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I have always done Sudoku on paper and can always do mediums and usually hards. I've started doing the NYT Sudoku online and too often have trouble with the medium. At this point in this particular puzzle I am not seeing the way forward. The highlighted square is the hint the game gave me but I'm not seeing it. What am I missing and is there a basic strategy from this point that I'm missing?

I feel like I can see the way forward if I was doing this on paper. I would put a bullet by the 1 in the highlighted square and work my way forward bulleting the logical numbers from there and get to a point where it absolutely works or doesn't. (Does that make sense? Do other people do this?) But I feel like doing it online I shouldn't have to think ten moves ahead with no way to make notations.

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  • $\begingroup$ For reference: nice overview of different sudoku-solving strategies: puzzling.stackexchange.com/a/30540/25128 $\endgroup$
    – pajonk
    Commented Jun 26, 2023 at 6:59
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    $\begingroup$ As commentary - I've heard the strategy you suggest here of bulleting numbers and chasing a hypothetical to see if it contradicts called "Chaining" or "Bifurcation," and the sudoku communities I've seen don't really like it as a technique. $\endgroup$
    – Tim C
    Commented Jun 26, 2023 at 17:10
  • $\begingroup$ A really good online solver with great strategies and explanations is here: sudokuwiki.org/sudoku.htm $\endgroup$
    – Hilmar
    Commented Jul 3, 2023 at 14:01

1 Answer 1

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There has to be a

1

in the yellow square.

In the grid to the right bottom the 4 can only be placed in one of the 2 middle squares, so the 4 can't go into the yellow square.

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    $\begingroup$ Wow. I would not have seen that. That does give me a new way to look at things. Thanks! $\endgroup$
    – DBeck
    Commented Jun 25, 2023 at 19:20
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    $\begingroup$ Similarly looking at the centre left 3x3 block, the 1 must be on its middle column, so the cell below it in the bottom-left 3x3 block must be 3. $\endgroup$
    – Weather Vane
    Commented Jun 25, 2023 at 19:57
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    $\begingroup$ @DBeck, good to hear! Please accept the answer (by clicking on the checkmark) to mark the question as solved ;) $\endgroup$
    – Lezzup
    Commented Jun 25, 2023 at 21:29
  • $\begingroup$ And welcome to the site, Lezzup! $\endgroup$
    – justhalf
    Commented Jun 26, 2023 at 6:09
  • $\begingroup$ This is a good technique in general. You don't know where exactly to put a number but you can pinpoint it has to be one of these few spots. That is often enough to draw conclusions in itself. $\endgroup$
    – quarague
    Commented Jun 26, 2023 at 6:51

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