Solving A Highly-Requested New York Times Sudoku

[@trooperscientists2000]

Why do I find this so interesting? Just got the channel recommended out of the blue two days ago cause KZbin's algorithm is weird.. but thanks KZbin algorithm.

[@fuury09]

Same

[@flavioryu5922]

Soo relatable

[@battle00333]

and then after you subscribe they will suddenly stop appearing in the feed because youtube is youtube

[@tadperry1817]

I started the puzzle on my own as usual and got stuck. I watched the video and I got stuck at the point that Simon finds the 457 triple in Column 7. I''d found all the same digits as him and my pencil marks were a little more complete, but identical and no mistakes in what I'd done. I stopped the video and started "unwinding" the logic. I ended out with a contradiction that I couldn't resolve. I looked at the video and this is where I confirmed that all my pencil marks had been identical at that point. The lesson I learned is I now understand why Simon often says he's going to slow down and be careful not to make a mistake when he finally reaches that point that things start going fast. I see how important it is to apply all implications of new information as it it appears and keep pencil marks updated. Simon isn't addressing beginners so he's never emphasized how important this is and what can happen if you don't take care at this point. So after 3 weeks of trying several Sudokus from the channel per day (all difficult) I'm at the point where I get stuck where Simon starts to stall and then finds a clever solution. I get to the hump, he gets me over it, and then I do the rest on my own with increasing accuracy. I think I'll do another one before "hitting the hay".I doubt anyone reads my comments, especially on old videos. It's just a record of sorts.I've been going back in tim and jumping around a lot of old videos.

[@r0bw00d]

I'm no novice when it comes to Sudokus, as I do all the ones in my local paper, so when I saw that this channel addressed this puzzle as a target subject, I thought I'd give it a quick glance to see if I could learn anything new. I learned several things: 1. The types of puzzles they tackle gave me a rude awakening as to my skill level. He solved this one in under 20 minutes while I took nearly two hours. 2. X wings and how they can be applied. I still have to learn about empty rectangles and skyscrapers. 3. I'll never be as fast as these two presenters. The way that they're able to keep mental track of everything astounds me. I'm constantly going back over and reverifying puzzle segments to ensure that I don't make a mistake and they just breeze right through those parts.

[@kimberlypreston6204]

I started these hard sudokus a month ago and totally agree about the ending. I have made so many errors going fast in the end after doing everything so perfectly. I use Simon's videos as a guide when i'm stuck too.

[@Emm027]

I'm the exact same as you. I get to the point where there is a stall, and that's when I need some assistance. I got stuck in the same part. Now to learn how to figure the tricks out.

[@glennmelven3414]

What a difference in knowing about that triple makes in the solve. Without it I managed to put 6 numbers in, knowing about it I solved it in 12 minutes.

[@emilywilliams3237]

Touring older videos, this was very nice. I can see why the peace-seeking among us were drawn to this channel back when this video was made. Lovely. Thank you, Simon.

[@stitch5604]

0:47 "... and find something interesting to do for a few minutes." Good sir, for some of us, it takes a littleeee more than just a few minutes ;) But, as always, very interesting video!

[@TheErusPrime]

7:17 - that's where I sat staring for 30 minutes trying to find another piece to the puzzle. I come back to the video to watch the solution and he's done in 14 minutes what ultimately ended up taking me an hour. That shit is bonkers.

[@HalcyonMusic]

Watching you solve logic puzzles and Sudoku is so calming. Subscribed!!

[@topilinkala1594]

I actually found the 138 triple on the same column. Half a dozen of this and six of those.

[@gposchman]

Enjoyed the video, seeing that the 457 couldn't be in the other three squares in the column allowed me to see the triplet better. Thanks for the tutorial. Gene

[@DryBonz1]

I just discovered your channel a week ago with no prior Sudoku experience (thank you KZbin recommendations) and I did my first puzzle that evening. My first few days using NYT's puzzles didn't seem too terribly difficult, but the last three days have been quite a challenge. I must have had some kind of beginner's luck.

