These are the edited highlights of a very interesting thread by NIN, with many good contributions and ideas by other members:
NIN: ——————————————————————————–
For all cipher buffs out there, I need your help for a very last step in a very simple and direct approach to hopefully finally "solving" the 340. In hindsight I can now see that Zodiac was hinting all along in how to tackle this cipher.
After a few steps on what the approach is I will post this information also on two other forums, one of them where I have just signed up a few days ago. I firmly believe that the more folks work on that very last step, the faster we will get to the solution – together.
All of you who have worked on the cipher(s), contributed in one way or the other. You are all on the team.
While working on the Exorcist letter symbols a few days ago, the comment of a poster got stuck in my head who described my "Help Me" solution as simple and elegant. I believe this is exactly what Zodiac did with his ciphers. He kept it rather simple (perhaps not for everyone) while at the same time being incredibly elegant and creative from a mathematical point of view.
The "solution", or what I believe is the solution, to the 340 does NOT involve the entire ciphertext. I can see now that the 13 letter cipher (My name is) directly hinted at the solution structure hiding in the 340. The 408 is pivotal and delivers the key for the 340 approach. Zodiac is hiding a "pig in a blanket", a cipher in a cipher.
I attempted many 340 approaches, but I was also working for almost 2 years now on a very complicated command based approach, which basically kept me busy and away. The one presented here is of course not complicated at all.
Okay, let’s get started. In order to avoid mistakes, I’d like you to duplicate my approach. Anyone who wants to work with me here, please get the 408 key ready. Take the 340 and cancel out any symbols or not directly straight forward letters. So you will only consider ASCII based letters, not flipped, tilted, filled or other.
Let me know when you get there. I will be back 
Nin aka "cracker" 
Once you eliminated all symbols and non ascii characters (flipped, filled whatsoever) you get this:
This is what you have once you eliminated all symbols, flipped and filled characters:
1. HERVPILTG
2. NBODWYK
3. BMUZGWLHJ
4. SVORK
5. MIFP
6. RFOCFD
7. KUXGVLI
8. GJONYL
9. MZRFBAK
10. UVJFB
11. UREIDYBTMKO
12. RJITMBF
13. SNIFBR
14. GFNV
15. BXCEVUZ
16. IBKMG
17. RLCFWBIL
18. WCWPOSHT
19. IFWBYBC
20. MDHNSZOAIK
Now apply the 408 key. Don’t worry, it will not solve the cipher yet…
As I just commented on Z.com, the C’s really have no value. You can leave them out or keep them, it does not influence my approach. At the same time we need to be aware that the N has a double value, an E and a T. Interestingly it is the only letter with a double value in the 408 key. But then again, no matter which value one assigns to the N, it does not change anything.
So you will have this then:
1. TEGBITTOA
2. E/T LNNEUS
3. LHIEAETTF
4. ABNGS
5. HTSI
6. GSNSN
7. SIOABTT
8. AFNE/T UT
9. HEGSLWS
10. IBFSL
11. IGETNULOHSN
12. GFTOHLS
13. A E/T TSLG
14. AS E/T B
15. LEBIE
16. TLSNHA
17. GOTSELTT
18. EEINATO
19. TSELUNL
20. HNT E/T AENWTS
corrected 340 letter list
1. HERVPILTG
2. NBODWYK
3. BMUZGWLHJ
4. SVORK
5. MIFP
6. RFOCFD
7. KUXGVLI
8. GJONYL
9. MZRFBAK
10. UVJOFB
11. UREIDYBTMKO
12. RJITMBF
13. SNIFBR
14. GFNV
15. BXOCEVUZ
16. IBKOMG
17. RTLCFWBIL
18. WCWPOSHT
19. IFWBYOB C
20. MDHNSZOAIK
corrected via 408 encoded
1. TEGBITTOA
2. E/T LNNEUS
3. LHIEAETTF
4. ABNGS
5. HTSI
6. GSNSN
7. SIOABTT
8. AFN E/T UT
9. HEGSLWS
10. IBFNSL
11. IGETNULOHSN
12. GFTOHLS
13. A E/T TSLG
14. AS E/TB
15. LOEBIE
16. TLSNHA
17. GOTSELTT
18. EEINATO
19. TSELUNL
20. HNT E/T AENWTS
Please remember, I made it clear from the beginning that ‘ I need your help for a very last step in a very simple and direct approach to hopefully finally "solving" the 340’. I also pointed out that ‘I firmly believe that the more folks work on that very last step, the faster we will get to the solution – together. ‘. I further explained that ‘The "solution", or what I believe is the solution, to the 340 does NOT involve the entire ciphertext. I can see now that the 13 letter cipher (My name is) directly hinted at the solution structure hiding in the 340. The 408 is pivotal and delivers the key for the 340 approach. Zodiac is hiding a "pig in a blanket", a cipher in a cipher.’
