« first day (2347 days earlier)      last day (1277 days later) » 
00:00 - 20:0020:00 - 00:00

8:00 PM
*line
 
^^ I'm using bobblie shapes instead!
 
8:25 PM
@people who are good at Statue Park - anyone available to help a poor, stuck, little yellow crown?
 
what's going on? having trouble constructing?
 
no, solving
 
ah
go ahead
 
pentomino set
 
please remind me of the rules
 
8:33 PM
place given set of pieces into grid. pieces cannot touch at an edge. unused cells must be connected.
 
Ah, thanks
 
Something I see is the the bottom-left must have the I
I'm not sure how to use that
It must also have the W or the V
 
what about the top right then
 
top right corner cell can't go straight down
 
bingo
 
8:35 PM
what pieces can it be?
 
oh it can only be a V, right?
because a Y would isolate a cell, and I is not allowed
 
seems so to me
 
okay okay I can make some good progress now
I think
solved it with that observation - thanks!
 
9:29 PM
Travel from the top-left cell to the top-right cell as follows. Each step you take must be to a cell that's adjacent (horiz. or vert.) to the one you're in. Each step you take must be to a cell you haven't visited already. A number along the top adjacent to a vertical gridline, or a number along the left side adjacent to a horizontal gridline, indicates the number of times you'll cross that gridline. A number along the top adjacent to a column of cells (not a gridline), [cont'd]
[cont'd] or a number along the left side adjacent to a row of cells, indicates the number of gridlines that you'll cross within that column or row. || This particular example is easy, but I wonder what y'all think of the genre.
Hm, on my screen, I can't see the horizontal gridline near the 2 in the middle of the board. Pretend it's there. :-)
 
looks hard at first glance, but if I had time I could probably figure out the basic deductions
 
Pinging @Deusovi, whose thoughts I'd especially be interested in, but also the rest of yours.
 
presentation-wise, might help to have dots on the center of each grid line?
then it's just "the number of dots in its row/column that are crossed"
 
oh, nice
 
as for the actual puzzle, let me give it a shot
 
9:35 PM
(I don't think the "4" clue is necessary in this example.)
@Mithical re the recent spate of finding a book title matching an author name with an initial letter: The No-Cake Cookbook by N. & N. Chagiga
 
I... have absolutely no idea what you're talking about TBH
 
See "the Official Book Puns for Puzzling Stack Exchange" on the starboard
 
The first half of my sentence, or my book title and author name?
 
both actually
 
people were finding book titles and matching authors' names with an initial -- see chat.stackexchange.com/transcript/message/55851474#55851474
so I thought of an example, based on אין אין אין חגיגה בלי בלי בלי בלי עוגה
 
9:43 PM
@msh210 you're right that the 4 clue is unnecessary - pretty easy puzzle, but could lead to some interesting logic? I'm not sure - I'm not too good at loop logic (or, well, path logic) myself. and genres that have these "number in a row/column" don't often lend themselves well to larger puzzles (though that may not be an issue)
reminds me of the genre "snake", which is similar but has additional path restrictions
 
@Deusovi yes, similar
@Deusovi I'll see if I can make a harder one. (Or at least one with a more interesting final answer. :-) )
But not tonight.
 
don't work from the answer!
 
yeah, yeah, I saw
Thanks for the feedback! Would appreciate anyone else's, too.
Re the C4, I wonder whether "'s throat cut by" can mean "has inserted, immediately after the head,".
 
it seems hard to restrict things based off of total counts alone, but it might be workable? I'd bet that with more narrow clues (with numbers that only apply to part of the row or column?) it would be easier to construct more interesting puzzles
so maybe placing some numbers in the middle of the grid could work
...wait I think I'm just describing Castle Wall now
which is also similar
 
or maybe instead of "how many dots are crossed", "how many red dots are crossed"
 
9:53 PM
ah, that could work too
 
@Deusovi yes it is
Perhaps if I familiarize myself with known puzzle genres, I will find reinventing the wheel less interesting. :-)
 
(to be clear I'm not saying that this similarity is bad, or trying to put your idea down -- there are three logic puzzle genres literally called "Icebarn", "Icelom", and "Icelom 2")
 
You can make new things just by mashing old stuff up - like my tetromino minesweeper! (Which I'm sure someone thought of before)
 
I think you can definitely get more 'mileage' out of having both types of row clue, and would be interested to see what else can be done with it
 
sorry, by "both types" you mean...?
 
