CubingHistory.com: Recording the history of the puzzle community

[Christopher Mowla]

- Archive websites and information that can no longer be maintained.​

• Wrongway.org was one of the first websites I saw when I began cubing. (Includes the code for a 4x4x4 solver that used to run on the site.)
  • Speaking of 4x4x4 solvers, I provide some details about @cuBerBruce's solver and @clement's solvers in this post.
  • Also, Ben Whitmore's KSolve++, which has been used to solve a variety of 4x4x4 positions optimally (in a constrained move set) . . . Originally posted here on reddit, but mod-bot deleted his post for no good reason (even the wayback machine backups of the page were captured too late . . . after the post was deleted)!
• I recently posted a PDF capture of the 4x4x4 Sandwich method. (See the External links of the Sandwich method wiki page. Internal hyperlinks work when the PDF is saved to your PC and opened from there . . . not from a web browser.)
  • Before @Kirjava's Original K4 Method website was replaced by the new one, I made this webcrawl capture.

Also, just a general tool, it appears that Google sucks when trying to find old speedsolving.com threads, at least. I find that https://yandex.com/ is much better (can find old threads that Google can't).

 

[Athefre]

If you are taking tips for improvement, here are mines. Feel free to disregard all of them if you don´t like them as those are just my personal preferences.

1. for mobile users, tapping on buttons might be a bit difficult - use the buttonheight parameter to increase the height of buttons for more comfortable tappings. Feel free to increase text size (the textsize parameter) as well.
2. for users not familiarized with the simulator, use the butbgcolor to let them know (by a distinct color) buttons are clickable - although the default color of buttons is also fine in my opinion
3. use the same color scheme as the solver (maybe you already checked this? I think some especially Asian cubers were known for using white opposite blue)
4. provide scrambles - they could be written as text on your page, linked to WCA page from your page or written as text comment directly in the simulator
5. similar to the previous step, use text comment to indicate at which step the solver is (like Xcross, EOLine, OLLCP, CMLL or ZBLL). Some users could be interested in the cube being used or some statistics like TPS
6. I don´t really know what is the preffered metric for speedcubers - if it is STM, switch to STM
7. if you are showing hint stickers, why not to show them all in 1 look?
8. aside from "viewers", some users might be "players" - they might want to play with a scramble, try a different algorithm than the solver one´s etc. For "players", unless you want to simulate lock ups, consider the snap=1 setting - "viewers" won´t see the difference, for "players" the simulator will be more user friendly I would say

An extreme/speedsolving idea I actually don´t like (listing it here as an concept):

• use roughly the same animation speed as the solver - would be too fast to follow for non-cubers, plus text comments would not be easily readable unless single-stepping forward

Example for Erik´s 7.08 (watch till the end to see text comments):

Thanks for the suggestions. I looked all over the AnimCubeJS site for how to add comments. I also considered making the buttons larger, so I'll try it out along with some of the other ideas. What does number 7 mean?

Not sure how this can be fit in, but one of the main reasons the 4x4x4 parity algorithms speedsolving wiki page exists (doesn't just consist of a short list of algorithms like Lucas' Parity, 2 PLL parity algs, etc.) is to preserve that part of cubing history (roughly the time period from 2004 - 2012 . . . what I call "The Golden Era" of 4x4x4 parity algorithm exploration.)

For example,

• I provided external links the right-most cell of some of the "algorithm bars"/rows which brings up a post where the algorithm was first published on the web (which also gives the context / reason for the algorithm, what methods it can be used in, etc.)
• In the External links section, I have some web-captured some Yahoo Groups cubing pages that have now been deleted from the web. (Lost forever, should I have not captured the pages before Yahoo Groups was taken down by Yahoo.)

(This project of yours is a noble one, but if you didn't back up other Yahoo Groups pages before they were deleted, there is a big chunk of that cubing generation's history that has been lost. Some of the pages which began what we now know as the online cubing community have been lost forever!)

I do want to eventually add a big cube section to cover methods, notation, and everything else. I have been planning to contact you once I get to big cubes so that we can have some kind of big cube algorithm history page on the site. If you want, you can create a timeline with sources. Then I can write a page based on that. Or maybe you have a better idea.

