Well, folks, it’s been more than one year since I started posting puzzles on this website and I’d like to write a few words about that. Actually, since this site has become popular thanks to
Killer Sudoku puzzles I intended to wait until the anniversary of the first Killer Sudoku puzzle posted here, but
CathyW jumped the gun a little too early in the forum on this topic. Nevermind that, here is a brief history of www.djapedjape.com.
It was on
September 13, 2005 when I made my first post on this site. The first Killer Sudoku puzzle was posted on
September 26, followed by the infamous September 27 puzzle which rightlfully has its own category.
From something that was intended as a pet-project, this site has grown into something quite serious for me. It’s a one-man show as far as programming Perfect Sudoku and webmastering the site are concerned, but the whole thing wouldn’t be what it is without the nice community that you folks have built here. NO website can be successful without regular visitors. So, everyone (except spammers), thanks for making this site possible!
A special thanks also goes to
Luis-David Neel from Portugal who was the first person to contact me about publishing my puzzles (the “Sudoku K” book), which sparked others to do the same. My puzzles now appear in books and magazines in
Portugal,
Greece,
Switzerland,
Finland,
UK,
France and so far in two newspapers –
The Washington Post and
The Washington Express. There are, of course, Sudoku K and The Way Of Samurai books, which are available worldwide.
I will soon launch something new, which is not a Sudoku variant website, but still somewhat related to it.
Also, I guess after one year I owe to those who have been here since the early days something that I don’t particularly like doing – and that is to write a few words about myself. Those of you who have purchased “
Sudoku K” have already had a chance to read my short bio.
Anyhow, here it is. My full name is
Predrag Stanojevic, but friends usually call me
Pedja, which is a common nickname for my first name.
DJAPE is just an anagram. I have absolutely no music talent and have nothing to do with DJ-ing. 🙂 lol… When I built the site, I thought DJ Ape was just an easy way for English-speaking visitors to remember it.
As you are probably guessing, English is not my first language. I’m a 30 year old computer-science graduate from Belgrade, Serbia (actually, a year ago it was still “Serbia and Montenegro” :)). I have travelled a bit – I finished my senior year of high school in Philadelphia, USA and have also lived and worked as a computer programmer in Sydney, Australia for two years in 1999 and 2000, so that’s where I learned my English.
Other than computers, I very much enjoy all kinds of sports, mainly volleyball, soccer, skiing and everything related to water: scuba diving, sailing, fishing or just riding a small boat on the beautiful river of Danube which flows through my city. Oh, I nearly forgot – I’m a passionate player of bridge (the card game) and some day when this whole Sudoku-craze allows me to find some time to wrap it up, I will release my bridge-analyzing utility program.
Ok, that’s already too much. I think I’ll have to post a few variant-puzzles in the next few days so this post would be quickly gone from the first page and lost somewhere in the archives. 😉
Cheers!
14 Comments
Thank you so much djape (or should I say Pedja – a fabulous play with the name) for introducing yourself… Nice to know you have lived in Sydney for a while… Perhaps we had bumped into each other on the streets without knowing! 😆
I’m quite interested in bridge too… But regarding sports – you like almost all sorts of sports but not [b]basketball[/b]!? Very disappointed… 🙂
Anyway, wish you all the best for your websites and your books… If conditions allowed I’ll buy some of your books in the future (such as on a long flight)…
I have been a daily visitor to your website but have never left a message – I need to do this now to thank you for the Killer Sudokus, which I love. Congratulations on your success. I have always called you Djape from the beginning. One question: I find the IQ and Insane very difficult but have more success with Insane than IQ – is there a logical reason why this might be? Anyway, well done, thanks and keep going – a Killer a day is essential!
Barbara, thanks for your kind words. I’ve always believed that the difficulty level is very arbitrary and personal. Difficulty levels shown with each puzzle are assigned by my software, depending on different statistical properties of the given puzzle and they are there just to give you a feel of relative difficulty of the puzzle.
Udosuk, I used to play basketball quite a lot, I even made the varsity team in my high school in USA (altho I spent most time sitting on the bench). Interestingly enough, my high school was from Delaware County, very close to the high school that Kobe Bryant went to and since he is a year younger than me, I had an opportunity to play against him (or, actually to watch him play). But that was 12 years ago. 🙂
DJ,
Congrats on the 1 year anniversary.I think you are one of a small handfull of folks that have great sudoku sites. Keep up the great work.
Regards,
George
I start my day coming to your websites DJ, and will continue to do so. I love killer sudoku’s, and love those ‘bonus days’ when you put up a special sudoku for us to solve.
Thanks again, and keep up the great work!
Thanks so much for the website! I found it last October after doing some of the Washington Post’s puzzles, and have been in love ever since. The variety of the Samurai is exciting and as soon as one is no longer challenging me I can move onto another, although my favorites will always be the Samurai Diagonals.
Again, thank you. I have really enjoyed your website and am looking forward to sudoku-samurai.com. =)
Thanks for everything.
Dear DJApe,
Thanks for all the fab killers over the last year!
I too visit the website for my daily fix; the forum is also a favourite of mine…good to see that there are other sudoku-holics out there.
I get the impression that I am one of the older
vistors to the site, but no matter…
I am convinced that a sudoku a day keeps the Alzheimer’s away….
All the best,R.
Hi DJ (nice to know your real name and a bit of background too!)
Sorry for “jumping the gun”. Killer sudokus are my favourite and your site is the best for getting my daily fix so please keep up the good work – it is truly appreciated.
Cathy xx
Congratulations and keep up the good work DJ.
Still is the best killer site around.
Lovely to put a face and name when we have been ‘chatting’ for a year.
Adele
Australia
I have been visiting your site for over a year and it is excellent for Killer Sudoku which is my favourite. The software is v helpful with more complex puzzles – on paper it requires too much rubbing out!
I hope you continue to develop it and are commercially successful.
If you e-mail me directly I’d like to discuss Bridge (my hobby) and e-books (My current plan).
Tony Moon
Dear Mr. Predrag Stanojevic,
I became a fan of you. You are indeed a genious. I am an avid contract bridge player and it is my first passion. I like sudoku ofcourse as a brain teaser but that all to support my intellectual activity and bridge. I am very keen to the publications of your bridge analysis software etc. Please mail me a reply.
Regards,
SOURENDRA COOMER DUTT
Dear Mr. Predrag Stanojevic,
I like to have your e-mail address sir, so that I can keep in touch with regarding bridge analysis softwares, which I am very keen to have.
Regards,
SOURENDRA COOMER DUTT
Just to inform you of something I thought might interst you. The London times killer of May 6, 2007 (no 505) yielded 2 solutions when input into your solver, and I clicked the “count solutions” button. The “solve sudoku” button did give a valid solution, rather the fill all the cells with a “1”.
Thanks again for the daily puzzles.
Michael