Help with a puzzle cache?

[+Team Who Dat]

Is there anyway to get help with a puzzle cache that I am having trouble with? Since I am very new, I am not sure of different strategies and so forth on some puzzles. I did read through some of the puzzle series that was posted not to long ago, but that didn't really help too much. I emailed this cache owner, but he hasn't responded yet. I just don't know if it is a simple track the numbers from left to right, or if there is some kind of "hidden" picture and how would I find it? I don't want the answer, just the knowledge of how to figure it out myself so I can apply it to future puzzles.

 

William's World without Walls

[+StarBrand]

Best thing to do is email the cache owner - if they choose to do so - they can give you a hint in the right direction. If not - you do realize that not every cache HAS to be found??

 

As a general rule - it is considered somewhat bad form to ask for help (even a nudge in the right direction) in solving a puzzle cache on the forums.

Edited May 19, 2010 by StarBrand

[+Team Who Dat]

Ahh ok. I wasn't sure. I just wish there was better info out there for solving them. We can delete this post then.

[+Team Who Dat]

Oh yeah, and I HAVE TO FIND THEM ALL!!!!! I want nothing but smiley faces

[+niraD]

A while back, The Rat offered a puzzle-solving class as an event cache. His slides are available here:

http://thegba.net/resources/general_information.php

 

Among the tips he offered:

 

Identify the theme. Check the cache title, the hint, the HTML source, the graphics (including names/URLs), any links (including URLs), whatever is at the posted coordinates, etc. If you can figure out the theme, then you should look for numbering systems that are associated with that theme (zip codes, area codes, telephone keypads, episode numbers, etc.).

 

Around here, coordinates will have 15 digits, and will look like "N 37° xx.xxx W 122° xx.xxx". So when I'm solving a nearby puzzle, I look for a group of 15 things, and then I look for ways to get the digits 37xxxxx122xxxxx from them. In general, I look for ways to get the number 37 (or the digits 3 and 7) from something near the beginning of the puzzle, and the number 122 (or the digits 1, 2, and 2) from something near the middle of the puzzle. (Of course, you'll need to adjust this for the coordinates near you.)

 

Other useful resources include the Puzzle Solving 101 Series

http://www.geocaching.com/bookmarks/view.a...ef-901807ba9c98

and this "Solving Puzzle Caches" article

http://bcaching.wordpress.com/2008/08/05/puzzles-part-1/

[+dibug]

I have only solved one puzzle cache and had a great time doing it with the grandkids. We got stumped and after trying many possibilities emailed the co.

Then all of sudden the light bulb lit up and the solution came to us. When the co got back to us he said help you do not need help you already found it.

Step away from it for a while and when you come back it will have a new look , your mind will be fresh and the answer may possibly jumped out at you like ours did.

[+Team Who Dat]

A while back, The Rat offered a puzzle-solving class as an event cache. His slides are available here:

http://thegba.net/resources/general_information.php

 

Among the tips he offered:

 

Identify the theme. Check the cache title, the hint, the HTML source, the graphics (including names/URLs), any links (including URLs), whatever is at the posted coordinates, etc. If you can figure out the theme, then you should look for numbering systems that are associated with that theme (zip codes, area codes, telephone keypads, episode numbers, etc.).

 

Around here, coordinates will have 15 digits, and will look like "N 37° xx.xxx W 122° xx.xxx". So when I'm solving a nearby puzzle, I look for a group of 15 things, and then I look for ways to get the digits 37xxxxx122xxxxx from them. In general, I look for ways to get the number 37 (or the digits 3 and 7) from something near the beginning of the puzzle, and the number 122 (or the digits 1, 2, and 2) from something near the middle of the puzzle. (Of course, you'll need to adjust this for the coordinates near you.)

