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The Layer by Layer Method is a method of solving the 3x3x3 Rubik's Cube. Many beginners' methods use this approach, but it also forms the basis of the CFOP speedcubing technique.
Contents
History
The Layer by Layer Method was pioneered by David Singmaster in his 1980 book Notes on Rubik's "Magic Cube". The same idea was adopted by James G. Nourse in his The Simple Solution to Rubik's Cube which became the bestselling book of 1981, and similar approaches could be found in Don Taylor's Mastering Rubik's Cube and Cyril Östrop's Solving the Cube from the same era.
Method
It starts by making a cross on one face with the edge pieces, then putting the corners into position between the edges. By then the layer should be solved. Third, the four edge pieces of the middle layer are solved. At this point the first two layers are solved. Fourth, a cross of the opposite color is made on the last layer. Fifth, the last layer edges are permutated (swapped around). Sixth, the last layer corners are permutated. Finally, the last layer corners are oriented.
Most Layer by Layer beginners' methods solve the first two layers using the same technique. However, there are many variant techniques for the final layer, depending on whether the corner or edge pieces are solved first.
CFOP Method
The CFOP speedcubing technique, developed by Jessica Fridrich and others in the 1980s, similarly divides the puzzle into layers to be solved. However the method uses far more algorithms and shortcuts than the beginners' methods.