9:58 PM
clues aligned with cells and clues offset from cells
 
ah, yeah that's not something I see in either of the genres you've linked to
 
right - Snake just counts number of used cells, and Castle Wall just counts things aligned with cells. I don't think I've seen both used together, so I'd be interested to see what can be done with that
I also like the "number of red dots" idea - maybe multiple different dot colors could lead to some interesting logic too
 
@Deusovi yeah, I haven't tried that at all but probably will when I have a chance to revisit this
thanks again; gameN
 
lucky!
 
10:13 PM
What does gameN mean?
 
game night, I believe
 
Today I learned
 
"good afternoon/morning/evening/night", a greeting someone in here came up with years ago to not have to worry about timezones
 
Good General Time Of Day to you :p
How is your Non-Specific Time of Weekend going so far
 
I should be working on useful stuff, but my fingers move of their own accord and open up my Statue Park solving sheet... HELP
 
10:20 PM
mine's going pretty well! don't have much to do over the weekend so I'm just relaxing and playing some puzzle games
bobble unfortunately i cannot help you here
 
That moment when you're trying to be productive but your hands force you to open Minecraft of their own accord
I relaxed and cleaned the apartment a lot today so I've also had a relaxing day in general :)
 
Did you work on the bobblies?
 
Unfortunately no, still haven't been able to block out a few hours to sit and sew. I've just been powering through chores and paying bills
Any C4 progress?
 
ooh, good reminder. If I do some chores my mom will be happy.
<leaving for chores>
 
Chores are important
I think there's a 24 hour time window on clue dropping, so I'll be back in 5 hours :p
 
10:25 PM
@Sciborg i have some ideas, but none of them seem to work
 
What are your ideas so far? I'm curious
It will help me know what kind of hint to drop
 
"ere" + "d" (before + 500), Quee(-ns), maybe furthermore (-Q)ue(-e). "Badly" maybe "ill", or anagram indicator, as well as "shaken"
 
Hmm
I think I know what kind of hint I'll do first
 
I mean, I think either "shaken" or "was badly shaken" has to be the def, but maybe there's something very clever going on that I don't see yet :) I only found a book called "Queen's throat", but nothing else that would fit for a def at the start of the clue.
 
>:)
 
10:39 PM
is that face happy, angry, or what?
 
Was going for a maniacal smirk but I was probably better served just tossing the purple demon emoji in there
😈
 
it looks red to me, not purple
 
Ah, I'm on mobile sorry
Point is: maniacal smirking
 
is there background music?
 
Hmm
I'm tempted to say Moriarty's theme from those Sherlock Holmes remakes
 
10:43 PM
can you truly say you're a Moriarty-level villain?
that would require a clue that lasts like a week
 
Probably not, I'm like his intern
 
how long do his interns live?
 
looks nervously at office door
 
... I suggest you start looking for a more stable job/employer
 
Hey, at least my apartment is bobblie-free... for now
They'll probably return someday though...
 
10:48 PM
they never left
they're in the walls
they're in your pipes
 
Oh God I knew I heard scratching
 
they're watching you
 
No wonder I haven't been able to make another puzzle, they've sucked all my puzzle juice again
 
Feb 14 '17 at 16:57, by Techidiot
@dcfyj Why not Gamen then?
See surrounding context
 
Ohhhh
Now that makes sense
 
10:55 PM
@Sciborg Oh no you're playing mind games :P That comment makes me question everything about the CC xD
 
evil laughter
 
wait Lukas are you dead because now you have "x" eyes
did Sciborg kill you?
 
hang on... I think I've missed something
 
Oh hello! :D
 
10:57 PM
hai
 
I love your puzzles, I haven't seen you in chat before
 
Thx and I pop in from time to time :):)
 
Rabbit's Favorite Beverage is still adorable and I love it.
 
aww thats nice
I really appreciate it :):)
 
Was just looking at that one today, I haven't figured it out yet :D
 
10:58 PM
cool
so who killed whom?
 
I made a really wild C4 and I think I've killed @LukasRotter
 
@bobble sci sus
 
I see...
 
