OLL

lies, damn lies, and (sorta) statistics

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OK. So, maybe I’m not the archivist I claim to be. This whole notion of cataloging everything sort of died on the vine — as I became more focused on my knowledge and understanding of the cube, rather than my times solving it or collection of hardware. On balance, I prefer what came of this blog. Either way, this post is somewhat stale now.

I’m an archivist by nature. I like collecting things, sorting them, tracking them, seeing them change and grow. I believe in elaborate backup systems and in preserving all the digital information I can (photos, videos, emails, college and even high school papers, etc.). A six terabyte NAS at home, mirrored to one at my office, stands as proof.

I enjoy sifting through data. I should have been a scientist or analyst or the like. Anything but a lawyer.

I also have a strange affection for Google. They seem to get it right more often than other companies. Google is to the internet what Apple is to hardware.

So, when I started cubing six months ago, I missed no opportunity to record, track, and preserve as much info as I could. That is, in a nutshell, this blog’s raison d’être. From the beginning, I kept two Google spreadsheets for myself — one tracking my personal best solve times and the other tracking my feverishly expanding cube/puzzle collection. I added a third when I started to learn more OLLs and PLLs. Last week while running (when I seem to do my best thinking), it suddenly occurred to me that I should publish those spreadsheets and embed them here in this blog. Why not?

You’ll notice in the sidebar to the right a new “personal stats” section that is in dire need of rebranding. It links to pages embedding the aforementioned spreadsheets. (Nav sprites, in case you’re wondering.) Continue reading →

more OLLs (corners correct / edges flipped)

Adventures in Cubing2 Comments

Slowly, I’ve been chipping away at new algorithms and permutations. Last week I learned a faster edge cycle technique (both directions), and I’ll post about that soon. This weekend, I learned more OLLs — the three with the corners correct but edges flipped. I’m not great at memorizing, but these are starting to come fairly easily. More muscle memory than memorization, I suppose. Here’s a quick video with the three:

And here are the algorithms I use: Continue reading →

46 seconds

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Just got a new 3×3 personal best (non-lucky) solve:  46 seconds.

OLL #22
(Pi)

(R U2′) (R2′ U’) (R2 U’) (R2′ U2′ R)

Only a half-second better than my last best time, but it definitely felt smooth and easy.  I’m starting to believe the much-preached truth that consistent, slower turning is better than rushed turns punctuated by long delays of hunting for pieces.  I was excited to encounter and easily apply a newly-learned OLL (#22) during the solve.

This was with my black Dayan Zhanchi (favorite cube, by far), restickered with a Cubesmith bright-set.  The very excellent new Big Gigantic album played in the background.

OLL 6 (Sidewinder / Tetris)

Adventures in Cubing2 Comments

I feel like I’m starting to hit a new groove. After mastering the Beginner’s Method a couple months ago, I’ve slowly embraced more complicated techniques (read: time-savers). First, it was the advanced cross technique, which I learned quickly but at which I’m still slower than I ought to be. Then it was a month of intuitive F2L. I’ve got that mostly down, with a couple non-intuitive cases still a challenge. Lately, I’ve been jazzed to learn a few more OLL/PLL algorithms. Each expands the toolbox and introduces more efficiency. Last week, it was H and Z PLL perms. This week, it’s OLL 6 (aka, The Sidewinder).

OLL #6
(Sidewinder / Tetris )

(R’ F) (R B’) (R’ F’) (R B)

Continue reading →