Stefan PochmannWhen I noticed today that my keyboard got dirty from cubing above it, I had enough. I wanted to protect it. In several steps, I built an overlay to put on the keybard and wrote a new timer program. Well, it only provides 3x3x3 scrambles and doesn't collect statistics and the cardboard overlay can certainly be improved, but I'm happy with it so far. I think I'll use it for cube videos from now on. Will probably keep using cubetimer.com for practice, though, I like it's ease of use and scrambles/scorekeeping/statistics vey much. Will try with my first generation cardboard and dimmed display. Btw, actually I dislike the bright white mostly because my eyes get used to it when reading the scramble, and then have to readjust for solving. It's like when you look into a bright light for a moment and then close your eyes, there's this "afterglow".
PTimer demo and explanationStefan Pochmann2009-11-18 | When I noticed today that my keyboard got dirty from cubing above it, I had enough. I wanted to protect it. In several steps, I built an overlay to put on the keybard and wrote a new timer program. Well, it only provides 3x3x3 scrambles and doesn't collect statistics and the cardboard overlay can certainly be improved, but I'm happy with it so far. I think I'll use it for cube videos from now on. Will probably keep using cubetimer.com for practice, though, I like it's ease of use and scrambles/scorekeeping/statistics vey much. Will try with my first generation cardboard and dimmed display. Btw, actually I dislike the bright white mostly because my eyes get used to it when reading the scramble, and then have to readjust for solving. It's like when you look into a bright light for a moment and then close your eyes, there's this "afterglow".
(14.80) R' F' U2 B2 F L2 R' D' U B2 R2 B U B' L' R D U' B' L2 R2 D F' R U (13.21) B D' R D' U' B2 F' R' B L' B U2 L F' L' B L D' U2 F2 L R2 U2 L' R' 13.84 B' L' U2 L' F2 L' R2 B' U2 L R D L' B' F2 L' R' D L' D' L2 D' B' L R 13.69 L B R' D2 U2 R' B L R2 B D' U' L2 R' F2 D2 U' F' D' U L' F2 D U' F' 13.97 R2 F2 D B R2 D' B2 D U' L R2 B' F2 D U' B2 D2 U2 L R' D U' L' R' U2
Cube: F-II, most recently lubed with Lubix. Method: CFOP (Fridrich) Timer: CalCubeTimer and Stackmat (actual mat is a mouse pad) Listening to: CubeCast ( http://cubecastpodcast.com ) Keyboard (always some people ask): Fujitsu Siemens KBPC-E, I can adjust the split angle and the middle height, and there's no number pad on the right so I can have the mouse closer. Usually not up there, of course, needed the space for the timer.Kühe auf der WieseStefan Pochmann2010-11-15 | Team blindcubing for real men, with the great Tim Habermaas. His channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/cin9247
Scramble: D2 R U B2 L2 U F D B2 L D2 F2 L2 B D' F' L2 D B L2 D' R' F L F2
Reorientation: z2 y
Solve: U R' U' M' M' U R U' U R' U' B' R R B M' M' B' R R B U R U' B' R B M' M' B' R' B U U M' U U M' B' R' B M' M' B' R B B L B' M' M' B L' B' L U' L' U M' M' U' L U L' U' L' U M' M' U' L U U' L U M' M' U' L' U U R U' M' M' U R' U' U U M' U U M'
D' L L D M' M' D' L L D
D' F' R U' R' U' R U R' F' R U R' U' R' F R F D R R U' R' U' R U R' F' R U R' U' R' F R R' R' F R U' R' U' R U R' F' R U R' U' R' F R F' R D F' R U' R' U' R U R' F' R U R' U' R' F R F D' D D R R U' R' U' R U R' F' R U R' U' R' F R R' D D F R U' R' U' R U R' F' R U R' U' R' F R F' R' R U' R' U' R U R' F' R U R' U' R' F R RQJ Timer reviewStefan Pochmann2010-05-01 | Finally got my QJ Timer and did the review video I've been wanting to make ever since people claimed this timer is completely inaccurate and timing in 0.16 seconds steps. That came from a misunderstanding, but people were happy to spread it anyway. My favorite timer of this kind is the Speedstacks one with the data port, because I value connecting it to my PC. But if you don't need that or don't want to pay much, the QJ timer is a good cheap alternative.
Dinosaur: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWeq9sVpXms Picard: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bv-t0P3tKf8Ghost Hand II, Cube Depot, SpeedCubes.net, 14.90 averageStefan Pochmann2010-04-11 | Ghost Hand was the first cube I had that turned very nicely right out of the bag, so when the Ghost Hand II became available, I had to try it. This is a little review of it. It turns similar to the old one, maybe slightly better, but mostly I like that they improved the stickers a lot. Other names: Dare to do, Fingertip Dancing, 鬼手.