Hmmm... Lukas seems unhappy
 
10:59 PM
If you want I can drop the hint now, 20h is close enough to 24h
 
we must revive him
Voldy, you got any dark magic?
 
Sure I got tons
but gimme a good reason to revive him
 
Wow, tough bargain
 
I mean you are He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named so I guess that does make sense
 
11:00 PM
I can edit your picture so you're wearing a bobblecrown
 
who me or sciborg?
 
^ (that's a good reason)
 
ok me i guess
hmmm
 
It is a great honor to be bobble-fied
 
its...
a deal!
 
11:01 PM
okay, give me a few minutes
 
k :):)
so... in the meantime
how r u all?
 
Having a great Saturday, thank you :) hope you are too!
 
Yes, me also!
I love me a good saturday
anyone know why this is called "the sphinx's lair?"
 
I honestly don't know, I think the Sphinx is just a mythological riddle creature so it kind of stuck.
 
ohhh thats a good reason
 
11:03 PM
But Deus or mods would know better than me
 
right but that makes sense; the sphinxs riddle
 
14
A: Rename the Green Llama!

user20The Sphinx's Lair I guess nobody liked puce...

 
Welp
 
because it was the most highly voted answer in the poll to name the chatroom
 
ahh cool
 
11:04 PM
who was user20?
 
do you get pinged every time someone says "mod"?
 
He can feel the call of when someone says Deus, it's a Beetlejuice thing
 
nope I just happened to get back around that time
 
Omgsh
thats
the most beautiful thing ive every seen
 
11:05 PM
It's fine art
 
i guess im reviving lukas now
hang on...
avada kedavra
crap
 
ARVADEK ADAVA
 
wrong thing
lol
ummm
 
Isn't it Revivify?
 
un-avadakedavra-ofy
 
11:06 PM
now I'm burning in hell. thanks.
 
lol oops
 
That is... interesting
 
Hey North :)
 
I think we all are after looking at the extremely cursed image above.
 
@Sciborg Definitely not
 
11:07 PM
(burning in hell, that is)
 
Gimme two secs
 
Cursed or beautiful
 
The effects of Avada Kedavra are permanent
 
yes yes it is art
 
aight
check out my new profile pic
 
11:08 PM
Beautiful
 
Terrifying
 
@NorthLæraðr unless you have plot amour + old magic mumbo jumbo
 
i appreciate it bobble :):)
 
@bobble True. You're a Hizard, Warry
 
11:09 PM
You're a unit of power, Harry.
I'm a *watt?*
 
my physics teacher loves that meme
 
if u dont mind me asking, what grade are you in
 
Who?
 
11:10 PM
High school senior
 
or anyone i guess
oh neat
 
High school junior :D
 
sorry your senior year is during covid :(
 
internally dying
 
11:11 PM
Hey, we at least have a chance for a real graduation!
 
@Voldemort'sWrath ummm... none :D
 
Deus and I are the old folks (grad students)
 
msh210 is an old geezer
 
11:11 PM
@Sciborg Pretty sure Gareth is an old geezer too
 
Yeah, Gareth is a geezer for sure
 
everybody's an old geezer depending on how you look at it
 
damn
 
Jul 26 '19 at 5:51, by Alconja
I'm starting to think Gareth has a superpower where he can make up words to suit his C4s, then somehow inject them into the timeline fooling everyone into believing they're real... He clearly can't manipulate memories, only physical artefacts, which is why they always seem so obscure/archaic.
 
Yeah, RIP my C4 if Gareth happens to take a look at it
 
11:15 PM
If I had to guess, I'd say Gareth's ~42 years old. I don't think that's an age I would call an old geezer, but I guess it depends how you look at it, as Voldemort has noted :)
 
Old geezer confirmed
 
I stand by my convictions
 
yes :):)
aight well im gonna get out
nice talking to you all
 
11:17 PM
Nice seeing you :)
 
thx bobble for the awesome profile pic :):)
 
see you!
 
byeeeee!
 
Also, I'm happy to not have been a senior last year because I don't want the last day of in-person school to be my last day of in-person school. Because most of that day was everyone panicking. And panicking. And panicking.
 
Yeah. End of college for me was a panicky time.
 