[@dracaaarys]

baffled at how fast you found the 457... i had to notate the whole puzzle to find it lol

[@Hephaestus_God]

I had the opposite problem. I found it pretty fast just from basic math but since I don't do Sudoku puzzles I didn't know what to do with the information and was stuck for longer than i'd like to admit

[@joshualifeheart3671]

I didn't have to notate the puzzle, but I did have to color the puzzle to do it. Once I got that I charged to the end of the puzzle.

[@tadperry1817]

Simon obviously has a lot of experience and knows what to start looking for and always finds it. He's amazing in that way. (And maybe other ways, too.)

[@lightningt12312]

Precisely, I got to the 457 triple at 7.34 in roughly 10 minutes, then decided to bingo on the 1s after not finding anything and it took me another 20 minutes to finish it, thanks for showing the proper solve!

[@MarkLanett]

Spotting the 457 triple was the crux. Really good.

[@r0bw00d]

42:29 for me. I haven't seen the video yet, but I found an empty rectangle on 8s in Box One that broke the puzzle wide open! I'm still learning them and it pleases me to no end that i was able to use one so constructively!

[@birchandghoshdastidar1322]

I tried to test here my progress,so far, to attain the solving skill of sudoku puzzle. This was an ideally good puzzle for that purpose. While solving the puzzle my intelligence in the matter was challenged. It was the grace of my teacher, Sudoku Guy, that without looking at the video, I could solve the puzzle quite smoothly!

[@yichen6313]

The 457 is brilliant! I finished with 26:48 - I didn't spot the 457 triplet, but instead, there is a 58 double in the upper right corner at some point that does the trick for me.

[@guamTheFear]

This came up as a suggestion today for me today, watching this now after some of your recent content this puzzle seems trivial.

[@ShardyRedVH]

Holy Cow! This took me over an hour (1:06) to solve! Now to watch the video to see where I went wrong...

[@nekogod]

40:00, nice satisfying time for a satisfying puzzle

[@CloudAerisSephiroth]

goodness me. that took me nearly an hour. i got to the point where you noticed the 457 triple, i got really stuck until you pointed that out, and then it fell bit by bit from there... i still nearly messed it up, ended up with a tonne of only-two-possibles notations and finally solved one that unraveled the rest, and still made a mistake and had to backtrack a bit at one point there. proper novice, i am! trying to learn from you guys. thanks!

[@bradyoo]

Wow I couldn't find the 457 pair myself. I need to get better

[@Adam-hs4de]

I love Simon, but I wish he would've explained that 457 triple better. It's what cracked it because I was stuck exactly where he was.

[@drengskap]

35:40 for me, which I'm quite pleased with, especially as I was drinking a beer at the same time!

[@ptolemaeaaa]

idk why this is in my recommended but i’m somehow very entertained although highly confused by these sudoku skills

[@rgpmtori]

Loved the puzzle I was stuck so I watched until you did the 8 trick! I had the pencil marked 8's in the top right but didn't check what it affected. :(

[@BlueCyann]

The 457 was the stumbling block for me for sure. I was flailing around writing down the possible contents of various empty squares and somehow had enough information at one point to reduce the remaining three squares of that column to 138. Great! So did I immediately enter the 457 triplet as well and look at the implications of that? Of course not ... I got around to it and the rest eventually, but it took forever.

[@Anrui_Ishi]

Cracked this beautiful puzzle in 8 minutes and 8 seconds(prior to watching the video) . Lots of hidden singles! Loved it.

[@JaggerG]

I looked for triples, x’s, y’s, fish, empty rectangles, skyscrapers, more triples, slot machines, but never spotted that triple. I at one point had only 1 and 8 in r5c7 and thought something looked suspicious about that 8. Turns out it couldn’t be there or r5c8. So then I checked r6c7 and found it chained numbers along c7, then eliminated 5 from box 6 entirely. Puzzle collapsed from there. Took 2 hours.

[@exert2020]

Before I played video I had a go. Then when got stuck watched and you did every move the same. Stuck at 7:30. Ill pause n carry on knowing I'm on right track.

[@RobertNugent]

Well done. Bravo.

[@ItFightsBack]

What stopped me up was missing the 8 on the left. Once you pointed that out, the puzzle was solvable for me without using the logic from the 457 triple pretty easily.

[@Blahblahblahblahize]

How?

