Malaysia Sudoku Society AGM - 20th December 3pm, SJK(C) Puay Chai 2

Calling for all Malaysians who enjoy to play Sudoku, Malaysia Sudoku Society would be having its AGM!

The information is as follow. Do check it out! :)

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Malaysia Sudoku Society AGM
The only officially registered Sudoku society in Malaysia is holding its AGM on 20th December 2008 (Saturday) at 3pm at SRJK(C) Puay Chai 2 in Bandar Utama, followed by a Sudoku competition and a coaching session. Calling all Sudoku players, champions, enthusiasts, etc. All are welcome, young and old, guys and gals. Come and join the fun! For details please email yeedian@pc.jaring.my or call 012-234 1492.

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Sudoku Tournament

As you might have read from my earlier posts, I was in Singapore yesterday for Brand's Asia Pacific Sudoku Challenge.

It was definitely a great exposure, especially since it was my first time representing the country.

Although I know my standard is nowhere near the rest, I still trained as best as I could, and go with no high expectation. After all, the rest of participants are national representatives from China, Hong Kong, India, Singapore, Phillipines, Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia.

The competition was supposed to start at 3pm, with registration at 2pm. But with the delay in Singapore Open, it started close to 4pm.

During the first round, when it was a medium puzzle.. I fared badly. Those few camera screens showing around and seeing others finishing their puzzle much faster than I am, caused me to really feel panicked. In the end, I was the 43rd out of 49 people to submit.... Shame on me...

The 2nd round, it was a taxing puzzle... Should be tougher than the first one, since it is testing on skills, rather than speed. I managed to improve myself, although no where near the speed needed to reach the Top 15. I ended up being the 33rd to submit out of 49 people. Felt more at ease after this round.

Then, the 3rd round, it is about doing as many medium puzzles in 20 minutes... I was hoping to do at least 4, but ended up only able to do 3 puzzles, with the last one almost done. Othere were like doing 6 puzzles or so. So, there is still a long way to go for me... Ended up at 36th... :(

So, not really a good performance, but happy that I managed to end up at 36th position out of 49 national representatives.

Would aim to do much better next year, if I can still get the chance to represent.

To the 3 Malaysians who managed to get into Top 6 - Esther 3rd, Clarissa (hope I get her name right) 5th and Lim Fong 6th. Congrats! In the end, Phillipines was 1st, India 2nd and Singapore 4th.
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1st Online Sudoku Competition in Malaysia

Mr. Balasingam from Sudoku.com.my is helping to facilitate the 1st Online Sudoku Competition in Malaysia. You can find more details at the website of Sudoku.com.my .

The registration is available now and the closing date would be 7th of June 2008.

It is open for all undergraduates in all universities and colleges and the tournament proper would be held at UTAR.

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Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share!

NST Sudoku Tournament Champion for 2007

This is quoted from Sudoku.com.my that Mr. Bala has set up!

Do check it out!

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LIM VEE LOON, 18, was the under 18 Champion in the NST Sudoku Tournament 2007. An SPM student, last year, at SMJK Chung Hwa, Klang, he received RM 3,000, a handsome cash prize. This was his best performance, following a series of previous wins in various local competitions; but very few in Malaysia would know that he has moved on from Classic Sudoku, to solve the many variations of Sudoku played in the World Sudoku Championships.

He participated in the Polish International Online Sudoku Championship held in March 2007. Participants from 22 countries were given 11hours 30 minutes to solve 8 puzzles online real-time, consisting of Sudoku Variations. Vee Loon was placed 25th out of 207 participants, completing all the puzzles in a time of 2h 12m 29s. This was a very creditable performance and our congratulations to Vee Loon on his initiative and grit, to venture into un-chartered waters.

This year he timed himself off-line, while solving the puzzles used in Sudoku Masters 2008, for selecting the Indian National Team for the 3rd WSC, and returned good times, close to the times of the candidates selected. We have been in touch with Vee Loon for the last two years and we believe that he is a person** to watch on the Malaysian Sudoku Scene.

