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12:00 AM
@bobble Stiv has the first two correct though, right?
 
Yes, first two are correct
 
12:16 AM
Wow, that new puzzle got deleted super quickly
 
I didn't even see it :p
 
was it a real puzzle? or just spam?
 
It was a link to a Youtube page and a list of words, and just said something like best to solve the puzzle before the end of Halloween, the video may disappear. Was about to comment about self-contained puzzles and it was gone
 
oh wait it's back then
 
Oh, yeah, it's back now
huh
 
12:20 AM
Both not self-contained and asking somebody to sit through a 40 minute video is insane.
 
Seems like self-promotion, if you ask me
 
Is it violating any policies enough to be closed?
 
I'd say the self-containment thing is enough to close it.
 
@bobble Not really
 
Plus saying the video will disappear, so the puzzle will become impossible/pointless soon
Not sure if it's a rule breaker, but definitely not a good puzzle, especially for this site
 
12:22 AM
I think we can close it for self-containment
 
Someone else figure out the wording of the close reason?
 
"Closed for not being self-contained, being time-sensitive, and being too time-intensive for a solver."
 
Who's going to be first?
 
I'll do it
 
12:24 AM
I don't have close vote privileges
 
oh wait you're too new :P I forget, it seems you've been around for a while
 
I've always been here... in your heart
 
The onyl valid closing reason is really self-containment
 
That's fair
 
being "too time-intensive" is not really a close reason
 
12:25 AM
@Sciborg if you take this literally, that's disturbing
 
closure is for questions that are inappropriate for the site, not just bad
 
I'm not really familiar with close reasons on Puzzling, my bad.
 
What about self-containment?
 
totally understandable!
14
A: Is using a personal website to host content for a puzzle frowned upon?

GentlePurpleRainI would venture to say that this would not fit within the scope of Stack Exchange's mandate. It's goal (as I understand it) is to become a repository of good questions and answers (though I am having trouble finding documentation to that effect). Questions that simply link to another website ar...

seems reasonable for closure to me for reasons elaborated on there ^
 
Time-sensitive, in this case, isn't valid enough just because you can easily remove those deadlines
 
12:27 AM
Ah, okay.
Good to know for future if I hit privilege level :)
 
Finland people are called Finnish, Denmark are called Dane (Danish), Barbados are called Bajans, and Botswana has like two different ways to call people Motswana and Batswana. But there are other "irregular" country people names too, notibly being French
We don't call them Francenese
Idk know- France and French seem pretty close to me
Actually, it might just work
 
-3
Q: Welcome to the The MVI Halloween!

swampinessIn the Halloween edition of nitpicking music from who-knows-where, I present you The MVI Halloween, a 43-minute music video of horror, mystery, and Halloween puzzling goodness! In this puzzle, you need to decipher what the Halloween really is and what it's trying to say, given these few word clue...

 
1:13 AM
Okay, so the answer is definitely Germany
Bc it's the only country that fits the first two criterias
 
1:28 AM
-1
Q: How do I solve these Mensa questions quickly with no pen and paper?

Jason Evans Please share your step by step approach in solving these crytosum questions quickly and efficiently. Hope to learn from all of you.

 
Prince Deepthinker... that name really bothers me :/
Also, they're almost the same rep as I am, which bothers me more
 
well, you haven't done much on the site proper in a while
 
True, true
That's very fair
Haven't had any inspiration strike me though :/
I's trying to answer Bobble's question, but kinda stumped
 
I'm editing the "cyptosum" question - should I delete two of the images?
 
if they're all based on the same ruleset i'd say keep them in
 
1:39 AM
Cryptosum?
 
the person seems to be looking for strategies to solve a general type of question, and giving some examples - that's fine to be in one question
 
I made their images smaller... much easier to read now
 
looks good!
 
I am by far the most prolific editor of the quarter (71 edits, with 29 edits being second place)
 
@bobble claps
 
1:48 AM
I assume that only counts edits of other people's posts
 
yep
we deeply appreciate all the work you've put into making terrible questions slightly less terrible!
 
