Rubik's FAQ version v004 - 03/07/1998 NEW TO THE FAQ Added the names of the original inventors of the puzzles whenever possible. Apologies to Mark Longridge, where I pilfered much of this information. Made some changes to the newly entitled Section 6: Cool Links & Contact Info. Included more information under section 3. &Introduction What is a Rubik's Cube? Where can I buy one? Who made it? How do I solve it? Common questions like these are asked every day by people who have never experienced the joy of owning a cube or by those whose interests have been rekindled. This FAQ answers puzzle questions. Rubik's type puzzles to be more exact. Collectively, puzzles of this type are referred to as MAGIC POLYHEDRA. MAGIC because of their often unique way of seeming to twist and turn and POLYHEDRA which describes their general shape and appearance. With this FAQ, I hope that many basic questions can be answered in one place for the average casual puzzler. This document is in simple text format with page breaks. It was designed with a maximum of 78 characters width, so that any simple DOS (if you're using DOS or Windows derivative, like EDIT) text editor will fit it all in the screen. I believe that Unix based text will also have no difficulties displaying this, but I have no way to confirm. Each of the sections have questions grouped together by rough categories. First we attempt to answer why a FAQ is even needed. Section 2 spends a great deal explaining about various puzzles. Section 3 pertains to the availability of many of the puzzles described. Once you have a puzzle, the next question is how to solve it, which hopefully Section 4 will point you in the right direction. Any first person comments are from my (Time Traveler) point of view, which I hope to eliminate in the later versions of this FAQ, except maybe for the intro section, which you are reading now. Questions? Comments? Criticisms? I'll accept the first two at my email address - chrono@ibm.net. What the heck, I'll accept the third as long as it's constructive. A word of warning: I have no doubt that there are many inaccuracies contained within. Consider that I am typing the original draft strictly from memory, so until people contribute facts and disprove my fallacies, THE DOCUMENT MAY BE INACCURATE. Let me make one last sincere statement. This project was not started on the basis of any self interest. I WANT THIS TO BE A COMMUNITY EFFORT. If you have an idea or suggestion, please let it be known! - Jin "Time Traveler" Kim Questions: Sections and subsections that have been added, modified, or changed will have a symbol preceding them. The symbol can be found at any level of the questions, i.e. a section, a subsection, or further down, depending on the significance of the update. New text - pound(#) Significantly updated or added - asterisk(*) Reworded or corrected text - ampersand(&) Section 1: The Basics 1.1 - What is a FAQ? 1.2 - What is the purpose of this FAQ? 1.3 - What's the point of it all? Section 2: The Puzzles 2.1 - What is a puzzle? 2.2 - What is a Rubik's Cube? 2.3 - What is a Cube-type puzzle? 2.4 - What is a Rubik Puzzle? 2.5 - What about other Puzzle types? *2.6 - Which ones are Cube-type puzzles? *2.7 - Which ones are almost Cube-type puzzles? *2.8 - Which other puzzles will be covered? 2.9 - Which ones are the Rubik puzzles? 2.10 - Which Rubik puzzles will be covered? 2.11 - Where can I see these puzzles? &2.12 - Quick reference Puzzle Master List Section 3: Availability #3.1 - How common are the puzzles? #3.2 - Which ones are the toughest to find? 3.3 - Which ones can I buy retail? 3.4 - Are there any online sources for purchasing puzzles? Section 4: Solutions 4.1 - How difficult is it to solve one? #4.2 - Where can I find solution books? 4.3 - Where can I find solutions online? *Section 5: Who's Who in Cubing 5.1 - What is the history of the Rubik's Cube? 5.2 - Who are some of the prominent figures in cubing/puzzling? 5.2.1 - Erno Rubik 5.2.2 - David Singmaster *5.2.3 - Minh Thai 5.2.4 - Uwe Meffert 5.2.5 - Jerry Slocum 5.2.6 - Douglas Hoftstadter &Section 6: Cool Links & Contact Info &6.1 - General &6.2 - Online Puzzle Galleries &6.3 - Purchasing Credits Contributors to the FAQ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Questions Section 1: The Basics 1.1 - What is a FAQ? As stated in the Introduction, FAQ is short for Frequently Asked Questions. 1.2 - What is the purpose of this FAQ? Also as stated in the Introduction, this FAQ hopes to answer the most common questions as they relate to Rubik's Puzzles and Rubik's-type puzzles. 1.3 - What's the point of it all? As of late, there has been a surprising resurgence of interest in puzzles, and with the number of people coming out as being old-school puzzlers as well as new people picking up the hobby, there has to be something to bring together the average hobbyist. At the very least it's a way to look cool by signing your name to a large document. Section 2: The Puzzles 2.1 - What is a Puzzle? Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (Online) defines a puzzle as "1. Something which perplexes... a toy or a problem contrived for testing ingenuity;... something exhibiting marvelous skill in making." Puzzles were designed to challenge people to find a solution (or solutions, or even none at all) to a particular problem. This faq deals with tangible puzzles, ones that you hold in your hand and manipulate with your fingers. 2.2 - What is a Rubik's Cube? The classic Rubik's Cube was originally released in the States by the Ideal Toy Company back in the early 80's. The Cube is 57mm along each side of the puzzle. Each of the six faces of the puzzle are a distinct color. Each face seems to be made up of 9 squares. A visually similar cube can be made by arranging 9 cubes into a square on a flat surface. 9 more cubes are stacked on top of the original 9. Finally, a third layer of 9 cubes are stacked on top, for a total of 27 small cubes (or cubelets). The Rubik's Cube appears to be made up of 27 cubelets (with the the cubelet in the center of the stack being "invisible"). The ingenious part about the cube is that it doesn't come apart under normal usage. A simple spring-loaded mechanism prevents the outer cubes from falling off as the whole assembly is twisted along its turning points. To solve the puzzle, one must twist the cube sequentially until all of the six faces are restored to their original colors. 2.3 - What is a Cube-type puzzle? A Rubik's Cube-type puzzle refers to a small group of puzzles that have a similar style of manipulation, namely, the puzzle can be scrambled and needs to be unscrambled by turning the puzzle along its axes (turning or twisting lines). All Cube-Type and nearly Cube-Type puzzles fall under one general puzzle category called "MAGIC POLYHEDRA," referring to their general shape and solving methodology. The strict Cube-type puzzle subtype must meet certain criteria: a) Must not come apart under normal operation. b) pieces do not slide together or pull apart. c) The entire puzzle itself is moved, not merely units within it. d) The puzzle is in the shape of a regular geometric solid. (i.e. a "platonic" or "archimedeian" solid) e) The lines along which the puzzle turns are symmetrical no matter what face or angle the puzzle is viewed from (which barely excludes some notable pieces that would otherwise be considered "cube-type.") The "near Cube-Type" magic polyhedra often violate one or more of the above criteria but still are closely related to their cube-type brethren. 2.4 - What is a Rubik Puzzle? Rubik Puzzles are puzzles which were either a) Created personally by Dr. Erno Rubik, or b) Originally have the Rubik name attached to them. (Which differentiates them from puzzles which later adopted the name officially or otherwise, e.g. Rubik's Snake) Keep in mind that not all of Dr. Rubik's Puzzles are Cube-type puzzles and not all Cube-type puzzles are made by Dr. Rubik. 2.5 - What about other Puzzle types? There are numerous categories of puzzles (sliding block, disassembly, word, mental, ring, etc..). The FAQ covers some of them, but the main emphasis is on the puzzles that follow the guidelines for a Cube-type puzzle (Ques. 2.3), are very similar, or have Dr. Rubik's name attached to them. *2.6 - Which ones are Cube-type puzzles? Many puzzles have variants which, while visibly different, may be identical from a mechanical standpoint. In the case of the Pyraminx and the octahedron, they may essentially be considered identical from a solving standpoint. Some puzzles are capitalized, referring to their official name, while others may not have a proper name associated with them. In any case, each puzzle was listed by its major type. Important note: In all cases, it is possible to create variants where each piece of the puzzle has a specific spot as well as orientation. Such is the case with the Rubik's 4th dimension, where four of the center pieces on the puzzle had to have a small illustration line up with the others. While this increases the relative difficulty on some of the puzzles, others may not be affected by similar additions, as is the case with the Pyraminx due to its relatively limited number of actual moving pieces. In no particular order: *a) Rubik's Cube: Six square faces (a cube), each face may be twisted or sliced along four different lines. Each face has 9 squares. Variants: May come in sphere form, but mechanically identical. May also come truncated or shaped into other geometric solids and in some instances may require