Win at Sudoku (The complete guide to solving all levels of Sudoku puzzles using pure logic)

By Caro Eardley

"As an experienced solver, I think the template is fantastic...Win at Sudoku is a terrific book...a very solid piece of work...

"I have no doubt that were the complete novice to follow Eardley's method to the letter, he/she would achieve Sudoku mastery.

"Eardley's is a book that will reward patient reading, dog-earing, and re-reading again."
- Librum "6nomad9" (CA, USA)

"Win At Sudoku offers a new approach to playing Sudoku that shows a comprehensive way to play during all phases of solving any level of Sudoku puzzle. Ms Eardley's original puzzle layout will also enhance any player's enjoyment of the game.”
- Dr Arto Inkala, creator of World's Hardest Sudoku

"Any Sudoku enthusiast can expect to learn useful information from the book."
- A.J. Cornish Bowden (Marseilles, France)

Wherever you’re at on the Sudoku ladder, the Win At Sudoku method will show you the way to consistently reach that lovely ‘I win!’ moment.
This abundantly-illustrated book starts from ground-level with the basics of the game and moves up to demonstrating the benefits of playing with the amazingly effective Win At Sudoku puzzle layout.

A step-by-step tour of the rules and tools of the Win At Sudoku method moves you steadily up the rungs of this easy-to-understand, logical and complete methodology.

By the time you have followed me move-by-move through eight graded Worked Examples you will be ready to take that last step up to follow me through playing Dr Arto Inkala’s World’s Hardest.

The Win At Sudoku method shows you the way to win - consistently – at Sudoku.

And then you really will love playing the game! I know I still do...

Reader Comments:

"Absolutely admirable...professional and very, very attractive...language is clear, enjoyable and friendly" - Gus Coyote

"I love the layout and the style is cool. Really impressive..." - Annee Irwin

You’ve got nothing to lose (except more Sudoku games!) and a lifetime of fun to gain with your investment in this book that will transform your game forever!

Also makes The Ideal Gift for the Sudoku lover in your life...

Opt in to our occasional newsletter (from our website) to be kept informed of free update alerts, print, audio, video and other products* and for more information and articles.

*Hang in there! – I’m going as fast as I can!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Caro Eardley
• Release date: Jun 22, 2011
• ISBN: 9780620498050

Caro Eardley

The Evolution of Win At Sudoku OR Why I Nearly Drove Myself Crazy Doing This!Before I say anything else, I would like to pay homage to Frank Longo, the guy who challenged my brain to the limits with his wonderful series "Mensa Absolutely Nasty Sudoku".I will always be thankful for the endless hours of fun, the towering rages, and the endorphin-laden bliss that I got from meeting the intense challenges contained in this series.I started out with a lot of faith in my logical skills, honed during a 20-year career as an international computer consultant.So I quickly rose through the easy levels of the game until I hit Mensa's Absolutely Nasty Sudoku series, where I was dismayed to find myself suddenly boggled, flummoxed and utterly discombobulated. I'd do a bit, and then...I simply didn't know what to do next. The Horror! Moi? Beaten? Never!As I am allergic to mathematical terminology (I insert a brief but fervent plea here: do anything to ensure the children you know get a Good Math Teacher!), I wasn't interested in studying x-wings and so on.I am also stubborn like a megamule and wanted to do it My Way so I consciously decided I would not look for any outside help on the internet or anywhere else.So I just persevered in applying logic and organisation to the game and, over the course of the last three years - and way too many hours when I should have been doing other stuff, I worked out the rules from what I saw happening on the grid to the point where I was consistently experiencing that lovely 'I win' feeling. I still don't get every puzzle right first time, hey nobody's perfect - but I always win in the end!If I could only consistently follow my own method I'd do a lot better!I think that's about as good as it gets - and I still love playing the game! Which is very important to me. I would never knowingly do anything to spoil the hours of fun you can have with this apparently simple, cunningly deceptive, and utterly addictive game.A word on addiction: try to set yourself a time limit on how many hours a day you allow yourself to solving Sudokus: remember it is only a game and you do, actually, have a life outside of the puzzle grid!

Book preview

Please go to Appendix C to download your FREE computer print versions of the

Win At Sudoku Puzzle Book

Win At Sudoku Blank Layout

Win At Sudoku Book Images

WIN AT SUDOKU

Caro Eardley

Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2012 Caro Eardley

Copyright is also asserted over all illustrations in the book and the

Win At Sudoku Blank Layout

Visit my page: http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/winatsudoku

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with other people, please purchase additional copies for each of them. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

The moral right of the author has been asserted.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author.

ISBN 978-0-620-49805-0

1ST Edition published 2011

2ND Edition published 2012

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AND REFERENCES

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING

INTRODUCTION: THE EVOLUTION OF THE WIN AT SUDOKU METHOD

THE RULES OF SUDOKU

THE PUZZLE GRID ELEMENTS

SCANNING THE PUZZLE HORIZONS

GETTING TO KNOW THE NUMBERS

GETTING TO KNOW THE LAYOUT

THE NOD BOX

THE WORK AREAS

ALL ABOUT OPTIONS

BUILDING UP OPTIONS

FIXED OPTIONS

LONG OPTIONS

FLUID OPTIONS

JOYFUL OPTIONS: TWINS, TRIPLETS & QUADS

WHY JOYFUL OPTIONS MATTER

HALF OPTIONS

HOLDING OPTIONS

LOVE THOSE OPTIONS!

CELLULAR OPTIONS

HERE BE TRAP DRAGONS!

