1 \title Simon Tatham's Portable Puzzle Collection
3 \cfg{winhelp-filename}{puzzles.hlp}
4 \cfg{winhelp-contents-titlepage}{Contents}
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23 This is a collection of small one-player puzzle games.
25 \copyright This manual is copyright 2004 Simon Tatham. All rights
26 reserved. You may distribute this documentation under the MIT licence.
27 See \k{licence} for the licence text in full.
29 \cfg{html-local-head}{<meta name="AppleTitle" content="Puzzles Help">}
33 \C{intro} Introduction
35 I wrote this collection because I thought there should be more small
36 desktop toys available: little games you can pop up in a window and
37 play for two or three minutes while you take a break from whatever
38 else you were doing. And I was also annoyed that every time I found
39 a good game on (say) \i{Unix}, it wasn't available the next time I
40 was sitting at a \i{Windows} machine, or vice versa; so I arranged
41 that everything in my personal puzzle collection will happily run on
42 both, and have more recently done a port to Mac OS X as well. When I
43 find (or perhaps invent) further puzzle games that I like, they'll
44 be added to this collection and will immediately be available on
45 both platforms. And if anyone feels like writing any other front
46 ends - PocketPC, Mac OS pre-10, or whatever it might be - then all
47 the games in this framework will immediately become available on
48 another platform as well.
50 The actual games in this collection were mostly not my invention; I
51 saw them elsewhere, and rewrote them in a form that was more
52 convenient for me. I do not claim credit, in general, for inventing
53 the rules of any of these puzzles; all I claim is authorship of the
54 code (or at least those parts of the code that weren't contributed
57 This collection is distributed under the \i{MIT licence} (see
58 \k{licence}). This means that you can do pretty much anything you like
59 with the game binaries or the code, except pretending you wrote them
60 yourself, or suing me if anything goes wrong.
62 The most recent versions, and \i{source code}, can be found at
63 \I{website}\W{http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/puzzles/}\cw{http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/puzzles/}.
65 Please report \I{feedback}\i{bugs} to
66 \W{mailto:anakin@pobox.com}\cw{anakin@pobox.com}.
67 You might find it helpful to read this article before reporting a bug:
69 \W{http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/bugs.html}\cw{http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/bugs.html}
71 \ii{Patches} are welcome. Especially if they provide a new front end
72 (to make all these games run on another platform), or a new game.
75 \C{common} \ii{Common features}
77 This chapter describes features that are common to all the games.
79 \H{common-actions} \I{controls}Common actions
81 These actions are all available from the \I{Game menu}\q{Game} menu
82 and via \I{keys}keyboard shortcuts, in addition to any game-specific
85 \dt \ii\e{New game} (\q{N}, Ctrl+\q{N})
87 \dd Starts a new game, with a random initial state.
89 \dt \ii\e{Restart game} (\q{R})
91 \dd Resets the current game to its initial state. Undo is lost.
93 \dt \ii\e{Undo} (\q{U}, Ctrl+\q{Z}, Ctrl+\q{_})
95 \dd Undoes a single move. (You can undo moves back to the start of the
98 \dt \ii\e{Redo} (Ctrl+\q{R})
100 \dd Redoes a previous undone move.
102 \dt \I{exit}\ii\e{Quit} (\q{Q}, Ctrl+\q{Q})
104 \dd Closes the application entirely.
106 \H{common-id} Recreating games with the \ii{game ID}
108 The \q{\i{Specific...}} option from the \I{Game menu}\q{Game} menu
109 lets you see a short string (the \q{game ID}) that captures the
110 initial state of the current game.
112 The precise \I{ID format}format of the ID is specific to each game.
113 It consists of two parts delimited by a colon (e.g., \c{c4x4:4F01,0});
114 the first part encodes \i\e{parameters} (such as grid size), while the
115 second part encodes a \i\e{seed}, which determines the \i{initial
116 state} of the game within those parameters.
118 You can specify a new ID (or just a seed) here. Pressing \q{OK} starts
119 a new game with the specified ID (whether you changed it or not).