I do have a copy of the entire Yahoo group, minus the user files section and the year and a half of messages that were deleted when Yahoo bought the group. This has greatly helped with my research and you can see the screenshots all over the site. It's also kind of fun because it's a nostalgic experience to go back and read the messages from the community where I started.

very cool site!

one thing I would question is saying that Iuri Grangeiro invented EOLR for Roux. I don't think anyone really "invented" it. many rouxers were doing it intuitively before there was a name for it

to give a cfop analogy, it's like saying that one person invented the concept of influencing EO during last slot

maybe a certain person coined the term, but not the concept

The site actually has me as the first inventor of EOLR in the initial "First Proposal and Development" sub section. I have been a Roux user since February, 2005 and can tell you that it's not a case of many using EOLR before there was a name. During the early years and up until I developed EOLR, most of the development focus was on things that can be combined with CMLL. But I had been experimenting a lot with LSE and was finding lots of neat tricks to solve EO and LR, which resulted in me developing the first version of what is now called EOLR. That is linked on the site as "Misoriented Centers Table" because I combined the misoriented centers technique from Gilles' site with my development of solving the LR edges with EO.

 

[bcube]

What does number 7 mean? I looked all over the AnimCubeJS site for how to add comments.

I have added one more suggestion to the list you quoted, be sure to check it out (by the way, for big cubes, you can still use applicable configuration file made for smaller cubes).

As for number 7, what colors does your DBL corner have? Sure, one can deduce it from the other visible stickers, but wouldn´t it be nicer for users to see all stickers (at least partially, or fully - it depends on you as a webmaster) all the time if you are already using hint stickers? (hinthoriz and/or hintvert parameters are what you are looking for)

As for text comments, they are described in the move parameter section. Or you can search "text comment" on the ACJS documentation page.

 

[Athefre]

• Wrongway.org was one of the first websites I saw when I began cubing. (Includes the code for a 4x4x4 solver that used to run on the site.)
  • Speaking of 4x4x4 solvers, I provide some details about @cuBerBruce's solver and @clement's solvers in this post.
  • Also, Ben Whitmore's KSolve++, which has been used to solve a variety of 4x4x4 positions optimally (in a constrained move set) . . . Originally posted here on reddit, but mod-bot deleted his post for no good reason (even the wayback machine backups of the page were captured too late . . . after the post was deleted)!
• I recently posted a PDF capture of the 4x4x4 Sandwich method. (See the External links of the Sandwich method wiki page. Internal hyperlinks work when the PDF is saved to your PC and opened from there . . . not from a web browser.)
  • Before @Kirjava's Original K4 Method website was replaced by the new one, I made this webcrawl capture.

Also, just a general tool, it appears that Google sucks when trying to find old speedsolving.com threads, at least. I find that https://yandex.com/ is much better (can find old threads that Google can't).

Thanks for the sources. They will be great to have on the site once I get to archiving sites. I'm hoping to have most sites working as direct pages stored on the site, with all of their applets and other content restored when necessary.

I have added one more suggestion to the list you quoted, be sure to check it out (by the way, for big cubes, you can still use applicable configuration file made for smaller cubes).

As for number 7, what colors does your DBL corner have? Sure, one can deduce it from the other visible stickers, but wouldn´t it be nicer for users to see all stickers (at least partially, or fully - it depends on you as a webmaster) all the time if you are already using hint stickers? (hinthoriz and/or hintvert parameters are what you are looking for)

As for text comments, they are described in the move parameter section. Or you can search "text comment" on the ACJS documentation page.

I see. Currently I have the hint stickers set to what looks visually appealing to me. I'll test moving them around. Thanks also for the suggestion to use the config parameter. If I ever have a page with numerous simulators, I'll look into that feature.

 

[bcube]

Thanks also for the suggestion to use the config parameter. If I ever have a page with numerous simulators, I'll look into that feature.

Just to be clear, I am not talking about numerous simulators being placed on 1 page, I am talking about all simulators (including all 2x2x2 - 7x7x7 cube sizes) on all your pages (i.e. your entire web site). That´s where the config parameter is the most powerful. If you are aware of the concept of cascade styles (CSS), there is a perfect parallel to the config parameter - although not necesarry for a webmaster to use CSS, it can greatly simplify his/her web pages maintainance because by a single file edit he/she can set a lot of pages at once (the config parameter allows you to set a lot of simulator functionalities on a lot of simulators at once).