11:19 PM
ditto
 
We moved out basically with 20 minutes notice, so roommate and I were flipping out scrambling to pack boxes
 
We found out we wouldn't be coming back to school right before lunch on the last day of school, so the last half of the day was really weird
 
Yeah, schools did not handle it well at all.
And we didn't get a graduation ceremony either :(
Basically just got a diploma in the mail lol
 
It was a huge bummer
 
11:22 PM
I found out on ... march 16th? (also, high school so far has been entirely online)
 
Hopefully schools figure things out so you guys can graduate high school properly. At least an online ceremony or something
 
online for me too, though there's talk of a verrrry slow return (like 1 day a week) if cases stay low
 
that is verrrry slow
 
I've been back in hybrid for... three weeks? A month?
 
@LukasRotter As it happens I'm older than that, though not hilariously older.
 
11:25 PM
Told you he was an old geezer :p
 
so... 45
 
let me guess ...... 47
 
Side question: how did your schools do grades for last semester? My school ruled that you couldn't get a lower grade than 3rd Quarter, but since I got all As that quarter nothing I did really mattered grade-wise.
 
@bobble It was either P/F or grades, but your grades couldn't be lower than third quarter
 
My college did pass/fail, where you could choose to pass/fail a class instead of getting a final grade. I chose to pass one of my classes because I was gonna get a C- otherwise
 
11:28 PM
well, it was a pass!
 
Barely but yes :p
 
@bobble I don't recall
 
It was just a wild semester overall, it was not how I pictured my senior year ending at all. Probably not how you guys pictured your year either
 
not at all
I thought "ooh yay there'll be this middle school graduation thingy" but that never happened
it was just a drive-by graduation instead
 
Avi
@merrybot like a drive-by shooting?
 
11:34 PM
My middle school graduation involved listening to a bunch of people speechify for an hour about how the school was a great, tight-knit family while wearing nice clothes that were much too thick for the heat.
I... would not repeat it
 
@Avi yes but with teachers and not guns
 
Avi
pew You get a graduation! pew You get a graduation! pew They get a graduation! pew pew pew Everybody gets a graduation!
 
@Avi n-no wince
 
If it was a religious-school graduation, that's a pun
 
Avi
ayyy
 
11:35 PM
@bobble it was not :p
 
Avi
@merrybot not actually shooting guns, more like shooting graduation certificates
out of a very high speed printer
beware papercuts
 
lmao
finished my fancy html IPA consonant chart website.merrybot.repl.co/ipa.html
 
I'd suggest adjusting the colors - there isn't great contrast between gridlines and center cells
 
i can try that :)
 
You could also try making each row a different color, for easy scanning
 
Avi
11:38 PM
you could also label impossible phonemes
as per wikipedia charts
 
@Avi good idea
 
you could also put random images of bobblies
just for kicks
 
how about now @bobble (i am restricting myself to these colors)
 
better
except that the text is now harder to read
 
will fix right quick
 
11:41 PM
@Sciborg I only saw this now, but yes, I would appreciate it since I'll got to sleep soon :)
 
no that's terrible
@bobble how about now?
ummm
 
is contrasting enough now
5 stars
 
seems like it's harder to read for me
 
you can change back if you want
 
yeah i will, but i will try & add some bobblie images
 
11:45 PM
@LukasRotter Very well I will drop the first C4 hint, 21 hours is close enough :)
C4 Hint #1: The definition half of the clue is at the end.
 
didn't we already figure that out?
 
There were people questioning whether the last few words were secret wordplay, so I wanted to clarify that they aren't to avoid frustration.
And the first clue can't be a big clue :p
 
hmmm... if "before + 500 hundred" is indeed "ere" + "d", the only 7-letter word I can find is "wavered", but that doesn't go well with Elizabeth :( Also, no idea how "attendees" could possibly fit into all of this yet, except a simple "A" somewhere :/
synonyms of attendees all seem too long, even "guests"
 
could be just "men"
 
11:56 PM
this is you?
 
@sciborg ??
@bobble i doubt that
 
this meme might be too dead, drat
 
I mean metaphorically
 
never mind
 
@Sciborg don't worry, I don't get memes like ever
 
11:59 PM
I'm used to my Discord group chats where no meme is too dead to reference :p
 
unfortunately this is not Discord
 
00:00 - 20:0020:00 - 00:00

« first day (2347 days earlier)      last day (1277 days later) »