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[Help Thread] Clock Discussion

I want to get into Clock and with my cheat-sheet I know how to solve it (sometimes).

Now my big question is:
Can someone explain me how to read scrambles?
For example this one:
UUdd u=4,d=-2 / dUdU u=-1,d=5 / ddUU u=-2,d=2 / UdUd u=-4,d=-1 / dUUU u=3 / UdUU u=-2 / UUUd u=2 / UUdU u=6 / UUUU u=-4 / dddd d=-1 / dUdU


Thanks!
 
U means the pin is up, d means the pin is down. There are 4 pins and you read them from left-to-right and top-to-bottom. So UUdd means that the 2 top pins are up and the 2 botton pins are down.
u=4 means you turn a corner that influences the up pins 4 hours clockwise
d=-2 means you turn a corner that influences the down pins 2 hour counterclockwise
 
What is the difference between "Jaap order" and "efficient pin order" scrambles on qqTimer? How do I understand the concise order scrambles? Also, which does the WCA use?

The Jaap order is the common one used a few posts back, so:
Both top pins up, then both right pins, then both bottom pins, then both left pins, etc.
I don't use efficient order so I don't know about that one
And the concise order implies the Jaap pin order, but leaves out the pin order as it is the same every time. So the first move in a concise scrambles translates as
(4, -2) / => UUdd U=4 d=-2

Starting this year, the WCA uses a scramble notation that is unlike all these examples. It's easy enough to pick up but also not used anywhere else so can be disorienting to start off with!
 
The Jaap order is the common one used a few posts back, so:
Both top pins up, then both right pins, then both bottom pins, then both left pins, etc.
I don't use efficient order so I don't know about that one
And the concise order implies the Jaap pin order, but leaves out the pin order as it is the same every time. So the first move in a concise scrambles translates as
(4, -2) / => UUdd U=4 d=-2

Starting this year, the WCA uses a scramble notation that is unlike all these examples. It's easy enough to pick up but also not used anywhere else so can be disorienting to start off with!

Oh, okay, I see

So, if I want to practice with the WCA style scrambles the only thing I can do is to generate them?
 
Oh, okay, I see

So, if I want to practice with the WCA style scrambles the only thing I can do is to generate them?

I guess so, I've never bothered with it because it's such a trivial thing xD I find Jaap order is easier to scramble with, but that may be because I've done it 1000;s of times... Also WCA scrambles have a rotation in >.<
 
How do you read WCA scramble notation for clock?
It's explained in the Notation article of the WCA regs.

WCA regs said:
12g) Notation for Clock:
12g1) The puzzle is oriented with twelve on top, and either side in front.
12g2) Move pins up: UR (top-right), DR (bottom-right), DL (bottom-left), UL (top-left), U (both top), R (both right), D (both bottom), L (both left), ALL (all).
12g3) Turn a wheel next to an up-position pin and move all pins down afterwards: x+ (x clockwise turns), x- (x anti-clockwise turns).
12g4) Turn around the puzzle so that twelve is still on top, and then move all pins down: y2.
 
Is there any writeup for how to solve a clock no flip? I know it's intuitive but I'm lazy AF and don't wanna think about it.
The same way you solve a clock normally, but you memo all the first face moves and execute them on the back? Because it's the same method I don't think it really warrants a separate write-up...
And seeing as it's an inspection heavy method I think you just need to suck it up and give it the thought it needs - it's not easy (I've never used or needed it to get sub-8 averages) and it demands so much consistency!

IMO, solving the clock in a standard way (eg using the Pochmann order) is faster on 95% of scrambles (the 5% being where one face can be solved in a couple of moves) because you can plan two moves on first face easy and the rest is trackable so first face can be done really fast, and you can still work out first move on second face also. If you're concerned about rotations slowing your time, practise the rotations themselves, and make sure you rotate so that you don't have to do a pin adjustment afterwards.
 
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