### Remarks Just run it without arguments: ruby entry.rb I confirmed the following implementations and platforms: * Linux: * ruby 2.3.0dev (2015-10-30 trunk 52394) [x86\_64-linux] * ruby 2.2.2p95 (2015-04-13 revision 50295) [x86\_64-linux] * ruby 2.0.0p647 (2015-08-18) [x86\_64-linux] * Darwin: * ruby 2.0.0p247 (2013-06-27 revision 41674) [x86\_64-darwin10.8.0] * jruby 9.0.3.0 (2.2.2) 2015-10-21 633c9aa Java HotSpot(TM) 64-Bit Server VM 25.11-b03 on 1.8.0\_11-b12 +jit [darwin-x86\_64] * rubinius 2.2.6.n74 (2.1.0 94b3a9b4 2014-03-15 JI) [x86\_64-darwin12.5.0] ### Description This program shows all solutions of any sudoku puzzle. The embedded sudoku puzzle can be changed at wish. Giving an empty puzzle (all `0` or `_`), the program will print every possible completed sudoku puzzle. We do not however make any time guarantee on such behavior. The program is rather small for the task: the solver is actually 302 characters long, assuming the sudoku puzzle is in a variable `s` and encoded as an array of rows of numbers. ### Internals * The program implements backtracking and keeps state in a very elegant way. * The whole program never goes deeper than 9 stack frames, but yet can backtrack up to 81 levels! * The main loop of a program is a dance between cells. On one end is the solutions, on the other the program ends. * The program only uses *infinite* loops and no `break`. * The program interleaves the creation of the solver and the puzzle. * The program is easy to deobfuscate but finding how it works will be more challenging. * The last line contains a smiley. The author likes good numbers: $ wc entry.rb 15 42 600 The inspiration for this entry comes from: * A newspaper sudoku with multiple solutions * An inspiring paper: `Revisiting Coroutines` Various tricks used for brevity: * The method defined is one of the fews which may contain neither parenthesis nor spaces. * The program uses the return value of Fiber.yield without arguments. * `String#b` is used as a very short `self`. Design issues: * Since `return`-ing from a Fiber is not allowed, the programs must `exit`. * The program reveals that the cartesian product operator is still too long: `a.product(a)` while it could be `a*a`. Note: * In the original code, the last cell was: `C.new{loop{yield s; C.yield}}`, implementing some sort of "forwarding coroutine". ### Limitation * The program does not want any *argument* with you and will quit quietly if you try some.