# Minesweeper. Need I say more? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 13, 2004, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115 "2004-02-13T22:39:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2004, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115/41 "2004-02-16T15:07:36Z")
> [@erislover](#): > > I thought you’d never do a thing to make me dislike you. Now I have a reason. This game looks to be too much fun for _anyone’s_ good. Especially my own. > > Awesome. 😃 My younger brother introduced me to that game, so you can blame it on HIM. I have sworn a terrible revenge upon him. I haven’t carried it out yet, but I am patient. From an old mod email written by someone else: > [@](#): > > That is just sick. Sick and twisted. > Damn, it’s good to have something to aspire to. > Greg, go for it. We’re HERE for you. > Except Lynn, who waits in the shadows with terrible patience, carefully > honing The Unending Cosmic Hurt. I might make that last bit my next sig. ---
**Author:** ![blowero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/41988e/32.png) [@blowero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blowero)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2004, 8:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115/42 "2004-02-17T08:43:15Z")
> [@El Cid Viscoso](#): > > Dear **Sauron** , > > I’m not trying to make trouble, but there are more than a few people here who are desperately seeking employment. One is currently Pitting his unemployment difficulties because he is seriously concerned about his family’s future. > > I’m self-employed, so this issue is not really my problem. But your Pitting “Minesweeper,” a game that you play on a leisurely workday, is more than a little insensitive, especially in this job market. > > Separately, during the various times I’ve had the fortune to be entrusted with employment by someone else – even under the most lax conditions – it’s never once crossed my mind that I could just “while away my time.” I guess I kind of look at that as a form of stealing. > > Your tenure may vary. O.K., here’s a good game. There are 41 posts - _one_ is preachy and sanctimonious. You have to find it. But back to Minesweeper - I had always thought the advanced level was too difficult, that it invariably involves _some_ guessing. Is it possible to consistently solve it without any random guessing? ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2004, 9:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115/43 "2004-02-17T09:09:53Z")
One thing I discovered in Minesweeper to lower the aggravation level is when you come to a point where only luck will let you pick the right square - make the choice there and then. Going to another area and working it out just leaves you in the position of the OP - 3 squares, no clues and 1 bomb. Only 1 chance in 3 so the other times you’ll be pissed off. If you pick right as soon as you get there then that game would be solved. ---
**Author:** ![Mariemarie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/58f4c7/32.png) [@Mariemarie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mariemarie)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2004, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115/44 "2004-02-17T13:35:38Z")
? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? - - 1 2 2 1 \* \* \* \* \* … . . ^ ^ ^ ^ . . . . ? M M ? . . ? = blank, - = any state M = mine When you have a 1221 in the middle of a row or column, you can tag the spaces next to the 2s as mines. ---
**Author:** ![sturmhauke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e47c2d/32.png) [@sturmhauke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sturmhauke)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2004, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115/45 "2004-02-17T14:07:43Z")
> [@blowero](#): > > O.K., here’s a good game. There are 41 posts - _one_ is preachy and sanctimonious. You have to find it. > > But back to Minesweeper - I had always thought the advanced level was too difficult, that it invariably involves _some_ guessing. Is it possible to consistently solve it without any random guessing? Expert level often involves some guessing, but not always. Sometimes it may appear so, but a careful analysis will reveal the mines. As I said before, if you only consider one numbered square at a time, the mine could be in various positions around it, but if you look at the nearby numbered squares you can rule out some positions and confirm others with certainty. Consider the following simple example: ```auto .a123g. .bcdef. ``` If you just look at the 1, the mine could be at a-d, and if you just look at the 2, the mines could be at {c, d}, {d, e}, or {c, e}. However, {c, d} is impossible because that places two mines next to the 1. A and b are also impossible, because there must be at least one mine at c or d. Now let’s say you know there are mines at g and f by some other means. That makes {d, e} impossible because that would put four mines next to the 3. So you are left with mines at {c, e, f, g}. ---
**Author:** ![borschevsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/97f17d/32.png) [@borschevsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/borschevsky)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2004, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115/46 "2004-02-17T14:25:39Z")
Beginner 6 Intermediate 31 Expert 81 After playing a lot of minesweeper, I think that better times start to be about how fast you can click the mouse, and how big the blank sections are on the board. Most of the time on expert, there will be few times that I need to stop and think; most of it is pattern recognition and clickclickclickclickclick :). Also there usually is some guessing or more complicated logic involved on the expert level, but if I’m trying to beat my best time I’ll just guess in these situations. If I spend time figuring it out, then I can’t break my record. ---
