OK, this isn't going to become a Rubik's Cube blog. It just happens that a few days after posting Friday's entry about Rubik's Cube fanatics, I happened upon two more links that were too authoritative to pass up:

• Jessica Fridrich's speed cubing page has detailed algorithms that are referenced by all sort of champs, so they must be good.
• Lars Petrus gives us Solving Rubik's Cube for speed.

I can see people are obsessed with speed solving. I've never cared for it, preferring elegance and fun over pure speed (but that's in keeping with the rest of my personality).

Another thing I've never understood is cube applets. Fiddling with an on-screen flattened cube or a 3D cube or (God forbid) a four-dimensional cube simply isn't the same as having one in your hands. Some people have remarkable persistence with them, but I don't see the point. The physical aspect of it is at least half the fun. I can't imagine solving one of these virtual cubes.