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[BrianEnigma]

[PUZZLE] The 24.x.y Numbers

[konamouse]

Maybe they are just a way of numbering the pages/clues and lets us know there are more to be found?

[rose]

Here are some guesses:

Do each of those pages have hidden text from a book on them? Maybe the reference is to the page number, word and letter of the book referenced the same page the number is on page? If not a book, then another reference?

Is this a time? could it be referencing not tracks, but time on the CD? In PPC, similar numbers lead to a time that had elapsed in a film. Could this be a reference to time in a film or a video?

It could be different statutes or something in a penal code? Or quotes from many books - it doesn't have to be the Bible.

I learned from PPC that the same number can mean different things in different contexts - so I wouldn't assume that the 24 means the same thing in every instance. But that is so hard to solve.

[BrianEnigma]

[CSfreestyle]

I also mentioned this in the listening party thread - acknowledging that the numbers might correspond to track titles/letters, has anyone been able to get an approximate track count at a listening party? The important thing would be to see if there were ~16 tracks, implying the track listing on yearzero.nin.com is complete, or more (hopefully ~20) to correspond with the latest 24.x.y codes.

Another thought I'd like to reiterate (originally stated waaaay back in what became the trailhead thread): if these DO correspond to letters in song titles, what are your thoughts on counting SPACES? For example, 24.10.4 could refer to the 2nd "G" in God Given's title (if you're looking at the fourth letter) or the space in the title (if you're looking at the fourth character).

Here's why I think this is an important issue to consider: if this string of codes turns out to give us letters for a giant anagram, the number of spaces included among those letters would also serve the purpose of helping discern how many words should appear in the final solution.

[rose]

No one liked my idea about time? like album number.minute.second?

sigh

I thought that spaces were ignored in counting letters. Maybe it would be easy to do it both ways and see what you get. But, I thought the problem was that there aren't enough titles to do that? So how can that be solved?

I'm just thinking that it isn't the Bible. (and I am always wrong on puzzles, so take this for what it is worth.) The reason I think that is that the Bible isn't a forbidden book in the future, is it? Why would they need to hide those quotes? They aren't referring to something that would get them in trouble. I think it probably has to do with the album, if they always number the albums that way. The idea is that this album is known in the future, so these scientists are reaching back to us and using that known reference to communicate. (at least I think thats what they are doing.) Probably this album is prohibited in the future, so they can't refer to it openly - hence the secret numbers.

[CSfreestyle]

Actually I did like the time idea (sorry for the cold-shoulder =P). There is a practical problem, in that we won't have access to the album to do this until the release date... unless a LOT more flash drives are found over the next couple weeks! That limitation makes me question if the game designers would really have included clues so early (and so blatantly) that we would have to wait so long to solve.

I do encourage the thought-process, though. I hadn't heard that theory yet!

[Quaunaut]

Heres something for you. 24 in ASCII is a cross.

Try it yourself. Hold down alt, and put in 2, then 4, and let off alt.

↑


Its small, but its definitely a cross.

I did this with all the binary on the hot CD cover, and got this. Note that all return carriages are intentional- thats what that number qualifies. Numbers qualify to what line there is. Note that if some things overlap- like nine inch nails and halo 24- I counted them as on the same line.

1: x
2:
♂

3:☺☺☺n
4:☺LL☺
5: ☺☺☺


Note that alt-0 is nothing, so that wouldn't show up. But just alt-1 is ☺.

<3

[Pwandz]

There are actually 24 pages in the Year Zero CD booklet, meaning that the numbers found amongst the lyrics might be related to the 24.XX.XX numbers..

Page 1 - [cover]
Page 2 - [tracklist]
Page 3 - [blank (black)]
Page 4 - hyperpower!
Page 5 - the begining of the end - fiveseven
Page 6 - survivalism - 17593 314547
Page 7 - the good soldier - 179
Page 8 - vessel - 13971
Page 9 - me i'm not - sevenfive
Page 10 - capital g - seventwo
Page 11 - my violent heart - 0
Page 12 - [picture of the presence] - 13971
Page 13 - the warning - 126871 314697
Page 14 - god given - 179 174639
Page 15 - god given (pg2) - three
Page 16- meet your master - 179 139
Page 17 - the greater good- 71364
Page 18 - the great destroyer - thereenine 1365697
Page 19 - another version of the truth
Page 20 - in this twilight - threeseven
Page 21 - zero sum - fiveseven
Page 22 - [credits]
Page 23 - [thanks]
Page 24 - [cover (all black)] - 1732423 (this is the same as the barcode number)

(thanks to jenni42ld for transcribing most of those!)

[randomfactor]

The numbers in the booklet actually refer to a shard on the Mailstrom. I wonder, though, if the Pilgrim Stream numbers might still refer to other (text?) data in the booklet.

I'm becoming increasingly convinced that the PMs decided to put 24 everywhere they could think of, just to get everyone running off in different directions.

[konamouse]

And 24 is an anagram of "42"

[alefnull]

(new here)

[randomfactor]

I think the 24 is relevant, but also that there are so many 24-related red herrings out there that we're having a hard time figuring out what it might mean.

[EDIT]: NM; I guess we know what the numbers mean now: