# Excel Breakout Puzzle 4

It is time for another breakout puzzle … yay! Have you ever played Sudoku? My family loves doing these puzzles, in fact, last week we had a full-on Sudoku race and competition. Who won? Not me. My daughter totally crushed it. I’d get like 5 squares done, and she’d be like, “done!” Again and again. Anyhow, that Sudoku competition was the inspiration for this Excel Breakout Puzzle. Hope you get a chance to check it out.

## Objective

The objective is to find the 4 letter code I’ve hidden. You’ll first need to complete the Sudoku puzzle to get the key. Then, use the key in step 2 to reveal the code. If you aren’t sure how to play Sudoku, the rules are fairly easy. You basically want to use each number 1-9 once in each row, column, and block without overlapping. Do a quick web search for Sudoku rules if needed.

If you get the 4 letter (not number) solution, please let me know by posting a comment below. Enjoy ðŸ™‚

The video below contains the answer, so, if you want to do the puzzle, try it before watching the video.

Also, quick heads-up: the answer may appear in the comments below, so, don’t scroll down to the comments if you want to try the puzzle.

## Previous Excel Breakout Puzzles:

1. Linda Lotz

Thanks for a fun puzzle, Jeff. I enjoyed the puzzles you had during the Excel University Graduate Certification course. Now that I have finished the course, I missed the puzzles. Not to worry – you have come to the rescue! Only thing is, once the code is solved, there’s no place to input it to receive the fun little congratulatory messages you gave during the graduate certification course. Maybe another step?

1. Jeff Lenning Post author

That’s a great idea! I should figure out some way to do a cool animation, like confetti or balloons or something ðŸ™‚

2. Caleb

Jeff, thank you for the breakout puzzle. I was fun and simple. I must confess I have not been able to figure out the other breakout puzzles. I appreciate having one that was much simpler to solve.

Thanks for keeping us on our toes. Great work!

–Caleb

1. Jeff Lenning Post author

Cool, thanks … this one was totally for fun, and I liked the “reveal” in this one the best so far ðŸ™‚

3. Tara

Jeff: This was fun – the Sudoku part was easy. But I’m stuck – once I get the key, how do I know in which order to enter the numbers in Step 2? (Brand new to your blog and website – apologies if I’ve missed something.)

1. Jeff Lenning Post author

Welcome! So, for this puzzle, the order of the key is just left to right (regardless of the row).
Hope it helps, and I hope you enjoy the “reveal” … it is my favorite reveal so far ðŸ™‚
Thanks
Jeff

1. Tara

Thanks! That’s what I had done – somehow, I was thinking that the “secret code” will spell something out like, “Drink more Ovaltine!” ðŸ˜‰

1. Jeff Lenning Post author

Ah, nice … when I use these breakout puzzles in a course, you would enter the code into the a quiz to validate the answer. But, on the blog, they are just for fun. But, you gave me a great idea which I can hopefully incorporate next time. By the way, I loved your reference to the Christmas Story … what a great movie!
Thanks
Jeff

4. Lola Simmons

Thanks Jeff, that was the coolest breakout yet. Thoroughly enjoyed myself.

1. Jeff Lenning Post author

Thanks! I just figured out a new technique for the “reveal” so I expect to incorporate that going forward. I’m working on a Matrix themed puzzle for the next one ðŸ™‚
Thanks,
Jeff

5. Monica

What fun! Thanks for the puzzle!

1. Jeff Lenning Post author

Welcome ðŸ™‚

6. Chris Wagner

Hi Jeff,

Now, I don’t want to be a sudoku party pooper but I always like to be an excel enthusiast. As soon as I saw the first cell turn green I knew that there had to be conditional formatting in play. So, I invoked Goto [F5] key and selected special, conditional formats to light up all the green cells. A shortcut to step 2.

7. Saumil

BINC

8. Mimi
The text passage describes an Excel breakout puzzle that involves solving a Sudoku puzzle to find a hidden 4-letter code. The author provides context about Sudoku and explains the rules, and there are comments from readers who have tried the puzzle.
no_question

the passage does not contain a mathematical question or calculation. it is primarily descriptive and instructional in nature, providing details about the puzzle and reader feedback.
Given a text passage, determine:
    1. If it contains a mathematical question (including word problems or calculations)
    2. If an answer to that mathematical question is provided in the text

First, describe the content structure you found in 1-2 sentences.