a slightly different solving technique. Many size variants exist as well. There are also literaly hundreds of sticker or pattern variants, such as Dan Hoey's Tartan Cube. Invented by: Dr. Erno Rubik *b) Rubik's Mini Cube: Six square faces, each face may be twisted or sliced along two different lines. Each face has 4 squares. Variants: Many shape variants. Invented by: Dr. Erno Rubik? c) Rubik's Revenge (Possibly referred to as the Rubik's Master Cube in other countries?): Six square faces (a cube), each face may be twisted or sliced along six different lines. Each face has 16 squares. Variants: None known. *d) Rubik's Wahn (aka master or professor's cube): No official name. A Meffert puzzle (re. Section 5: -> Prominent Figures in Cubing -> Uwe Meffert). Each face has 25 squares. Variants: None known. Invented by: Udo Krell *e) Pyraminx: Four faces made up of equilateral triangles (a tetrahedron). Not really a pyramid, as name may imply. Each face may be twisted or sliced along six different lines, but due to the nature of the puzzle, the end or point pieces have a trivial effect on the solving of the puzzle. Variants: Size variants as well as at least one variant where the puzzle was stellated to give it a much more complex appearance despite being equally easy to solve. Invented by: Uwe Meffert f) octahedron: Eight faces made up of equilateral triangles (it is essentially two true pyramids that have been 'stuck' together, base to base.). Each face also turns along 6 lines, but just like the Pyraminx, the point pieces are considered trivial. Although mechanically different from the Pyraminx, due to the nature of the puzzle, being able to solve the former puzzle almost guarantees success in solving this one, and vice versa. Variants: Christoph's Jewel, identical to the octahedron except the point pieces are completely done away with. Otherwise mechanically identical. *g) Megaminx: Twelve faces made up of pentagons (a dodecahedron), each face twisting along five different lines. Due to the nature of the slicing lines, each face appears to have a pentagram (or star) on it. Variants: The Supernova is nearly mechanically identical, except the dividing lines are spaced differently than the Megaminx, which gives each face a slightly different appearance but is otherwise solved in exactly the same manner. Invented by: Kersten Meier, Ben Halpern h) Skewb: Six square faces (a cube), each face may be turned along four different lines. A twist on the cube results in a very skewed cut which affects all six faces, making it a very different puzzle from the normal Rubik's types (skew+cube=skewb). Variants: Spherical variants of the Skewb are many and common. Invented by: Tony Durham i) Dino Cube: "...a cube consisting of 12 bi-triangular shaped edge pieces. The 8 corners turn, rotating 3 edges at a time. The earliest cube-lovers message dated May 16th 1995, describing it as a cube with an X cut on all sides." Variants: None known. j) "Pyraminx Ball:" A dodecahedron that has two cut lines on each face. The two lines do not cut the faces symmetrically, other than the cut line itself meeting the edge of a puzzle face on its middle point. Although it may appear to violate criteria E, the cut lines themselves are scattered evenly throughout the cube, and each face is cut the exact same way. Variants: None known. k) others: There are several others rumored to exist. If anybody knows of any, please let me know. *2.7 - Which ones are almost Cube-type puzzles? Some of the puzzles listed here are well known by people. And while some may argue that such and such puzzle IS a cube-type puzzle, I feel that the listed criteria for a Cube-type puzzle are very specific. By no means does the criteria make these inferior in any way. I personally own several of the ones listed below. But from a strictly defined standpoint, these puzzles don't quite make the definition. *a) Rubik's Domino: Essentially a cube with one layer of cubes taken out, appearing to be made up of 18 cubelets. Fails Cube-type criteria letters D and E. The puzzle is not a perfect regular polyhedron and is not symmetrical from all faces. In essence, due to the nature of its twists, the puzzle essentially has only two faces, a "top" and a "bottom." Variants: My understanding is that they made a version with dots and/or stickers and one where the dots were molded into the plastic to benefit the visually impaired. Invented by: Dr. Erno Rubik? *b) Square-1: This puzzle's "solved" shape is a cube, but due to its irregular sized pieces, the puzzle can take on wildly different shapes. It fails criteria D due to its evolving shape. Like the Rubik's Domino, this puzzle is also essentially two faced, so it also fails criteria E. Variants: None known to exist. Invented by: Karel Hrsel, Vojtech Kopsky *c) Impossiball: Spherical as the name implies. "It is a sphere made up of triangular equilateral colored pieces which can freely rotate rotate along any side of the triangles. The pieces are held in place by rubber collars and can be disassembled easily." - B.D. Thus, the Impossiball violates criteria B, which is partly about the spirit of a cube-type puzzle, i.e. the Rubik's Cube is not held together by rubber bands (which is what I first envisioned when I was 7 years old). It does not quite violate criteria D despite being a sphere because it could have easily been shaped into an icosahedron instead of a sphere. But some would argue that Impossicosahedron sounds better than Impossiball. Uwe Meffert recently reissued the Impossiball, which feature new sticker colors. Many people have commented that the new sticker colors aren't as distinct as the original issue. Variants: None known. Invented by: Wolfgang Kuppers *d) Masterball: Sphere with slicing turns that correspond to a simplified latitude/longitude line type system. Each of the eight "slices" in turn separate along 4 different lines. Variants: The Masterball comes in many 'flavors,' from the very simple (the Duomaster, which used black and white pieces) to the more complex (Circusmaster, depicting a "three-ring circus act."). In every case, it was strictly "sticker" variations. Invented by: Dr. Geza Gyovai e) Puck: Shaped like a hockey puck, this puzzle has twelve semi-wedges packed around a cylinder that slices down along its diameter. Due to the nature of the scrambling method, it seems almost like a simplified version of the Square-1 or Rubik's Domino. Variants: Just like the Masterball, LOTS of them. Probably more. All just pattern, or "sticker" variants. *f) Alexander's Star: In some ways similar to the Megaminx, this puzzle has the equivalent shape of a 'great dodecahedron.' The 'Star plays like a Megaminx without the corner pieces or a center reference piece, and since it only has 6 colors for 12 "sides," there is a minor problem with solving it at the end due to the mixing of two identically colored pieces. This is in contrast to the Impossiball, which is effectively like a Megaminx, but only solving the corners and no center piece. The Star mainly fails criteria D, in that it isn't a "Platonic" polygon despite being considered a stellated version of one. Otherwise it would very much be considered a "cube-type" puzzle. Variants: A version of the 'Star uses painted pieces rather than stickers. Invented by: Adam Alexander *2.8 - Which other puzzles will be covered? There are many other fine puzzles that can be added to this list, and this one is by no means comprehensive. I have tried to stick mainly to the "classic" ones, puzzles that appeared originally in the 80's, but there may be several which required mention. *a) Missing Link: A Three-dimensional "sliding block" puzzle shaped like a rectangular box. The ends were square, and three of the long "faces" of the puzzle had a "link" made up of 4 pieces which required solving. The fourth face required only 3 pieces to complete, thus allowing for one "neutral" space for pieces to be slid around in. The challenge of the Missing Link is that the 2nd and 3rd rows of the puzzle are "glued," while only the 1st and 4th rows actually rotate. Otherwise the solving of this puzzle would be equally as trivial as the WhippIt. Variants: None known. Invented by: Marvin Glass & Associates b) WhippIt: A cylinder with six different colors composed of 3 tiles for each color. The sixth color (white, on mine) is only made up of 2 tiles, again leaving 1 out to allow for pieces to slide around. Another "sliding block" puzzle. Variants: A friend of mine mentioned that he saw one where the puzzle was a longer cylinder and each color was comprised of 4 or even 5 tiles, but I have yet to see one. I can see how one could easily create one like that if one had the inclination, but due to the puzzle's relative simplicity, I believe the project would be a waste of another perfectly good WhippIt just to make a hybrid. c) OrbIt (Orb-it or Orb): A gray sphere which cuts along one hemisphere. There is a groove cut into the sphere which follows a pattern. Within the groove moves a number of tightly packed colored "beads" which must be reorganized into their proper alignments. The puzzle may have originally been referred to as something else, maybe just "TheOrb," but I have no way of confirming this since I have seen conflicting names for it. Variants: None known. *d) Rubik's Snake: Composed of 24 linked diagonally cut squares (prisms), this puzzle is more of a design maker, but can be considered a puzzle by presenting the puzzler with illustrations and having him/her attempt to re-create the picture. ("Rubik reportedly invented this in the 60's, and still has the original drawings for it. It was first manufactured when the cube hit." - P.K.) Variants: Mainly size variants. Invented by: Dr. Erno Rubik e) others: Many other fine puzzles have not made the list, like the Ten Billion Barrel, the Smart Alex, the TopSpin, etc.. Some very likely belong in the list but never became well known, while others are farther and farther drifting from the focus of this FAQ. Present a case for your favorite puzzle and it may be listed. 