The scrambles of the average:
15.52 B R F B' U' R' D B' U' F2 R' F2 D' B2 D2 F2 D R2 D L2 U2
(10.41) R F2 R2 U2 F' D' B' R' D' L2 F R2 D' F2 U R2 F2 U2 L2 F2 U2
14.61 F' B' D2 R F' U' L' F' R U2 F' R2 B2 D' F2 U' L2 U' F2 D'
(16.56) U2 L' D2 F2 D2 B' L F L D' L U' D R2 D2 L2 B2 L2 U' R2
14.56 U' R2 F2 R U B2 R2 L2 U' L' B U' B2 U D' L2 F2 U' F2 B2 U210.41 seconds Rubiks Cube solveStefan Pochmann2010-03-30 | Got this nice solve while working on a review video. It's a Ghost Hand II cube:
http://speedcubes.net/model.php?model=50 http://cubingstore.webs.com/apps/webstore/products/show/1214153Rubiks Cube - 11.11 secondsStefan Pochmann2010-01-01 | My fastest on video. I'll try to get a good average on video as well. The timer program is my own, it's still not quite finished yet but you can get the current version from http://ptimer.net now. Cube: Ghost Hand with Cubesmith stickers.Puzzle timer for videosStefan Pochmann2009-11-24 | Another timer I'm writing, specifically made for videos. All data shown big, not just the current time. And best, worst and average are determined and updated during the solve. The current version of the program is now available on http://ptimer.net5x5x5 in 1:37.50 - Stefan PochmannStefan Pochmann2009-11-17 | Yay, new personal record and caught on video.Holey Megaminx introduction and 2:29 solveStefan Pochmann2009-08-06 | I'm helping Uwe Meffert improve his regular megaminx and he also sent me a sample of the new Holey Megaminx. It was invented and first built by Lee Tutt, and now Meffert is producing it. I think it will be available soon.Benelux Open 2009 - Final 6 - UncutStefan Pochmann2009-06-14 | The final six in the 3x3x3 round of the Benelux Open 2009.
In order of appearance (determined by the semi-final):
Rama Temmink
Jimmy Coll
Kai Jiptner
Ron van Bruchem
Mats Valk
Erik Akkersdijk
Full results on the WCA site:
http://www.worldcubeassociation.org/results/c.php?i=BeneluxOpen2009&allResults=1#333_fSlow motion cubing - MatsStefan Pochmann2009-05-09 | Just playing around with slow motion a bit. First Mats solving at full speed, then at 1/6 speed (and zoomed to fight pixel loss due to youtube's resolution reduction). Was recorded at 60 frames per second.r,u,f cubing - 39.77 seconds - double visionStefan Pochmann2009-03-27 | This is cubing where only turning of r, u and f are allowed. That's double layers, not single layers. Cube rotations are of course forbidden, otherwise you could do the forbidden moves by using a cube rotation and doing an r/u/f turn. This is quite a challenge at first, and it took me a while to come up with a good method and practice it.
This is my single record, my average record is 49.13 seconds:
48.65 43.58 48.86 49.47 50.13 50.88 (40.22) 48.41 48.09 47.63 (57.46) 55.61
I'm pretty sure I'm the fastest at this right now (mostly because almost nobody does this), so these are probably also the world records.
Oh and actually "r,f,u" should be surrounded by "smaller than" and "greater than" symbols, but youtube can't deal with that and gives me an error when I add them. Sigh.Juggling five balls, 27 catchesStefan Pochmann2009-03-09 | Trying to get into juggling a bit again. Outdoors my five balls record is 77 catches. I know, I know, bad form and stuff, but I'll get better. Will use my camera to determine my flaws and work on them.Jens Diewald - 3x3x3 in 14.80 - Benelux Open 2009Stefan Pochmann2009-03-08 | Jens Diewald solving the 3x3x3 in 14.80 seconds at the Benelux Open 2009. Third good solve in a row for him, so he was quite happy. I'm learning more about video editing and here's my first published video with a magnifier rectangle. I like to see the cube large but to also see the big picture, so this picture-in-picture effect is very nice. Also, youtube reduces the resolution (my original is 1280x720) so while I'm more or less just duplicating pixels, this duplication counteracts youtube's reduction and thus helps prevent loosing pixels.Mats 17.21 vs Erik ... Square-1 Benelux OpenStefan Pochmann2009-02-26 | Mats Valk or Erik Akkersdijk... who's getting the Dutch record here? Notice how Erik looks when he sees the scramble.Erik Akkersdijk 3x3x3 official 11.11 average (parts)Stefan Pochmann2009-02-24 | The last 1-2 solves of Erik's 11.11 world record average plus some extra footage. Sorry I don't have all solves, I think I was busy competing in the same round. Plus he had told me he didn't practice 3x3 much lately, only 5x5. Gah.7x7x7 single 6:18.75Stefan Pochmann2009-02-15 | This was my record, but by now I got under 6 minutes twice. The puzzle is a V-CUBE 7, available from v-cubes.com and some other places. Original stickers, except green cubesmith stickers. The WCA ranklist:
