code crackers and puzzle lovers, help!!

[Linas]

A friend of mine received this letter from guy she has known since she was little. She cant crack it and neither can I. Anyone know the key??

[Stumbo]

It says" I've loved you all my life and want to be with you. Call me at 201-555-1212".

[cdef]

It might be Playfair encryption (described here). Far from unbreakable, but lacking the original keyword used by the author it would take even a skilled expert quite a while to decode it.

There may be some software available on the web that can crack it.

[L-A]

A whole letter in playfair? That's some work. If she can't think of any key to use, it could take a while.

[BruisedOoze]

Is there anything else that came with the letter to give a clue to a phrase?

[john turner]

can't be a playfair, apparently, as there are j's present.

[john turner]

...although the two mistakes lead me to believe maybe it -is- a playfair, with just a different 5x5 key table.

also interesting that there's two different "e"'s going on. hmm.

[L-A]

Originally Posted by john turner

can't be a playfair, apparently, as there are j's present.

I remember I once saw a key where the J was coupled with the other closest letter. Basically, J and K (for example) meant the same letter.

[BruisedOoze]

Originally Posted by john turner

...although the two mistakes lead me to believe maybe it -is- a playfair, with just a different 5x5 key table.

also interesting that there's two different "e"'s going on. hmm.

yeah there are no F's present. The E thing is really weird.

Edit: Nevermind there is one F. But I don't think I see any Z, P, or M's present?

[john turner]

there's an f on line 13 position 3, just under one of the mistakes.

i don't see any 'z''s though. there also doesn't appear to be any 'm''s , although i could be mistaken. so this might be a playfair with i and j, and two e's. this leads me to think that the code word contains both a j and two e's, where each e is denoted differently.

is there a code word that might be appropriate to both the sender and receiver that has a j and two e's in it?

[BruisedOoze]

Originally Posted by john turner

there's an f on line 13 position 3, just under one of the mistakes.

i don't see any 'z''s though. there also doesn't appear to be any 'm''s , although i could be mistaken. so this might be a playfair with i and j, and two e's. this leads me to think that the code word contains both a j and two e's, where each e is denoted differently.

is there a code word that might be appropriate to both the sender and receiver that has a j and two e's in it?

Yeah maybe something with her name?

[D.Don]

Looks like diagraph, but it doesnt make sense when translating the first 5 codes here.

D.Don

[Linas]

ok she left out that there WAS a hint:

my nesting was here

[Linas]

damn, this is driving me crazy trying to figure it out. It seems to be playfair, but it doesnt follow the standard rules. What exceptions are there?

[cdef]

Originally Posted by Linas

.. my nesting was here

If that's the keyphrase, then the grid, assuming Playfair, would be:

M Y N E S
T I G W A
H R B C D
F K L O P
Q U V X Z

But I see no M, or Z or P either. And it's not always easy to distinguish C and L from each other. The two E's may be significant, or may be just a quirk of the guy's handwriting.

Found a JavaScript page where you can experiment with various alphabets and grids, according to the rules of classic Playfair (missing letter maps to I): http://www.java2s.com/Code/JavaScrip...JavaScript.htm. If you have teh skillz you may edit the JS code to allow for other rules.

This thing may of course be some personal variation, but why should the guy have made it that difficult if he wanted it to be decoded at all?

[Linas]

heres the code in type if anyone wants to put it into programs to try to crack it. Im giving it a shot but havent been successful yet. Now im not sure weather the key to this is the phrase, "my nesting was here" or the answer to that phrase. Which in that case could be a town by the name of Naperville.

bk ke oy la nq lw lh hi yr
wl ls aq dl je di tr sb kj
kw sk iy hd al nj ea ts tq
ld it rs sl je dj sk iy vn
qn je kt sk js ks cl qk ne
on vg sk rk ts ce ng ks ni
yc ln qs dr nc ln uy hk ne
db nu ld sn sq yo ts ds wn
rj sq db cs rk dr ny bk ke
oy ln je wd hh ol kt sk ar
db cs iy hl nu dj bs ck tb
cd si ny oc el vd cu dj bc
nr jk sc dj bs ke kw ds cy
kt di ft rs ol hd lu dj bd
wd hh ad je wc ns dr sq td
rk dr ny sl dr iy ol nt sd
at ha qd lj ed gj kw jk sw
cn sh dl ro ly kj es cl ol
je ot sa kq yk tn je il sc
dr dr jk ss cl lj eb kk eo
yl an ql wl hh iy rw ll sr
wl ls aq dl je

[The Crusader]

Originally Posted by Linas

heres the code in type if anyone wants to put it into programs to try to crack it. Im giving it a shot but havent been successful yet. Now im not sure weather the key to this is the phrase, "my nesting was here" or the answer to that phrase. Which in that case could be a town by the name of Naperville.

bk ke oy la nq lw lh hi yr
wl ls aq dl je di tr sb kj
kw sk iy hd al nj ea ts tq
ld it rs sl je dj sk iy vn
qn je kt sk js ks cl qk ne
on vg sk rk ts ce ng ks ni
yc ln qs dr nc ln uy hk ne
db nu ld sn sq yo ts ds wn
rj sq db cs rk dr ny bk ke
oy ln je wd hh ol kt sk ar
db cs iy hl nu dj bs ck tb
cd si ny oc el vd cu dj bc
nr jk sc dj bs ke kw ds cy
kt di ft rs ol hd lu dj bd
wd hh ad je wc ns dr sq td
rk dr ny sl dr iy ol nt sd
at ha qd lj ed gj kw jk sw
cn sh dl ro ly kj es cl ol
je ot sa kq yk tn je il sc
dr dr jk ss cl lj eb kk eo
yl an ql wl hh iy rw ll sr
wl cs aq dl je

the last and 2nd line are common, but is it cs or ls?

[MatticusMania]

Grandma's cookies were always the best. Each one more delicious than the last. Yummy, chocolate chip or oatmeal raisin, it really doesn't matter. I will eat them all and leave none for you.

thats what it says

[Linas]

Originally Posted by The Crusader

the last and 2nd line are common, but is it cs or ls?

Im gona go with LS. I still havent figured this damn thing out.

[L-A]

If it's playfair, the code is definitely not naperville