Changes to the Weekly Competition website

[ichcubegerne]

Oof, I didnt got a 15 puzzle or a curvy copter yet :/
Means ill miss out some points sadly

 

[ichcubegerne]

You should maybe include the standard orientation for Mirror Blocks, which is flat up, thick forwards

 

[Mike Hughey]

The new icons are now up. Much thanks to ichcubegerne, who provided the icons for 15 puzzle, mirror blocks, and speed FMC, and to Sion, who provided the icon for curvy copter!

 

[Dream Cubing]

For the 15 puzzle on the forum comp, can I use any app/software or do I have to use a real puzzle?
Also, for speed FMC, when do I stop the timer? After I write down my solution on paper or typing it in?

 

[ImmolatedMarmoset]

No, you need to use a real 15 puzzle. Not sure about the speed FMC

 

[Mike Hughey]

For the 15 puzzle on the forum comp, can I use any app/software or do I have to use a real puzzle?
Also, for speed FMC, when do I stop the timer? After I write down my solution on paper or typing it in?

As ImmolatedMarmoset said, we do expect you to use a real 15 puzzle. The weekly competition is intended to be a real puzzle competition, not a simulator competition, and it is likely that possible speeds on 15 puzzle would be much faster on a simulator than on a real puzzle. To be fair, this should definitely be done on a real puzzle only.

As for speed FMC, typing it in is not considered part of the event; we assume this would be participated in exactly as in a real competition for regular FMC, where the time applies to writing down a solution that is clearly indicated as your answer. Stop the timer after your solution is fully written down. That is why the software allows you to type in the results after the timer is stopped. Use the spacebar (or timer pad for mobile) to start and stop the timer for the attempt, and then type in your result in the solution and explanation spaces after having stopped the timer.

 

[ichcubegerne]

For the 15 puzzle on the forum comp, can I use any app/software or do I have to use a real puzzle?
Also, for speed FMC, when do I stop the timer? After I write down my solution on paper or typing it in?

Honestly I made myself a paper 15-puzzle until I get my real one

 

[Claudio Garanzini]

Hi Mike! Just one little thing: for blind people the site is really good, in my opinion, congratulations for that! One little thing: could you please make the online timer so that it could be activated with the keyboard, like pushing space or something like that? I've tested it but it's somewhat impossible to activate it for us. Could you also ad an audible signal when the timer starts and when it stops? These little changes could make the competition site more accessible also for us. Thanks for your help! Bye for now!

Claudio

 

[ichcubegerne]

Hi Mike! Just one little thing: for blind people the site is really good, in my opinion, congratulations for that! One little thing: could you please make the online timer so that it could be activated with the keyboard, like pushing space or something like that? I've tested it but it's somewhat impossible to activate it for us. Could you also ad an audible signal when the timer starts and when it stops? These little changes could make the competition site more accessible also for us. Thanks for your help! Bye for now!

Claudio

What exactly do you mean? The integrated timer is getting activated with any keyboard button

 

[Mike Hughey]

Hi Mike! Just one little thing: for blind people the site is really good, in my opinion, congratulations for that! One little thing: could you please make the online timer so that it could be activated with the keyboard, like pushing space or something like that? I've tested it but it's somewhat impossible to activate it for us. Could you also ad an audible signal when the timer starts and when it stops? These little changes could make the competition site more accessible also for us. Thanks for your help! Bye for now!

Claudio

Thanks so much for the suggestions!

Actually, the timer already works with the spacebar, but what is probably keeping it from seeming to work for you is that we have implemented a couple of features that are useful, but not intuitive (and maybe not useful) for blind users, at least one of which is on by default.

The first is a start timer delay. This makes it such that you have to hold the spacebar down for a full second before the timer will start. This is done to duplicate the stack mat timers that we use in competition. The text changes color when it is ready to start, but of course that doesn't help you. There is a menu option called "settings" on the competition's webpage. On that page there is an option for "disable start timer delay". If you select that, the delay will no longer happen. It saves this setting once you make it for your particular device. I suspect disabling this will help you.

Also there is another setting on that Settings page to allow "WCA Inspection". If this is turned on, it will start a 15 second inspection timer, with audible warnings at 8 seconds and 12 seconds, a notification at 15 seconds that you have received a 2 second penalty, and a notification at 17 seconds that you have received a DNF for taking too long in inspection. You then have to use the spacebar again to start the timer before the inspection time expires. You might try it - you might find it useful.

But I completely agree that an audible beep to indicate starting and stopping the timer would be a great idea, at least as an option. I will try to add it for you when I have the chance, but there are some other features that must be included first. I'll let you personally know when I implement it someday. Thanks for the suggestion!

 

[Claudio Garanzini]

Hi Mike! Thank you very much for your answer! I'll try to "see" the settings in the page you suggested! I'll let you know how it works in my experience. Thank you again! Bye for now!

