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Fridrich Method

Mason

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Apr 8, 2008
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I would like to learn the F2L (I think I've finally figured out some terms), but every video I watch is just so confusing. Also, is the F2L ONLY used for the first two layers, or you can use it to solve the entire cube?
 

Dene

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Umm, well F2L literally means First Two Layers, so yes. Maybe if you were Yish you could solve the whole cube just using F2L (lol). But no, I'm only joking. After the F2L you have to solve the last layer differently, usually done using OLL and PLL.
 

DAE_JA_VOO

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Badmephisto's NEW F2L videos are best. There's two of them that he made a short while ago. I learned F2L from them. What's so great about them is that they're intuitive, and AFAIK, you can be SUPER fast if you do intuitive F2L. Watch the videos over and over if you don't catch it the first time.
 

pcwiz

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Yes, Badmephisto's NEW F2L videos are much easier to understand than his old ones.

Here they are:
Part 1:http://youtube.com/watch?v=k-xbcAMfWwM&feature=PlayList&p=0B7E0E5922B76D76&index=7
Part2:http://youtube.com/watch?v=4GxLM_dZqg4&feature=PlayList&p=0B7E0E5922B76D76&index=6

You should be able to understand them, as they are one of the easiest to understand out of all of the F2L videos.

What the F2L videos are teaching you is INTUITIVE F2L. If you don't know what that is, it's solving the First Two Layers logically. For the Fridrich F2L algorithms, there are 41 algorithms to learn, but you should learn the intuitive F2L FIRST. It requires no algorithms, and once you get used to it, it can become really fast. Most of the F2L algorithms are based on the intuitive F2L, and you should probably learn the algorithms LATER because a few of them are a little different and faster than the intuitive F2L. Obviously, you can't show 41 algorithms in a video (well you can but it's pointless) so if you want to learn the algorithms, you'll have to look at images.

F2L stands for First Two Layers, and using algorithms or intuitive for the First Two Layers cannot solve the rest of the cube. When doing Fridrich F2L, you're pairing up a corner piece and an edge piece. It won't work on the cross or Last Layer so the answer is, you can't use F2L to solve the rest of the cube. Unfortunately, you'll have to learn different algorithms for the Last Layer. The cross doesn't need algorithms because it's not based on algorithms.

Once you get the idea of intuitive F2L, it will START OUT to be slower than layer-by-layer. No need to worry, as if you keep practicing and learn tricks on your own, you'll be so used to it that it will be faster than layer-by-layer. It will take a few days but never give up!

Also, I would recommend learning the 4 Look last layer or getting your times faster with the layer-by-layer method before learning any F2L. Try to get to down to 1 minute, and learn 4 Look Last Layer first (orienting edges, orienting corners, permuting corners, permuting edges) and then start learn F2L. You want to try to get the Last Layer faster than your layer-by-layer first to layers, and then start getting your F2L faster. If you don't already, lubricate your cube and use finger tricks! That will help a lot! :)

I hoped this helped you and everyone else! :)
 
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blgentry

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F2L isn't too bad to learn, but it took me a while to find a tutorial that I could understand. This one by "HaloSnyper18" is surprisingly good. What I like the most about this one is that he goes *very* slow so you can see exactly what is going on.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=W5P6f0KTMxs

He doesn't come out and say so, but the F2L basically breaks down into 5 cases, two of which are mirrors. These "cases" are the "ready to solve" cases. All of the other 37 (or whatever the exact number is) can be transformed into one of these 5.

I'll attempt to elaborate if it doesn't make sense after you watch the video.

Brian.
 

Mason

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Apr 8, 2008
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I'm still so confuzzled! Maybe I'm not ready for F2L... I can do the beginner layer by layer method, but is there more that I should know before attempting F2L?
 

badmephisto

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HaloSnypers vid is pretty decent but i dont think its good either, maybe someone would disagree. It has no structure and the whole thing is one cut. Also, at the end he is thinking about whether or not he covered everything, which just shows that he didn't even really think it through before he pushed the RECORD button.

