Subject: ackanomic digest V3 #354
From: [email-masked] (ackanomic digest)
To: [email-masked]

ackanomic digest        Friday, October 9 1998        Volume 03 : Number 354

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Date: Fri, 09 Oct 1998 17:24:43 -0400 (EDT)
From: Eric Plumb <[email-masked]>
Subject: Acka: Another (*$&%#(*&%^ Treasure

I create a trinket worth A$24 with the name "24" and description
".gnihtyrevE dna ,esrevinU eht ,efiL fo noitseuQ taerG eht ot rewsnA ehT"
and bury it as a Treasure with the following map (or, at least, something 
very similar):

- ---
This Treasure will be found by the twenty-fourth player to submit
privately to The Green Ripper a correct solution to the problems below.

Public submission of a solution or attempt thereat will disqualify a
player from contention for this Treasure.

Here are some sample solutions:
1248 -> (4-2)*1*3
2458 -> 4*3/1+2
2458 -> 2*3+4/1
1111 -> 1x2x3x4
6666 -> 1+2+3+4	 	(Ooh, what a giveaway.)

Here is the problem:
1123
1189
1234
1237	 (with a nod to Alfvaen)
1289
1379
1389
2359
2588
2679

- ---

Since, although this is a rather easy treasure, I don't expect a huge
majority of Ackans (e.g. 24) to get it, (and I'd rather have it be a crap 
shoot than a Hubert) I will allow individual players to submit the
solution more than once, but I probably will disregard all after the third
or fourth (depending on my whim) per player.

I may, again as suits my fancy, possibly respond to public postings of
similar four-digit strings with a solution.  It shouldn't really be
necessary, though, especially for you guys.

It may look somewhat mathy, but don't be discouraged; the only math skills
needed are basic arithmetic.  I didn't even bother to encode it, that's
how easy it is.  It's something of a prelude, you might say.

- -The Green Ripper

I'd love to go out with you, but I'm having all my plants neutered. 

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Date: Fri, 09 Oct 1998 17:49:55 -0400 (EDT)
From: JT <[email-masked]>
Subject: Re: Acka: Another (*$&%#(*&%^ Treasure

On Fri, 9 Oct 1998, Eric Plumb wrote:
>I may, again as suits my fancy, possibly respond to public postings of
>similar four-digit strings with a solution.  It shouldn't really be
>necessary, though, especially for you guys.

Wanting to test a few hypothesis, I ask if Green Ripper will kindly reply
to the following

2222
3333
4444
4321

- --JT

[-------------------------------------------------------------------------]
[ Practice random kindness and senseless acts of beauty.                  ]
[ It's hard to seize the day when you must first grapple with the morning ]
[-------------------------------------------------------------------------]

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Date: Fri, 09 Oct 1998 18:03:00 -0400 (EDT)
From: Eric Plumb <[email-masked]>
Subject: Re: Acka: Another (*$&%#(*&%^ Treasure

On Fri, 9 Oct 1998, JT wrote:

> >I may, again as suits my fancy, possibly respond to public postings of
> >similar four-digit strings with a solution.  It shouldn't really be
> >necessary, though, especially for you guys.
> 
> Wanting to test a few hypothesis, I ask if Green Ripper will kindly reply
> to the following
> 
> 2222
> 3333
> 4444 -> 1+2*3+4
> 4321 -> 4*3*2*1

I did say possibly, didn't I?

- -The Green Ripper

When in Rome, do as the Visigoths do. 

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Date: Fri, 09 Oct 1998 18:19:39 -0400 (EDT)
From: Matt Miller <[email-masked]>
Subject: Acka: Fortunato.

I dunno how many other people did, but I got a private message from
Fortunato.  He's still not recieving email from the list.  I replied to
his message.. looks like his email address has gone AWOL.  I tried
emailing the postmaster at his domain, which also bounced.  So, I emailed
root at the MX machine..

If anyone has the secret Fortunato beacon, now would be the time to use
it.