Here I am Again: the timer is just great, really! I've been able to post my first five times; I'm not as good as other cubers; I'm just running for my sub 5 minutes objective; I'll try to go down, obviusly with my times but. This is a great result for mee; kthank you again for this page, Mike.
Just a quick question: could I post my results in the page despite the fact I've different objectives like, as said, the under 5 minutes one or? If this is not the case, I'll delete my records so someone else can post better times than mine.
Thanks again.
Bye for now

 

[One Wheel]

Not sure if this is the right place to suggest this, but for Curvy Copter scrambles, would it be possible to use brackets or commas for jumbling that ends in cube shape, and maybe some line breaks, so instead of:

UF UR UL UF UR UB UL UF UR UL UF UL UF UR UL RF UF UL UB UR LB UL UF UR LB UB LB UB UL RB UB RB UB UR LF UF UL LB RF UR RB LF UL LF DB LB RB UR UF DF RF DR DF DR UL- RF- UF UL+ RF+ UR+ LF+ UF UR- LF- UL+ RB+ UB UL- RB- LB RB+ DF+ DR RB- DF- DF LB+ DR+ DB LB- DR- LB UB DF+ LF DF+2 RF+2 DR DB DR+ RF+ LF LB DB LB+2 UB+ LB UB LB+ LF RF- DR

It would look like:

UF UR UL UF UR UB UL UF UR UL UF UL UF UR UL RF UF UL UB UR LB UL UF UR LB UB LB UB UL RB UB RB UB UR LF UF UL LB RF UR RB LF UL LF DB LB RB UR UF DF RF DR DF DR
[UL- RF- UF UL+ RF+] [UR+ LF+ UF UR- LF-] [UL+ RB+ UB UL- RB-] LB [RB+ DF+ DR RB- DF-] DF [LB+ DR+ DB LB- DR-]
LB UB DF+ LF DF+2 RF+2 DR DB DR+ RF+ LF LB DB LB+2 UB+ LB UB LB+ LF RF- DR

I'm not sure how difficult it would be to implement, but it would make the scrambles easier to follow.

 

[KingCanyon]

Hi Mike! Thank you very much for your answer! I'll try to "see" the settings in the page you suggested! I'll let you know how it works in my experience. Thank you again! Bye for now!

Here I am Again: the timer is just great, really! I've been able to post my first five times; I'm not as good as other cubers; I'm just running for my sub 5 minutes objective; I'll try to go down, obviusly with my times but. This is a great result for mee; kthank you again for this page, Mike.
Just a quick question: could I post my results in the page despite the fact I've different objectives like, as said, the under 5 minutes one or? If this is not the case, I'll delete my records so someone else can post better times than mine.
Thanks again.
Bye for now

Anyone can put their results on the page, regardless of speed. You should definitely be good for that.

 

[ichcubegerne]

Curvy copter scramble 5 had the following sequence : UL+ RB+ UB UL- RB- UL+ RB+ UB UL- RB- which is doing nothing^^

 

[Mike Hughey]

Curvy copter scramble 5 had the following sequence : UL+ RB+ UB UL- RB- UL+ RB+ UB UL- RB- which is doing nothing^^

I have noticed this a couple of times as well, on this and previous scrambles. I will try to contact the scramble generator author about it.

I'm hoping it's just some weird quirk of the way the scrambles are generated and that it doesn't affect its validity as a random state scrambler. But I don't know.

@One Wheel, as for alternative scramble formats, I'd like to try several out, and I can include that one, but that will come later when I have more time. I hope I will get to it, but it may be a few months before I do.

 

[Kit Clement]

I'd personally like to see UL+ RB+ UB UL- RB- be simplified to UBJ+, but the bracket notation would definitely be a step up.

 

[ichcubegerne]

Quick question: For 15 Puzzle, can you maybe give us the option to just view the scrambled puzzle (as a string of numbers and a - for the blank spot for example) instead of the scramble? Putting the tiles in the spots on the qiyi is WAYYYY faster then doing all these moves^^

 

[ProStar]

Quick question: For 15 Puzzle, can you maybe give us the option to just view the scrambled puzzle (as a string of numbers and a - for the blank spot for example) instead of the scramble? Putting the tiles in the spots on the qiyi is WAYYYY faster then doing all these moves^^

Agree

 

[Mike Hughey]

Quick question: For 15 Puzzle, can you maybe give us the option to just view the scrambled puzzle (as a string of numbers and a - for the blank spot for example) instead of the scramble? Putting the tiles in the spots on the qiyi is WAYYYY faster then doing all these moves^^

This is a good idea, and I would like to implement it, but I probably can't get to it until I do the other alternate scrambles (such as curvy copter) as well. So this will go on the list of things to do. I'll try to put up a number of alternate scrambles for things when the time comes.

 

[xyzzy]

I'll try to put up a number of alternate scrambles for things when the time comes.

SiGN for big cubes! (I requested this quite a while ago; just a reminder~)