[@ItFightsBack]

@@Blahblahblahblahize If I did anything extravagant I was unaware of it as I am generally pretty bad at these, but this one seemed straight forward from that point.

[@joshuahitchins1897]

I ended up finding the key triple in reverse, finding a triple for 138 in the bottom two squares first, making the other triple obvious. It took WAY longer for me than the few minutes he spent getting "stuck".

[@FloydTaylor]

8:35 tricky column shit. how do you train to spot that? what is it called?

[@rilian226]

Not sure if it would have mattered but you had a snyder 5 notation from minute 1 in middle box, top left and bottom left for the 5 from the givens. The way you solved it, I don't think it mattered but you did state that you didn't see any more notation-able squares when that one was right there all along...

[@dylanerskine882]

I dont generally do this sort of thing. But the video was still really interesting

[@maverickstclare3756]

woo, used the Phistomefel Ring method to place the 7 in box 1! and my fastest solve (still a terrible time - 50m - but woo)

[@megaminxpll]

The 138 (c7r589) triple was one of the first things I saw, after that the entire puzzle was singles only with a time of 2:43 (in Simple Sudoku)

[@krisw.6676]

I found that 138 triple too, but it took me about 10 minutes to spot it!

[@ErwinRommy]

Only took me 01:22:06 , honestly a little to easy... /s

[@oNtuobAwoH]

I had no problem isolating the triples in column 7 (I actually did the 138 first, which revealed the 457 one), BUT I got stuck there because I somehow missed the vertical 8 pair in box 1, which managed to completely freeze all further progress. I finally gave up and started watching the video. There was some serious forehead slappage once I saw him just casually mark said pair. #smh

[@Ca7bon]

Do what makes you happy, don't do what others are more interested in

[@t1nytim]

Rather than spotting the 457, I spotted 138 in that same column. Which in essence is the same, but I felt easier to spot, given only 138 could go in those cells, but 457 was muddied by 138.

[@condorboss3339]

I was fiddling with the 4-6-8 combination in rows 2 and 3. Didn't even notice the 4-5-7 in Column 7

[@nigelm5777]

Sounds like Jeopardy! is one day ahead in the US. No spoiler!

[@adrianhead6272]

So, after lots of practice I'm now capable of completing this in 5m58s. Wow!!!

[@stephennewcomb4277]

@6:45 is how far my rookie self got. @9:30 why cant an 8 on that 3 work? that changes a lot and is why i didnt mark it off. Im confused at how he knew it was a 3 and not a possible 8. that changes a lot.

[@CrunchyOreos]

Because of the top left block having its only possible 3 in row 1, and the top center block having the 3 filled in, the only possible position in the top right block for 3 is row 3. Once the 457 triple is found, that leaves only the one possible option for 3 in the top right block.

[@noafro1991]

YT algorithm really stretching it. I used to LOVE sudoku. Spose I should get back into it! In the meantime, this channel will do :)

[@Qazqi]

Take a look at the previous videos. There have been some unique and amazing puzzles in there and all the newer videos come with a link to try the puzzle yourself.

[@susanlemmey4012]

X.x I feel stupid, I found the triple and had the 3s pencil-marked, but I missed the removal of one of the threes.

[@СтефанЦветковић-ь3в]

6:37 how he was so sure that 3 goes in that field? I dont get it

[@snajper3152]

Vertically this row's missing only 1,2,3,6 numbers. Since 1,2,6 are already horizontal only avaliable option is 3 Hope it helps :)

[@Cartnite3]

Also horizontally the row need 3,4,7,8 and 4,7,8 were already in the vertical column

[@ragnkja]

Sudoku is a lot more accessible to an international audience, especially since not all of us speak English as our first language.

[@BrooksMoses]

Sigh. Spent an hour on this one -- I got the triple in column 7 that located the 3 in box 3, but then I missed the implications of where the 8 had to go in that box on the 8s in box 1 (and the fact that that would locate an 8 in box 4), and had to watch the video to get past that. Of course, once I had that, the rest was pretty straightforward.

[@paulscaff1000]

I need to learn more still confused on the triple 🙈🙈🙈

[@tomekduresov706]

That 457 triple is so unfair, its just unfair..

