How I did it
I wrote this solver in the hopes that it would purge my sudoku habit.
The solver is not a brute force algorithm. It solves using the rules of sudoku.
All squares have an equal probability of containing every number. As the
initial puzzle numbers are input, their probability is removed from all other
squares in that row, column, and quadrant. Another pass is made to check if
there is only one probable number in any given square. If there is, that value
is set and the process repeats.
This algorithm was tested against
multiple sudoku puzzles. Solution time is calculated at the server
(network delay doesn't count). The solver was implemented using C# for the
solver classes, asp.net (with VB.net as the code-behind) for the web page, and
AJAX.net for communicating with the backend and making that sexy, no-postback
interface.
- D
About this code