Level 12

I found the hidden gfx file fine, but I have no idea how to separate the data inside into five files. I've looked up image headers, and compared notepad-opened image files (jpeg, bmp, gif). I found easily identifiable patterns, none of which occur in the gfx file. I've used a hex-editor (had no idea what i was doing) and looked at the data. Found some identifying header things but couldn't go farther with it. I've also tried building a string from the gfx file, adding one character at a time, and imghdr testing it. For some reason my string wants to be 31 chars long, idk why. But I need some help :*(

For anyone new to the challenge and still having difficulty: I personally think it's a lot easier to compare the decoding process to "dealing" cards rather than "unshuffling" them.

I think I've managed the heaving lifting for this challenge and am worried that I won't be able to solve it for lack of adequate tools.

I've found the "deck" and unshuffled it into five data streams, each of which purport to be of a particular type. If I file.write() those out with their proper extensions, I can't read them with Firefox, Windows XP's built-in viewer, or with the GNU Manipulation Program for files of that variety. The first two complain of corruption, and the latter actually crashes! If I instead feed the streams into the popular 3rd-party Python module for data of this variety, I can create objects from all five streams, but only four of those objects (1, 2, 3, and 5) can be written out (at which point they can be read by anything).

The fourth stream/object, however, throws an IndexError when I try to write it out. Seeing a hint earlier in this thread, I tried padding the data stream with zeroes, but that only gets me a SyntaxError (oddly), instead.

How can I view this data?

[mjpieters]

I think I've managed the heaving lifting for this challenge and am worried that I won't be able to solve it for lack of adequate tools.

If you unshuffle the deck correctly, no special tools are necessary. If you see errors, then you didn't quite get the unshuffle right, perhaps?

I think I've managed the heaving lifting for this challenge and am worried that I won't be able to solve it for lack of adequate tools.

If you unshuffle the deck correctly, no special tools are necessary. If you see errors, then you didn't quite get the unshuffle right, perhaps?

The other four files are working, at least when I turn them into objects before writing them back out. How about this; what viewer are you using that lets you read all five resulting files? If you can vouch for a tool, then I can stop doubting mine.

Just PM me if the data type (and therefore the name of the viewer) would be a spoiler.

[mjpieters]

The other four files are working, at least when I turn them into objects before writing them back out. How about this; what viewer are you using that lets you read all five resulting files? If you can vouch for a tool, then I can stop doubting mine.

I just reran the challenge solution from the wiki, and indeed one of the image comes out as slightly corrupted (it has been truncated). The other 4 I have no problems with, at least not with Preview (Mac OS X app), Firefox and ImageMagick. Firefox displays as much as it can from the corrupted image, which is plenty to solve this level.

I solved this level, but I still have a question:

I typed in a URL and it said "wow! you are a genius!". Is that a hint, or sarcasm?

Which URL gives this sarcastic message?

[thesamet]

I solved this level, but I still have a question:

I typed in a URL and it said "wow! you are a genius!". Is that a hint, or sarcasm?

Which URL gives this sarcastic message?

definitely sarcasm. It's in cards.html on the same directory.

Oooh, thanks. Never occurred to me to try that one.

I like finding all these side trails.

For those having trouble reading a binary file with Python (like I did for hours), read here.

Sorry,
i really treid hard to solve - used hex-editors and stuff. but i think its impossible to solve it under WinXP. the images out of the gfx are not readable by any program(firefox,gimp,irfanview). i finally tried a spoiler and this also doesn't work. so i decide to skip this riddle. This doesn't work.

Do I have to install gfx module? I have trouble doing that.

Euphorbium: No, the standard library is sufficient to solve this.

Oakins77: Are you sure your algorithm is correct? Did you mind "rb"?

This website is completely awesome and I will never thank the samet enough for all the time, effort and intelligence he put into these riddles.
I have been programming with python for two years now and found out how little I knew . Thanks a trillion!

However, I found this riddle completely frustrating and (maybe) too twisted.
Even afer reading the explanation on the wiki it felt a bit forced, like if you had to presume exactly what was supposed to be presumed... otherwise you had no chance of solving it, specially with the binary data file (this is just my humble opinion)
I must confess is the only riddle from the 13 done by now (I'm on the 14th) that I couldn't solve by myself, ending up browsing for the solution

What most surprised me is the fact that if you skipped one of the evils, you would not be able to solve riddle 13 and it is not easy at all to get it!
Still do not know how are you supposed to extract that info from that particular evil.

Anyway, as I said, terrific website... 5 years after its creation is still alive with people like me hunting and thinking.
Bravo the samet

EDIT: Solved it! Knowing JPEG magic bytes was handy...

This is the hint that un-stumped me. Look for a pattern of "magic bytes"....