 

[Athefre]

Just to be clear, I am not talking about numerous simulators being placed on 1 page, I am talking about all simulators (including all 2x2x2 - 7x7x7 cube sizes) on all your pages (i.e. your entire web site). That´s where the config parameter is the most powerful. If you are aware of the concept of cascade styles (CSS), there is a perfect parallel to the config parameter - although not necesarry for a webmaster to use CSS, it can greatly simplify his/her web pages maintainance because by a single file edit he/she can set a lot of pages at once (the config parameter allows you to set a lot of simulator functionalities on a lot of simulators at once).

Got it. I'll update the simulators and try implementing the config parameter. I can see the benefit of common settings being within a single file, preventing the need to go through every page and make updates to each individual simulator.

I'll also credit you on the main page for your AnimCubeJS help and suggestions. Michael Feather as well for fixing some issues.

 

[bcube]

Rubix may be one that most people don't know of. (Gabbasoft and ultimate magic cube were the popular ones.)

Do you still remember Rubik Unbound? Click on the dropdown to see or even play with the applet.

I think the first time I saw it was on Chris Hardwick´s site in 2004 (see section Play with the Cube), when the applet was already 8 years old! Fun fact: did you know it was once used in the WCA regulations as a visual guide (see Article A)?

I don´t think there was a more popular applet on the web before Rubik Unbound among speedcubers. I don´t think there was a more influential applet among speedsolving programmers/webmasters before Rubik Unbound either.

Speaking of Gabbasoft and UMC, I was about to restore Gelatinbrain applets, only to find out it can currently still be accessed online.

I'll also credit you on the main page for your AnimCubeJS help and suggestions. Michael Feather as well for fixing some issues.

No need crediting me anywhere as all the hard work was done by programmers, leading by Michael.

 

[xyzzy]

(even the wayback machine backups of the page were captured too late . . . after the post was deleted)!

The earliest snapshot is fine: https://web.archive.org/web/2021040...ve_a_new_fast_general_puzzle_solving_program/

 

[Christopher Mowla]

Do you still remember Rubik Unbound? Click on the dropdown to see or even play with the applet.

Wrong link? (That's looks like the documentation page of Michael's applet.) But if you're talking about the applet shown on this page, it looks familiar. (But I didn't recognize or ever knew the name, Rubik Unbound.)

But I don't know why you are asking me about web applets, as I was talking about desktop applications.

 

[bcube]

Wrong link? (That's looks like the documentation page of Michael's applet.)

Works for me. Click on the dropdown at the top (Show AnimCubeJS evolution) and scroll down a little bit.

But I don't know why you are asking me about web applets, as I was talking about desktop applications.

I guess I have always been "player" so as long as cube is playable using mouse I don't really distinguish that much between online and offline software.

 

[Athefre]

The world record pages have been updated. They now include many of bcube's suggestions for the solve simulators. The biggest one for site viewers is that all cube solve simulators now include the scramble and steps in text comments. Check out the world record averages page to see that there are left and right buttons at the top of each simulator, allowing for viewing the solutions for all five solves in each average. Additional tables have been added to show solve statistics.

I also performed additional research on 3x3 slice turn notation. There have been a couple of mysteries. The first one being why M E S follows L D F instead of URF. Theories have been put forward. The most popular is that M, E, and S happen to be closer to L, D, and F in the alphabet than the respective U, R, and F. I explored the theories and included a new one of my own based on the evidence. The other mystery is knowing for sure the origin of the use of the letters M E S. It had already been narrowed down to Frans Schiereck based on the original Waterman booklet attributing the letters to Schiereck. I contacted Ron van Bruchem and he was able to provide me information from Schiereck's original book. Schiereck doesn't directly claim the first use of the letters, but he does include a word origin, which is the same as mentioned in the Waterman booklet. Middle, Equator, and Standing. So it is likely that his use is the first, and it is the first known publication.

Pages for the FTO methods Bencisco and Nautilus have been added.

 

[xyzzy]

(re: slice notation)

Theories have been put forward. The most popular is that M, E, and S happen to be closer to L, D, and F in the alphabet than the respective U, R, and F.

If we take Kirjava's post at face value, he's pointing out that S actually breaks the pattern that E and M follow. E is one letter after D and M is one letter after L, but S is thirteen letters after F.

S does, technically, come after F in the alphabet, but it also comes after B in the alphabet, so this is not an argument that S should follow F.

I'm not entirely certain what the origin of this theory is, but it definitely took off after J Perm mentioned it in his notation explainer video (2019-04-21). Would be interested if anyone can dig up pre-2019 mentions of this.

