do you sudoku?

I have a new puzzle addiction brewing. I was reading Wired the other day and they had a story about the Sudoku puzzle craze that is reported to be taking England by storm. I am a fan of puzzles. I really like New York Times crosswords even though anything past a Wednesday puzzle is a consistently humbling experience. I used to do logic puzzles as a kid so I thought I'd give these sudoku things a try.

At first glance they are deceptively simple looking. Each puzzle is a 9*9 grid with a few numbers filled in. The rules are basic -- each row and column must contain the numbers 1 through 9 only once with no repeats and the same must be true of each 3*3 grid within the puzzle. Easy, right? I am reminded of the old commercials for the game Othello "a moment to learn, a life time to master." Well, pencil in hand I took a shot. And four puzzles later I finally solved one.

And now I want more.

I've already got Stefanie from work hooked on them. If you want to take a shot at them yourself, I recommend Sudoku for Daily Telegraph readers. In the right column there's a link to the Daily Sudoku archive. (Note of caution, the puzzles are all graded in the bottom right hand corner. Do yourself a favour and go back to the January & February sections to find an easy puzzle to start with.)

I have to go download more puzzles now. . . .