 

Other useful resources include the Puzzle Solving 101 Series

http://www.geocaching.com/bookmarks/view.a...ef-901807ba9c98

and this "Solving Puzzle Caches" article

http://bcaching.wordpress.com/2008/08/05/puzzles-part-1/

 

 

The solving puzzle caches article had helped quite a bit. There are definate coordinate possibilities in that puzzle. My coords are 29 and 90. He also said the next 2 numbers in each coord should not be too far off of the bogus coordinates, such as if the original is 10, the next should be 09 or 11. So going with that logic, I have come up with numerous possibilities, but using his answer validation tool at the bottom, none of the answers are correct I could keep trying, but then his hint threw me off. It said using internet explorer, press control-A, which should only just select everything on the page if I am not mistaken (I am using a mac and my pc internet isn't working). So anyway, I didn't know if there was some hidden way of finding it. I also looked up his profile and there was a link on how to find hidden images using Adobe photoshop, but the link is broken. When I search for that info with google, I don't get much. Ah well, with broken links, unanswered questions from the CO, the last find a year ago, and numerous other caches that are archived, this may be no good anymore.

 

Speaking about asking the CO for help, I emailed another one and was just asking him about his hint, because his hint was encrypted, even after decrypting it, and I told him I just wanted help with the encryption method for future use, and instead he emailed me back telling me where to find the cache It was a multi-cache, and I appreciate his response, for sure, but I didn't get the joy of figuring it out myself. Ah well..

[+GeoGeeBee]

[ I could keep trying, but then his hint threw me off. It said using internet explorer, press control-A, which should only just select everything on the page if I am not mistaken (I am using a mac and my pc internet isn't working). So anyway, I didn't know if there was some hidden way of finding it.

 

Have you tried selecting everything on the cache page?

 

If that doesn't work, try using "view Source" on the cache page. It sounds like he has some text that is the same color as the background. Pressing Ctrl-A would make it show up.

[+NYPaddleCacher]

[ I could keep trying, but then his hint threw me off. It said using internet explorer, press control-A, which should only just select everything on the page if I am not mistaken (I am using a mac and my pc internet isn't working). So anyway, I didn't know if there was some hidden way of finding it.

 

Have you tried selecting everything on the cache page?

 

If that doesn't work, try using "view Source" on the cache page. It sounds like he has some text that is the same color as the background. Pressing Ctrl-A would make it show up.

 

"View Source" will also catch things that Ctrl-A will not. A Cntr-A is a keyboard shortcut for "Select All" aInd will only highlight renderable elements by changing the background color. A View Source will, if you know what to look for, also show anything in comment tags. It could also show urls for images you might not see, text in "alt" attributes (what should be displayed if the image can't be found) for those images, etc.

[+m_and_w]

...It said using internet explorer, press control-A, which should only just select everything on the page if I am not mistaken...

 

If using ctrl-A (select all) with Internet Explorer is important it could also be something hidden in an image. I've seen a couple puzzles where select-all would reveal something hidden in an image in Internet Explorer, but NOT in other browsers. Since I use firefox as my default browser it took me a little longer to crack it.

[+Team Who Dat]

...It said using internet explorer, press control-A, which should only just select everything on the page if I am not mistaken...

 

If using ctrl-A (select all) with Internet Explorer is important it could also be something hidden in an image. I've seen a couple puzzles where select-all would reveal something hidden in an image in Internet Explorer, but NOT in other browsers. Since I use firefox as my default browser it took me a little longer to crack it.

 

This finally worked. I had figured it might be the case and tried Safari (my default) and Firefox, but neither of those worked. Problem was I couldn't get my IE on my PC to connect to the internet, so I just called my friend and had her do it, and she said it did reveal a path, so I validated the answer and it was correct. So that's a good thing to know for future use Thanks everyone for all of your help!

[+Coldgears]

...It said using internet explorer, press control-A, which should only just select everything on the page if I am not mistaken...

 

If using ctrl-A (select all) with Internet Explorer is important it could also be something hidden in an image. I've seen a couple puzzles where select-all would reveal something hidden in an image in Internet Explorer, but NOT in other browsers. Since I use firefox as my default browser it took me a little longer to crack it.

 

This finally worked. I had figured it might be the case and tried Safari (my default) and Firefox, but neither of those worked. Problem was I couldn't get my IE on my PC to connect to the internet, so I just called my friend and had her do it, and she said it did reveal a path, so I validated the answer and it was correct. So that's a good thing to know for future use Thanks everyone for all of your help!

That's the sad part, there probably won't be many future uses. Very few puzzles are alike... You'd have to come asking for help everytime if you can't think outside the box...

[+SSO JOAT]

Great! Another puzzle has been solved on the forum with the solution posted for the world to see.