IB
saving others the trouble

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Date: Fri, 09 Oct 1998 18:42:10 -0400 (EDT)
From: Eric Plumb <[email-masked]>
Subject: Re: Acka: Another (*$&%#(*&%^ Treasure

It has come to my attention through a discussion on IRC (to the
participants of which, incidentally, I gave no hints other than that * and
x are intentionally differentiated) that people (even those people) (you
know who you are) are having some trouble figuring out what it's all
about.  Since I intended any trouble to be in the working of the puzzle,
not the decoding of it, I offer this clue now:

E who would endeavor to be
The Twenty-Fourth must learn by rote:
That One and Two and Four and Three
Refer to ordinality,
And do not cardinals denote.

I apologize once again to the Treasure Harfer for separating the clues,
and e'd better accept it this time.  (Yes, K 2, someone *does* read the
found treasure pages. :-))

- -The Green Ripper

Dog for sale: eats anything and is fond of children. 

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Date: Fri, 09 Oct 1998 18:54:14 -0400 (EDT)
From: [email-masked] (John Bollinger)
Subject: Re: Acka: Another (*$&%#(*&%^ Treasure

>It has come to my attention through a discussion on IRC (to the
>participants of which, incidentally, I gave no hints other than that * and
>x are intentionally differentiated) that people (even those people) (you
>know who you are) are having some trouble figuring out what it's all
>about.  Since I intended any trouble to be in the working of the puzzle,
>not the decoding of it, I offer this clue now:

[...]

What it's all about?  I figured that out in about 3 minutes.  I guess I'm
hung up on the 'x' bit, though.  At first I thought you had an error in
your clue, but if 'x' is different from '*' then I'll have to think some
more about that.

ThinMan

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Date: Fri, 09 Oct 1998 19:24:40 -0400 (EDT)
From: Gabe Drummond-Cole <[email-masked]>
Subject: Re: Acka: Another (*$&%#(*&%^ Treasure

At 06:54 PM 10/9/98 -0400, you wrote:
>
>>It has come to my attention through a discussion on IRC (to the
>>participants of which, incidentally, I gave no hints other than that * and
>>x are intentionally differentiated) that people (even those people) (you
>>know who you are) are having some trouble figuring out what it's all
>>about.  Since I intended any trouble to be in the working of the puzzle,
>>not the decoding of it, I offer this clue now:
>
>[...]
>
>What it's all about?  I figured that out in about 3 minutes.  I guess I'm
>hung up on the 'x' bit, though.  At first I thought you had an error in
>your clue, but if 'x' is different from '*' then I'll have to think some
>more about that.
>
>
>ThinMan
> 

I actually figured it out rather quickly too, just after I left IRC to do
my physics and before you posted the hint.  But I have the same problem as
thinman.

Can you do

1112
0000
0111

?
- --A Mean Hat.
  Dungeon Master - Warrior Caste - Crazy French Scotsman - Really Weird

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Date: Fri, 09 Oct 1998 20:03:37 -0400 (EDT)
From: Randy Hall <[email-masked]>
Subject: acka: proxy

I proxy my approval to vulcan.

I proxy my approval to the church of they might be about to
win a cycle (or words to that effect), assuming proxies have
meaning for churches.

saaremaa

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Date: Fri, 09 Oct 1998 20:21:37 -0400 (EDT)
From: Eric Plumb <[email-masked]>
Subject: Re: Acka: Another (*$&%#(*&%^ Treasure

On Fri, 9 Oct 1998, Gabe Drummond-Cole wrote:

> I actually figured it out rather quickly too, just after I left IRC to do
> my physics and before you posted the hint.  But I have the same problem as
> thinman.
> 

If you've figured it out, you shouldn't have much of a problem with the
x's.  But just in case, I'll capriciously decide to tell you that:

> 1112 -> 1x2x3x4
> 0000
> 0111

- -The Green Ripper

It's always darkest just before you step on the cat. 

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End of ackanomic digest V3 #354
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