Thanks :) I'm inching closer to the silver editing badge
 
-1
Q: Minimum moves to fill grid with 1s

risky mysteriesHere is a number grid: Here are the rules as to how to manipulate the numbers in the grid: A marker starts at the first square. For each move you can move the marker one square either up, down, left or right without passing the boundaries of the grid. If the square you land on has an even numbe...

 
WOAH
Finland is F+INLAND
 
... yes? why?
 
1:58 AM
Idk, might be cool to use as a CC
I could see some really good surfaces with that
 
Country far away from the coast (7) <-- would work if "far" =F is allowed, which I doubt
 
typo
 
Hehe
The editor has made a typo!
 
hey, I'm editing a tag right now!
 
2:00 AM
Oh, the irony
(I say, as I make a typo)
 
well, I don't have enough time to complete the edit
but someone should update [connect-wall] to reflect that it isn't only for words (since there's a Wordless Connect Wall challenge on right now)
 
@bobble Urm, maybe slight inconsistency (well, might be more of Stiv's thing but)
Hafnium – Hafnia, Latin for Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital of Denmark
Nvm Nihon is Japanese I thought it was a city, please forgive my idiocy
 
2:17 AM
0
Q: Hanging on the Connect Wall

Jeremy DoverAn entry in Fortnightly Topic Challenge #42: Wordless Connecting Walls The sixteen paintings below can be grouped into four groups of four, each group being linked by a common theme. The four themes themselves describe a painting, an image of which is the final answer to this fine art Connect Wa...

 
2:27 AM
how do y'all manage to make connect walls so fast >_<
 
I really love the idea of using artwork for a Connect Wall, might give this one a shot.
And in a weird coincidence I was literally just today helping my mom pick out a Renoir for her hallway wall...
 
3:18 AM
@JeremyDover I got it :)
Very clever!
 
3:37 AM
hey mick! (and everyone else)
am halfway done with ST Picard ... it's [expletive] amazing
I won't spoil it, of course, but it involves Romulans, Mars, and very advanced robots
hello bobble, oAlt :)
 
'borg!
 
Hello again :D
 
> hey mick!
 
3:53 AM
I have to admit I am so dang proud of my solve on Jeremy's puzzle, he did a great job on it. The last group connection made me laugh out loud when I realized what it was.
 
I want mine to be solved :(
 
Been racking my brains on yours but so far I'm about as stuck as Stiv, unfortunately :(
 
I'm am about 95% sure everyone's been looking in the wrong place, thought I can't know for sure without Legilimency.
 
1
Q: Psychology Today's Classical IQ test question - abstract line shapes

pilotjoker999I took Psychology Today's Classical IQ test(https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/tests/iq/classical-iq-test) and encountered this question that I wasn't able to solve: In fact, this is just the first question of the 57 questions in the test. Although I can just click the <I don't know> button an...

 
@merrybot apologies to anyone who thinks i am too much of a trekkie
 
3:55 AM
You are the Lair's resident Trekkie
 
haha thanks
 
No worries matt, I have frequently gone on 2+ hour rambles on Discord about programming and niche video games to the point where a server has a special channel for "enthusiastic-mick-spam"
 
that is slightly worrying
ironically enough
 
that sounds AMAZING
 
what sounds amazing?
 
3:58 AM
Rambling about special interests is just kinda a thing me and my friends do sometimes lmao
 
I used to do it more before I was very firmly told to stop
 
ouch :(
mick - is there a way you can somehow incorporate my being "resident trekkie" into PSE Boss Rush?
or is that too silly?
 
It's not your fault at all when people do that @bobble, it's just tough sometimes to know if people are interested or not and some people are mean about it. I usually err on the side of not doing it unless I know it's a close friend who doesn't mind it.
Most of my servers are just a bunch of nerds and/or Aspies and we feel safe rambling about stuff for hours together.
 
Okay, I'm making a Pokemon rebus :)
 
this sounds like a good idea
 
4:03 AM
indeed.
 
Please do
 
not that i know anything about pokemon
6 mins ago, by merrybot
mick - is there a way you can somehow incorporate my being "resident trekkie" into PSE Boss Rush?
 