 

BTW... any decent puzzle maker won't use all 15 digits of the coordinates if it results in an obvious grouping of 15 things. We might just use the 10 minutes digits or we might just use the 6 fractional minutes. Or maybe we write out the coordinates as words and encode that so you have to decode 100+ characters. Or maybe the number we hide has to be added to or subtracted from the published coordinates. Also, we like to toss in a bunch of "fluff" and dead ends to make you actually think about what you're doing. The first glance is often incorrect. Though any good puzzle will be filled with hints and clues as to the true path to victory.

[+fizzymagic]

If that doesn't work <snip>

Are you the cache owner? If not, did the cache owner authorize you to spoil his puzzle in a public forum? If not, what the heck are you doing?

[+Chrysalides]

*sigh*

 

If any of you guys feel the need to "help out" someone to solve a puzzle that is not yours, please do it by PM or email.

[+rovers3]

Part of the problem with solving puzzles is that some of them are very specific as to platform.

I've solved a couple of puzzles that could not be done on a mac but weren't that bad on a pc

For one you had to use the program paint, none of the other programs like photoshop would work and for a couple of others there were sound files that could only be played using a pc program like winamp etc.

[+GeoGeeBee]

If that doesn't work <snip>

Are you the cache owner? If not, did the cache owner authorize you to spoil his puzzle in a public forum? If not, what the heck are you doing?

 

Good grief. It says "Internet Explorer, Ctrl-A" right there on the cache page. All I did was suggest how to achieve the same thing if one doesn't have Internet Explorer.

 

Edited to add:

 

I didn't post a solution. I posted a generic technique that is sometimes helpful in solving simple puzzles. And, as it turns out, in this specific puzzle that technique is of no help at all.

Edited May 21, 2010 by GeoGeeBee

[+Team Who Dat]

I didn't mean to do anything wrong. But, as someone said, the answer to figure it out is in fact right there in his own hint. Unfortunately, it was my mistake to not realize that there would be a difference between actual browsers, and in extension, programs in general (ie photoshop vs. paint) and so forth. I think that is VERY good information to have and don't see why knowing that would be any different from getting answers and hints on how to solve puzzles from the puzzle caching series or the puzzle solving link provided earlier. I was and still am more than happy to have this thread deleted so that it doesn't cause ripples. It seems our energy could be better served discussing other things and HELPING rather than getting upset.

 

I am a lover, not a fighter. I honestly did not want to spoil anyone's puzzle. In fact, if noone else posts on this thread, it should quickly get off the 1st page and eventually be forgotten.

[+mountainman38]

Is there anyway to get help with a puzzle cache that I am having trouble with? Since I am very new, I am not sure of different strategies and so forth on some puzzles. I did read through some of the puzzle series that was posted not to long ago, but that didn't really help too much. I emailed this cache owner, but he hasn't responded yet. I just don't know if it is a simple track the numbers from left to right, or if there is some kind of "hidden" picture and how would I find it? I don't want the answer, just the knowledge of how to figure it out myself so I can apply it to future puzzles.

 

William's World without Walls

Something to be aware of when attempting puzzle caches is the difficulty rating. This puzzle is rated as a 5 star difficulty, so you might want to start with ones rated a lot easier. With the hint telling you exactly what to do, this puzzle sounds more like a 1.5 star difficulty, though.

 

Once you've solved a few of the easier puzzles, you get a general idea of how to approach puzzles and the basic things to look for.

[+power69]

Is there anyway to get help with a puzzle cache that I am having trouble with? Since I am very new, I am not sure of different strategies and so forth on some puzzles. I did read through some of the puzzle series that was posted not to long ago, but that didn't really help too much. I emailed this cache owner, but he hasn't responded yet. I just don't know if it is a simple track the numbers from left to right, or if there is some kind of "hidden" picture and how would I find it? I don't want the answer, just the knowledge of how to figure it out myself so I can apply it to future puzzles.

 

William's World without Walls

Something to be aware of when attempting puzzle caches is the difficulty rating. This puzzle is rated as a 5 star difficulty, so you might want to start with ones rated a lot easier. With the hint telling you exactly what to do, this puzzle sounds more like a 1.5 star difficulty, though.

 

Once you've solved a few of the easier puzzles, you get a general idea of how to approach puzzles and the basic things to look for.

Another thing is some authors reuse parts of their puzzles for their other puzzles so you can sort of have a "signature" for that hider