn

I go by the current balance.

Beastly Gerbil

My advise: Go to 'highest voted' and upvote those - you knoe they will be good puzzles and you can knock a few down doing that

humn

If they have enough ups, mine won't count. If they have undeserved downs, I make up new users just to compensate.

Sid

I downvote only stuff which shouldn't be on Puzzling and usually upvote better than average puzzles(and which I really understand)

Beastly Gerbil

If your rule is only upvote things you understand - does that mean you never upvoted an alconja puzzle? :P

Sid

6:23 AM

@Beastly shouldn't that be "advice"? Correct me if I am wrong, but I think advise is verb and advice is noun.

humn

There should be a badge for v-voting. I rarely have the courage.

Wen1now

v-voting?

Beastly Gerbil

I have no idea with advise v advice

(down voting)

humn

(v is supposed to look like a downarrow, not stuttering)

Wen1now

advice is correct

In that scenario

humn

6:24 AM

Not all advice is correct! (anyone mention that i love language?)

Sid

Not really, no. I have upvoted quite a few Alconja puzzles(though, not all)

humn

What's Alconja puzzle? I'm new here and trying to be funny.

Sid

Enigmatic puzzle.

ffao

I downvoted some highest voted puzzles myself

My advice: vote on whether you think it's good or not

humn

ffao! You are a morning vitamin. Sometimes hard to swallow, but so nourishing.

ffao

6:28 AM

I wonder if humn thinks I'm ignoring him because I never reply, but it's just that I never understand

humn

Keep trying, and I will too.

You understood one of my most tortured solutions!

You fixed it.

The one with volumes and sections. From a puzzler who hasn't dared a keystroke in this room but wields an awesome keyboard.

Sid

4 out of our top 7 puzzles(according to votes) are from Mar-2016 to June-2016

Wen1now

Oh, it's puzzle season right now then!

humn

(interlaced:)

21

Q: The box with the curious inscriptions

A librarian browsing the basement of a library came across an empty box. Its contents were missing, and to her annoyance even its label had been vandalized. The label did tell her that the box had once contained a series of five volumes, but other important lines had been obliterated. Above on...

Some parts of the world it's monsoon seasoon.

In this part (San Jose, California, USA) a heat wave just passed. Everyone withered and died. I'm a zombie.

Ella Fitzgerald - Heat Wave (High Quality - Remastered)

►

Sid

Anyone got anywhere on the youtube puzzle?

Wen1now

6:42 AM

youtube puzzle?

humn

Link?

(I've solved a youtube puzzle or two and lucky to not have been arrested again. What a braggart.)

Sid

1

Q: MetaMurderMystery

Oh no. Another murder. More work for you, the famous Dr. M. Helos, in the summer, no less. The story: A man by the name of Nat Sow was found dead on a bench. When the police found him, they were unable to move him, as if he was a stone stuck to the seat. They uprooted the whole bench, and on c...

riddle cipher steganography imgur-maze

That ^

humn

Thanks. This one leaves a negative impression! In the most positive sense.

Wen1now

Hey does anybody here like ~~cool~~ tedious logic puzzles?

humn

I wonder the same thing every time I start a crossword.

okay, teaser, what's in mind?

Wen1now

6:49 AM

Does anybody actually want to try one of those logic games?

humn

Those?

Sid

o/

Wen1now

The one where two people are given a number each

One the sum of A and B, and one the product

Sid

(I am pretty much bored now. So, will try just about anything)

Wen1now

And basically they take turns saying 'I don't know the numbers yet' until one of them does know the numbers

So the two people are working together, and they can only post either Yes (if they know the numbers) or no (if they don't)

They take turns

Sid

6:51 AM

Oh, duh. I don't have a perfect logical brain..

humn

I have a file that might cure you.

Wen1now

I have tried it, and it is fiendishly hard

humn

That file outlines how those numbers can work out. Now that I'm looking it up I see how obscure the thing remains.

ffao

Which kind of person would play such a game? :P

humn

Puzzled? Riddled? Bewildered? Whipsawed?

Wen1now

6:53 AM

When you're really bored during a long car trip

Sid

I usually play chess when I am really bored..

Mithrandir

I think I prefer YouTube back and forth with humn than YouTube puzzles.

Sid

else I read a book or sleep..

Wen1now

See, this was before we got our magnetic chess board

humn

Make sense if you can. It made sense to me once:

PRODUCT & SUM  [classic SUM & PRODUCT puzzle, modified to reduce trial'n'error]

Mathematicians MP and MS both know that:
                  -  A pair of secret integers  m,n  satisfy  1 < m < n .
                  -  MP and MS can deduce everything that's possible to deduce.
                  -  MP and MS make only true statements.
MP and MS converse.

  (P1)   MP states: "I've been told the product, P = mn , but nothing further."
  (S2)   MS states: "I've been told the sum, S = m + n , but nothing further."

Mithrandir

6:56 AM

I seem to recall someone besides me being on Chess.com; who was that?

Wen1now

Umm, I have an account but it probably wasn't me

humn

One of these days you'll probably be you.

boboquack

Woohoo, just made some ludicrous progress

Wen1now

Does ludicrous describe your progress?

boboquack

I hate when you bifurcate and the first fork you try works too well

humn

7:03 AM

Cheers for language!