So, in my approach, if I talk about a "cipher in a cipher" I am considering the encoding of the 340 with the 408 cipher key the first cipher " solution". If you have run the 340 through any kind of cipher program you will agree that it is highly unlikely that the entire 340 is enciphered text (I can see only two exemption, one, the 340 was enciphered from a text in a non roman language, or two, the 340 is entirely a list of foreign names). While this is certainly possible, it does not seem probable. I was asking you to go through the first steps with me to eliminate mistakes and yes, to contribute with what you see. To my surprise, no one has seen yet what I am looking at.
Please take your 408 encoded list of the 340 and let me know if you see anything unusual. I feel more comfortable in presenting my idea this way, so that everyone clearly understands the concept.
AK WILKS: This is what we have so far, I think, applying your ideas:
corrected via 408 encoded
1. TEGBITTOA
2. E/T LNNEUS
3. LHIEAETTF
4. ABNGS
5. HTSI
6. GSNSN
7. SIOABTT
8. AFN E/T UT
9. HEGSLWS
10. IBFNSL
11. IGETNULOHSN
12. GFTOHLS
13. A E/T TSLG
14. AS E/TB
15. LOEBIE
16. TLSNHA
17. GOTSELTT
18. EEINATO
19. TSELUNL
20. HNT E/T AENWTS
———————————-
NIN: "I was asking you to go through the first steps with me to eliminate mistakes and yes, to contribute with what you see. To my surprise, noone has seen yet what I am looking at."
AK Wilks: I don’t really see much here yet. I must be missing it, but as you say, apparently nobody else is seeing what you are looking at. I’m stumped. Can you shed some light and tell us what you are seeing? So far this is all I see:
corrected via 408 encoded
1. TEGBITTOA = GET
2. E/T LNNEUS
3. LHIEAETTF
4. ABNGS = BANGS
5. HTSI = HITS
6. GSNSN
7. SIOABTT
8. AFN E/T UT
9. HEGSLWS
10. IBFNSL
11. IGETNULOHSN = I GET
12. GFTOHLS
13. A E/T TSLG
14. AS E/TB = A BETS
15. LOEBIE
16. TLSNHA
17. GOTSELTT = GOT SEL(L)
18. EEINATO
19. TSELUNL
20. HNT E/T AENWTS
——————–
Honestly that is all I see. And remember in any random letter set you will get some natural words and anagram words, often 3 or 4 letters. I am not saying there isn’t more here, just that I don’t see it, and apparently nobody else has seen it yet either. So can you tell us what it is you see that you are surprized nobody else has caught yet?
Thanks! Looking forward to it.
LUKE 68: OK, trying the anagram/using letters within each line approach but looking for words that feel right for Z (rather than words like ‘feta’).