Hmm, I mean I had you as an optional protagonist so maybe we can change your primary weapon to a phaser
And whenever you solve a puzzle you say a Star Trek quote.
 
perhaps "Things are only impossible until they're not"
 
Whenever you solve a Slitherlink: "The line is here, no farther."
5
 
4:08 AM
but yes i would love a phaser
@Sciborg hell yeah
also i've kinda lost track of everyone's roles in PSE BR
(i.e. Boss Rush)
 
I will put a note here that there is something I really want to say, but I'm afraid of... well... everything around saying it.
 
?
 
??
 
I mean, we're pretty chill here, you can tell us anything.
 
(equivalent of me running away from a conversation because it got overwhelming)
 
4:11 AM
That's fair, sorry. I won't needle.
 
@Sciborg That made me think of an idea: a slitherlink with warps.
 
sorry if saying anything was confusing
 
@Bubbler Ooooh
That would be wild
 
yes warps
 
Actually, almost anything can be made wild with warps
 
4:13 AM
how exactly might my phaser work/be used?
 
I feel like to design any puzzle with warps, you have to make extra sure there is only one solution
 
True
 
10
Q: 4 page maze ft. portals!

thesilicanI found a large 4-page maze that I made a while back. Made entirely with pen and grid paper. Here's a digitally scanned and cleaned-up version Your goal is to find a path from the start to the finish, picking up the key along the way.

 
^ but with slitherlinks
 
I'm not clever enough to make it, but I really hope someone does :p
 
4:15 AM
I'm a [ordinary person], not a [puzzlemaker]
 
More that I've never made or solved a Slitherlink before, so I wouldn't even know where to start with a regular one, let alone a warp-y one!
 
a slitherlink with warps wouldn't be too bad
 
Deus randomly pops in
hey deus!
 
might mess with some of the exit-counting arguments but it should still be workable
(hello!)
 
also like how would we notate the warps?
 
4:18 AM
different shapes around dots
 
If you made a warping Slitherlink it would be incredible.
 
and big brain
 
-1
Q: Fill grid with Bs

risky mysteriesHere is a letter grid: Here are the rules as to how to manipulate the numbers in the grid: A marker starts at the first square. For each move you can move the marker one square either up, down, left or right without passing the boundaries of the grid. If the square you land on has an even lette...

 
i need to write a meta post about "optimization puzzles where you aren't sure of the solution yourself" at some point
had one drafted a year or two back but never got around to finishing it
 
oh also (another random idea) perhaps a klingon word search
 
4:21 AM
(or maybe one for the main site, phrased as a more general puzzle design thing?)
 
I've had a meta-post about abolishing [real] on the grounds that it's a meta-tag cooking for a bit.
 
@bobble Wait, what did you want to say?
 
interesting! i think you're right about that - i can see a good argument for it
 
I flail a bit when I get really uncomfortable in a conversation - I'm sorry now that my flailing is preserved in a transcript.
 
@bobble Oh, it's fine
 
4:23 AM
I did not mean to make you uncomfortable if my post was the cause of it, I'm sorry.
 
@bobble it's alright virtual pat-on-the-back
 
It really isn't your fault, just that some topics are difficult for me to think about without curling up into a ball and sobbing.
 
Totally understandable, will avoid that pain point in future.
 
totally understandable - if the topic in here ever gets to be uncomfortable for you again, please let us know. i'm sure people will be happy to move on
 
it's ok :)
 
4:24 AM
:)
 
(and if there's anything you'd like to bring up more privately, feel free to message me or the other mods - a flag or an email works, or i can set up a chat room if there's a lot to talk about)
 
oh uh hello avi
we are simply giving bobble some emotional support
 
Avi
can somebody make a clue cluing sluggard
 
(and if you ever need to talk about stuff you're always free to contact me on a personal basis too, i'll always listen to stuff)
 
Avi
4:26 AM
I'm interested in seeing the outcome :P
 
(same, also happy to listen if you want to talk more personally)
 
To be completely clear, the bit about "Aspies" was the pressure point
(runs off to cry for a bit)
 
@PrinceNorthLæraðr flagging an unrelated question is one way to bring a problem to the attention of the mods
if it doesn't fit neatly within one question/answer/comment
 
@Deusovi Oh, like just randomly flag say a post of mine and be like "I'm actually using this flag so I can contact you/talk to you about something?"
 