Vee Loon has been regularly playing Sudoku, online. His favourite websites are sudoku-league, fed-sudoku.eu, sudoku.org.uk and sudokuhints, since he was introduced to Sudoku by the Sin Chew Daily in October 2005.

We also want to hear from others in Malaysia who have been attempting the previous WSC puzzles).

Others Champions to watch are, Adrian Wong, Thong May Han, Lim Fong, Suganthi Ramasamy, Lim Kar Gee, Esther Fong, and Adapa SaiKiran who are known to us. We hope to do profiles on the above and others, as and when we get the opportunity to interview them.



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Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share!

Brand's Sudoku Asia Pacific Open

I would be in Singapore on 12th July 2008.... I know that's another 2 more months, and it is not my 1st trip there. So, what's the fuss?...

Nothing big, but it is going to be my first real competition outside of Malaysia for an interesting Math games, called...... Sudoku... Guess, many of you have been playing Sudoku a lot too, so if you are around Singapore, do come by ViVoCity on 12th July afternoon 2pm to 6pm.

It is the Brand's Asia Pacific Sudoku Open. It is going to be a tall order for me to win anything, but guess, I am trying my very best!

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Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share!

Malaysian Sudoku Society in NST

This is for Malaysian Sudoku Society which I am part of the founding committee. To join the group, do contact 03-7877-0936. Do join the Google Group of Malaysia Sudoku Society .

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A group of Sudoku-crazy individuals have decided to feed their addiction further by setting up a society for people similarly hooked to the numbers puzzle, writes CHOK SUAT LING.

KUALA LUMPUR: Their day is not complete without attempting at least one puzzle. Hours and even days are spent poring over sets of diabolical numbers. They gather to discuss, dissect, strategise, plan and even write books on Sudoku. So much so, that one such group decided to take their "addiction" a little further. They set up the Malaysia Sudoku Society (MSS) last year.

The society was officially launched on Dec 15 with an elected committee of six members.

MSS secretary Lee Yee Dian says he and a group of friends who shared the same interest in Sudoku decided to set up the society to serve as a platform for enthusiasts to interact.

Lee's interest in Sudoku comes as no surprise. He is part of the Malaysian Mensa Society, a high-IQ organisation whose members are known to be extremely adept in logical thinking and consequently, puzzle solving. Most of the other MSS founding members are also from Mensa.

But MSS is not a society open only to Mensans. It welcomes members over the age of seven irrespective of background, with only one condition: he or she must be crazy over Sudoku. It also does not matter whether the individual is just an average puzzle solver or Sudoku champion.

Lee, 49, is heartened to see burgeoning interest among Malaysians in Sudoku.

"When we went to register the society, the officer at the Registrar of Societies did not know what Sudoku was. She was suspicious and thought we were trying to set up a religious society as the word sounds obscure and mysterious. I showed her clippings of the Sudoku contest in the New Straits Times and she allowed our application," Lee smiles.

The aim of Sudoku is to enter a numerical digit from 1 to 9 in each cell of a 9x9 grid made up of 3x3 sub-grids. Various numbers are already given in some cells. Each row, column and box must contain only one instance of each numeral.

Sounds tough but not so for Lee: "I can solve quite complex Sudoku now but sometimes I still get stumped. Now with MSS, we hold organised monthly meetings with talks and clinics on puzzle-solving techniques and the different Sudoku variations.

"In future, we hope to hold more social activities, and reach out to students and senior citizens via clinics and workshops."

He says Sudoku can encourage analytical and critical thinking in students and help keep the brain cells of senior citizens active.

MSS president Ismail Omar says more senior citizens should be encouraged to take up Sudoku.

"In Malaysia, interest is now skewed more towards the younger generation. In Japan, the profile of the buyer of Sudoku books is over 60 years old. Here, senior citizens are not so aware."

Ismail, 69, has always been interested in puzzles and was naturally inclined towards Sudoku. The engineer is also with Mensa and Toastmasters International.

"I sometimes go online and print out the puzzles there. I enjoy doing the easier ones that's why I like the ones published in the NST."

