Sudoku is an abbreviation for the Japanese phrase “Su-ji wa dokushin ni kagiru” which means “the number must remain single or single”. The full name was used when Nikoli, the company that popularized the game in Japan, first released the puzzle in 1984. Later, they felt the name was too long and settled for the shortened version we now use.
A first time Sudoku solver will need to first understand the basics of the puzzle before attempting to solve one. Technically speaking, a Sudoku puzzle contains multiple grids. However, to make it easier to understand, let’s just say that a Sudoku is a 9 x 9 board.
The spaces that form a vertical series are the columns while those that form a horizontal series are the rows. There are a total of 9 columns and 9 rows that the Sudoku solver needs to fill with the numbers 1 to 9. You will also notice that a Sudoku board has bolder black lines and these outline 3 x 3 boxes that have 9 spaces and there It’s 9 of those boxes.
How to play Sudoku?
The Sudoku puzzle is derived from the Latin squares invented by the Swiss mathematician Leonard Euler. It has been used for statistical treatment and other mathematical operations. However, Sudoku does not require the use of any mathematical operations, not even the four basic mathematical equations that include addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.
Note that the numbers are only used for the convenience of the solver, not because they are necessary. The numbers are easier to track since they come in a series. Actually, 9 different symbols or characters can be used for the puzzles, for example, the letters of the alphabet from A to I or 9 different shapes, etc.
The only thing a Sudoku solver should focus on when learning Sudoku is the use of Logic. Each of the numbers from 1 to 9 can only appear once in each row, column and smaller 3 x 3 box. The puzzle will already have some of its spaces provided with numbers and you just have to fill in the rest. Some may think that the more numbers you are given, the easier it will be to solve the puzzle. However, the location of the preloaded spaces on the board has as much to do with the difficulty as the number of preloaded cells.
You don’t have to worry about calculating the difficulty level yourself because you will usually see the difficulty level or rating of the puzzle printed next to the puzzle in the book or newspaper. However, be sure to buy puzzle books from puzzle manufacturers or publishers to get accurate difficulty ratings.
Also, one indicator that you are solving a correctly constructed puzzle is its restriction to having a single solution. If you find that there are 2 or more solutions to the riddle, then you have a poorly constructed one and it is better to look for other sources of more credible riddles.