1. TEGBITTOA = GET/BOAT/BITE
2. E/T LNNEUS = TUNNELS/LUST
3. LHIEAETTF = I FELT HATE/I LEFT HAT
4. ABNGS = BANGS
5. HTSI = HITS
6. GSNSN =
7. SIOABTT = BOAST IT/BOATS IT/STAB
8. AFN E/T UT = TAUNT
9. HEGSLWS = LEGS
10. IBFNSL = SIN
11. IGETNULOHSN = I GET/SHOT/LUST
12. GFTOHLS = SHOT
13. A E/T TSLG = GET SALT/GET LAST
14. AS E/TB = A BETS/BATES
15. LOEBIE = LEE
16. TLSNHA = LAST/SALT
17. GOTSELTT = GOT SEL(L)/GO TEST
18. EEINATO = TIE ONE
19. TSELUNL = LUST/LETS/TELL/SUN/TUN(N)ELS
20. HNT E/T AENWTS = HAT(E) TEENS
The interesting thing is that Z type words are there. i don’t believe that makes the anagram approach right but I do think it verifies using the 408 decryption.
There’s something bothering me about there just being 14 letters though.
NIN: No anagramming. Look for a sequence repetition, it is so dominant, it is a 5 letter sequence repetition! If you are dealing with ciphers, this is the very first thing you are looking for, repeating sequences.
The five letter repeated sequence (that I come up with) is "OTSEL". Are we on the same page now?
Yes, correct!
This is what you have now:
Getting it from here:
Look at the 13 character MYNAMEIS cipher:
And compare it with the discovered sequence. 5 symbols, 8 letters in the MYNAMEIS cipher; two 5 letter sequences framing an 8 letter text:
ok, still with you. Thirteen letters between start of 5-letter sequences, 13 symbols in "My name is" cipher (containing eight plaintext characters), eight characters sandwiched between the repeated sequences, another 13 characters after the second sequence… check.
Correct.
You have an 8 letter middle part: OTSEL TTEEINAT OTSEL (8 letter middle part reminds of the 8 symbols used in the MYNAMEIS cipher, doesn’t it..)
Let’s start with the OTSEL. While we do not know, yet, if we are aiming for a vignere or for an visual solution, I’ll try the visual first. It will deliver an amazing result:
The OTSEL does not show any promising results via anagram solver. However, read backwards it reads LESTO. If you look for the meaning of LESTO, it comes up as Latin for easy to handle or maneuverable. It also stands for the LESTO jigsaw, the first jigsaw ever on the market, in 1947!
http://www.asktooltalk.com/articles/too … jigsaw.php
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jigsaw_(power_tool )
Then we look at the middle part:
TTEEINAT
The anagram solver does not show any interesting solution (yeah, it does show some tit stuff, I know..) unless you can come up with a golf related term?
However, I wet ahead and checked the 8 letters in the initial plaintext, the 340:
ILWWPOSH
And found this:
WPOLISHW
"POLISH"
MY NAME IS POLISH ?????
This could be a direct hint towards Zodiac’s name without the risk to give it away! Or it could be a code for a coded cipher. However, I do not expect the cipher to be here, in the "sandwich". I expect the word polish or another word we come up with to be the password for a homophonic cipher, perhaps in the less random parts the FBI pointed out.
Jeeze… AK’s gonna be all over that one.
Tom too.
You got to understand, I did not force anything at any time, I did not look for anything "polish" in the 340 or elsewhere. Now, if you are a math lover and look at the "sandwich", the 5 and the 8 are sequences in the Fibonacci rule, divine proportion, golden rule, call it what you want. The first 3 letters in the MYNAMEIS cipher followed by 2 symbols is the previous Fibonacci sequence in reverse!! 2,3,5,8!! Reverse! You get it? OTSEL – LESTO , encode (‘frames") plaintext ("inner 8 letters").
There is so much mathematical beauty to it that I did not believe it when I found it!
Cipher guys, let’s get to work. I suggest we start a new thread, perhaps 340 sandwich induced approach??
AK WILKS: Hey leave me out, I had nothing to do with this!
Yes, there are at least TWO prominent Polish – American Zodiac suspects…but only one was a mathematician.
This is interesting but I have to study to catch up to how you got there.
Very good effort and good ideas, but you make some assumptions I am not sure I can agree with (despite the fact that this part of your possible solution might be one I would be inclined to favor on POI grounds). But when you started this I did not think that throwing out so many symbols was likely to be correct, and I am still of the same opinion. But I am keeping an open mind. I just need to go over each step you made.
