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by y-curious 1229 days ago
You can keep ads, but the sudoku app I use gives you a few hints for free, first.

Pencil tool is usually a toggle- you default to `pen` but toggle `pencil` mode to fill them out. Look at the top android sudoku app's implementation, it's slick.
2 comments
joelalcedo 1225 days ago
I finally got around to this. Here's a screenshot of how the new "pencil mode” looks in the latest version of the live app.

https://i.imgur.com/QrSqNwH.png

By tapping the same box twice, pencil mode is activated. You can enter any placeholders you like in the box.

Tapping the box again disables pencil mode, and the inputs you placed will remain in the background if you need to refer back.

link
joelalcedo 1229 days ago
That's helpful, thanks so much!

What type of hints are most useful from your POV? Are they more direct (i.e. here's a free box in case you are stuck), or more suggestive (e.g. "Pay attention to the naked pair in the third grid")?

With the latter, striking a nice balance between hints which are simple to articulate without esoteric terminology is important.

Really appreciate the pencil mode pointer, I'll check it out.

link