SYMBOLS ADD VALUE

NOISE REDUCTION

GENERAL GAME STRATEGY

STEPS TO A SUCCESSFUL GAME

STARTGAME

MIDGAME

ENDGAME

BIGGEST THREATS TO YOUR SUCCESS

CARELESS MISTAKES

LEAPING TO UNWARRANTED CONCLUSIONS

ZIPPING ALONG

HUBRIS

FALLING INTO A TRAP

ERROR ANALYSIS

STAYING ON TOP OF YOUR GAME

OTHER STUFF

CHECKING OR CHEATING?

BORED?

WORKED EXAMPLES

BEFORE YOU DIVE IN...

EXAMPLE 1 LEVEL: VERY EASY

EXAMPLE 2 LEVEL: EASY

EXAMPLE 3 LEVEL: MEDIUM

EXAMPLE 4 LEVEL: MEDIUM

EXAMPLE 5 LEVEL: HARD

EXAMPLE 6 LEVEL: HARD

EXAMPLE 7 LEVEL: NASTY

EXAMPLE 8 LEVEL: NASTY

EXAMPLE 9 LEVEL: WORLD’S HARDEST

POSTSCRIPT

FEEDBACK/COMMENTS/SUGGESTIONS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

APPENDIX A - DEFINITIONS

AREAS - THE PUZZLE GRID ELEMENTS

AREAS - THE LAYOUT ELEMENTS

AREAS - RELATED AREAS and SCANNING

NUMBERS

SYMBOLS

APPENDIX B - RULES

STRATEGY RULES

RULE OF OPTIONS

RULE OF CAN'T BE

RULE OF EVERYTHING COUNTS

RULE OF EVERY MOVE YOU MAKE

RULE OF DON’T KNOW

RULE OF REDUCTION

RULE OF FOCUS

RULE OF DIRECTION

NUMBER RULES

RULE OF ONE (Ro1)

RULE OF TWO (Ro2) - TWINS

RULE OF THREE (Ro3) - TRIPLETS

RULE OF FOUR (Ro4) - QUADS

APPENDIX C - WIN AT SUDOKU PUZZLE BOOK, BLANK LAYOUT & BOOK IMAGES

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AND REFERENCES

Worked Example 9 – World’s Hardest Sudoku – reproduced by kind permission of Dr Arto Inkala

Worked Example 8 – reproduced by kind permission of Sterling Publishing from the Mensa Absolutely Nasty Series, Level 2, by Frank Longo, puzzle number 105 (page 59)

Worked Example 7 – reproduced by kind permission of Sterling Publishing from the Mensa Absolutely Nasty Series, Level 1, by Frank Longo, puzzle number 168 (page 90)

Worked Examples 1 to 6 – reproduced by kind permission of Puzzler Media and Nikoli Co Ltd – Sudoku – The Original Hand Made puzzles – Issue 55

"It is one of man's curious idiosyncrasies to create difficulties

for the pleasure of resolving them."

~ Joseph de Maistre ~

18th Century European philosopher, writer, lawyer and diplomat

"Puzzles are like songs.

A good puzzle can give you all the pleasure of being duped that a mystery story can.

It has surface innocence, surprise, the revelation of a concealed meaning,

and the catharsis of solution."

~ Stephen Sondheim ~

Famous American composer and lyricist for stage and film

This book is dedicated to this girl’s best friend:

Niki Neave

U Rock Girlfriend!

She always keeps me and my book

on the straight

on the narrow

and online!

Back to top

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING

Dr Arto Inkala, creator of World’s Hardest Sudoku says:

Win At Sudoku offers a new approach to playing Sudoku that shows a comprehensive way to play during all phases of solving any level of Sudoku puzzle. Ms Eardley's original puzzle layout will also enhance any player's enjoyment of the game.

5-Star Amazon Customer Reviews say:

"As an experienced solver, I think the template is fantastic...Win at Sudoku is a terrific book...a very solid piece of work…

"I have no doubt that were the complete novice to follow Eardley's method to the letter, he/she would achieve Sudoku mastery.

Eardley's is a book that will reward patient reading, dog-earing, and re-reading again.

Librum 6nomad9 (CA, USA)

Any Sudoku enthusiast can expect to learn useful information from the book.

A.J. Cornish Bowden (Marseilles, France)

Reader Comments:

Your book is FANTASTIC Morgan Knowles

Absolutely admirable...professional and very, very attractive...language is clear, enjoyable and friendly Gus Coyote

I love the layout and the style is cool. Really impressive... Annee Irwin

Accessible even to a non-Sudoku type such as myself! Charlie Stuart

Back to top

INTRODUCTION: THE EVOLUTION OF THE WIN AT SUDOKU METHOD

Notes on the 2012 Edition

We have made some improvements with regard to the Illustrations in the book.

The most important, for e-reader fans, is that you can now download a complete set of ALL the illustrations in this book. This gives you the opportunity to print any or all of these images as there are places in the book (particularly the Worked Examples) where it could be convenient to have a hard copy to hand. We hope this new facility will enhance your Win At Sudoku experience.

All illustrations have been upgraded to the best possible quality, given the restrictions of current technology and a tight production schedule.

The Holding Option illustration has been changed to use a better example.

There are four major changes to the Text in this edition.

Firstly, I have changed the name of Deduced Options to Fluid Options as it more accurately describes their behaviour. I’d like to thank Dr Don D. Roberts for this excellent idea. I thought long and hard before making such a fundamental change to the text but I could not resist the perfect logic of Dr Roberts’ suggestion: it enhances the clarity of the theory and therefore the book.

Secondly, in response to reader requests, I have further reduced the use of acronyms.

Thirdly, two Worked Examples have been updated. Worked Example 6 is now more straightforward, as I found a much more elegant way to play this game. Worked Example 9 has also been tightened up