Report

Weekend Testing 38

Mission: To solve the puzzle with help of a partner.

Puzzle: www.Crea-soft.com/online-jigsaw-puzzle/jigsaw-puzzles-bridge_l_1.html

Start Time: 7:23 PM IST 19th June 2010

End Time: 7: 39 PM IST 19th June 2010
OS: Windows XP SP2
Browser: Firefox 3.6.3
Tester: Ravisuriya

Note:

On browsing the URL, found an image with few words on it for fraction of a second on the
monitor. This image appeared as broken pieces on screen for me. Soon after this, found
scattered image pieces and displayed words got disappeared after couple of seconds. Assumed
these pieces need to be reassembled to form a picture and confirmed it has to be reassembled.

Later the web page showed different GUI objects like Scatter, Small Picture, Ghost Image,
Deactivate Auto-fit, Arrange and drop down list. Along with this, the options like Difficulty,
Layout and other few were available.

Last time while I played puzzle on Weekend Testing, few testers said I did not use my
memory skills to play the puzzle or game. The mission of that session too did not specify that.
This weekend testing session too did not mention anything about using tools for playing puzzle.

I wished not use tools that I used last time and decided not to explore any buttons or links
available on page. This was my first approach to play puzzle. Later, on succeeding playing
puzzle, then explore the GUI objects and other options available to find alternative approaches
to play puzzle.

I did not find partner to play with me in Internet centre. I am the only person playing the
puzzle. Played the puzzle, after the WT38 session was completed.

Assuming ‘solve the puzzle’ in mission statement says to complete the puzzle by building the
images from pieces of image.

Mental Modeling:

With the image observed for fraction of a second and the URL read in mission statement,
gave an instinct that what I saw is a bridge with blue sky and greens.

The pieces of images showed different colors and shapes. That looked as same color, varied in
its contrast to my eyes. These pieces had a picture that looked like a hanging bridge, vehicles,
green grass and water. This helped to get a picture in my mind with the help of picture I saw
when I browsed the URL given. With this I moved on to play puzzle.

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Approach-1: Varying one factor at a time and identifying its patterns.

1. Looked at the space area where the pieces of images need to be put. It was almost as big
as width of the monitor I was looking at.
2. Began to see what kinds of image pieces were available.
3. Placed these image pieces across the free space available in the puzzle square to my
comfort, so that I can explore them to make an expected image.
4. Grouped the pieces based on their colors patterns, contrast pattern and images that
matched with other pieces as in below Pic-1.

Pic-1: Arrangement of pieces of image as per patterns identified.

5. This wide spreading of image pieces helped me to place sky chunks in quick speed. But
found the color of sky varied in contrast. This helped as heuristic for me to find the next
shape for a placed shape in quick speed.
6. Another heuristic and oracle that helped to find whether it was an image piece or not was,
some kind sparkling colors appeared on screen when two image pieces was put exactly.
When it was two exact images that are beside to each other, a kind of interlock between
image pieces was observed. Later moving this placed images with help of mouse, the two
pieces too moved in tandem. This looked as some kind of confirmation, but I was not sure
of it.
7. Formed the sky. Saw the top of bridge in the sky. Building the bridge, placed the greens
around it by the help of the smooth straight end of image that made outer square or
rectangle of puzzle area. It was of bit easy task to build sky in this approach to me. The
straight line on the side of the image looked as a pattern for me. Pic-2 depicts this.
8. I varied one factor at a time using dimension and shapes of the image pieces that were
available, to build the expected image in this approach.

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 Pic-2: Building the picture.

9. Noticed the image was smaller than the puzzle area which had background color that
appeared as brown-in-color default texture. I doubted whether there are sufficient image
pieces available here to put across this area.
10. Simultaneously the pieces which had water and greens were also placed. Observed that
sparkling colors (which appeared as mixture or composition of pink-in-color, yellow-in-
color, red-in-color, green-in-color and black-in-color).
11. Later placing mouse on any one piece of image and moved it, observed all image pieces
placed moved in tandem.
12. Completed the picture. Pic-3 and Pic-4 depicts this.

-- End of Approach-1--

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Pic-3

Pic-4

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Note:

1. While playing the puzzle, was able to move arranged image pieces beyond the texture
boundary area or puzzle area. This confused me to select next image and place it while I
was playing. I needed to pull back the placed image pieces below, so that I could see the
image boundary area.

2. Need to try same puzzle now making use of other approaches using the options available
in the web page.

3. Need to find other way of playing without using the available options in web page.

4. More information available on Weekend Testing at --

http://weekendtesting.com/archives/1171.

Few of the major Lessons learned while I played this puzzle:

1. Observations.

2. Identification of patterns.

3. Factoring.

4. Reasoning.

5. Testing.

--- End of report ---