@ Ryan: Then perhaps for corners you could try to do the name-person-action type thingy as in my post on the previous page.
Just find some words for every sticker that are easily recognizable for you.
Edges and corners do not have to be the same memo style.
i'll try, although I don't really understand how the name/person/action concept applies to the stickers. i suppose i'l go read more up on it to try and understand
dunno. i just did a try, 3:30 for edge memo, corners...around 16 minutes
My edge memo was
Special victims question jay about losing fights N
corner memo was kites gust over seas ...something.. promising ryan vows x
i know the corner memo was 9 total, i'm just missing something there
23 minutes some total dnf. anyway, lettering isn't cutting it
@Ryan: I definitely recommend an auditory system for corners. I use single syllable words for corners, with prepared words for all cases, and corner memo is just so quick and simple with such a system. Do some research on auditory memory if you're curious. There is something called the 10 second auditory loop, and this is how you are memorizing. It takes literally no effort to memorize this way, as your brain is wired to do this automatically. Utilize what your body is capable of instinctually without effort, and this will speed up your memorization - and make it easier to do as well!
@ everyone: Another method that I used to be a fan of is linked lists. It's difficult to do many solves in a row this way because of massive memorization interference, but it makes for super easy and fast single solves.
AFERHDJ using linked lists would be a story, but not exactly journey style. Each letter is an image that has that letter as it's first letter.
So my images would be: Alligator Phone (PH is like F) Elephant Rhino Hitler Dark Knight (a.k.a. Batman) Jubilee (from X-men)
Now the way you memorize this is by using the linked lists method. My visualization would be the following. WARNING I am not being polite with this memorization list at ALL. I am typing quite literally what I would memorize with this list. One of the things the memory experts told me was to go so over the top funny/bloody/violent/sexual that you can't help but memorize it. This list is an example of a particularly violent list, but it's vivid enough that I guarantee that it would be easy to memorize.
I picture an Alligator moving it's mouth up and down. I am picturing it as if I am right in the Alligator's face and about to be bitten. I then zoom out my mental image a bit and see that in fact the Alligator is not chewing, but is in fact talking on a Phone. An Elephant standing next to the Alligator is angry at the noise and trumpets into the phone to get the Alligator to hang up. I am imaging a sort of side scrolling from left to right here to give you some context. The elephant is so angry, and trumpets so hard, that it farts onto a Rhino standing behind it. This makes the Rhino so angry that it runs a bit to the right and charges right into Hitler, mauling him to a bloody pulp of broken bones and bodily fluids leaking everywhere. The Dark Knight (Batman) laughs at the mangled dead body of Hitler, and walks over and kicks it. Standing behind Batman, Jubilee from the X-men shoots the Dark Knight with her sparks and energy field, presumably because she was mad at Batman for kicking the dead body for some reason. Batman is blinded by the sparks, trips and falls onto the dead body, getting blood and guts all over himself.
Linked lists are easy to memorize with, because they are so vivid and easy to picture/remember. This is also their downfall, because it is difficult to forget what you just memorized and start fresh with a new solve. I find it to be a very quick technique for memorizing, but don't expect good solve times for anything more than 1 or 2 solves in a row memorizing this way.
Still, that's the way to go. As I'm reading your memos that you've written down, these are more or less random words put after each other. Human brain sucks at remembering stuff like this. You should choose words that you can actually visualize and use to build sentences, and forget words like "questionable" right away. Take a look at the words in the memo Chris proposed for example.
If you find that you're taking a long time finding out words on the fly, you should sit down once and write your own list. I suggest that you only choose nouns, this way you can fill in the verbs (and thus the story) when memoing the actual cube.
You probably should try not to build one word out of every letter you memorise. Try to connect two or four words (I memo in groups of 4 letters) into a single word or something else you associate with. For example your first memo:
vagina juice xtra hot that a lick must questionable **** pussy
which I assume is VJXH TALM QFP, I would just rely on sound and visual memory to remember those. Which means I'll pronounce the words in my head (VaJ XaH, Talm (direct pronounciation, like 'calm', QueFoP). The first 4 letters are tough because it's easy for me to confuse with other letters that have the same sounds eg FaJ SaH, etc. So I'd visualise the first four letters in my head just to make sure I see those letters when I pronounce them and not get confused.