Good job though, interesting and serious approach.
But this is for sure worthy of more study, and seeing how else you can apply the method, and what comes out of that effort.
I think you started with no POI and no pre-ordained solution, and your approach was reasonable, thought out well and you stuck to it. That puts you ahead of 98% of code solvers right there! I just have to study this more, I see what you are saying and why you did what you did.
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AK Wilks: The first symbol in the 408 is a triangle, which gives us the "I" in "I like killing". Later there are squares, and circles.
There are several possible allusions to Pi throughout the Z case, such as the possible 3 14 on the Halloween Card.
Gotta go to work, won’t be able to post more til tonite or tomorrow.
Good work by all here.
LUKE 68: Yep, aware of the multitude of Pi references, including the fact that you can use the first number sequences of Pi to get CADOIZ using alphanumeric substitution.
My comment regarding a perfect square is a mathematical one – sorry, re-reading my post it was ambiguous.
What I meant was that the cross-hair Z symbol appears for the first time in positions 100, 49, 4 of the first three ciphers.
NIN: Considering the " sandwich" part as a possible code for the 340 (my "pig in a blanket" description meets the "sandwich", don’t you think..)I would try to concentrate on lines 1 through 3 and 11 through 13 rather than on the entire (408 encoded) ciphertext.
As the FBI has pointed out, those lines show a higher randomness suggesting a homophonic substitution. Greater randomness for rows versus columns rules out any form of columnar or diagonal transpositions.
Keep in mind, we do not know, if the "sandwich" is what it is and which part or all yields at a password or passphrase. This will take lots of luck in addition to a serious deciphering attempt.
LUKE 68: OK, don’t know if this is anything but it looks like the letters AETT also repeat. And before each repetition there are 5 similar (not exactly the same – well the first 3 are the same) letters in reverse:
S L H I E A E T T
T O H L S A E T T
Furthermore, we have the Norse connection here as well:
"In runology, an ætt is one of the three groups of eight runes of the Elder Futhark"
And also another reference to Fibonacci numbers.
NIN: POLISH (something)THING ?
Luke68 found the AETT reference. There is a scrambled AETT in the middle part of the "sandwich":
TTEEINAT
THING reference (red mine):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norse_clans
The Scandinavian clan or ætt (pronounced [ˈæːtː] in Old Norse) was a social group based on common descent or on the formal acceptance into the group at a þing.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thing_(assembly )
A thing (Old Norse, Old English and Icelandic: þing; Dutch ding; other modern Scandinavian languages: ting) was the governing assembly in Germanic and introduced into some Celtic societies, made up of the free people of the community and presided by lawspeakers, meeting in a place called a thingstead.
SEAGULL: Well the card that the 340 arrived in said on the inside, and can’t do a THING with it! as well as having THING written boldly with all those underlinings and exclamation points, six of each.
TAHOE 27: Yes..it sure seemed he was trying to tell "us" something about "thing".
MORF 13: You can use this site http://www.poltran.com/odp.php4?q=2&dir … word=thing to transfer words back and forth from polish to english.
NIN:
——————————————————————————–
Okay, let’s do a recap to what we did and where we are right now:
1.We eliminated all non ASCII characters from the 340 and encoded them via 408 cipher key. The C has a zero value. The N is the only letter that according to the 408 key encodes to a multiple value of E or T.
2.We noticed a 5 letter string, OTSEL, in line17 that repeats itself one time in line 18 and 19, OTSEL……..OTSEL
3.The repeated 5 letter string "sandwiches" in 8 letters, TTEEINAT. So we see:
OTSELTTEEINATOTSEL
So far these are the objective observations.
I recall that I did encode the 340 ASCII previously. However, I suspect I must have made some mistakes, as I have never spotted the 5 letter string before. Some will admit that it is not so easy to spot as the first letter of the second repetition is located at the end of the previous line.
You also noticed that we made some secondary mistakes, whether they were of technical nature or mistakes. This is why I went public with my find. It is very important to exclude any mistake on the way and to be able to duplicate the effort.