[@lrvogt1257]

I'm not very fast but I got through it all with standard Sudoku logic.

[@redegg7653]

Damn i managed to solve it in 22:54 that puzzle is difficult as hell... It looks so easy at first look... I dont have any "professional" sudoku experience. I did qualify in a regional sudoku competition after winning a district wide and division wide competition. But damn the competition in the regional level is insane i was in 5th place despite getting a perfect score. I lost it terms of time. Had i got first place i wouldve had competed in a national competition. Though that was when i was in elementary school, 5th grade. I havent touched that much sudoku since then since i had to focus on my studies but i still find some books with sudoku variants on some stores that sells various old unused books. I tried going back to answering but i wasnt as good as i was before. I became slower. I wanted to find some competitions that are nearby but i unfortunately didnt find one yet.

[@princepsmickey934]

I got stuck because I didn't realize 8 could only go in the middle row of the first grid.

[@nigelm5777]

Filled in about all candidates to find that triple, which took a while. I was wondering how Simon might find it - very nice. Hopefully I learned something?

[@David-uc6sg]

What is the difference between the corner notes and center notes?

[@dancollison1]

In his Soduku-solving method, he uses corner notes refer for Snyder notation in which the cells in a square where a number is can be restricted to two cells only are denoted. In addition, in his software and in his Soduku-solving method, he uses center notes to show additional ways in which numbers are restricted to that particular cell, often in the context of a row, column or square (as in doubles or triples) or in terms of plain old candidate numbers (as when he is using techniques such as empty rectangles, X-wings, etc., in which candidate numbers can be eliminated from that cell)

[@randominternetguy3537]

I can actually keep up in this video. Jesus christ he's so fast now

[@coachhannah2403]

I do Sudoku a bit more methodically: ones, twos, etc before I start penciling in boxes (very hard only). On hard puzzles, I always try to solve without pencil marks after reading a piece about the art of solving. What app is he using?

[@r0bw00d]

1:59:38 on my end. I hope that I can learn something new from watching your video.

[@supchin]

It took me almost 4 hours to beat this. I was really happy before I've seen length of this video

[@boydegg]

32 minutes - needed help finding the 457 triple

[@MarcusAntonio.]

i llike how he says, "Yea I think we are on the right track." --with 4 open square left. lol take my sub now if someone could clarify why that bottom 4 was interesting "because of these 5's" im having trouble making the connection in his head. 8:33

[@MarcusAntonio.]

is it because they show that neither 4 or 5 can be in the bottom 2 spots in that column or in that middle spot, forcing that triple pair thing. thank you marcus for explaining that. lol

[@rabidsamfan]

I actually found the 138 triple in column 7 before the 457... :/

[@ValeriePallaoro]

Oh ... good; I got caught up in that one and thought I was wrong ... phew

[@simonwilliams2550]

Me to

[@plusjeremy]

Great video! A question though: is the software in the video the Sandwich Sudoku app? It doesn’t look similar at all, but it does look super handy for working on sudokus.

[@RealCadde]

No, it's the link to the cracking the cryptic website

[@Trias805]

I enjoy these videos and I don't even like Sudoku.

[@scorpio-chess]

in the 457 pair, how do you know there is a 45 in row 6 column 7

[@morteh48]

There's already a 7 in the block

[@04LightningFan]

8:39 Notice in column 7, 4 & 5 are restricted to rows 1, 3, & 6. Also because of the 7's in R6 C8 & R8 C9, 7 is restricted to rows 1 & 3 in column 7. Thus a 457 triple and because 7 cannot be in R6 C7 it is either a 4 or 5.

[@scorpio-chess]

@@04LightningFan thank you! makes sense now :)

[@janeosborne165]

In R6C7 I don't understand how 1, 3 or 8 can be ruled out. Sorry, I'm new to this and trying to understand.

[@Adam-hs4de]

Think of it from the opposite direction. Of the six cells in column 7, 457 can only go to three of them because the other three were ruled out for 457. Mind you, I didn't see that triple.

[@janeosborne165]

@@Adam-hs4de Thanks!

[@BryanLeeWilliams]

31:05. Not a hard puzzle. Should have been shorter but I put in a 18 pair instead of a 12 pair. Just a dumb mental error.