You probably should try not to build one word out of every letter you memorise. Try to connect two or four words (I memo in groups of 4 letters) into a single word or something else you associate with. For example your first memo:
vagina juice xtra hot that a lick must questionable **** pussy
which I assume is VJXH TALM QFP, I would just rely on sound and visual memory to remember those. Which means I'll pronounce the words in my head (VaJ XaH, Talm (direct pronounciation, like 'calm', QueFoP). The first 4 letters are tough because it's easy for me to confuse with other letters that have the same sounds eg FaJ SaH, etc. So I'd visualise the first four letters in my head just to make sure I see those letters when I pronounce them and not get confused.
As corny as it may sound, using your seHsual imagination REALLY helps with remembering stuff. I wont tell what my images are, but when letterpairs such as SM, DP, GH, AM and others come I always remember them.
I make a song. I use pieces in positions and give them a letter of the alphabet like lots do. But instead of story, I use a song. Usually a rap.
BTW
I'm not that into BLD, so I use old Pochmann.
I do not suggest anyone use my memo method. It's quite stupid, in my own opinion, but it's secure.
When I solve BLD, I use a 4-step system.
These steps are corner orientation, edge orientation, corner permutation, and edge permutation.
Abbreviated, they are CO, EO, CP, and EP, respectively.
You may be thinking that from this stance, doing stuff like EO is lol, and that I should just learn M2. I will in due time, but for now, this is my own self-taught way of doing BLD.
So! My memo for edges is lettering, and for corners, numbers substitute.
The letters for the edges denote individual piece targets, not a sticker of a piece (e.g. I would memo the UF edge instead of the UF sticker). The same goes for corners.
I use two buffer pieces: UR for edges, UBL for corners. Considering I use a self-taught Old Pochmann variant, I use set-ups and the T/Y/J-perms for permutation with R-perm for even cycle parity, as would a normal OP user. Additionally, since orientation is involved, I use Sune and Sexy variants for corner orientation, and pure algorithms for edge orientation.
In basic terms, I memo as such:
Visual corner orientation with planning
Visual edge orientation with planning
Lettered edge permutation cycles
Numbered corner permutation cycles
Count amount of corner permutation targets (odd = even cycle parity, even = no parity).
I always keep white on U, green on F while memoing and executing, between algs that is.
The lettering and numbering systems are:
For edges:
White is U, green is F.
UL = A
FL = B
DL = C
BL = D
UB = E
UF = F
DF = G
DB = H
UR = I (buffer)
FR = J
DR = K
BR = L
Now since we have the notation system down, let's get into execution:
I use set-ups, TYJ, and pure orientation algorithms, as stated before. Here is the order in which I execute:
CO
CP
EO
EP
It's different than the memo in that CP shifts from last in memo to second executed, reinserting itself between the orientation steps.
For future reference, parity can go virtually after any step after CP (i.e. after CP, EO, or EP).
Let's start with CO execution:
I separate into layers. If I have one of the OCLLs on top, it's quite obvious another OCLL will be on the bottom. The same principle works if a non-OCLL is on top/bottom.
Let's take this example for an OCLL that can be solved with Sune variants:
Scramble: R2 D' R2 U R' F2 U F2 U' R2 D R' U'.
This is an optimal solution for the headlights OCLL case. Using Sune and its variants, I can do (R U2 R' U' R' U' R')(L' U2 L U L' U L) to solve the orientation in a pure fashion.
And then, this other example in which I would execute in two steps:
Scramble: F U D R' D' L D' L D' R D2 L2 U' F.
This one deals with corners UBR, UFL, and DFR.
I’d first notice that the corner in the UBR position needs to be twisted anticlockwise (in the “2” position, I’d call it, for my own commutatortastic reasons to be explained shortly), as does the UFL corner.