2.9 - Which ones are the Rubik puzzles? The Rubik puzzles are the ones with Dr. Erno Rubik's name attached to them. I have attempted a rough chronological order of their first appearance, but no guarantees as to its accuracy. There is great difficulty in getting exact dates for many of the puzzles due to their wide distribution as well as conflicting reports. Below is a compilation of "best guesses" or copyright dates as they appeared accompanying the puzzles. a) Rubik's Cube: Description given under subsection 2.6.a). Hungary circa 1977 Ideal Toy Company circa 1980? Oddzon c.1995(US) b) Rubik's Mini Cube: Description given under subsection 2.6.b). ??? circa 1981? Oddzon c.1995(US) c) Rubik's Revenge: Description given under subsection 2.6.c). Ideal Toy Company c.1982(US) d) Rubik's Domino: Description given under subsection 2.7.a). Hungary (The Magic Domino) circa 1979 ??? circa 19?? e) Rubik's Magic: 8 square tiles (2x4) held together by fishing line. Matchbox c.1986,1987(US) Oddzon c.1995(US) f) Rubik's Master Magic Edition: 12 square tiles (2x6) held together by fishing line. Similar to the above. Matchbox c.1987(US) g) Rubik's Clock: 9 clock faces on two sides (18 total clocks) which are changed by turning 4 dials and 4 buttons. The dials and buttons cause different clocks to be changed, causing the clocks to display different Times. The object was to get the clocks to all display the same Time, 12 o'clock. Matchbox c.1988(US) h) Rubik's Illusion: No description. ??? circa 1988 i) Rubik's 4th Dimension: Same as Cube, with 4 extra center pictures. Golden(Matchbox) c.1990(US) j) Rubik's Dice: A hollow "die" which had 7 metal plates inside that moved. Each plate had a different set of white and red dots on it. The object was to re-arrange the plates so that only white dots showed through the cut-out holes on the puzzle. Golden(Matchbox) c.1990(US) k) Rubik's Tangle (25 pieces): Paper tiles which are arranged to make complete loops of "rope." 25 tiles, single sided. 4 different versions exist, differing in which tiles appear twice. Golden(Matchbox) c.1990(US) l) Rubik's XV (Fifteen): Somewhat similar to the famous sliding block puzzle, Sam Loyd's 15-puzzle, but has no "neutral" space. The puzzle has two sides, one whose object is to arrange the numerals 1 through 15 sequentially, the other whose object is to create a magic square of order 15. Both sides cannot be solved at the same Time. Golden(Matchbox) c.1990(US) m) Rubik's Triamid: 10 separate pieces held together by connectors. The puzzle must be taken apart a certain way for solving. Golden(Matchbox) c.1990(US) Oddzon c.1995(US) n) "Rubik's Snake": Description given under subsection 2.8.d). ??? circa 1980 Oddzon c.1995(US) o) Rubik's Maze: Six cubes connected together, 2x3. The object was to rearrange the cubes so that the maze designs on the cubes created a single continuous loop. Golden(Matchbox) circa 1994 p) Rubik's Rabbits/Rubik's Hat: No description. Golden(Matchbox) circa 1994 q) Rubik's Tangle (9 pieces): Plastic tiles with raised molded "ropes" which are arranged to make complete loops. 9 tiles. Oddzon c.1995(US) r) other Rubik's related items: Rubik's World: Spherical 3x3x3 cube with the "globe" imprinted Rubik's Race: A two player game of some kind, where players sit opposite of each other and try to match some sort of a pattern in a race. Rubik's Game: A standard cube with holes in each cubelet face for pegs to be inserted into. The game was for 2 to 6 players, with the object (probably) being to arrange the pegs into tic-tac-toe type patterns by inserting pegs and scrambling the cube. 2.10 - Which Rubik puzzles will be covered? The Rubik puzzles covered by this faq have already been mentioned. They are listed in section 2.12, the master puzzle list. All other Rubik's affiliated puzzles will, sadly, not be mentioned in the earliest versions of this FAQ. Due to the sheer number of different puzzles and categories, it is easy to lose sight of the original idea of the FAQ, which is mainly about the cube type puzzles and their close cousins. But who knows, maybe someone else will be willing to work on a detailed FAQ or "subset"-FAQ dealing with other puzzle types specifically. 