[@ChessRabbitt]

Took me 33:15. I was stuck a little bit.

[@mortglickman3217]

you guys need more ad spots

[@carstenkruse8527]

you should do a Hanjie on your channel

[@Gennys]

1000th like! EDIT: It's the little things that make a person happy sometimes.

[@markwilding3828]

"for a few minutes" ...lol

[@flo9038]

Whats the name of the Music in the intro?

[@dancollison1]

Piano Sonata No. 16 in C Major, K.545 (1st Movement), by Mozart

[@pilotandy_com]

I spent 17 minutes and found a few, but I have a long way to go.

[@PiperWyattP4]

I watched your explanation of the 457 set like 5 times and I still don't get why it is a set? Can someone help? I'm fairly new at this, usually can manage these puzzles with 2 or 3 helps, so I am trying to do my utterly best to understand it and solve it myself!

[@lonelyspirit9532]

The 4 and 5 on row 5 make the square on row 5 colum 7 can not be 4 and 5. The 5 on row 8 and 9 combine with the 4 in the block make 2 bottom square in colum can not be 4 and 5. There are only 3 square left in colum 7 where 4 and 5 can go, on row 6, row 1 and row 3. There are pencil mark 7 on row 1 and row 3 of colum 7 so that the 457 tripple.

[@04LightningFan]

Each digit must appear once in each column, row, box exactly once. If two digits are restricted to the same two cells in a column, row or box than no other digit go in those cells. Say both 1 & 2 can only go in rows 5 & 6 of column 1, if you were to put say a 9 in one of those cells then 1 & 2 would both need to go into the other cell, which you cannot do. By extension, if you have three digits restricted to the same 3 cells in a column, row, or box, than no other digit could go in those cells. 8:39 If you look at column 7, there are 6 empty cells, rows 8 & 9 can be seen by the 4 & 7 in the box, there is also a 5 in rows 8 & 9. Next the cell in row 5 can be seen by the 7 in the box and the 4 & 5 in the row. Three of the six empty cells in the column can be seen by three digits, 4, 5 & 7 which means that those digits must appear in the other three cells and those three cells cannot contain any other digit. I hope this makes sense.

[@Jiggs367]

He found 3 cells that needed to include 4,5 and 7 in the same column. The 4,5,7 could not be in any other cell in that column. Hence 3 cells, 3 possibilities locks the triple into those 3 cells making it impossible that any other number squeeze into one of those 3 cells except for 4,5,7. As an exercise try to fit a 3 in r3c7 and then try to fit 4,5,7 in column 7 and you will see that it leads to an impossible outcome.

[@maxglover4099]

you are big brain

[@MrgameandkirbyCRLP]

Damn, I was 45 minutes in and I found an error that I couldn't come back from :(

[@MrgameandkirbyCRLP]

I was getting close to the end too

[@squeakyelbows]

@@MrgameandkirbyCRLP :(

[@ChessRabbitt]

I didn't see the 457 triple, but I did see the 381 triple. I totally solved this very different than you. Lol 😂🤣 😂😅 Nice puzzle.

[@NotExactlyBacon]

youtube algorithm really wilin out here

[@simunator]

i don't understand why puzzles like these force you to make 50-50 guesses. can someone explain?

[@ChessRabbitt]

There was no guessing in this puzzle. Logic, pure logic.

[@nigelm5777]

simunator - are you referring to the technique of marking occasions in a block where a digit has two and only two possible locations? This isn’t guessing it’s merely noting possibilities that will be logically eliminated later in puzzle progress.

[@thegoodjuices4671]

why am i here?

[@Gabifuertes]

1h 3m

[@tastysnack1]

Pretend that I am very very slow - I understood everything but the triple he mentioned. Don't understand it at all.

[@jozy3341]

In column 7, a 45 could go in 3 spots, one number shy. But, he had 7s in two of those spots, so for the 3 spots it was a 456. Hence, the triple. 16 minutes for me but didn't notice it until I had it noted and hidden

[@vidyanandsinha8879]

Hard

[@Jolly0872]

solved in 37:13 :)

[@manueldoll8578]

First