I’d group these as follows:
Twist UBR anticlockwise and UFL clockwise, as the pure “bowtie” OCLL, and then, after an x rotation, twist the other two corners in the same way.
Thus, I’d execute:
(R U2 R' U2 R' U' R U' R' U2 R U2 R U R' U) [x U’] (R U2 R' U2 R' U' R U' R' U2 R U2 R U R' U) [U x’]
The first portion orients the UBR corner as if it were in a bowtie case. Then the last part orients the other two corners, which are actually then put into the bowtie case.
Note: R U2 R' U2 R' U' R U' R' U2 R U2 R U R' U is a pure bowtie algorithm.
So basically, group all the oppositely-oriented pieces as pairs and orient. OCLLs make this step nice. So do CO skips for a layer. Maybe two, if you’re lucky. =D
Next comes CP.
After corners are oriented (with U/D stickers on U/D faces), I execute the string of numbers I memo’d.
Scramble: F2 D2 R2 U F2 D F2 D' B2 U' B2 D' R2 F2 U'.
Since I use UBL as a buffer (the “1” corner piece position), I look for the place where the “1” corner needs to go, and in this case, it needs to go to DBR, or the “6” position.
From 6 --> 5,
From 5 --> 2,
From 2 --> 4,
From 4 to buffer.
Since there are corners we haven’t covered yet, I know we’ll need to break into a new cycle.
This first part would be memo’d as 6524.
Since the “3” corner is unsolved, We then add onto “6524”, “3”, to form “65243”.
3 --> 8 --> 7 --> 3.
Thus, “65243873”.
And that’s the memo for corner permutation. This is done last in memo, so it’s easy to recall right after quick CO.
Since this corner orientation string has an even number of targets, this case requires no even cycle parity. Yippee!
Now, to execute:
6: R2 (Y perm) R2
5: D F2 (Y perm) F2 D’
2: U (L perm) U’
4: (Y perm)
3: U2 (J perm) U2
8: D R2 (Y perm) R2 D’
7: F2 (Y perm) F2
3: U2 (J perm) U2
Where Y-perm is the dual OLL, L-perm is (R’ U2 R U R’ U2 L U’ R U L’) or (x U2 r’ U r U2 l’ U R’ U’ l2), and J-perm is T-permish.
Next, EO:
Visualize the disoriented edges. Pair them up to form groups of 2 adjacent, 2 across, and four flip. Use minimal set-ups to avoid room for error.
Adjacent 2-flip: R U R’ U’ r’ U2 R U R U’ R2’ U2 r.
Across 2-flip: M’ U M’ U M’ U M’ U M’ U’ M’ U’ M’ U’ M’ U’.
4-flip: M’ U M’ U M’ U M’ U’ M’ U M’ U M’ U M’ U’.
Next, EP:
This step requires the most recall, the most memo, and the most finger tricks.
Scramble: U2 R2 B2 L2 D B2 U' L D2 U2 R' D B2 L2 D'.
Since UR (the I piece) is buffer, and all edges are oriented, there are only 11 targets for the buffer to go.
In this case, the buffer needs to go from I --> B.
B --> J --> D --> A --> I.
Since “I” is buffer, we need to break into a new cycle.
Thus:
C --> G --> H --> E --> L --> F --> K --> C.
In all, BJDACGHELFKC.
Or, BJ DAC GHELF KC.
I just remember it by trying to pronounce it, or by coming up with something to memo it with.
I’d say “Bizh dack gelf casey”, and I’d remember BJDACGHELFKC.
Simple as that.
So, I’d execute:
B : L’ (T perm) L
J : d2 L (T perm) L’ d2
D : L (T perm) L’
A : (T perm)
C : L2 (T perm) L2
G : l2 (L perm) l2
H : l2 (J perm) l2
E : (l perm)
L : d2 L’ (T perm) L d2
F : (J perm)
K : D2 L2 (T perm) L2 D2
C : L2 (T perm) L2.
