Any Sudoku players?

[eflatminor]

I've been playing for a little while now and really enjoy it as a brain exercise. I generally play on a computer or a Nook, which has four levels of difficulty: beginner, medium, hard and expert.

I've gotten to where I can do the 'hard' level every time, usually in under 15 minutes.

However, when I try the 'expert' level puzzles, I get to the point where I can't find anymore obvious choices so I have to guess...sometimes I guess right, sometimes not.

The really strange thing is that'll I'll go to online Sudoku solving websites and confirm that I've eliminated all the possibilities by identifying all the clues...or 'hints' (naked, hidden, pointing, even X wings and Swordfish, etc). The websites will say "There are no more hints" or something to that effect but there no obvious choices remain. Yet, the website will say the puzzle is still solvable! Drives me crazy!!

What am I missing? How can there by 'no more hints' from a computer, yet the puzzle is still solvable without there being any obvious choices left?

 

[Granny]

I don't do math so that leaves me out.

 

[R.D.]

I love sudoku, but I never went for help....sorry

Maybe, just a guess, too many hints will end up solving the puzzle??

 

[Mr. H.]

Gives me a headache.

 

[Gracie]

I play it on Pogo but only when it is the daily game with tokens to win.

 

[eflatminor]

I love sudoku, but I never went for help....sorry

Maybe, just a guess, too many hints will end up solving the puzzle??

Maybe. But that would seem odd because if the puzzle can be solved, the website will offer to solve it for you...but not tell you how it solved it!

I guess what I'm saying is that if I've identified very clue for eliminating possibilities (which I almost always can now) and even a computer system can offer no more hints, I would think I should be able to logically solve the puzzle without guessing...even if it's a well reasoned guess, like where there is a stronger probability of a square being one number over another...but not a certainty.

I don't know, maybe these 'expert level' puzzles can't necessarily be solved with definite choices and at some point, you have to make the best case guess you can and see how it works out. If that's the case, it just seems odd to me.

 

[norwegen]

I plan to try Sudoku as soon as I can beat the neighbor kid at Sorry!.

 

[Toro]

I <3 Sudoku.

I don't play it as much anymore, but when I first started, I was obsessed.

Someone at work showed it to me, I spent all afternoon trying to figure it out. Then I went home and did the same thing all evening.

Now, I can blow through most of those pretty quickly.

 

[eflatminor]

Now, I can blow through most of those pretty quickly.

If you can solve an expert level puzzle quickly, you're a smarter man than I.

An easy puzzle...less than 5 minutes, no problem.

 

[Jughead]

I do the occasional one in Reader's Digest. Never had to guess, but some were tough.