Hausigel Contest Series

[apollo1001]

Well done James - if you continue at this rate, it's a sure podium next time!

I didn't enjoy this set as much as the last one, but I don't think it is a reflection on the puzzles - it might have something to do with breaking nearly every one first time through

[kiwijam]

Well done James - if you continue at this rate, it's a sure podium next time!

Haha, thanks Adam, I like your optimism, but I don't think it works like that!
I was on holiday, so I did this in a noisy little internet cafe I'd found, with unplugged headphones on. But I'll consider it good practise for concentrating in real events.
Grabbing the high-pointers seemed a good strategy this time, as they were types I'm comfortable with. In the end I got slightly fewer points than in HCS1 (74% then, 70% this time) but everyone else (except the top 3!) struggled much more, making me look good on the ladder.
Looks like the next round might be word-puzzle related, based on this picture?: http://www.hausigel.de/hcs.html

[sknight]

Instruction file is up at LMD.
Contest is the Weekend of March 8 - 11

[Hausigel]

Hi folks,
the contest HCS 3 will take place in a little more than a week (Mar 8-11). As said by sknight, the instruction file is already available. A few inaccuracies in the instructions have been brought to my attention; I have posted some amendments in the German forum. A few notes on manual score adjustments will follow shortly.
Hausigel

[Hausigel]

Link to the contest page

[Hausigel]

The contest has started. Good luck to all participants.

[Hausigel]

The contest HCS 3 is over, the preliminary scoring should be visible. I have already made manual adjustments in case of typos. Further score adjustments are only intended for "wrong" solution codes if there is an actual solution with the respective words. Please submit any requests until Wednesday noon, then I will finalize the scoring.
Hausigel

[Hausigel]

Hi,
the contest HCS 3 has been finalized. Congratulations to Nikola on an excellent performance, and to the runner-ups as well.
The next contest HCS 4 (contest page) will take place on April 5-8. The instruction file is already available.
Hausigel

[Hausigel]

The contest HCS 4 will start in two hours. A few notes on manual score adjustments can be found in the German forum. Good luck to all participants!

[emma]

Thanks for that one - I enjoyed it all apart from the time spent shaking my toner cartridge after the first attempt to print!

[Hausigel]

Thanks a lot, Emma... I wasn't sure if I met everyone's taste with this contest, but I tried to select many different puzzle types such that most participants would find their favourite spots.

[Hausigel]

Hello,
the contest is over, and I would already like to thank all participants, even though only four of the twelve intended HCS rounds are finished. I appreciate every single attendance, no matter if the participants are top solvers or try only a handful of puzzles in each contest.
As usual, I have sent messages to those who entered a solution code with the wrong syntax. I have also made a couple of score adjustments without penalty for puzzle 3 (Anglers) where the wrong entries were based on an unwanted alternative interpretation of the solution code. Further score adjustments will only take place on the initiative of the participants. I will finalize the scoring on Wednesday noon, you can sent score adjustment requests (to: hcs@hausigel.de) until then.
Hausigel

[emma]

Thanks for that one - I enjoyed it all apart from the time spent shaking my toner cartridge after the first attempt to print!

... and discovering that I'd messed up a 50-pointer!

[Hausigel]

The next contest, HCS 5 (Loop puzzles), is going to take place Mar 24-27. The instruction file is already available.
Link to the contest page
Hausigel

[Hausigel]

Hello,
just a short reminder that the contest HCS 5 will start tomorrow.
Concerning manual adjustments: As usual, I will inquire in case of wrong syntax; apart from that, adjustments are only made on request of the participant. In either case, you can only receive 80% of the points.
Hausigel

[kiwijam]

Great set of puzzles, Roland, thank you! I like the new ideas.

To any undecided puzzlers, most (12/18) of the grids in this test are only 8x8 so don't take too long to finish. This will be one of the easier contests of the Hausigel series.

[PuzzleScot]

I echo James' comments. Thanks Roland - great puzzles

Typos excepted, that's the best I personally have done in any puzzle contest for a LONG time!

[puzzlemad]

I echo James' comments. Thanks Roland - great puzzles

Typos excepted, that's the best I personally have done in any puzzle contest for a LONG time!

Ditto. Thanks Roland

[Hausigel]

Thanks guys, I really appreciate it.
I was confident that a loop puzzle themed contest would appeal to most puzzle solvers. The number of participants is already higher than usual (speaking only about my contests), thank you for that as well.
Btw Alan, I have sent you a mail about a typo

[yureklis]

Thank you so much Roland for nicely solvable puzzles But submitting the answer keys were really tough! Like mostly LMI test, it could be asked for longest horizontal and vertical segments for each row, or marked row etc. I'm sure that this one would be easier.

[Hausigel]

The contest is over, please send any score adjustment requests (hcs@hausigel.de) no later than Wednesday noon, after that I will finalize the scoring.

[Hausigel]

@Serkan: I am still not sure what a good solution key for puzzles of this kind is. For loops which do not have to visit all cells, I find the number of empty cells in all rows/columns a sensible choice (although I am not certain about whether clues cells should be included or not). As for loops which must pass through all cells, I have tried different ideas; I will keep your suggestion about the longest loop segment in each row/column in mind.

[kiwijam]

I'm very pleased with those results, I made it into the top bunch which will be good for my ranking.
I'm glad I spent some time double-checking my answers at the end, to make sure of the time bonus.
Some great results from the UK too, Stefano finished all of them and Alan got 17/18! And AJ, Liane, Anthea, and Adam B all with good scores too.

June will be a busy month, with multiple competitions on most weekends (some are listed at http://www.logic-masters.de/). Yay!
I'm guessing HCS 6 will include variations of Camping, Magnets, and Minesweeper...

[kiwijam]

Copied from the German forums:

"
Hello,
for the contest HCS 6 I am planning with the weekend Jun 21-24.
...
I have added the nation info of the contestants to the total scoring (and used the occasion to correct a few minor mistakes). If there are still mistakes, please let me know.
And I wanted to thank Berni for his work. He has not only programmed the Contest Engine (and fixed a couple of bugs occasionally), he also spends a lot of time adding the HCS puzzle types to the (German) PuzzleWiki. Thanks!
Hausigel
"

[kiwijam]

The instruction book for HCS 6: "Almost Classics", is available at the contest page:
http://www.logic-masters.de/Wettbewerbe ... .php?id=56.

The puzzles are classic types with one rule changed each.