Dr. Sudoku Prescribes #116 – Tom/Tom
or solve online (using our beta test of Penpa-Edit tools; use tab to alternate between “big” sudoku and “small” number entry modes.)
This is a “Twisted Tuesday” puzzle variation.
Theme: Cage symmetry and repeated clue values
Rules: Variation of standard TomTom rules. The indicated range [1-6] is larger than usual for a 4 x 4 puzzle. Some cells containing slashes require two digits to be placed. These cells should be treated as fractional values (top value over bottom value) for the purposes of solving the puzzle.
Answer String: Enter the 3rd row from left to right, followed by a comma, followed by the 4th row from left to right. (Note: for the cells with slashes, enter the top before the bottom.)
Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 2:30, Master = 3:30, Expert = 7:00
Solution: PDF
Note: Follow this link for other classic TomTom. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest TomTom to get started on.
Broke it at 6-ish, finished at 8:52. This variation seems so easy to break because the possibilities are wide open.
03:23. I find that my last digits are on the first row; perhaps you should have used columns 2 and 3 as the answer key instead 😛
Great variation, and definitely screwing with the usual TomTom logic. The logic at the bottom-right is certainly a favorite.
The solving path on this one was tight enough that I got through this one pretty quickly (made one misstep and had to backtrack, but otherwise quick and smooth). There’s one particular digit that you can place all of almost immediately (at least up to numerator vs denominator), which makes for a good break in (and there’s an obvious candidate to look at for roughly the same reasons it would stand out in kropki).
I will be sort of disappointed if you and Detuned don’t collaborate on one of these and make a Tom/Tom Tom/Tom. Heck, find a way for the digit set to be three unknown digits repeated twice, and ciphered with the letters T, O and M, so you can have a Tom/Tom TOMTOM Tom/Tom…
Maybe they should make a deal with Yamaha to get puzzles printed on those instruments. Then we might be able to buy a Tom/Tom TOMTOM Tom/Tom tom-tom.
Okay, so indulge me for a moment here. This is the first time I ever got a better score than Grandmaster, coming in at 2:28.
The path ran almost too smoothly for me from the bottom row, compelling the 5/2’s in the bottom right corner, and then the 6/1 in the other corner, all compelling the 3/6 x 4 in the same region and there wasn’t much to do after that.
I gotta ask … if an old snail like me nailed this one with such ease, what took you young speedsters so long?
Thanks for the momentary ego-trip.
TheSubro