http://www.worldcubeassociation.org/results/e.php?i=7773x3x3 single 14.xyStefan Pochmann2009-02-08 | Ok, so the resolution isn't quite high enough to read the time. I think it was 14.56 but I'm only sure about the 14.5x5x5 single 1:50.93Stefan Pochmann2009-02-08 | Still testing my new Aiptek AHD 100 camcorder, this time with HD (1280x720 pixels and 30 frames per second).Some PLLs with slow motionStefan Pochmann2009-02-08 | My new camcorder can record 848x480 pixels with 60 frames per second (well, 59.94 actually). Youtube reduces it to lower resolution and 30 fps so every second frame is wasted, but for slow motion I can still take advantage of the 60 fps. Here I demonstrate 1/10 of the original speed with 6 fps.5x5x5 Stefan Pochmann 1:56.02Stefan Pochmann2009-01-08 | First video with my new camcorder. Much better than with my old cheap webcam. Try "Watch in high quality"!Pyraminx Crystal - some algorithmsStefan Pochmann2008-08-01 | Some pure algorithms to orient or permute few pieces of the Pyraminx Crystal puzzle.Pyraminx Crystal - last layer edgesStefan Pochmann2008-08-01 | Right now I have the unofficial world records 3:57.40 single solve and 4:16.71 average. The last step in my method is solving the ten edges in the last layer and in this video I show how I do that.
Sped up by factor 8 to make it less boring and to visualize the method nicely. Follow the flow of the yellow buttons.
I used CamStudio to record the video and then VirtualDub to cut away the start/end of the video. First I had tried Windows Movie Maker for the cutting, but it somewhat destroyed the clock hands.5x5 Rubiks Clock Simulator - 43.328Stefan Pochmann2008-06-21 | That's me solving a virtual 5x5 Rubik's clock with Mitchell Stern's excellent NxN Clock Simulator:
http://www.speedsolving.com/showthread.php?t=4688
I used CamStudio to record the video and then VirtualDub to cut away the start/end of the video. First I had tried Windows Movie Maker for the cutting, but it somewhat destroyed the clock hands.Black Hole CubeStefan Pochmann2008-01-26 | Me and my cube.Rubiks Domino In 14.20 Seconds - World RecordStefan Pochmann2007-12-20 | This is my unofficial world record solve, the best out of over 200 I did one day. Sadly this puzzle isn't included in the official competitions so there is no official world record for it.Rubiks Cube One-handed In 23.63 SecondsStefan Pochmann2007-12-20 | Regular solve (i.e., no method steps were skipped) but very fluent, resulting in an excellent time for me (my average is about 30 seconds). Thanks again to Mitchell Stern as well as Dan and Chris Dzoan for help and motivation.Rubiks Cube reversed endingsStefan Pochmann2007-12-20 | For fun, because I wanted to find out how to reverse videos and how it would look like, and to shut up the people who call fake-he-reversed-it all the time, I now actually did reverse the endings of some of my video solves of the megaminx and Rubik's cube.Assembling a Rubiks Cube in 16 secondsStefan Pochmann2007-12-20 | This is a rather useless thing to do but I still have the unofficial world record for it and it was one of my first so leave me alone and don't make fun of me or I'll cry.Rubiks Cube onehanded in 34.24 secondsStefan Pochmann2006-12-23 | My average is about 40-45 seconds so this was quite a good solve.Megaminx in 1:21.67Stefan Pochmann2006-12-23 | === LOOK HERE === Answers to common questions:
Edit: Note that I wrote this years ago, some infos aren't up to date and I don't care enough to keep them updated, sorry.
- This puzzle is Meffert's "Megaminx", available for $19.90 with free shipping at http://sites.webec.com.hk/meffert2/index.cfm?fuseaction=detail&id=1499977&product=4&refer=StefanPochmann or at cube4you.com, ebay.com etc. Mine was already assembled, not a DIY. I improved it like this so it turns better: http://stefan-pochmann.info/spocc/speedsolving/megaminx
- It is very similar to the normal 3x3x3 Rubik's cube, both structurally and for solving. Basically it's the same, only more of everything. Well, it is harder to solve blindfolded, which I did back in 2004: http://stefan-pochmann.info/spocc/blindsolving/megaminx
- The video is real. Solving these puzzles isn't hard, convincingly faking this might actually be harder. Many people think I reversed the video... that's really not necessary. But if you're curious how that looks/sounds, check out my video response "Rubik's Cube reversed endings" at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J113SooGTKU
- When I took this video, I was the fastest, but by now many others have surpassed me. Some have even solved it in less than a minute, check out the current official ranking: http://worldcubeassociation.org/results/e.php?i=minx (this is from real life competitions where we meet in person and have official scramblers and judges etc)