120 Pressing \q{Cancel} returns to the current game.
122 You can also use the game ID (or just the encoded parameters) as a
123 \i{command line} argument; see \k{common-cmdline} for more detail.
125 Game IDs are portable across platforms; you can use a game ID
126 generated by the Windows version of a game on the Unix version, etc.
128 \H{common-type} The \q{Type} menu
130 The \I{Type menu}\q{Type} menu, if present, may contain a list of
131 \i{preset} game settings. Selecting one of these will start a new
132 random game with the parameters specified.
134 The \q{Type} menu may also contain a \q{\i{Custom...}} option which
135 allows you to fine-tune game \i{parameters}. The parameters available
136 are specific to each game and are described in the following sections.
138 \H{common-cmdline} Specifying game parameters on the \i{command line}
140 (This section does not apply to the Mac OS X version.)
142 The games in this collection deliberately do not ever save
143 information on to the computer they run on: they have no high score
144 tables and no saved preferences. (This is because I expect at least
145 some people to play them at work, and those people will probably
146 appreciate leaving as little evidence as possible!)
148 However, if you do want to arrange for one of these games to default
149 to a particular set of parameters, you can specify them on the
152 The easiest way to do this is to set up the parameters you want
153 using the \q{Type} menu (see \k{common-type}), and then to select
154 \q{Specific} from the \q{Game} menu (see \k{common-id}). The text in
155 the \q{Game ID} box will be composed of two parts, separated by a
156 colon. The first of these parts represents the game parameters (the
157 size of the playing area, for example, and anything else you set
158 using the \q{Type} menu).
160 If you run the game with just that parameter text on the command
161 line, it will start up with the settings you specified.
163 For example: if you run Cube (see \k{cube}), select \q{Octahedron}
164 from the \q{Type} menu, and then go to the game ID selection, you
165 will see a string of the form \cq{o2x2:911A81,10}. Take only the
166 part before the colon (\cq{o2x2}), and start Cube with that text on
167 the command line: \cq{cube o2x2}.
169 If you copy the \e{entire} game ID on to the command line, the game
170 will start up in the specific game that was described. This is
171 occasionally a more convenient way to start a particular game ID
172 than by pasting it into the game ID selection box.
176 \cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.net}
178 (\e{Note:} the \i{Windows} version of this game is called
179 \i\cw{NETGAME.EXE} to avoid clashing with Windows's own \cw{NET.EXE}.)
181 I originally saw this in the form of a Flash game called \i{FreeNet}
182 \k{FreeNet}, written by Pavils Jurjans. The computer prepares a
183 network by connecting up the centres of squares in a grid, and then
184 shuffles the network by rotating every tile randomly. Your job is to
185 rotate it all back into place. The successful solution will be an
186 entirely connected network, with no closed loops. \#{Is it also true
187 that a correct solution will not contain any cycles?} As a visual aid,
188 all tiles which are connected to the one in the middle are
191 \B{FreeNet} \W{http://www.jurjans.lv/stuff/net/FreeNet.htm}\cw{http://www.jurjans.lv/stuff/net/FreeNet.htm}
193 \H{net-controls} \i{Net controls}
195 \IM{Net controls} controls, for Net
196 \IM{Net controls} keys, for Net
197 \IM{Net controls} shortcuts (keyboard), for Net
199 This game can be played with either the keyboard or the mouse. The
202 \dt \e{Select tile}: mouse pointer, arrow keys
204 \dt \e{Rotate tile anticlockwise}: left mouse button, \q{A} key
206 \dt \e{Rotate tile clockwise}: right mouse button, \q{D} key
208 \dt \e{Lock (or unlock) tile}: middle mouse button, shift-click, \q{S} key
210 \dd You can lock a tile once you're sure of its orientation. You can
211 also unlock it again, but while it's locked you can't accidentally
214 \dt \e{Jumble tiles}: \q{J} key
216 \dd This key turns all tiles that are not locked to random
219 (All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
221 \H{net-params} \I{parameters, for Net}Net parameters
223 These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
226 \dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
228 \dd Size of grid in tiles.
