RyTracer
Level: Delver

Rank Points: 86
Registered: 11-01-2013
IP: Logged

File: PictureSlither.zip (1005 KB)
Downloaded 80 times.
License: Public Domain

Hey everybody!
I recently got into making Slitherlinks with picture answers. Granted, they are blocky monochrome pictures, but pictures nonetheless. One of my first creations was a scene all Drodites will know well. If you solve it, and post a picture of the completed puzzle here in a secret tag or something, I will throw lots of rank points at you. You should try the other ones too if you're a puzzle enthusiast. They are of Mario, Mr. Spock (RIP), and Sir Terry Pratchett (RIP).

I've made a client in which to do the puzzles and have attached it. You can also use loopy, a program that's been around awhile, or this website: http://www.kakuro-online.com/slitherlink/ or this one: http://www.kwontomloop.com/puzzlef.php?loopy= and append the loopy string to the end of the latter. The loopy strings themselves are in the attached zip file in the data folder, if you just want those.

Happy puzzling!

____________________________
I dream in vectors.
Portfolio Website - RyTracer.com

disoriented
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2386
Registered: 08-07-2007
IP: Logged

I wrote a Slitherlink solver a while ago and I'd like to try testing it on your input.

Can you tell me more about the loopy format?
Is it height x width at the start? What are 'a', 'b', 'c', and 'd'?

35x34:11b0a1b00a1f00b1a0b1a2232a2a2a1e2a22c3e2a1b2a2c2e3a3d1a23222a223a212b2a2a2a21b122c3a32b

____________________________
34th Skywatcher

Best to PM me, since I might miss your message on CaravelNet chat.

---

[Last edited by disoriented at 03-19-2015 01:45 AM]

Tuttle
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 1545
Registered: 02-22-2003
IP: Logged

From the FAQ at the first website; I assume this is the same format:

Enter puzzle code? What is that?
A puzzle code is a text description of a slitherlink puzzle. An example of a small puzzle would be 3x3:c3a2a31. First number is the width of the puzzle, second is the height. After the colon a letter represents a number of blank spaces between numbers. a = 1, d = 4, up to z. The numbers represent the clues of the puzzle. You can use this to enter your own puzzles, or import puzzles from other sources.

---

[Last edited by Tuttle at 03-19-2015 01:50 AM]

RyTracer
Level: Delver

Rank Points: 86
Registered: 11-01-2013
IP: Logged

Most parsers need the loopy format pretty strict. Width first, a lower-case x, height, then a colon, then the clues with gaps as lower-case letters. It should be noted that you shouldn't count gaps at the end of 1 line and the start of the next to be the same gap, and in this case, two lower-case letters will be adjacent. Mine will do okay either way, but some of the other guys won't.

Here's the conversion routines I use in C++.


____________________________
I dream in vectors.
Portfolio Website - RyTracer.com

---

[Last edited by RyTracer at 03-19-2015 03:52 AM]

Moo
Level: Master Delver
Rank Points: 224
Registered: 10-14-2006
IP: Logged

As these things go, how difficult is the DROD one?
I've been staring at it for hours and am still less than half way through...

Someone Else
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 1304
Registered: 06-14-2005
IP: Logged

Well, it definitely doesn't have a unique solution, so that makes it a little trickier.

disoriented
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2386
Registered: 08-07-2007
IP: Logged

Someone Else wrote:
Well, it definitely doesn't have a unique solution, so that makes it a little trickier.

Boo! That's unfortunate.

____________________________
34th Skywatcher

Best to PM me, since I might miss your message on CaravelNet chat.

RyTracer
Level: Delver

Rank Points: 86
Registered: 11-01-2013
IP: Logged

Someone Else wrote:
Well, it definitely doesn't have a unique solution, so that makes it a little trickier.

It absolutely has a unique solution! If you find another, feel free to post it, but you will have an error somewhere.

____________________________
I dream in vectors.
Portfolio Website - RyTracer.com

RyTracer
Level: Delver

Rank Points: 86
Registered: 11-01-2013
IP: Logged

Out of the puzzles in the pack, from easiest to hardest they are probably:

Pratchett
Spock
DROD
Mario

but they are all significantly harder than those you would find at puzzle-loop.com, but about par with those at kwontomloop.com. I can solve them all now, though not originally. My generator made them super hard and then I sprinkled in 15-20 superfluous clues each that are unnecessary for a unique solution, but make them significantly easier.

Although some people consider it bad form, you can use "Highlander Deductions." This means "There can be only one." If you trust the creator that there is only one unique solution, you can use that to your advantage by negating moves that lead to ambiguous situations. These deductions are not necessary to solve the puzzle: the relevant moves could be negated another (usually much harder) way.