2.11 - Where can I see these puzzles? Check the newly started section in the end of cool web links. That section will end up being a great resource for those looking for more info. &2.12 - Quick reference Puzzle Master List To have what I would consider a reasonably complete list of puzzles, I believe that one should have most if not all of the puzzles from the first two lists and maybe a smattering of the ones in the third. 02/20/1998 - There are a few more obscure magic polyhedra that have popped up fairly recently, so the list may be expanding and changing soon. Cube-Type a) Rubik's Cube b) Rubik's Mini Cube c) Rubik's Revenge d) Rubik's Wahn e) Pyraminx f) octahedron g) Megaminx h) Skewb i) Dino cube j) "Pyraminx Ball:" Almost Cube-Type a) Rubik's Domino b) Square-1 b) Impossiball c) Masterball e) Puck f) Alexander's Star Other of Significance a) Missing Link b) WhippIt c) "OrbIt" &d) Rubik's Snake Section 3: Availability #3.1 - How common are the puzzles? Due to Oddzon's recent reproduction of various puzzles, the ones with the most availability are: Rubik's Cube Rubik's Mini Cube Rubik's Magic Rubik's Snake However, many people consider the Oddzon cubes to be inferior to the originals that they are mimicking. The original Rubik's Cube is still enjoying considerable distribution among puzzle circles. Some puzzles which were fairly newer, were produced in large quantities, or were just never quite as popular can still be tracked down fairly easily by people. These include: Pyraminx Masterball Square 1 Octahedron Rubik's Wahn The Masterball and Square 1 can be found at the occasional toy store or specialty gift shop (Natural Wonders carried the Masterball, Toys R' Us had the Square 1). The others can be found with some success from the list of online sources down below. The really rare ones also generally coincide with the question answered in 3.2, so I will end this section with this line. #3.2 - Which ones are the toughest to find? As is partially implied by the above list of availability, several puzzles are not only highly sought after, but their limited quantities often means that whatever stock remains is frequently competed over. Consider the following story: In an interesting twist, someone found six brand new Rubik's Revenges at a local game store in the US. After holding a quick auction on the internet, the individual made quite a tidy sum of money. Assuming that the original purchase price of the puzzles was around 120 dollars (or 20 dollars for each Revenge, which seems more or less right), the individual 4x4x4's were sold off for a combined total of $529.19. Since the bidders payed for shipping themselves, the profit can be estimated to be about $68.20 PER CUBE. Not bad for just a few weeks worth of work. Names have been omitted to protect the innocent. :P As you can see, the Revenge is definately one of the most sought after puzzles to emerge from the 80's. A list of the really rare ones would consist of: Rubik's Domino (3x3x2) Rubik's Revenge (4x4x4) Missing Link Alexander's Star Megaminx (original, not the reissue) Impossiball (original, not the reissue) 3.3 - Which ones can I buy retail? The Oddzon company re-released many puzzles a couple of years ago, including the Cube, Mini-Cube, the Snake, Rubik's Magic, and the Triamid. They can still be found at local toy stores like Kaybee and Toys R' Us. Specialty game stores in malls and some role playing game shops have also stocked many different kinds as well. They often carry clone Rubik's Cubes and Masterballs. Many people have also purchased various old puzzles like the Revenge and Megaminx at garage sales across the country. (I found my first Revenge in a plastic bucket at a friend's garage, with most of the stickers in poor shape - TT) 3.4 - Are there any online sources for purchasing puzzles? There are several online sources for Magic Polyhedra. Down at the bottom of this FAQ are several people/places to contact for puzzles. Section 4: Solutions 4.1 - How difficult is it to solve one? For any of you master cube-ologists, I would like you to submit a rating of the relative difficulty of solving the base puzzles, from most difficult to least difficult, 1 being easiest and 10 being hardest. Of course, not everyone has solved all of the listed puzzles, but I hope to combine the data into one master list. Here's a chart that gives the number of possible combinations for some of the puzzles discussed by this FAQ. Although not a definitive way to determine a puzzle's relative solving difficulty, it can be considered somewhat of a guide. Rubik's Wahn (5x5x5) 2.8*10^74 Megaminx 10^68 Rubik's Revenge (4x4x4) 7.4*10^45 Alexander's Star 7.2*10^34 Impossiball 2.4*10^25 Rubik's Cube (3x3x3) 4.3*10^19 Pyraminx Octahedron 8.2*10^18 Square 1 1.2*10^13 Missing Link 8.2*10^10 