4:28 AM
yep - perfectly fine
well, it would be more of "there's an issue that needs to be brought up but it's not specific to any question/answer/comment" -- that issue could be a thing in chat though
if you just want to contact us and it's not strictly about moderation stuff, email works (at least for me)
 
Hm, I really like my pokemon puzzle, but I feel like it might be too easy
@bobble Are you feeling better?
 
Not actively crying anymore, at least
 
that's good :) let us know if you need anything at all
 
@Deusovi some of us don't have emails disconnected from our real names.
 
Regarding colored dots IQ problem, I think it's a standard math problem (3x3 linear system of equations)
 
4:32 AM
please, take care of yourself! if you need to take a break that's okay -- and like i said, i'm happy to listen if you need to talk
 
@bobble for example: me
 
@bobble you can create a temporary email, or if you have discord i believe you should be able to find me on the code golf gaming server
 
sorry for the accidental trigger on my part, bobble. will not bring it up again.
 
discord account is also connected to real name (since tutoring club required it)
 
if the tutoring club is server-specific, you can set your discord-wide nickname to "bobble" and set your nickname specifically on the tutoring club to your real name (unless that's disallowed?)
 
4:34 AM
hmm that would probably work
I don't really know how discord works
 
yeah you can change your nickname per-server
 
I would post my discord, except I don't rly use it much
 
as well as overall
i'd offer to make a separate room here but other mods could see it as well (not that they would look at it, but i figured it might not be the most comfortable way to talk about something serious)
alternatively... smoke signals? carrier pigeon? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
 
puzzle so hard that only you can solve it?
 
@Deusovi laughs in kay(f)bop(t)
 
4:36 AM
hm if there's anything i know from generic fantasy stories, puzzles don't work especially well as a mechanism of protecting secrets
2
 
hehe
@Deusovi A message in a bottle! Or should I say... bobble? ;)
 
@Deusovi yeah this
 
Where should I put all my pokemon pictures?
or how, I guess is the better question
ms paint?
 
edit them into one image? paint.net is usually my image editor of choice, but any image editor should work
 
To make a nice grid of pictures, I made a table in Google Docs, set the border width to 0, and set a background color for the cells
 
4:41 AM
@Deusovi paint.net?
 
Oh is that just ms paint?
 
nah
 
Looks like it :P
 
it's similar but with a lot of extra features, like layers, transformations, and transparency
 
4:43 AM
@bobble huh
Uggghhh all the pictures are from bulbapedia except like one and it bothers me
bc all the bulbapedia ones have generally the same sizes
 
I pulled most my flag images from the CIA's collection :)
 
I don't imagine this puzzle is going to remain unsolved for long
I do believe this puzzle is 100% fair though, so I'm proud of it
Ugh
There's just like
Two pokemons
 
i believe the correct plural is pokéma
2
 
That have a slightly different layout and it's bothering the heck out of me
 
> Pokemon (plural Pokemon) Informal form of Pokémon.
 
4:53 AM
^ [citation needed]
 
^[citation needed for [citation needed]]
 
Noun: Pokemon (plural Pokemon)
  1. Informal form of Pokémon....
 
Okay buddy
 
Okay I'm going to post my Pokemon rebus tomorrow
It's almost nine here and I need to get ready for school tomorrow
 
4:55 AM
criterion, criteria. phenomenon, phenomena. polyhedron, polyhedra
so obviously pokémon, pokéma
2
 
On this suggestion of mine from earlier in the transcript (before the conversation derailed):
34 mins ago, by bobble
I've had a meta-post about abolishing [real] on the grounds that it's a meta-tag cooking for a bit.
Would that be a request for getting rid of the tag or burminating it? I'm not clear on the difference.
 
