The code.

OK, so this is interesting. Earlier today, this comment appeared on me blog:

Hello!

This is not spam.

You are one of twenty bloggers chosen to play the game at aequalswhat dot blogspot dot com.

Your part of the code is q=i.

Let the game begin!

Go to the address given, and you find this:

Twenty bloggers have been chosen to try and break this code, a simple letter substitution code. Fourteen have received one part of the code key, six have received two.

They will need everyone before this is all over.

As far as I can tell there are no pre-existing connections between the bloggers chosen, but I will say that no first-time blogger has been chosen. Everyone involved has had his or her blog up for at least three months.

During the game I will answer only ten "yes or no" questions. This is a total between all of you, so you'll have to decide if it's worth asking your question before you find your fellow codebloggers. I may or may not post the questions here and I also reserve the right to answer with "I cannot answer", in which case you will not be charged a question. The bloggers involved have been made privy to my email address and can reach me there for their questions. Remember, "yes or no" questions only, please.

And now, the code.

The words have been compressed to thwart any attempts to guess the answer according to the number of letters in each word, but punctuation has been left intact to serve as markers.

The game begins now. Have fun with it.

ndwwkgxzyldmgrdif,ugrabyfxwyfigrtrgkgxyww.
izyldrgabdyfvidudgjnitmgofghdtfgn,
rgbxoiryfigrfgoysdkgxtifhyusyrmvyxtd
qxidfyrmtfiww,irycdr-wisdtfyfd;fzititnzyfifit,
yayod.izgvdkgxywwdregkdmfzdegxbrdkytoxuz
ytizyldyrmfzyrskgxjgbvwykira!

What a bloody brilliant idea. And what a bugger of a code.

Later, I got an email from Eddie, the guy behind it, explaining further and also bending over backwards to apologise:

Some of the twenty have deleted my comment, others admonished my initial tactics (for which, again, I am sorry) and others still have thought this is a cool idea.

Jesus, some people. Read Eddie's original comment again. Was it really so offensive that it needed to be immediately deleted and Eddie had to be forced to apologise for it? Really? Some people are just tossers, they really are. But I digress.

This is a great idea, and this is exactly the wrong time to pick me as a contestant. I'm trying to learn a new computer language and the ins and outs of an insanely complex and utterly user-unfriendly piece of software while getting my house thoroughly decorated within two weeks when I go to a friend's wedding in another country. Code-breaking I ain't got much time for. But I don't want to contribute towards killing such a fine idea, and, frankly, feel a little honoured that I was one of the first picked in what may end up being a big new craze — or may not, but hey. So, while I don't have a lot of time to donate, I'm posting this post to make it easier for the other contestants to find me and my piece of the puzzle. A few links for the search engines' spiders might help, too, so: aequalswhat, aequalswhat, aequalswhat, aequalswhat, aequalswhat, aequalswhat, aequalswhat, aequalswhat, Code Blog, Code Blog, Code Blog, Code Blog, Code Blog, Code Blog, Code Blog, Code Blog.

This whole thing could just flop. Or it could soar. At the very least, it'll be interesting to see which.