Then provide your analysis in the following format:
TYPE: <one of the following values>
- NO_QUESTION
- SINGLE_QUESTION
- SINGLE_QUESTION_WITH_ANSWER
- MULTIPLE_QUESTIONS
- MULTIPLE_QUESTIONS_WITH_ANSWERS
system
# Excel Breakout Puzzle 4

It is time for another breakout puzzle … yay! Have you ever played Sudoku? My family loves doing these puzzles, in fact, last week we had a full-on Sudoku race and competition. Who won? Not me. My daughter totally crushed it. I’d get like 5 squares done, and she’d be like, “done!” Again and again. Anyhow, that Sudoku competition was the inspiration for this Excel Breakout Puzzle. Hope you get a chance to check it out.

## Objective

The objective is to find the 4 letter code I’ve hidden. You’ll first need to complete the Sudoku puzzle to get the key. Then, use the key in step 2 to reveal the code. If you aren’t sure how to play Sudoku, the rules are fairly easy. You basically want to use each number 1-9 once in each row, column, and block without overlapping. Do a quick web search for Sudoku rules if needed.

If you get the 4 letter (not number) solution, please let me know by posting a comment below. Enjoy ðŸ™‚

The video below contains the answer, so, if you want to do the puzzle, try it before watching the video.

Also, quick heads-up: the answer may appear in the comments below, so, don’t scroll down to the comments if you want to try the puzzle.

## Previous Excel Breakout Puzzles:

1. Linda Lotz

Thanks for a fun puzzle, Jeff. I enjoyed the puzzles you had during the Excel University Graduate Certification course. Now that I have finished the course, I missed the puzzles. Not to worry – you have come to the rescue! Only thing is, once the code is solved, there’s no place to input it to receive the fun little congratulatory messages you gave during the graduate certification course. Maybe another step?

1. Jeff Lenning Post author

That’s a great idea! I should figure out some way to do a cool animation, like confetti or balloons or something ðŸ™‚

2. Caleb

Jeff, thank you for the breakout puzzle. I was fun and simple. I must confess I have not been able to figure out the other breakout puzzles. I appreciate having one that was much simpler to solve.

Thanks for keeping us on our toes. Great work!

–Caleb

1. Jeff Lenning Post author

Cool, thanks … this one was totally for fun, and I liked the “reveal” in this one the best so far ðŸ™‚

3. Tara

Jeff: This was fun – the Sudoku part was easy. But I’m stuck – once I get the key, how do I know in which order to enter the numbers in Step 2? (Brand new to your blog and website – apologies if I’ve missed something.)

1. Jeff Lenning Post author

Welcome! So, for this puzzle, the order of the key is just left to right (regardless of the row).
Hope it helps, and I hope you enjoy the “reveal” … it is my favorite reveal so far ðŸ™‚
Thanks
Jeff

1. Tara

Thanks! That’s what I had done – somehow, I was thinking that the “secret code” will spell something out like, “Drink more Ovaltine!” ðŸ˜‰

1. Jeff Lenning Post author

Ah, nice … when I use these breakout puzzles in a course, you would enter the code into the a quiz to validate the answer. But, on the blog, they are just for fun. But, you gave me a great idea which I can hopefully incorporate next time. By the way, I loved your reference to the Christmas Story … what a great movie!
Thanks
Jeff

4. Lola Simmons

Thanks Jeff, that was the coolest breakout yet. Thoroughly enjoyed myself.

1. Jeff Lenning Post author

Thanks! I just figured out a new technique for the “reveal” so I expect to incorporate that going forward. I’m working on a Matrix themed puzzle for the next one ðŸ™‚
Thanks,
Jeff

5. Monica

What fun! Thanks for the puzzle!

1. Jeff Lenning Post author

Welcome ðŸ™‚

6. Chris Wagner

Hi Jeff,

Now, I don’t want to be a sudoku party pooper but I always like to be an excel enthusiast. As soon as I saw the first cell turn green I knew that there had to be conditional formatting in play. So, I invoked Goto [F5] key and selected special, conditional formats to light up all the green cells. A shortcut to step 2.

7. Saumil

BINC

8. Mimi
user
The text passage describes an Excel breakout puzzle that involves solving a Sudoku puzzle to find a hidden 4-letter code. The author provides context about Sudoku and explains the rules, and there are comments from readers who have tried the puzzle.

TYPE: NO_QUESTION

The passage does not contain a mathematical question or calculation. It is primarily descriptive and instructional in nature, providing details about the puzzle and reader feedback.