230 \dt \e{Walls wrap around}
232 \dd If checked, flow can pass from the left edge to the right edge,
233 and from top to bottom, and vice versa.
235 \dt \e{Barrier probability}
237 \dd A number between 0.0 and 1.0 controlling whether an immovable
238 barrier is placed between two tiles to prevent flow between them (a
239 higher number gives more barriers). Since barriers are immovable, they
240 act as constraints on the solution (i.e., hints).
244 The grid generation in Net has been carefully arranged so that the
245 barriers are independent of the rest of the grid. This means that if
246 you change the \e{Barrier probability} parameter, and then re-enter
247 the same game ID you were playing before (see \k{common-id}), you
248 should see exactly the same starting grid, with the only change
249 being the number of barriers. So if you're stuck on a particular
250 grid and need a hint, you could start up another instance of Net,
251 set up the same parameters but a higher barrier probability, and
252 enter the game seed from the original Net window.
258 \cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.cube}
260 This is another one I originally saw as a web game. This one was a
261 Java game \k{cube-java-game}, by Paul Scott. You have a grid of 16
262 squares, six of which are blue; on one square rests a cube. Your move
263 is to use the arrow keys to roll the cube through 90 degrees so that
264 it moves to an adjacent square. If you roll the cube on to a blue
265 square, the blue square is picked up on one face of the cube; if you
266 roll a blue face of the cube on to a non-blue square, the blueness is
267 put down again. (In general, whenever you roll the cube, the two faces
268 that come into contact swap colours.) Your job is to get all six blue
269 squares on to the six faces of the cube at the same time. Count your
270 moves and try to do it in as few as possible.
272 Unlike the original Java game, my version has an additional feature:
273 once you've mastered the game with a cube rolling on a square grid,
274 you can change to a triangular grid and roll any of a tetrahedron, an
275 octahedron or an icosahedron.
277 \B{cube-java-game} \W{http://www3.sympatico.ca/paulscott/cube/cube.htm}\cw{http://www3.sympatico.ca/paulscott/cube/cube.htm}
279 \H{cube-controls} \i{Cube controls}
281 \IM{Cube controls} controls, for Cube
282 \IM{Cube controls} keys, for Cube
283 \IM{Cube controls} shortcuts (keyboard), for Cube
285 This game is played with the keyboard. The arrow keys are used to roll the
286 cube (or other solid).
288 On the triangular grids, the mapping of arrow keys to directions is
289 more approximate. Vertical movement is disallowed where it doesn't
290 make sense. The four keys surrounding the arrow keys on the numeric
291 keypad (\q{7}, \q{9}, \q{1}, \q{3}) can be used for diagonal movement.
293 (All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
295 \H{cube-params} \I{parameters, for Cube}Cube parameters
297 These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
300 \dt \e{Type of solid}
302 \dd Selects the solid to roll (and hence the shape of the grid):
303 tetrahedron, cube, octahedron, or icosahedron.
305 \dt \e{Width / top}, \e{Height / bottom}
307 \dd On a square grid, horizontal and vertical dimensions. On a
308 triangular grid, the number of triangles on the top and bottom rows
312 \C{fifteen} \i{Fifteen}
314 \cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.fifteen}
316 The old ones are the best: this is the good old \q{\i{15-puzzle}}
317 with sliding tiles. You have a 4\by\.4 square grid; 15 squares
318 contain numbered tiles, and the sixteenth is empty. Your move is to
319 choose a tile next to the empty space, and slide it into the space.
320 The aim is to end up with the tiles in numerical order, with the
321 space in the bottom right (so that the top row reads 1,2,3,4 and the
322 bottom row reads 13,14,15,\e{space}).
324 \H{fifteen-controls} \i{Fifteen controls}
326 \IM{Fifteen controls} controls, for Fifteen
327 \IM{Fifteen controls} keys, for Fifteen
328 \IM{Fifteen controls} shortcuts (keyboard), for Fifteen
330 This game can be controlled with the mouse or the keyboard.
332 A left-click with the mouse in the row or column containing the empty
333 space will move as many tiles as necessary to move the space to the
336 The arrow keys will move a tile adjacent to the space in the direction
337 indicated (moving the space in the \e{opposite} direction).