@Deusovi Oh wow, I actually did not know about criterion
 
@bobble I think those are the same thing
 
@PrinceNorthLæraðr wrong reply
 
I always thought it was criterias
 
4:56 AM
"burninating" is the same as "getting rid of"
it just insta-removes it from any post that has it
 
@Deusovi so multiple cannons are called "canna" now. got it.
 
sounds reasonable enough to me
 
dammit etymology
 
lemon--> lema
 
apparently
 
4:58 AM
there is "lemma"
 
cordon--> carda
Gordon--> Gorda
anyhow good night peeps
 
@bobble the plural of which is "lemmata")
 
Which is also the plural on lemmaton
@PrinceNorthLæraðr Good night!
 
night!
 
a ton, two ta
problem?
 
5:01 AM
I am disappointed in you people /s
 
from here, there are four criteria for burninating: Does it describe the contents of a question in an unambiguous way? Is the concept described on-topic? Does it add value to the post? Does it mean the same thing in all contexts?
I think the answers are 1) No 2) Yes (ish) 3) No (ish) and 4) No
thoughts?
 
Hm, I'm not sure (4) is 'No'
It does mean 'based on real-life situation" in all cases, whether that's a relevant meaning to convey is another thing
 
I guess it's just an often-misused tag, rather than something to be burninated
 
I think it's a meta-tag, since it describes the origin of the puzzle instead of what the puzzle is
 
yeah i'm not 100% convinced that burnination is necessary -- "meta tag" doesn't quite apply on PSE in the same way? we have [no-computers], for instance
 
5:12 AM
<reason for bringing it up in chat first>
 
and [rhyme] too
 
(unrelated) @native-speakers: is "he made citations" a correct thing to say? If not, what verb would go in "[verb] citations"?
 
found a (closed as off-topic) question tagged only [real]. Not sure if this matters
 
@Ankoganit (hm, "provided citations" maybe?)
 
@Deusovi (that sounds better, thanks!)
 
5:16 AM
@bobble good point, i'm not sure what the distinction exactly is still
 
But that meta discussion looks outdated, as the current tag wiki looks pretty different
 
5:36 AM
Deus, I'm attempting Knight's Lines and am completely stuck :) Got the first easy bit and am trying to see the next deduction.
 
Oh yeah, that was a great puzzle
Hint: Identify two shapes that can't appear in the middle of the board.
 
ahh I see which ones
I had already figured out one, but that seems to have not been enough
 
Can you share where you're at?
 
there's one easy one and one hard one, and you need the hard one to make progress
 
> I had already figured out one
Ooh I misread this as "I had already figured out both"
Yeah, finding both of them is the key
 
6:14 AM
JEAN LUC PICARD = JAPAN DICE CURL
 
6:31 AM
I still am unable to edit the C4 spreadsheet-- is there any way for me to follow up? :0
 
you'd need to request permission from GPR
 
C4 hint: The last letter is S.
3
 
 
1 hour later…
8:00 AM
@Deusovi i see, thanx
 
 
2 hours later…
9:38 AM
1
Q: Gladys's Mismatching Cryptic

jafeThis is part 9 of the puzzle series. Part 1 is here. Dear Puzzling, Today I'm visiting a small town to marvel at some fantastic examples of Renaissance architecture. Sadly, this is also the last destination of my trip this time. I will send you one more crossword later where you can put to use ...

 
oh boy, there's no room for cryptics in my mind right now
1) homework is occupying my mind 2) i have become rusty in cryptics :'(
 
 
2 hours later…
12:05 PM
0
Q: The Painted Barcode

DenverCoder1Someone spilled paint on what looks to be some sort of barcode(?). Can you figure out what the original message may have been?

 
12:30 PM
0
Q: What are these holes in my Connect Wall?

AnkoganitAn entry in Fortnightly Topic Challenge #42: Wordless Connecting Walls "Why on earth are there blank spaces in your connect wall?" "In my defense, you just asked me to make categories with four words in them; you never said how many categories." "It's a 4x4 grid! How many categories do you think...

 
@Sphinx Took you long enough
 
1:18 PM
hahahah
 
0
Q: A brain breaker

Ömer Enes ÖzmenRiding in the mountains, swimming in the seas, traveling to the farlands, yet staying home and eating cheese. Could it be a mouse, or could it be rat? Perhaps we'l never know, or perhaps you'l find out slow.