I highly recommend using my client to solve these and read the readme file to learn how to use deep guessing. That will help significantly. Truthfully these puzzles can all be solved at depth 1 and 2 only, but having 3 and 4 may make it easier for some.

____________________________
I dream in vectors.
Portfolio Website - RyTracer.com

skell
Level: Legendary Smitemaster

Rank Points: 3734
Registered: 12-28-2004
IP: Logged

RyTracer wrote:
Although some people consider it bad form, you can use "Highlander Deductions." This means "There can be only one." If you trust the creator that there is only one unique solution, you can use that to your advantage by negating moves that lead to ambiguous situations.

People consider it a bad form? Given this is a game where each puzzle should have a unique solution to be considered true and... Using this to solve the puzzle is supposedly bad? Some people don't like sprinkling their puzzles with a pinch of meta .

____________________________
My website | Facebook | Twitter

Someone Else
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 1304
Registered: 06-14-2005
IP: Logged

Whoa. What do you know, it does. But that section in the bottom left is nigh impossible.

RyTracer
Level: Delver

Rank Points: 86
Registered: 11-01-2013
IP: Logged

skell wrote:
People consider it a bad form?

I only say this because I can be skeptical of the creator, and I want to personally find ALL solutions sometimes. This is analogous to that nagging feeling you might get when playing a DROD room that you think you can break with an unintended solution. Well sometimes you can and sometimes you can't.

Some people don't like sprinkling their puzzles with a pinch of meta .

This is actually quite common, in slitherlink, sudoku, and many other puzzles. Presenting the "perfectly difficult" version would deter many puzzlers who do this kind of thing for fun. You'd be surprised how few clues you actually need for a unique solution, but only computers care to do that deep of recursive guessing.

Whoa. What do you know, it does. But that section in the bottom left is nigh impossible.

Does that mean you solved it and saw Beethro and some other things?

____________________________
I dream in vectors.
Portfolio Website - RyTracer.com

Moo
Level: Master Delver
Rank Points: 224
Registered: 10-14-2006
IP: Logged

I don't consider any recursive guessing fun for humans, be it with sudoku or this...

disoriented
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2386
Registered: 08-07-2007
IP: Logged

File: Pratchett.png (745 KB)
Downloaded 436 times.
License: Public Domain

Well, here’s my pen-and-paper solution for the Pratchett puzzle without any outside help.

Assuming my deductions were error-free, I’ve managed to convince myself this is the only solution.

There was definitely some trial-and-error needed (at least for me!) along with the rule-based deductive reasoning. The center-left and center-top sections, in particular.



____________________________
34th Skywatcher

Best to PM me, since I might miss your message on CaravelNet chat.

---

[Last edited by disoriented at 03-27-2015 04:41 AM]

RyTracer
Level: Delver

Rank Points: 86
Registered: 11-01-2013
IP: Logged

Well done, disoriented!

Viewers, I definitely recommend zooming out to view the picture to see Sir Terry. The smaller you view it, the more clear it becomes. Ctrl and mousewheel.

Did you ever feed any of these to your solver program?

____________________________
I dream in vectors.
Portfolio Website - RyTracer.com

disoriented
Level: Smitemaster

Rank Points: 2386
Registered: 08-07-2007
IP: Logged

My solver program was too slow to solve such large puzzles efficiently.

____________________________
34th Skywatcher

Best to PM me, since I might miss your message on CaravelNet chat.

RyTracer
Level: Delver

Rank Points: 86
Registered: 11-01-2013
IP: Logged

File: dopefish.txt (477 bytes)
Downloaded 45 times.
License: Public Domain

I made a new one today. Now I'm playing around with symmetry among the clues. These have a rotational symmetry around the center point. It's purely aesthetic. I entitle this one, "Dopefish," and advise you all to use caution when swimming.

____________________________
I dream in vectors.
Portfolio Website - RyTracer.com

RyTracer
Level: Delver

Rank Points: 86
Registered: 11-01-2013
IP: Logged

I've seriously upgraded my Picture Slitherlink program and puzzles.

I realize that all my earlier puzzles were way too hard, so all the puzzles are easier now. They are still not mindless and take some serious skill, but should avoid that deep dark guessing requirement.

Yes, there is still a DROD puzzle. It looks nicer now.

The program has gotten a facelift. Doesn't look terrible anymore.

Non-square puzzles! That's right, 3 new patterns now: Snub Squares, Lathes, and Cairo Pentagons.

Endless hints key. That "Q" key will become your best friend or taunting nemesis.

Enjoy!

Picture Slitherlink

Be sure to read the readme file.

____________________________
I dream in vectors.
Portfolio Website - RyTracer.com