339 (All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
341 \H{fifteen-params} \I{parameters, for Fifteen}Fifteen parameters
343 The only options available from the \q{Custom...} option on the \q{Type}
344 menu are \e{Width} and \e{Height}, which are self-explanatory. (Once
345 you've changed these, it's not a \q{15-puzzle} any more, of course!)
348 \C{sixteen} \i{Sixteen}
350 \cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.sixteen}
352 Another sliding tile puzzle, visually similar to Fifteen (see
353 \k{fifteen}) but with a different type of move. This time, there is no
354 hole: all 16 squares on the grid contain numbered squares. Your move
355 is to shift an entire row left or right, or shift an entire column up
356 or down; every time you do that, the tile you shift off the grid
357 re-appears at the other end of the same row, in the space you just
358 vacated. To win, arrange the tiles into numerical order (1,2,3,4 on
359 the top row, 13,14,15,16 on the bottom). When you've done that, try
360 playing on different sizes of grid.
362 I \e{might} have invented this game myself, though only by accident if
363 so (and I'm sure other people have independently invented it). I
364 thought I was imitating a screensaver I'd seen, but I have a feeling
365 that the screensaver might actually have been a Fifteen-type puzzle
366 rather than this slightly different kind. So this might be the one
367 thing in my puzzle collection which represents creativity on my part
368 rather than just engineering.
370 \H{sixteen-controls} \I{controls, for Sixteen}Sixteen controls
372 This game is played with the mouse. Left-clicking on an arrow will
373 move the appropriate row or column in the direction indicated.
374 Right-clicking will move it in the opposite direction.
376 (All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
378 \H{sixteen-params} \I{parameters, for Sixteen}Sixteen parameters
380 The only parameters available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
381 \q{Type} menu are \e{Width} and \e{Height}, which are
385 \C{twiddle} \i{Twiddle}
387 \cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.twiddle}
389 Twiddle is a tile-rearrangement puzzle, visually similar to Sixteen
390 (see \k{sixteen}): you are given a grid of square tiles, each
391 containing a number, and your aim is to arrange the numbers into
394 In basic Twiddle, your move is to rotate a square group of four
395 tiles about their common centre. (Orientation is not significant:
396 tiles never end up upside down!) On more advanced settings, you can
397 rotate a larger square group of tiles.
399 I first saw this type of puzzle in the GameCube game \q{Metroid
400 Prime 2}. In the Main Gyro Chamber in that game, there is a puzzle
401 you solve to unlock a door, which is a special case of Twiddle. I
402 developed this game as a generalisation of that puzzle.
404 \H{twiddle-controls} \I{controls, for Twiddle}Twiddle controls
406 To play Twiddle, click the mouse in the centre of the square group
407 you wish to rotate. In the basic mode, you rotate a 2\by\.2 square,
408 which means you have to click at a corner point where four tiles
411 In more advanced modes you might be rotating 3\by\.3 or even more at
412 a time; if the size of the square is odd then you simply click in
413 the centre tile of the square you want to rotate.
415 Clicking with the left mouse button rotates the group anticlockwise.
416 Clicking with the right button rotates it clockwise.
418 (All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
420 \H{twiddle-parameters} \I{parameters, for Twiddle}Twiddle parameters
422 Twiddle provides several configuration options via the \q{Custom}
423 option on the \q{Type} menu:
425 \b You can configure the width and height of the puzzle grid.
427 \b You can configure the size of square block that rotates at a time.
429 \b You can ask for every square in the grid to be distinguishable
430 (the default), or you can ask for a simplified puzzle in which there
431 are groups of identical numbers. In the simplified puzzle your aim
432 is just to arrange all the 1s into the first row, all the 2s into
433 the second row, and so on.