Rubik's Domino (3x3x2) 4.0*10^8 Pyraminx 7.6*10^7 Dino Cube 1.9*10^7 Pocket Cube (2x2x2) 3.6*10^6 Skewb 3.1*10^6 (Brief thanks to Mark Longridge, whose web page I pulled this out of. I left out many of the "sticker" variants and other puzzles which weren't part of the list, were just theoretical, or I just plain didn't have a clue as to what they were. -TT) This chart is by no means a scale of the relative difficulty of the puzzles, although certainly can be used as one way to gauge. A fellow cubist ranks some of the puzzles thusly (most to least difficult): Square 1 Megaminx Rubik's Revenge Impossiball Rubik's Cube Pyraminx Another prolific student of cubology rates the puzzles thus: Square-1 10 Rubik's Revenge 9 !Rubik's Cube with pictures 9 Rubik's Cube 4th Dimension 7 !Octagonal Cube (truncated 3^3) 7 Rubik's Cube 6 Rubik's Triamid 5 Rubik's Mini Cube 5 Alexander's Star 4 Rubik's Dice 4 Skewb 4 Pyraminx 3 !Masterball (Duomaster) 3 Missing Link 3 Rubik's Clock 2 Rubik's Magic Master Edition 2 Sam Loyd's 15 puzzle 1 WhippIt 1 Rubik's Magic 1 !Rubik's Cube with pictures - The center pieces have to have a specific alignment with each face of the Cube. !Octangonal Cube - Trucated cube that from the top the puzzle looks like an octagon. Four of the center edge pieces have only a single color so you can't tell their orientation until partly done solving the puzzle. !Masterball (Duomaster) - Masterball with just black and white pieces. Fun to look at, easy to solve. My own list of puzzles, most to least difficult, would have to be: Square 1 ? Supernova(Megaminx) ? Rubik's Wahn 9+ Rubik's Revenge 9 Rubik's Cube 8 Rubik's Mini Cube 7 Masterball (Geomaster) 6 Alexander's Star 6 !Moody Ball 5 Skewb 4 Missing Link 3 Masterball (Duomaster) 2 Octahedron (Pyraminx) 2 Pyraminx 2 WhippIt 1 !Moody Ball - Spherical sticker variant of the Skewb. Change the twelve (3 colors, 4 faces of each color) frowning faces into smiling faces. Very cool looking. My bias toward ranking the cubes as harder is because I solved all the puzzles below the Mini cube without any assistance. Using some patterns and hints I managed to solve up to the 5x5x5 cube. I have yet to solve the Megaminx or the Square 1, which I haven't had much Time to devote to. The Alexander's Star gave me some difficulty when I didn't realize at first that two identical pieces could be reversed, which caused some solving difficulties in the beginning. (Come to think of it, I may have just been inspired into finding a solution for the Megaminx by merely typing this FAQ! -TT) #4.2 - Where can I find solution books? Check your local library and do a search for Rubiks Cube. Computerized catalogs will generally show up with several entries, almost always a solution for the 3x3x3 cube. This is also a great way to come across other puzzle related books. If your intention is to purchase books, your best bet for finding solutions is to check with Christoph Bandelow or Peter Beck in section 6.3. They should be able to point you in the right directions. 4.3 - Where can I find solutions online? Pull up your favorite search engine and enter the name of the puzzle which you are interested in. Generally you will get many hits. If you still want specific places to check, go to the Web Links section near the bottom. *Section 5: Who's Who in Cubing 5.1 - What is the history of the Rubik's Cube? The Rubik's Cube is a puzzle which was invented by Dr. Erno Rubik back in the 1970's as a demonstration piece for his architecture class. After inventing the Cube's ingenious mechanism, it didn't take too long before the puzzle caught on among the populace and by the early 1980's, the Rubik's Cube was a household name. As a puzzle, it surpassed all others in its popularity. In its short Time as a fad, the Rubik's Cube became a symbol of the 80's. Songs were written about it, a cartoon series was based on the puzzle, and many people caught the Cube fever. The cube also inspired many other puzzles to be created that were similar in style (the "Cube-Type" puzzles) before it all faded away, circa 1984. For more in depth information on the cube, check the descriptions of the web pages in section 6. 5.2 - Who are some of the prominent figures in cubing/puzzling? People of some significance to the history of puzzles and cubes, more specifically. 5.2.1 - Erno Rubik Doctor of Architecture, he invented the cube originally to demonstrate to his students. It didn't take long for its potential as a toy to be realized. The Rubik's Cube has undoubtedly become the single most famous puzzle in all of history. The Rubik's Cube later became embroiled in a breach of patent law suit, the results of which I don't recall. 