Wen1now

Exactly, that is so bad when it happens

humn

Is any of us even a native English speaker? I am, before dressing. (ooh that was a rude attempt)

(can't believe I spilled that product and sum worksheet. feel completely exposed and am typing as if to leave a smoke screen)

Mithrandir

o_o

Wen1now

Okay, new round

Mithrandir

I think I'm a native speaker. At least, I've got earbuds in my ears, which are a kind of speaker.

Wen1now

7:10 AM

Who's up?

Who wants to be S: Sum and who wants to be P?

humn

I have no idea of the two numbers. (good enough for starters?)

Mithrandir

28

Q: What was the Ludicrous Patents Office?

In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, one of the departments in the Ministry of Magic referred to is the "Ludicrous Patents Office". “Level seven, Department of Magical Games and Sports, incorporating the British and Irish Quidditch League Headquarters, Official Gobstones Club, and Lu...

harry-potter laws ministry-of-magic

(self promotion)

ffao

For humn's puzzle, I don't know if the numbers are 4, 13 or 13, 16

Wen1now

Oh, so that's where ludicrous loops came from. I knew TGE was a wizard...

Which puzzle is this?

ffao

the huge message above

Wen1now

7:13 AM

Oh

humn

@ffao , I hope you get used to being so quick before I get tired of your being so. Well done! (4 and 13, but now I'm not so sure)

ffao

I couldn't find any reason to eliminate 13, 16; maybe there is one

Wen1now

@ffao Are you attempting any puzzles rn?

ffao

not really

humn

Such a disparity between those who can and those who do.

I thought i was a pure solver until jumping off the cliff.

Weeks ago my system was flushed. Now I'm constipated with 7 or more in the works.

boboquack

7:21 AM

7 or more solutions or questions?

humn

Questions.

I'm still a solver too!

There's a daredevildry to each, but lately I'm just a typist.

Wen1now

Yay, LL break-in

humn

!

One of those 7 sizzlers i already tried out here: How much can be said when nothing is understood?

A lot! But how to wrap that into a P?

Mithrandir

3'3465+8;- /@(3# #3;#3 3'3;57@))6.

humn

Gratefully misunderstood!

Mithrandir

7:33 AM

(I wonder if anyone can crack that here and now.)

humn

M Oehm to the rescue! (that's called a baton toss while tripping over the line)

M Oehm

For the cipher? Uh, oh!

Sid

Right, @MOehm Perfect timing. Help me with this CC if you are not stuck in any other work..

humn

@Mithrandir , I detect a 3. 'zat a clue or what?

M Oehm

@Sid Do you mean the TGE's CCCC? (I have to catch up with what happened here in the last few hours.)

Sid

7:38 AM

No, another one..

humn

And now the right side of the screen shows up. Dynamic duo? Polar? H2? N2? N3?

M Oehm

Bring it on, then. I might have more success than at Mith's jumble of characters.

humn

3N?

Sid

Today's Guardian Cryptic has a clue: "Brief Communication raising school rent" (7)

Mithrandir

/6 =7/:)3 @"57@))6 /@(3# #3;#3 8* 697 & 3"4605 85.

humn

7:41 AM

@#%$^$%^*#$^%&!

Mithrandir

(autocorrect may have messed that up)

humn

you .... dog! (that's a compliment)

Mithrandir

🐶

M Oehm

@Sid "raising school" could be ETON<, so something NOTE. Do you have any crossers?

humn

Right or wrong, brilliant!

Sid

7:45 AM

How is school eton?

M Oehm

Eton is a famous private school and it's often used.

humn

Lots of high-frequency letters at that.

Sid

Yeah, I have the last letter as T.

So, it is now.. NOTE--T

humn

Maybe it's: not E

Sid

Oh!

NOTELET.

ffao

7:47 AM

I feel like many of the references made in British crosswords would be quite unfair if not established

M Oehm

(The problem with these is that you either know them or not. There's also see = Ely, because the city of Ely is the see of a diocese and, of course, because Ely is strangELY useful.)

Sid

British word which I found after googling brief communication

humn

ffao, I began life as you, a zygote without an English word in my pocket.

M Oehm

@Sid Bingo!

ffao

I began life without a Portuguese word in my pocket too, if you want to go that far back

humn

7:49 AM

... late follow-up: now I have fingers in my pocket.

Mithrandir

Five Fingers in My Pocket

►

humn

@ffao those fingers keep looking for a P word. One of the most beautiful languages

@Mithrandir , oh the neighbrs!

Sid

Huh, I dunno how to interpret that.. "P word?"

humn

Portuguese (spelling (verified))

Language! It's at our fingertips, in the modern world. Used to clog our throats.

A poetic police officer pulled me over the other day.

Asked me if I'd seen any suspicious speakers.

What should I do had I?

Keep your nose to the ground and nobody will notice.

Hard to type in that posture . . . but the fingers linger . . . (punch me)

Sid

Is there a Greet Lake or Greet Sea or similar water body in Scotland?

humn

8:04 AM

Language lover! "Greet" is a gorgeous way to spell Great in Scots or Latin.