436 \C{rectangles} \i{Rectangles}
438 \cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.rectangles}
440 You have a grid of squares, with numbers written in some (but not all)
441 of the squares. Your task is to subdivide the grid into rectangles of
442 various sizes, such that (a) every rectangle contains exactly one
443 numbered square, and (b) the area of each rectangle is equal to the
444 number written in its numbered square.
446 Credit for this game goes to the Japanese puzzle magazine \i{Nikoli}
447 \k{nikoli-rect}; I've also seen a Palm implementation at \i{Puzzle Palace}
448 \k{puzzle-palace-rect}. Unlike Puzzle Palace's implementation, my version
449 automatically generates random grids of any size you like. The quality
450 of puzzle design is therefore not quite as good as hand-crafted
451 puzzles would be (in particular, a unique solution cannot be
452 guaranteed), but on the plus side you get an inexhaustible supply of
453 puzzles tailored to your own specification.
455 \B{nikoli-rect} \W{http://www.nikoli.co.jp/puzzles/7/index_text-e.htm}\cw{http://www.nikoli.co.jp/puzzles/7/index_text-e.htm}
457 \B{puzzle-palace-rect} \W{http://www.puzzle.gr.jp/puzzle/sikaku/palm/index.html.en}\cw{http://www.puzzle.gr.jp/puzzle/sikaku/palm/index.html.en}
459 \H{rectangles-controls} \I{controls, for Rectangles}Rectangles controls
461 This game is played with the mouse.
463 Left-click any edge to toggle it on or off, or click and drag to draw
464 an entire rectangle (or line) on the grid in one go (removing any
465 existing edges within that rectangle).
467 When a rectangle of the correct size is completed, it will be shaded.
469 (All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
471 \H{rectangles-params} \I{parameters, for Rectangles}Rectangles parameters
473 The \q{Custom...} option on the \q{Type} menu offers you \e{Width}
474 and \e{Height} parameters, which are self-explanatory.
476 \q{Expansion factor} is a mechanism for changing the type of grids
477 generated by the program. Some people prefer a grid containing a few
478 large rectangles to one containing many small ones. So you can ask
479 Rectangles to essentially generate a \e{smaller} grid than the size
480 you specified, and then to expand it by adding rows and columns.
482 The default expansion factor of zero means that Rectangles will
483 simply generate a grid of the size you ask for, and do nothing
484 further. If you set an expansion factor of (say) 0.5, it means that
485 each dimension of the grid will be expanded to half again as big
486 after generation. In other words, the initial grid will be 2/3 the
487 size in each dimension, and will be expanded to its full size
488 without adding any more rectangles.
490 Setting an expansion factor of around 0.5 tends to make the game
491 more difficult, and also (in my experience) rewards a less deductive
492 and more intuitive playing style. If you set it \e{too} high,
493 though, the game simply cannot generate more than a few rectangles
494 to cover the entire grid, and the game becomes trivial.
496 \H{rectangles-cmdline} \I{command line, for Rectangles}Additional
497 command-line configuration
499 The expansion factor parameter, described in \k{rectangles-params},
500 is not mentioned by default in the game ID (see \k{common-id}). So
501 if you set your expansion factor to (say) 0.75, and then you
502 generate an 11\by\.11 grid, then the game ID will simply say
503 \c{11x11:}\e{numbers}. This means that if you send the game ID to
504 another player and they paste it into their copy of Rectangles,
505 their game will not be automatically configured to use the same
506 expansion factor in any subsequent grids it generates. (I don't
507 think the average person examining a single grid sent to them by
508 another player would want their configuration modified to that
511 If you are specifying a game ID or game parameters on the command
512 line (see \k{common-cmdline}) and you do want to configure the
513 expansion factor, you can do it by suffixing the letter \cq{e} to
514 the parameters, followed by the expansion factor as a decimal
517 \b \cq{rect 11x11e0.75} starts Rectangles with a grid size of
518 11\u00d7{x}11 and an expansion factor of 0.75.
520 \b \cq{rect 11x11e0.75:g11c6e5e4a2_4e9c3b3d3b5g2b6c4k4g30a8n3j1g6a2}
521 starts Rectangles with a grid size of 11\u00d7{x}11, an expansion
522 factor of 0.75, \e{and} a specific game selected.
