[Help Thread] Lookahead Discussion

[Kit Clement]

Yes

 

[AbsoRuud]

Learn it as soon as possible, even though it's not really a skill you learn. It's inherent in solving.

 

[Llewelys]

I actually don't think you should. Obviously you do you and if you want to focus on look ahead go ahead (haha), but I think look ahead isn't important unless you're averaging sub 20, or even sub 16. (I saw your Accomplishment page and you're not at that level yet)

Assuming you use CFOP, the most important things are F2L efficiency and muscle memory, so you should work on that first (it's hard to look ahead when you use 15 moves to solve a pair you could've solved in 6, or to look around the cube if you need to watch the pieces you're currently solving)

Here's a video talking about it:
(0:24 to 2:05)

And another video I can't recommend enough:

 

[PetrusQuber]

Well, it’s not really something you need at the moment. Plus, lookahead isn’t something you develop consciously, every time you solve the cube, you are getting better at step transitioning and lookahead without knowing it. I never practise lookahead actively, I just kept solving and it gradually came to me (of course I still need to get better at that!). So don’t worry, tl;dr, you don’t need it yet and you will develop it even without deliberate practise.

 

[jdh3000]

Speaking from a cfob perspective, some say wait until sub 20, but I couldn't get sub 20 without it. Depends on your goals. All I wanted to do was get beyond that.

Those that say wait to learn it have a point in that you should first get your cross down to where it's practically one move without thinking, this needs to be done so the first pair can be located and inserted.

Know every possible way to insert f2l pairs first, otherwise look ahead will be difficult. Look ahead requires not having to think about the current pair being inserted.

Much of the look ahead will just come with experience, it'll just be a matter of being very comfortable with f2l insertions.

 

[Codename_A]

Whenever I try to do f2l, my biggest weakness is that I can't seem to find both f2l pieces in a pair without long gaps. Keep in mind I'm using intuitive f2l. Is there a way to find them faster? Thanks!

 

[qwr]

I have this problem too. I think it's better to find them in inspection and remember where they are after cross than to find them. It takes practice

 

[Skewb_Cube]

I think the term you are looking for is "Look ahead" which means that you solve a F2L pair while looking for another one. If you already tried this, from personal experience I recommend you to drill your F2L algs so they are in your muscle memory so you can automatically do a F2L pair when you recognize the case, so you don't need to think in the pair you are doing, instead you track other pieces. You can also do slow solves so you practice look ahead. By drilling my algs and doing slow solves I developed look ahead which reduce my times by a significant amount.

 

[Codename_A]

I think the term you are looking for is "Look ahead" which means that you solve a F2L pair while looking for another one. If you already tried this, from personal experience I recommend you to drill your F2L algs so they are in your muscle memory so you can automatically do a F2L pair when you recognize the case, so you don't need to think in the pair you are doing, instead you track other pieces. You can also do slow solves so you practice look ahead. By drilling my algs and doing slow solves I developed look ahead which reduce my times by a significant amount.

So basically practice so its in my muscle memory, then look ahead. Thanks so much!

 

[Spacey10]

So basically practice so its in my muscle memory, then look ahead. Thanks so much!

I think Jayden McNeil has a good tutorial, but here is what I think.
First of all, you should be able to do the pair you are one blindfolded, or without looking at it.
Second, you need to look at the cube and see when you do the case, how the other pieces move
Third, use it. When you have the pair pieces for FIRST PAIR, then just remember how the pieces moved for that case, and then you should remember, that Oh yeah, that pieces was there, but I did this, so it should now be there!

 

[Batsy_who_laughs]

Hi all i need help!!
i still dont rlly know how to lookahead to first f2l pair during inspection altho i tried it a lot of times already, so r there any tips on how to do it?

 

[BenChristman1]

Try predicting where only 1 piece will be (a corner or an edge, your choice), then work your way up to both pieces.

 

[JTM007]

Hey guys. Can anyone give me some advice to help me improve my look ahead during f2l. I average 19 seconds on 3x3. My cross is about 1.5-2 seconds, oll is about 3 and my pll is about 2. It's just my f2l that is letting me down.
And can I get some help besides saying "just do slow solves".
Thanks guys.

 

[Locloc]

When training : learn to do the current pair + how you're going to solve the next one. Before touching the cube. Do the first pair, then look how to do second and third, and so on

 

[BenChristman1]

Practice. Lookahead isn’t something that you just learn, you have to slowly get better at it. Even though you said not to say it, I’m going to anyway, do some slow solves, because it really does help your lookahead develop faster.

 

[Llewelys]

Make sure you can solve every case in 8 moves or less (occasionally 11): efficiency is the first step to looking ahead

 

[GenTheSnail]

Hey guys. Can anyone give me some advice to help me improve my look ahead during f2l. I average 19 seconds on 3x3. My cross is about 1.5-2 seconds, oll is about 3 and my pll is about 2. It's just my f2l that is letting me down.
And can I get some help besides saying "just do slow solves".
Thanks guys.

Jay has a really good video on the topic of lookahead.

From the pinned comment:

1. Work on understanding how to solve pairs with confidence (As in you find two pieces, can close your eyes and let muscle memory take over, and be ultra confident that the pair will be solved). This will minimize mental resources needed to solve the pair you're currently doing which opens up the opportunity for mental resources being used on your next pair(s)

2. If you're still having trouble with look-ahead after implementing the above try upping your knowledge on how pieces get affected with certain triggers and eventually whole pair solutions (IE knowing that R U2 R' U' R U R' preserves pairs in the FR slot as well as with the UBL/UL pieces)

3. If you're STILL having some trouble with look-ahead (very unlikely after impementing #1 and #2), make your rotation decisions more efficient. If you're a right hand dominant solver my suggestion is to prioritize solving in this order, BL, BR, FL, FR. The rationale being that righty solvers don't hold the cube straight on or in what I call a tunnel vision fashion. Rather, they hold the cube with a slight tilt to reveal the face of the dominant hand, in this case the right layer because righty. Please don't ask what order is optimal for lefty solvers because the logic should be clear

4. Slow solves and metronome practice and anything along these lines won't do crap after a certain point, which is usually the point where you try them for the first time honestly. These methods of improving look-ahead are doodoo and don't address why you're pausing in the first place

 

[JTM007]

Thanks for help guys. I've got some practicing to do now haha