Despite being your moderator for the past 13 years, it has been quite a
while since I actually played with a cube (of any order). Until last
weekend, that is, when I picked up a 5x5x5 cube that someone had loaned me
quite some time ago. Imagine my surprise to discover that I had in fact
forgotten one of the tools I needed to solve even a 3x3x3! In particular
my tool for inverting two edge cubies in place in a 3x3x3 was completely
gone. It didn't take me long to develop a replacement, but I'm certain
that it is nothing like what I was using years ago. I'm amazed -- there
was a time when I thought I could never forget any of those tools.

And by the way, it was a lot of fun to re-learn the 3x3x3 and then go on to
solve the 5x5x5 -- if anyone else out there has, like me, been neglecting
their cube hacking for some years, go pick up your cube again, you may be
pleasantly surprised.

- Alan (aka Cube-Lovers-Request)

--
Alan Bawden                                                Alan@LCS.MIT.EDU
MIT Room NE43-538                                            (617) 253-7328
545 Technology Square
Cambridge, MA 02139                        06BF9EB8FC4CFC24DC75BDAE3BB25C4B