525 \C{netslide} \i{Netslide}
527 \cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.netslide}
529 This game was submitted by Richard Boulton. It combines the grid
530 generation of Net (see \k{net}) with the movement of Sixteen (see
531 \k{sixteen}): you have a Net grid, but instead of rotating tiles back
532 into place you have to slide them into place by moving a whole row at
535 As in Sixteen, \I{controls, for Netslide}control is with the mouse.
536 See \k{sixteen-controls}.
538 \I{parameters, for Netslide}Game parameters are the same as for Net
539 (see \k{net-params}).
542 \C{pattern} \i{Pattern}
544 \cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.pattern}
546 You have a grid of squares, which must all be filled in either black
547 or white. Beside each row of the grid are listed the lengths of the
548 runs of black squares on that row; above each column are listed the
549 lengths of the runs of black squares in that column. Your aim is to
550 fill in the entire grid black or white.
552 I first saw this puzzle form around 1995, under the name
553 \q{\i{nonograms}}. I've seen it in various places since then, under
556 Normally, puzzles of this type turn out to be a meaningful picture
557 of something once you've solved them. However, since this version
558 generates the puzzles automatically, they will just look like random
559 groupings of squares. (One user has suggested that this is actually
560 a \e{good} thing, since it prevents you from guessing the colour of
561 squares based on the picture, and forces you to use logic instead.)
562 The advantage, though, is that you never run out of them.
564 \H{pattern-controls} \I{controls, for Pattern}Pattern controls
566 This game is played with the mouse.
568 Left-click in a square to colour it black. Right-click to colour it
569 white. If you make a mistake, you can middle-click, or hold down
570 Shift while clicking with any button, to colour the square in the
571 default grey (meaning \q{undecided}) again.
573 You can click and drag with the left or right mouse button to colour
574 a vertical or horizontal line of squares black or white at a time
575 (respectively). If you click and drag with the middle button, or
576 with Shift held down, you can colour a whole rectangle of squares
579 (All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
581 \H{pattern-parameters} \I{parameters, for Pattern}Pattern parameters
583 The only options available from the \q{Custom...} option on the \q{Type}
584 menu are \e{Width} and \e{Height}, which are self-explanatory.
589 \cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.solo}
591 You have a square grid, which is divided into square or rectangular
592 blocks. Each square must be filled in with a digit from 1 to the
593 size of the grid, in such a way that
595 \b every row contains only one occurrence of each digit
597 \b every column contains only one occurrence of each digit
599 \b every block contains only one occurrence of each digit.
601 You are given some of the numbers as clues; your aim is to place the
602 rest of the numbers correctly.
604 The default puzzle size is 3\by\.3 (a 9\by\.9 actual grid, divided
605 into nine 3\by\.3 blocks). You can also select sizes with
606 rectangular blocks instead of square ones, such as 2\by\.3 (a
607 6\by\.6 grid divided into six 3\by\.2 blocks).
609 If you select a puzzle size which requires more than 9 digits, the
610 additional digits will be letters of the alphabet. For example, if
611 you select 3\by\.4 then the digits which go in your grid will be 1
612 to 9, plus \cq{a}, \cq{b} and \cq{c}.
614 I first saw this puzzle in \i{Nikoli} \k{nikoli-solo}, although it's also
615 been popularised by various newspapers under the name \q{Sudoku} or
618 \B{nikoli-solo} \W{http://www.nikoli.co.jp/puzzles/1/index_text-e.htm}\cw{http://www.nikoli.co.jp/puzzles/1/index_text-e.htm}
620 \H{solo-controls} \I{controls, for Solo}Solo controls
622 To play Solo, simply click the mouse in any empty square and then
623 type a digit or letter on the keyboard to fill that square. If you
624 make a mistake, click the mouse in the incorrect square and press
625 Space to clear it again (or use the Undo feature).
627 (All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
629 \H{solo-parameters} \I{parameters, for Solo}Solo parameters
631 Solo allows you to configure two separate dimensions of the puzzle
632 grid on the \q{Type} menu: the number of columns, and the number of
633 rows, into which the main grid is divided. (The size of a block is
634 the inverse of this: for example, if you select 2 columns and 3 rows,
635 each actual block will have 3 columns and 2 rows.)