M Oehm

Greet is a Scottish word for to cry.

humn

Live and learn, thank you.

Sid

Oh, man. This is... so unfair..

M Oehm

(That's also something I know from croswords, of course.)

@Sid What's the clue? And which crossword are you doing? Today's puzzles are a Rufus and a Provis quiptic, bot none of them has the notelet clue, as far as I can see.

@Sid Greetbaby :)

Sid

Clue is: "Hail or drops of water in Scotland (5)"

humn

8:08 AM

Yo no gonna say Rufus without a ruckus! Rufus Cornwalibiensis?

M Oehm

Okay, greet should be fine then.

humn

(Sorry about another outburst. My inner medievalist just burst out.)

(One of my secret names is based on Rufus Corn....is)

Sid

Humph, Guardian Cryptics use too much of cryptic def.

M Oehm

Bienwalis? Or is there a risk of something dreadful happening when guessing your secret name (and accidentially getting it right) in chat?

@Sid So you're doing the Rufus. This setter is known for many cryptic definitions. I struggle with them myself, and I'm usually better at the ones later in the week that use more wordplay, eve if they are supposed to be easier.

humn

(Thank you for reading, M Oehm. Soon as I typed that I wished otherwise, for pathological reasons. Rufus of Cornwall was an amazing solver, doing the best possible at the time.)

I should change my monicker to "dufs"

Ankoganit

8:20 AM

My favourite Guardian setter is Chifonie

humn

Link? (too lazy at the moment to do more than ask)

Ankoganit

@humn theguardian.com/profile/chifonie

humn

Thank you!

Ankoganit

No problem :)

humn

Now I have to sit down and pull out a pen.

Sp3000

8:25 AM

We should really just have a Guardian solve sesh in chat (esp since it's Quiptic Monday)

Sid

Well, decorating your screen using a pen probably isn't the best of the ideas.

Sp3000

(although I guess some would prefer to solve solo :P)

ffao

I'm much more a fan of co-op myself

humn

Don't get me started on how to collaborate. But please do.

M Oehm

Oh, I've just printed out the Quippie. I like to solve off-line with a pencil.

Ankoganit

8:27 AM

But...but...then you can't peek at the answers!

Sid

^That. :P

Sp3000

The way we usually do it is you only say what clue you got, not the answer. That gives people an idea where to start.

Then if someone's stuck on a clue, the people who have it can start giving hints

humn

The best part of collaboration is seeing each others' work.

The hardest part of collaboration is exposing our works.

Belly up! (That's almost redundant here. Every puzzle is a belly up.)

M Oehm

Well, I solve as much as I can and then get back online, where I can reveal the answers and where I have good dictionary ressources. The point when that happens is a good benchmark for how difficult the crossword puzzle is. For a Quiptic, that should be at about 80% of the grid filled.

Ankoganit

Wow

M Oehm

8:31 AM

If that point comes with only a hadful of clues filled in, I use the back of the printout as scratch paper for something else.

humn

Ojoyojoyojoyojoyojoyojoy

Ankoganit

I don't remember ever filling in more than 5 or 6 without heading over to OneLook >.<

humn

"Some of us are searching for the answer, some barely have a clue, most don't even suspect." -- some quote

Sid

I can hardly solve more than 3 or 4 which are basically anagrams.. >.<

ffao

I don't remember ever filling in more than 2

maybe this time I can get 3

Sid

8:33 AM

Then, I google meaning of words..

humn

Missing Persons - Words

►

"What are words for, when no one listens anymore?" (Yeah, apologies for the repeat)

M Oehm

The 80% is for a Quiptic, and I don't always get that far. But I guess it's a matter of practice.

And my solving sessions can take some time. I may get back to an unfinished grid several times.

humn

"It's like getting to the end of a page and wondering what you just read."

Sid

"It's sleep-inducing to write notes on 40% of curriculum" (8) - I don't know what it is. But, the surface reading is hilarious

Ankoganit

lol

ffao

8:43 AM

yay, I have 3 :o

Ankoganit

Something with curr

Sid

or ulum

Ankoganit

Yeah, could be

Is it a down clue?

Sid

No, across.

Sp3000

It's across

Ankoganit

8:44 AM

oh

hmm

humn

In this font, down = clown (signed, sometime font designer)

M Oehm

sad clown

Sp3000

I think I have the 40% but the answer does not come to mind yet :(

Ankoganit

If PEND meant something it could be PENDULUM

ffao

^

Sp3000

8:46 AM

... I think you up have it (except not sure about the D)

Ankoganit

Ohh

PEN+D

D is a note

!!!!!!!!

... ah

But why "notes"?

8:47 AM

it's note in the original clue

Sp3000

The clue is singular note

Ankoganit

Oh, makes sense

Sphinx

0

Q: Oh no, it's another safe!

An entry in Fortnightly Topic Challenge #32: Grid Deduction Hybrids Oh, did I feel proud after solving the last safe when I was immediately dimension-doored (or anything) into this room! Damn the aliens, they still want to play around with me... Well, seems there is nothing else to do than ...