BIG Problem With Snyder Notation 

📕Get my FREE Solving Guide that will help you solve over 80% of all Sudoku puzzles🧩to include NYT Hard👉👉www.buymeacoffee.com/timberlakeB/e/125822 Timestamps 0:00 Intro 00:27 It’s Solving Time 00:51 Puzzle Story 02:44 BONUS Tip 04:20 What To Do After Snyder 05:50 The Problem With Snyder Notation 06:50 Finding The Blind Spots 07:19 Claiming Pair Blind Spots 10:51 Following The Snyder 13:36 BONUS Trick

5:50 I wouldn't have been successful in using the triple in block 9. I learned today. Thank you.

Thank you for the lesson! I would not have found the hidden triple in block 9 which is the key to break open the puzzle.

Excellent video. Yeah when I initially started with these puzzles, and learnt about Snider, it seems good, and only really works for easy puzzles. For harder ones, you don't get to really learn anything and the puzzle do get messy very fast. So I found that you want to look at blocks, rows or cols which are only missing a least number of cells, and start off with them as possibles, trying to find pairs, triples, quads, quints, etc. If you find a pair for example, then you might also find another pair, or another triple in the exact same row, block or col where you found the pair for example. In this puzzle it was not that obvious since Snider lead to nothing, and you ended up with a ton of quints or more. So then I was looking for the hammer or clever formations, which I found a clever in blocks 7 8 9 for the 4 and that with thd 2 and 5 Sniders in block 9, like you I found that hidden triple fairly fast. Similarly the clever on the 6s for blocks 1,4, and 7, putting the 6 in block 1 and solving the 5 in block 1 fairly early. It took me a while to find the 3 for block 8, but should have been fairly easy to spot. Again if you spotted the Tailed X wing of the 3s. Great puzzle. and video

Brilliant.

Mmm, a fair leap in difficulty with respect to the previous puzzle in the round. The lack of an obvious break-in was worrying. If I'd been competing in the SGP, I think I would have panicked (86 = row 8 column 6): 86 (hidden DRE, owing to hidden triple in box 9), 15, 98 (double colours or two Swordfish), 59, 71, 92, 21, 39, 99 (double colours or two Swordfish), 57, 17 (hidden pairs in column; one resolvable), 37, 18, 89, 73, 93, 77, 97, 75, 88, 78, 84, 46, 33, 32, 53, 13, 95, 12, 11, 22, 74, 76, 24, 26, 64, 34, 36, 35, 66, 44, 49, 51, 61, 55, 45, 58, 65, 42, 62, 48, 29, 28, 69, 41, 82, 81, 52, 68. On reflection, two Swordfish hardly constitute great difficulty, but finding them in all that white space was not easy. I used colours rather than Swordfish, but the end result was the same. Having watched about two-thirds of the video, I realized I'd missed a trick. Here, then, is a sort of distillation of memory and new insight: 86 (hidden DRE, owing to hidden triple in box 9), 15, 33 (hidden DRE in bottom band), 39 (hidden pair in box), 18 (and again), 17, 37, 13, 53, 73, 93, 77, 97, 57, 32, 99, 58, 98, 71, 92, 21, 12, 11, 89, 88, 78, 84, 46, 95, 22, 75, 74, 76, 24, 26, 64, 34, 36, 35, 66, 44, 49, 51, 61, 55, 45, 58, 65, 42, 62, 48, 29, 28, 69, 41, 82, 81, 52, 68.

I was lazy today. Once I got stuck after Snyder, I clicked on the comments for a clue as to what to do next. That wasn't much help so I clicked on the video to see what to do after filling out the candidates in block 9. Besides being lazy, I'm also not a big fan of puzzles that depend on finding triples to get a solve. There is too much chance involved, and throwing darts in the dark. My solve time ended up being 32:52, and additional time looking at the video and comments for clues.

I can't believe this is "medium level" in difficulty.. My mind was totally blocked

To me the secret of this puzzle was to do a lot of pencilmark! 😅

Query: does not-quite-Snyder notation evade Snyder notation's blind spot? I solved it slowly as usual, but at least -- despite the huge centermarks and dearth of five-plus-digit houses -- I managed to solve the puzzle without bifurcating. I began looking for repeated digits in horizontal and vertical bands, then went to cornermarking. I found a finned swordfish in 7s, which allowed me to cornermark three 7s in block 6 -- probably no other benefit. I got a 78 pair in block 7. I continued stuck, of course, and progressively centermarked all the blocks, including plenty of five-digit cells and one six-digit cell. Then I went through each number to try to find something, and found a swordfish in 6s, one that actually helped -- rows 379, columns 358. Then block 9 had a 1368 quad, leaving a 245 triple, and giving me my first digit: 3 in R8C6. The quad was there without the swordfish, but the swordfish gave me a pointing pair in 6s, block 9 column 7. I got a second 3 in R1C5 and a 28 pair in block 3 column 7. A 36 pair in block 9 column 7, and the rest was unraveling the centermarks. Being dyslexic in spotting various things, I need every advantage I can get. These puzzles -- rated medium -- aren't supposed to have swordfish (finned or not), right? But I'm thankful for the swordfish in 6s, as it gave me something critical in cracking the puzzle. 4:00 What I did after the Snyder marking, at roughly this point in the grid? Right now in the video, I see the 245 triple in block 9, but I didn't see it in my solve. Instead, I first filled out block 7 (with five digits including the pair) with centermarks. Then I filled out the other blocks. 5:00 The swordfish in 6s helped me. I didn't spot the finned X-wing in 9s, though. 5:50 I just forgot to cornermark 4s, I don't know why. I think I skipped from 3s to 5s. Cornermarking 4s would have given me that triple. I had placed both 2s and 5s earlier, 5s from the repeated 5s in the left vertical band. But I didn't get it. 7:10 Those two 3s were my first digits, and yes, I ultimately got the 245 triple from the 1368 quad. 8:00 Apply the swordfish in 6s, and that removes two 6s from block 9 and gives you a 36 pair. (Then you get a 28 pair up top.) 11:40 It was all unraveling centermarks at this stage.