MSS has two Sudoku authors among its members. Lim Teck Guan and Jeff H.S. Keow have both written well-received books on puzzle solving techniques.

Lim, who goes by the pen name TeeGee, is a retired electrical engineer who was introduced to Sudoku three years ago.

"I had wanted to take it easy after retirement but my family urged me to participate in the NST Sudoku competition.

Even though I did not win, I became hooked after attempting the puzzles on a daily basis," says Lim, 62.

In time, Lim decided to share his techniques. "Friends asked me how I solved the puzzles and when I gave them a brief outline, they urged me to come up with a guidebook. That was how "Art of Sudoku: A Step By Step Solution" came to be published. I translated it into Bahasa Malaysia recently."

Keow, 65, says he can solve all puzzles with his technique - KHS Formula 3 Plus 2.

"Each puzzle has one solution and it can be solved using 100 per cent logic. If a puzzle has more than one solution, then it is not a good one." He says Sudoku "purists" do not like to use guesswork to solve a puzzle.

Keow was introduced to Sudoku in 2005 by his daughter and wife. "When I saw it for the first time, I was transfixed. I wanted to learn how to solve all puzzles and eventually did using a principle-centred and process-oriented methodology."

Keow later wrote "Think Out of the Block with Sudoku".

He believes that Sudoku can have a positive psychological influence on the solver's attitude and temperament if played consistently and regularly.

Lim and Keow have new books in the pipeline. "Can you imagine people our age writing books? It is quite an achievement," Lim notes.

MSS plans to organise an annual National Sudoku Championship soon, from which winners will be sent to take part in the World Sudoku Championship.

It also hopes to set up a website, and is aiming for a membership of 1,000 from across the country. Those with further inquiries about the society can call 03-7877-0936.


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Click here to read more of Chen Chow's posts

Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share!

Sudoku Clinic by Jeff Keow

This could be a good Sudoku clinic for everyone to attend! It is by Jeff Keow from Malaysia Sudoku Society!

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Hi Malaysian Sudoku Society Members,

I am pleased to let you know that one of our members, Mr Jeff Keow,
will be conducting a Sudoku Clinic this Sunday. Details as follows:

Time : 3.00pm
Date : 4th May, 2008 (Sunday)
Venue : MPH Mid Valley Megamall
Topic : Solving 5-Star Sudokus

As many of you are already aware, in 2006 Jeff authored a powerful
book on how to solve Sudoku puzzles, entitled 'THINK OUT OF THE
BLOCK WITH SUDOKU'. This Sunday's talk is based on this book.
You are welcome to bring any Sudoku puzzles that you cannot solve,
and have them solved during or after the clinic.

By the way, if you are aware of any Sudoku event in town, please
drop me a line, and I can then make an announcement to all
members vis email.

Best regards,
Lee Yee Dian
Secretary
Malaysia Sudoku Society


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Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share!

Malaysia Sudoku Society April Gathering

A post by Secretary of Malaysia Sudoku Society

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Dear Members,

+++++ Sudoku Gathering this Saturday 19th April 4~5pm +++++

In this month of April with its erratic weather - you get hot blazing sunshine one minute, and a heavy downpour the next - I trust that you are keeping well.

Once again, the third Saturday of the month is round the corner, and it is time for us to meet again to enjoy some Sudoku fun! By now, you should know that the Society meets every third Saturday of the month from 4pm to 5pm. Last month we had a good turnout compared to February, and I hope to see even more members attending this Saturday.

At the last gathering I presented Shendoku, an interesting 2-person Sudoku game, and I hope you found it enjoyable. This Saturday it is our great honour to have Philip Khew who will speak on 'How do You Create a Sudoku Puzzle'. We are all avid solvers of Sudoku puzzles, but if you turn the table around, how is a good Sudoku puzzle composed? Is it just a matter of taking a completed Sudoku grid, removing most of the digits, and leave, say, about 24 clues? I don't think it is so simple!
Philip will enlighten us on this subject.