637 You can also configure the type of symmetry shown in the generated
638 puzzles. More symmetry makes the puzzles look prettier but may also
639 make them easier, since the symmetry constraints can force more
640 clues than necessary to be present. Completely asymmetric puzzles
641 have the freedom to contain as few clues as possible.
643 Finally, you can configure the difficulty of the generated puzzles.
644 Difficulty levels are judged by the complexity of the techniques of
645 deduction required to solve the puzzle: each level requires a mode
646 of reasoning which was not necessary in the previous one. In
647 particular, on difficulty levels \q{Trivial} and \q{Basic} there
648 will be a square you can fill in with a single number at all times,
649 whereas at \q{Intermediate} level and beyond you will have to make
650 partial deductions about the \e{set} of squares a number could be in
651 (or the set of numbers that could be in a square). None of the
652 difficulty levels generated by this program ever requires making a
653 guess and backtracking if it turns out to be wrong.
655 Generating difficult puzzles is itself difficult: if you select
656 \q{Intermediate} or \q{Advanced} difficulty, Solo may have to make
657 many attempts at generating a puzzle before it finds one hard enough
658 for you. Be prepared to wait, especially if you have also configured
661 \H{solo-cmdline} \I{command line, for Solo}Additional command-line
664 The symmetry and difficulty parameters (described in
665 \k{solo-parameters}) are not mentioned by default in the game ID
666 (see \k{common-id}). So if (for example) you set your symmetry to
667 4-way rotational and your difficulty to \q{Advanced}, and then you
668 generate a 3\by\.4 grid, then the game ID will simply say
669 \c{3x4:}\e{numbers}. This means that if you send the game ID to
670 another player and they paste it into their copy of Solo, their game
671 will not be automatically configured to use the same symmetry and
672 difficulty settings in any subsequent grids it generates. (I don't
673 think the average person examining a single grid sent to them by
674 another player would want their configuration modified to that
677 If you are specifying a game ID or game parameters on the command
678 line (see \k{common-cmdline}) and you do want to configure the
679 symmetry, you can do it by suffixing additional text to the
682 \b \cq{m4} for 4-way mirror symmetry
684 \b \cq{r4} for 4-way rotational symmetry
686 \b \cq{r2} for 2-way rotational symmetry
688 \b \cq{a} for no symmetry at all (stands for \q{asymmetric})
690 \b \cq{dt} for Trivial difficulty level
692 \b \cq{db} for Basic difficulty level
694 \b \cq{di} for Intermediate difficulty level
696 \b \cq{da} for Advanced difficulty level
698 So, for example, you can make Solo generate asymmetric 3x4 grids by
699 running \cq{solo 3x4a}, or 4-way rotationally symmetric 2x3 grids by
700 running \cq{solo 2x3r4}, or \q{Advanced}-level 2x3 grids by running
704 \A{licence} \I{MIT licence}\ii{Licence}
706 This software is \i{copyright} 2004-2005 Simon Tatham.
708 Portions copyright Richard Boulton.
710 Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person
711 obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files
712 (the "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction,
713 including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge,
714 publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software,
715 and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so,
716 subject to the following conditions:
718 The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be
719 included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.
721 THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND,
722 EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF
723 MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND
724 NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS
725 BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN
726 ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN
727 CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
730 \IM{specific...} Specific..., menu option
731 \IM{custom...} Custom..., menu option
734 \IM{game ID} ID, game
735 \IM{ID format} ID format
736 \IM{ID format} format, ID
737 \IM{ID format} game ID, format
740 \IM{keys} shortcuts (keyboard)
742 \IM{initial state} initial state
743 \IM{initial state} state, initial
745 \IM{MIT licence} MIT licence
746 \IM{MIT licence} licence, MIT