**Author:** ![elf6c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c57346/32.png) [@elf6c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elf6c)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2004, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115/47 "2004-02-17T14:45:16Z")
> [@asterion](#): > > If your supervillain boss really likes you, you get ownership of the Denver Broncos. Ohhhhh, but I wanted the Dallas Cowboys. . . . 😉 I play Minesweeper on my Palm M515. Its a nice quick break when your brain needs a distraction. ---
**Author:** ![blowero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/41988e/32.png) [@blowero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blowero)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2004, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115/48 "2004-02-17T21:30:02Z")
O.K., the examples you guys are giving all seem to be linear, yet the game is 2-dimensional. I started a game and seem to be stuck after only a few moves. Here’s what I have; can this be definitively solved without guessing? ?1 ?21 ?M2 ?M2 ?221 ??? (the area to the top is a border; the area to the right is blank spaces and/or border) ---
**Author:** ![blowero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/41988e/32.png) [@blowero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blowero)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2004, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115/49 "2004-02-17T21:32:41Z")
? 1 ? 2 1 ? M 2 ? M 2 ? 2 2 1 ? ? ? ? That looks much better with spaces, doesn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![borschevsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/97f17d/32.png) [@borschevsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/borschevsky)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2004, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115/50 "2004-02-18T06:51:11Z")
Just look at the top part of your diagram: > [@blowero](#): > > ? 1 > ? 2 1 > ? M 2 > ? M 2 One of the top two question marks has to be a mine, because of the “1” at the top. That mine will take care of the top “2”, so the _third_ question mark can’t be a bomb, and you can click it. So: > [@blowero](#): > > ? 1 > ? 2 1 > X M 2 > ? M 2 > ? 2 2 1 > ? ? ? ? Click the X to get more information. ---
**Author:** ![sturmhauke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e47c2d/32.png) [@sturmhauke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sturmhauke)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2004, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115/51 "2004-02-18T07:26:45Z")
> [@blowero](#): > > ? 1 > ? 2 1 > ? M 2 > ? M 2 > ? 2 2 1 > ? ? ? ? Try using the [code] tag, it uses Courier font which has uniform spacing. Here’s a partial solution: ```auto a 1 b 2 1 N M 2 ? M 2 ? 2 2 1 ? N c d ``` There is one mine at either a or b, and another at either c or d. The N denotes squares which must contain numbers. Futhermore, if c has a mine then the ? squares are all either numbered or blank. ---
**Author:** ![Urban\_Ranger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Urban\_Ranger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urban_Ranger)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2004, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115/52 "2004-02-18T07:52:43Z")
> [@Lynn Bodoni](#): > > What YOU need is [Nethack](http://www.nethack.org/index.html). Your life will never be the same. It’s freeware. [ADOM is better](http://www.adom.de/) 😛 ---
**Author:** ![blowero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/41988e/32.png) [@blowero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blowero)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2004, 8:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115/53 "2004-02-18T08:36:36Z")
Good job solving that one, guys. I imagine that most of the time when I think I’m stuck, I’m really not. ---
**Author:** ![Nightime](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Nightime](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nightime)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2004, 8:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115/54 "2004-02-18T08:43:50Z")
Arghhh! Because of this thread, I just played on expert. I was on track for my best time ever, but ended up with one mine to go, two squares left, and no way to tell which is the mine. Picked the mine, of course. ---
**Author:** ![Faruiza](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecd19e/32.png) [@Faruiza](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Faruiza)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2004, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115/55 "2004-02-18T18:18:04Z")
:eek: Airman! Are there one of those tricks for the regular version of solitaire? There’s this guy here at work who makes a habit of PRINTING OUT the screen of the end of his solitaire game, wherein it has a ridiculously high score and the best one says he did it in 41 seconds. He swears it isn’t a lie…I would like to beat him at his own game!! Oh please oh please, let there be a trick!! Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Jpeg\_Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/4bbf92/32.png) [@Jpeg\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jpeg_Jones)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2004, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115/56 "2004-02-19T00:14:24Z")
> [@sturmhauke](#): > > ```auto > > .a123g. > .bcdef. > > ``` > > …So you are left with mines at {c, e, f, g}. Wrong. You could have mines at d, e, and f. ---
**Author:** ![sturmhauke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e47c2d/32.png) [@sturmhauke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sturmhauke)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2004, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115/57 "2004-02-19T18:57:40Z")
> [@Jpeg Jones](#): > > Wrong. > > You could have mines at d, e, and f. Dammit. I changed my example while making it, and didn’t check thoroughly enough after. Damn you! _shakes fist_ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minesweeper-need-i-say-more/229115.md?page=2)