I explored the theories and included a new one of my own based on the evidence.

I think your theory is by far the most plausible, if it's not just coincidence to begin with. (I've independently come up with something similar a few years ago, and I feel like I've read someone else (not you or me) who also has done so.)

 

[Athefre]

(re: slice notation)


If we take Kirjava's post at face value, he's pointing out that S actually breaks the pattern that E and M follow. E is one letter after D and M is one letter after L, but S is thirteen letters after F.

S does, technically, come after F in the alphabet, but it also comes after B in the alphabet, so this is not an argument that S should follow F.

I'm not entirely certain what the origin of this theory is, but it definitely took off after J Perm mentioned it in his notation explainer video (2019-04-21). Would be interested if anyone can dig up pre-2019 mentions of this.


I think your theory is by far the most plausible, if it's not just coincidence to begin with. (I've independently come up with something similar a few years ago, and I feel like I've read someone else (not you or me) who also has done so.)

Kirjava's post was included because it was the first that I found pointing out the alphabetical order. It appears that it caught on with several people and may be one of the original posts that caused the spread of the idea. A couple of links are provided below to show this.

Link 1
Link 2 (Sarah is asking about Kirjava's post)

I added an even earlier mention of the idea to the site, from 2005. I also added the J Perm video and a major point against the alphabetical order idea. That is that Schiereck didn't use L R U D F B and instead used L R B O V A. So it wouldn't make sense to compare M E S with Singmaster notation and the alphabetical order rule engages an E brake between B and O. E is closer to B (U) than it is to O (D). It would be nice to find the first mention of S being closer to F than B.

 

[Athefre]

I have archived 5 Yahoo! groups to the Communities page. Speed Solving Rubik's Cube, Blindfold Solving Rubik's Cube, Fewest Moves Challenge, Rubiklub (French group), and ZB Method. Click the Yahoo! Groups header to view the discussions that occurred over the years. Various search capabilities are also included.

Communities | Cubing History

An archive of Rubik's Cube online communities such as Yahoo! Groups and Cube Lovers.

www.cubinghistory.com

 

[bcube]

I have archived 5 Yahoo! groups to the Communities page. Speed Solving Rubik's Cube, Blindfold Solving Rubik's Cube, Fewest Moves Challenge, Rubiklub (French group), and ZB Method. Click the Yahoo! Groups header to view the discussions that occurred over the years. Various search capabilities are also included.

Awesome, thank you for your work.

Apparently there was an option to share files like images or videos on Yahoo! groups. Do you have, by any chance, access to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/speedsolvingrubikscube/files?

 

[Athefre]

Awesome, thank you for your work.

Apparently there was an option to share files like images or videos on Yahoo! groups. Do you have, by any chance, access to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/speedsolvingrubikscube/files?

Yeah, we used to be able to upload files. I would love to look back on them for nostalgic and research reasons, but they are no longer available. However, there is a project on archive.org and Discord called Save Yahoo Groups. They archived the messages, files, and everything else from almost every Yahoo group. But the team is still working on formatting them into a usable format. Once they have finished, I will work on finding a way to get the complete contents of all cubing related groups onto the site.

 

[Athefre]

Added the German group, Deutscher Speedcubing Club. Also updated the formatting of all messages for the groups so that new lines are properly displayed. Everything now looks as it was originally written.

If anyone has anything they would like to see, let me know.

 

[Chicken-Cuber]

Yooo this is awesome

 

[qwr]

I always thought E was for Equator and M was for middle (although they're all the middle)

The most unambiguous terms I know are for aircraft assuming we keep the notions of front and back. Then M is Pitch, E is Yaw, and S is Roll.
There might be medical terms too.

Incidentally while there is an E perm, there's also a Y perm and R perm.

 

[edward_9x]

Since this thread got bumped

Remember the fixed up ZZ proposal webpage from a year ago? Well, it's still missing that line trainer Java applet. I looked for it on the Internet Archive, but I can't seem to find it anywhere. Here's what I know about it:
- On the ZZ wiki page, there's a link to it that seems to be dead: https://rubiks-cube.c0.pl/inne/eoline.htm
- In the root folder of the original proposal page, a file called step1Solver.java is referenced
- Phil Yu probably has it on his PC (?) (He's posted the first link on this forum at least twice, once in 2011, and once in 2012. Though I doubt he actually saved the applet file)

It was supposed to appear at the very bottom of the page