Things that actually affect speedcubing.

[StachuK1992]

Methods and turnspeed are neat and all, but they aren't all that's in a solve.
I'd like to compile a list of things that actually matter for a cuber solving a cube.

Burst Turnspeed

Many methods require algorithm memorization and execution, and obviously, the faster you turn (especially for final steps) the less time it will take to execute an algorithm.​

Movegroups

Some people like as many <R,U,L> turns in a solve as they can get their hands on. Some people shine at <R,U,D>. Some people like spamming <Moo> wherever they can. Depending on how a cuber's fingers are shaped, on how they execute certain moves (fingertricks, wristing, general execution style) one alg or undetermined sequence *may* be inherently better than another. Some factors that go along with preferred movegroups are that an alg might be longer (movecount) than another, that case taking up more time than someone else performing a different alg for the same case.​

Documentation

Not only does documentation of a method (algs, websites, threads, times on WCA, videos) provide information to be stored regarding *how* to solve, but documentation also provides a sort of encouragement. If someone sees a Roux average with really smooth turnspeed until the LSE, they're going to attempt to mimick that, and spaz out once they hit that step. This could both hurt a user, for mimicking a motion before they have the necesarry experience to do it efficiently, and help a user, by encouraging them to solve with a different approach and maybe learn something out of it.

Documentation also provides the notion that times with a certain method are in fact possible. Any senior member here should be able to note that once a mental wall (time barrier) is broken, others quickly follow. This barrier-breaking helps users have faith that their system is 'good.' This feeling of confidence actually helps users get faster; I won't speculate too much why this happens, but it does.​

Movecount

Time = Turns * (seconds/turn). If you have 60-move solutions and turn 3 times a second on average, you're going to average 20s. If you learn to optimize your solutions to 45 moves, or turn at 4 tps (while maintaining the other factor) you're going to have an average of 15s. Doing both will get you sub12 second solves. Simple math is: use less moves, turn moar fasts, have moar WR.​

Look-ahead and recognition

If a case in a solve is either hard to recognize, or you're just not good at recognizing, you're going to have a lot of wasted time during a solve just sitting there trying to decipher a situation and deciding what to do.

In addition, tracking pieces while performing other moves is very useful in any method, regardless of puzzle. It's like cheating your recognition, and there's nothing wrong with that.​

Setting

I haven't yet heard of a cuber who asks for it to be super-cold or windy at a competition setting. I *have* heard complaints many times about outside factors that affect cubing, such as a room being too cold. There's more to this, but you get the idea.​

Hardware

Bad cubes are bad, and can affect almost all of the above factors.

Bad stickers make for bad recognition make for bad solves.

Popping and locking are really really bad.​

I hope that covers most everything.
I wrote this so I can follow up with this for another thread. Referencing this will be needed, so I thought I'd get this out a while.
statue

 

[Hershey]

I thought time = delay + (number of turns / turning speed), am I right?

 

[StachuK1992]

Delay is accounted into turning speed.

 

[ElectricDoodie]

Popping and locking are really really bad.

OT: Nice read.
And I absolutely cannot speedcube in cold temperatures.

 

[MaeLSTRoM]

Cool post

 

[Cubenovice]

Burst Turnspeed

Many methods require algorithm memorization and execution, and obviously, the faster you turn (especially for final steps*) the less time it will take to execute an algorithm.​

Allthough this is quite obvious I'm still waiting for the * to be followed up ;-)

Perhaps you could place the "burst turn speed" paragraph closer to the "movecount" and "recognition" paragraphs because these three highly interact with eachother.

Some more info on how they interact might be appropriate (striving for extreme efficiency in movecount does not go together with striving for high TPS)

 

[Jorghi]

Yeah, but TPS is a weird thing.

The skill of turning accurate with high speed, no lockups/regrips. Thats another thing separate from cubing itself almost.

 

[MCcuber96]

Yeah, but TPS is a weird thing.

The skill of turning accurate with high speed, no lockups/regrips. Thats another thing separate from cubing itself almost.

im pretty sure TPS is closely related to speedcubing. I say speedcubing because your casual cuber probably doesn't care about his/her TPS

 

[qqwref]

Here's another thing: turn confidence.

By this I mean being sure that, once you've executed a move/alg, you know that you will have done it without mistakes. If you don't have good confidence you will be wasting time checking the stuff that should be solved, and even if you have decent turnspeed and lookahead you will still be slowed down a lot by this extra checking. But if you have good confidence you can go full speed ahead and not worry about the previous steps. This isn't really a huge issue for 3x3x3, but it's very important in BLD events and in Clock - so much so that becoming confident is one of the most important things in getting fast.

 

[Dene]

the faster you turn (especially for final steps*) ...

...you're going to have a lot of wasted time during a solve just sitting there trying to decipher a situation and decide what to do.

It's like cheating your reconition...

For all the effort you put in I figure it may as well be tidy. I didn't read too carefully so I may have missed more.

 

[PonyMower]

This looks like a very accurate explanation of how to reduce a time.

 

[uberCuber]

Here's another thing: turn confidence.

Yes yes yes. This one popped into mind while I was reading Stachu's post. I would say it is an issue with unfamiliar puzzles/events in general along with the specific examples you gave, BLD and Clock. I have the issue with Pyraminx because of a nearly complete lack of experience with the puzzle, and it is also a problem for me during cubeshape on Square-1.

This post was a nice read, Stachu.

 

[cmhardw]

But if you have good confidence you can go full speed ahead and not worry about the previous steps. This isn't really a huge issue for 3x3x3, but it's very important in BLD events and in Clock - so much so that becoming confident is one of the most important things in getting fast.

I completely agree that this is huge for BLD. You have to be confident that you've solved a difficult case correctly without double checking that you cycled properly. You also have to be confident in the sensory information you remember when your hand slips, and you're trying to figure out whether you pulled an extra slice or not.

Also, going into a solve thinking "this solve will be FAST" usually means you get a fast solve (it does not guarantee a success, but often this is also the case). If you go into a solve thinking that it won't be very fast, then you often create a self fulfilling prophecy and, surprise surprise, the time is usually not as fast on solves like this.

 

[Dene]

I *have* heard complaints many times about outside factors that effect cubing...

Just happened to notice this one as well. Naughty statue

 

[StachuK1992]

Thanks for corrections and ideas, all! Fixed up corrections; shall add more in quotes later.

 

[Godmil]

for 'setting' you could mention lighting conditions.