5.2.2 - David Singmaster One of the first to publish a solution book. His notation for manipulating the Cube is still used widely by most people. *5.2.3 - Minh Thai National Champion cube solver (was on TV show "That's Incredible."). His record Time in late 1981 was 26.04 seconds. In an international competition he managed to shave that record down by 2 or 3 seconds. Later he went on to publish a booklet entitled "The Winning Solution," talking about his method for solving the cube. It was a "corners first" approach, for those who are curious. 5.2.4 - Uwe Meffert Responsible for creation and/or manufacture of several magic polyhedra. 5.2.5 - Jerry Slocum One of the most prominent puzzle collectors around, may have the largest collection known. His collection is estimated at over 50,000 or so. He has also authored and collaborated on several books about puzzles, including "Puzzles: Old and New." He has also been known to host "puzzle parties" where people get together and share this hobby. 5.2.6 - Douglas Hofstadter Published several papers on the subject of cubing, two for Scientific American in the early 80's, first regarding the cube and then another discussing the emergence of other magic polyhedra. Section 6: Cool Links & Contact Info &6.1 - General General links are those that have basic information but are not necessarily directly involved with cubing. Generally good places to further the puzzling need or to learn more about what's out there. http://www.rubiks.com The whole reason this FAQ was started in the first place. Page hosted by Oddzon, the latest manufacturers of the Cube and several other puzzles in the same ideal. http://web.idirect.com/~cubeman An excellent page hosted by Mark Longridge. Information in the page includes notes on how to solve various cubes, discussions of "God's" algorithm, some mathematical theories, as well as other random info regarding the cube's appearance in the culture. All in all a super resource. http://look.net/hockeypuck/home Homepage of the Puck Puzzle. http://wsd.com/masterball Homepage of the Masterball. &6.2 - Online Puzzle Galleries: Pages with puzzle pictures and/or puzzle galleries. See what they look like or even someTimes get to manipulate them! http://www.byrden.com This web page features many different geometric puzzles, some real, others created by a twisted genius (but perhaps impossible to manufacture). In any case, the Java puzzles available on this page allow manipulation, so is a great page to check out your favorite puzzles in action. http://www.twfg.de/puzzle Has photograph galleries of many of the puzzles described here. The page is mainly in German. Also a place to buy puzzles. http://pages.prodigy.com/stegmann/RubiksCube.html Not the best looking cubes, but certainly one of the most fully featured and interactive Java puzzles around (2x2x2, 3x2x2, 3x3x2, 3x3x3, and 4x4x4). http://outworld.compuserve.com/homepages/puzzles/class01.htm Look under the link "Sequential Movement Puzzles." Has good photographs of a wide variety of puzzles, including the Moody Ball, Fisher's Cube, and Supernova, among others. &6.3 - Purchasing: Online sources listed here will mostly be those that I have purchased from in the past, what I generally consider as being good sources. Those I have NOT purchased from before will be clearly marked. And as always, "individual results may vary." http://www.puzzletts.com Despite being a commercial outlet whose web page needs some updating, this page also has several different puzzles available for sale. One problem is that they still list some puzzles like the Rubik's Revenge as though it was in stock despite they clearly not having any available. (I have purchased puzzles from here on one occasion roughly mid '97 -TT) &Pete Beck a.k.a. Just Puzzles A hobby mail order seller of "Mechanical puzzles" specializing in Rubik's Cube type puzzles. HOME answering machine is 973(formerly 201)-625-4191. P.O.Box 267, Wharton, NJ 07885 "The FUTURE is PUZZLING, but CUBING is FOREVER!!!" -P.B. (I purchased puzzles from Mr. Beck twice in the early/mid 90's. He recently sent me a video this year, '98, with lots of cube related nostalgia despite my constant pestering. Thanks Mr. Beck. -TT) Dr. Christoph Bandelow Dr. Bandelow also specializes in Magic Polyhedra. His name is also associated with a truncated variant of the octahedral pyraminx called Christoph's Jewel. Also a good source for solution books. (I purchased puzzles from Dr. Bandelow back in roughly '93. He is still very active in the puzzle business. -TT) Credits Thank yous to the following individuals for their contributions: (listed alphabetically) Christoph Bandelow christoph.bandelow@ruhr-uni-bochum.de Peter Beck just_puzzles@yahoo.com David Byrden david@byrden.com) Bill Dulin wdfirestar@aol.com Philip K philipknudsen@hotmail.com Gerardo Ortega skarabajo@usa.net