For those of you who have not joined us before, the venue is as follows. Call me at 012-234 1492
if you need some directions. Traffic can sometimes be unpredictable in the Sunway area, so please start your journey early:
Suite 635 Block A2,
Leisure Commerce Square,
Bandar Sunway.

Do bring along a friend or two, who are Sudoku enthusiasts.

Looking forward to meeting you guys again.

Yours Sudokuly,
Lee Yee Dian
Secretary


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Click here to read more of Chen Chow's posts

Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share!

Brand's Sudoku Challenge 2008 Asia Pacific Open

For those of you who are interested to participate in Brand's Sudoku Challenge 2008 Asia Pacific Open in Singapore on 5th of July, you can now take part in a Malaysia national selection. First prize at the Asia Pacific Open is S$10,000.

For more info, go to Sudoku.com.my .

For participation form, please download it at here .

Please submit the form by 5th of April 2008 to info@sudoku.com.my

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Click here to read more of Chen Chow's posts

Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share!

3rd World Sudoku Championship 2008

The 3rd World Sudoku Championship 2008 to be held in Goa, India from 14th to 17th April 2008. As of now, there is still no participant from Malaysia.

For the Polish International Sudoku Championship held last year, 1 Malaysian participated in it and did very well and was placed 25 out of 207 participants. Syabas.

Mr. Balasingam, from Sudoku Event Management will be able to help you register. Closing date is 5th of April 2008.

I have last year's questions, so if you are interested to participate, or just want to try out, do leave your email address in the comments or email me at chenchow at my gmail account and I will get back to you.


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Click here to read more of Chen Chow's posts

Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share!

Malaysia Sudoku Society Inaugural AGM

A plus for Malaysia Sudoku Society Inaugural AGM

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<<<<< Are you a Sudoku fan? >>>>>

<<< Do you like solving Sudoku? >>>



Announcing the formation of the

MALAYSIA SUDOKU SOCIETY



Come and join us at our Inaugural Annual General Meeting.

Be a founding member of the society!

Meet many other Sudoku enthusiasts!!



Date : 15th Dec 2007 (Sat)

Time : 3:00 ~ 4:30pm

Venue : Auditorium 2, Pusat Sains Negara, Bukit Kiara

(Registration of new members will take place between 2 to 3pm)



You may sign up as a member of the Society before 3pm,

and thereafter take part in the Inaugural AGM.

Agenda includes voting in the National Committee 2008,

and discussion of future plans and activities.



Entrance Fee : RM30 (one time payment)

Annual Subscription : RM20 per year



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Special side event immediately after the AGM…

Talk by renowned Sudoku author Mr. Jeff Keow on

“5-Star Sudoku Solving Made Easy”

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For more information please contact

Protem Secretary Mr. Lee @ 012-2341492

Protem Treasurer Mr. Wong @ 012-3853461

Protem Chairman En. Ismail @ 016-2242020

Malaysia Sudoku Society Inaugural AGM

Special Announcement for Malaysia Sudoku Society!

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Special Announcement

Join us at the Inaugural Annual General Meeting of the MALAYSIA SUDOKU SOCIETY,
and be a founding member.

Registration Fee: RM30
Annual Fee: RM20

Date : 15th December 2007 (Saturday) Time : 3:00pm
Venue : Auditorium 2, National Science Center, Bukit Kiara, Kuala Lumpur

Temporary Website : http://malaysiasudoku.blogspot.com

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Malaysia Sudoku Society is also looking for someone to help to design its website! A simple website would do. Malaysia Sudoku Society is willing to pay a token sum for it! It is a NGO, so don't expect much, but it would be a good contribution to community!

Malaysia Sudoku Society's Blog

Check out the brand out blog of Malaysia Sudoku Society here !

Sudoku Enthusiasts?

Hi all Sudoku enthusiasts,

Malaysia Sudoku Society has just been approved by Registrar of Society and its inaugural Annual General Meeting would be done, most likely on 15th December 2007.

There would be more updates to come!

If anyone is willing to help make a simple website for Malaysia Sudoku Society and help with registering domain and space (with a fee! although not much), do contact me.