0
Q: Where does my friend live? 5

00xxqhxx00One of my friends, Com, has sent me a code to show where he lives: ARIA, ---, ---, ESIA, ---, KAAN, KYAN, LAIA, ---, MOVA, RUIA, TAAN, TUAN, UKNE, --- Canyou figure out where is he?

 
 
2 hours later…
3:14 PM
My connect wall is solved! -celebration-
 
Nice!
 
It also somehow got 13 upvotes, which is... um... unexpected. Seriously, I've gotten a lower score on crosswords which took a week!
 
HNQ effect, perhaps
(it was a good puzzle, of course)
 
3:20 PM
Oh, just noticed that. Nice! (and thanks!)
 
Oooh yeah, that did hit HNQ
Congrats!
 
I also believe it's the first time I got to the 5-tag limit, thought that is a smaller achievement.
 
This FTC made me realize I cannot function without deadlines
I've been sitting on puzzle ideas for months
And I got the FTC submission done in half a day
 
Oh if someone can edit in that it's part of the Fortnightly Challenge in my Connect Wall, I would really appreciate it :)
 
on it
 
3:31 PM
Thanks Bobble :)
 
I also edited yours into the meta answer which collects all of the FTC questions
 
Oh, thank you!
 
Nice!
Congrats!
 
Nice!
 
3:37 PM
@Ankoganit given puzzling.stackexchange.com/revisions/… I think rot13(gur sbhegu tebhc zhfg or bs pelcgvp pyhrf sbe jbeqf, rnpu bs juvpu pbagnvaf na nantenz bs SBHE ohg qbrfa'g pbagnva SBHE vgfrys. Naq gubfr pelcgvp pyhrf zhfg fbzrubj fubj jung xvaq bs ubyrf lbhe vagreybphgbe vf ersreevat gb. Ohg ubj jr'er fhccbfrq gb xabj jung SBHE* jbeqf gurl ner, yrg nybat jung pelcgvp pyhrf yrnq gb gubfr, V'ir ab vqrn.)
 
That wasn't the reason I was editing so much, but it was quite nice when I noticed how close I was :)
 
@msh210 interesting. Would you like me to confirm that as right/wrong?
 
@Stiv Pokemon is your favorite game?
 
@Ankoganit I hope it's wrong. :-) But no, no need. I'm sure I'll find out sooner or later.
 
So be it. :)
 
3:41 PM
Huh. Someone un-upvoted my Connect Wall. After I accepted. Weird.
 
@bobble People do weird stuff
 
Jan 28 at 18:49, by msh210
grumble My thirteen-part riddle was much easier to compose than to solve (I think), yet has many more upvotes than its correct answer does. Frankly, I don't see why people upvote PSE questions before they know the answers: until then, you don't know if it's a good question.
Maybe someone upvoted before seeing the answer, thinking it seemed good, and then, once he knew the answer, realized it's not a good question (in his opinion), so unupvoted.
 
(I'm now genuinely worried I made the key conceptual leap too unreasonable. Oh well, hopefully someday I'll figure out how to judge the difficulty of my own puzzles)
(and I'll add a hint if no one gets it by tomorrow)
 
4 upvotes in 16 minutes. I think that's a record for me. Wait nope- nothing beats how much people liked watching mods get kidnapped
 
4
Q: Connect Wall: "Who's that Pokémon?"

Prince North LæraðrAn entry in Fortnightly Topic Challenge #42: Wordless Connecting Walls Ash, on his expedition to Catch Em' All™, came across a strange new Pokémon! He pulled out his trusty Pokédex to identify this mystery Pokémon, but rather than directly revealing this it, it instead gave Ash sixteen Pokémons ...

 
3:50 PM
lmao
 
Lol, it's literally been a consistent pattern: upvote every 4 minutes!
 
hm
@bobble: pronouns for today?
> last seen 10m ago
 
I was reading my sister's essay
And they/them
 
I realize I don't end up using pronouns all that often in chat
 
(She wanted me to give feedback on it, so I gave running criticism and she took it away after 2 paragraphs)
 
3:58 PM
Every once in a while
@bobble Ooh, that sounds like me when I ask my mom for feedback
 

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