"I've only solved that damned thing once and it took like three days"

[Zubon]

When I first got a cube, I solved the first two layers without many problems. But the last layer was too hard and I ended up looking up a solution.
I am sure if I had known how to disassemble the cube and put it back to the solved position, I could have worked out some algorithms, but only starting with a scrambled cube made it too hard.

 

[ElectricDoodie]

I had a friend that figured out how to do the first side in just 4 days

Are you joking? One side in 4 days? "Just" 4 days? That's pretty bad.

I figured out one side in 10 mins, and I still think that was slow. It then took me about 30-45 mins to figure out the Edges insertions.
At the LL, I was completely stumped, and had to learn online.

 

[Godmil]

Didn't Fridrich do it in only a few hours... just by already having a conceptual understanding of commutators.

 

[cubeslayer]

I am acquainted with a respectable and intelligent young gentleman that solved the cube in eight hours without any hints, tutorials, or any other forms of "cheating".

 

[Cubenovice]

Didn't Fridrich do it in only a few hours... just by already having a conceptual understanding of commutators.

No...

As told by Fridrich herself:
http://www.ws.binghamton.edu/fridrich/history.html#last

 

[Owen]

I never even touched the thing until I learned online. I like to think that I could have solved it though.

 

[Mr 005]

A friend told me some of the things i had to do to get it solves but not how to do them and i also got stuck at ll. My 8 year old sister can handle solving the cross in about 5 minutes, and my dad can solve a whole side using his own method. it takes him about 10 minutes.

 

[Gaétan Guimond]

No, and maybe. I've noticed that learning how to solve a cube tends to raise peoples' self-confidence in their abilities, though. So, in some sense, they tend to feel a bit smarter, or at least less afraid of things that require being "smart".

100/100 a+

 

[Godmil]

No...

As told by Fridrich herself:
http://www.ws.binghamton.edu/fridrich/history.html#last

"With the help of the commutator principle and those "Russian" moves, I solved the cube for the first time. It took me several hours."

Well I was pretty close.

 

[waffle=ijm]

Funny cuz OP assumed that Kir didn't invent a method when he did.

 

[EMI]

My friend said this at school some time ago. I did not really believe him but it is possible...you can try out many different things and check the result until you get very long and slow, but working algorithms. When you have the ones you need you can solve it.

 

[BC1997]

Well I'd say its possible but if he/she only solved it once then he/she is probably lying.

 

[Jungleterrain]

Well I'd say its possible but if he/she only solved it once then he/she is probably lying.

Absolutely correct. Because once you solve it for the first time, it becomes impossible to solve it only once! It becomes addicting!