People point to my videos and say they are good, but they are good for a REASON:
1. I go over ideas for the video for at least a week, just thinking about what I could talk about
2. I plan out the entire video in point form in Notepad
3. I take at least 5 hours of recording time for those 10 minutes, because I usually take anywhere from 3-15 takes of one single shot and then watch and re-watch them all to take the one where I make most sense
4. I spend at least 2 days editing the video in a professional video editing program

My point is that if some guy could beat that in a single non-coherent cut then I clearly fail at teaching, but so far at least from what I've seen, and again, from my point of view, noone got too close.

Anyway, I am sorry my video didn't help you. If you have some specific questions you can always ask here on the boards or you can message me here or on youtube. There are plenty of other sources you can learn F2L from. For example here you have list of solutions for all cases you can run into while solving F2L:
http://www.cubestation.co.uk/cs2/index.php?page=3x3x3/cfop/f2l/f2l

If you do manage to figure it out from some other source then I would be interested in hearing what it was.
 

Mason

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Apr 8, 2008
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I'm sorry if it sounded like I was criticizing your video. I can tell that it's good, apparently, based on the comments. Don't worry, it's just myself that's unable to follow the video. I'm going to try to watch your video a few more times, just in case something magically clicks together and your video suddenly makes me realize that I can do F2L.
:)
 

blgentry

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Badmephisto,

Your videos are actually pretty good. Well, beyond "pretty good" to be fair. It's clear that you have taken ample time to think them through and try to really "teach".

My memory isn't clear on whether I watched your "version 1" F2L video or your newer ones when I was trying to learn, but I suspect I watched the first, orginal ones before you made the improvements.

I'll be the first to admit that HaloSnyper is rather casual, not incredibly articulate, and has fair to not so great production values. What "worked" for me about his video was a combination of a few factors:

1. Cube close up. For a beginner, focusing on the cube itself is quite important. I see lots of people, either showing off, or thinking they are teaching, showing the cube from 3rd person point of view. That simply doesn't work. First person (as badmephisto has done) is the only way to fly when trying to teach cube technique. Being in close helps too.

2. For the easy cases, such as the classic R U R' , one is tempted go just "do the insert" as it's super fast, and seems so glaringly obvious after you've done it hundreds of times. But for someone who has never seen it before, you might need to explain how it works. Show that the first R turn pairs the cubies together. Then show that you are moving the pair together. ...and finally show that the pair is being inserted into the proper slot. The point I'm making is to ease the beginner into the method, and show the rationale behind it. Sometimes when you are showing techniques, you are very, very patient in explaining how to position everything, but when you do the actual insert, it's too fast for an absolute beginner to follow.

That's really all I can think of. Now that I know F2L relatively well, watching your videos, I just nod along thinking "exactly; that's it". Slowing down here and there to illustrate the base fundamentals is the only thing that would make your tutorials truly great.

Brian.
 

badmephisto

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thanks blg, the biggest problem i have is that i already have a fairly firm "common sense" about the cube that I have built up in the previous year. Things that are obvious to me and not obvious to others, and finding these things is the hardest thing. That's why I was really against teaching the Beginner's method, even though people requested it a lot. I really didn't feel like I could go all the way back and teach a complete beginner. And I think that my Beginner's tuts are probably not best either because of that exact problem. For precisely that reason I will from now on concentrate on advanced stuff.
 

pcwiz

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I'm still so confuzzled! Maybe I'm not ready for F2L... I can do the beginner layer by layer method, but is there more that I should know before attempting F2L?

Also, I would recommend learning the 4 Look last layer or getting your times faster with the layer-by-layer method before learning any F2L. Try to get to down to 1 minute, and learn 4 Look Last Layer first (orienting edges, orienting corners, permuting corners, permuting edges) and then start learn F2L. You want to try to get the Last Layer faster than your layer-by-layer first to layers, and then start getting your F2L faster. If you don't already, lubricate your cube and use finger tricks! That will help a lot!

I just said this before in a post earlier in this thread, but if you still don't understand it, just learn some tips on how to get faster, so you are more familiar with the cube, and then you might be able to understand F2L.
 
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