I mentioned before that I kept the comment "simple and elegant" in my mind when attemting a second approach to encode the 340 via 408 key. Fortunately I did not mess up the lines where the 5 letter strings are located, so they jumped out at me right away. I did not expect to find anything like it. Even less, considering that the encoding with the 408 key gives the N a double value, so that you may have to choose the value at hand. Well, the 5 letter strings or the inner part do not contain an encoded letter N ( in the plaintext), so we have an objective find.
Now, a comparison with the 13 letter cipher, also known as MYNAMEIS cipher, shows some common properties like visual symmetry, mathematical balance ( 5 symbols/ 8 letters in the MYNAMEIS cipher versus 5/5 letters of the "sandwich" part [OTSEL] and 8 letters of the "inner" part [TTEEINAT]; mathematical proportion 2-3-5-8-13 [21 would be next f.y.a.]
What we are trying to find out in a straight forward manner is what all that means or if it means anything. My next step was to isolate the two outer "sandwich" parts, OTSEL, from the inner part , TTEEINAT.
Looking at OTSEL, trying to decipher a word like that is absolutely impossible, unless somebody tells you, hey, that stands for blabla or blablabla or bla or b and so on, you get the point. Same goes for the middle part or combined outer parts or combined all parts. This will never be confirmed solvable, same as the 13 letter cipher, MYNAMEIS cipher. When Zodiac sent the 13 letter cipher, he introduced 4 new symbols, the three 8’s (or whatever they are) and the anchor. I go so far to say he purposely introduced those symbols to show he was not aiming on anyone solving the cipher, cause unsolvable, but to hint on something else.
Back to our "sandwich". If the "sandwich" is not a cipher, what is it then? Is it something? It would be something if the "sandwich" contained a keyword or keyphrase to "unlock" any other part of the 340, wouldn’t it? This would also be the only way that the "sandwich" could prove itself as a correct solution, right? So that’s where we are.
I am trying to " unlock" another part of the (408 encoded) 340 by applying a key I found in the "sandwich". What are the scenarios?
1.It could be that the ‘sandwich" is nothing but coincidence. In that case nothing is going to happen. A bunch of scrambled effort and perhaps a Polish Kielbasa.
2.The "sandwich" is the part where Zodiac indeed reveals that his name is… . Since he most likely was not so stupid not to anticipate that the cipher might be broken in his lifetime, he most certainly did not plant his name here or anywhere in the 340. He might have displayed his special kind of humor though (thanks J) and encipherd the fact that his name is …german…english..polish or whatever. We won’t know unless we know who Zodiac is, right? That’s a good one on his part, and very funny indeed. Just in case he planted it in a sandwich..that’s cool.
3.The sandwich offers a bunch of possible Zodiac related words, names or phrases, of which all but one may indeed unscramble a possible message contained somewhere in the (408 encoded) 340.
The FBI hinted some time ago towards the fact the characters in lines 1-3 and 11-13 are less randomly distributed. They think the writer was more cautious here to cover up a message than in the rest of the 340. They find that out by checking letter frequencies and distribution of those letters and characters. They run programs that show virtual peaks of character distribution.
Now that includes all characters, letters and symbols individually and combined. Usually, when you have that many symbols in a cipher those peaks get very "flat" because the letters are well camouflaged by those symbols. It gets more and more difficult to decipher a text like that unless it is much longer than the 340. Then it is a bit easier.
So we have a 340 cipher that has lots of symbols in its original version. We have a follow up communication from Zodiac, …have you solved the cipher…then immediately MY NAME IS… adding another "unsolvable" 13 letter cipher. But we also have a full alphabet (minus c as zeor value) key that Zodiac applied in the 408. The distribution or concept of the 408 is very similar to the 340. And yet, the 340 has not been solved in 42 years. Why not? We have way better cipher programs and tools that anytime before and we still cannot solve it? Because it is not a traditional cipher. Zodiac perfectly disguised the 340 including the cute correction where he wrote the reversed K.
I’ll be back. I’m back.
Forgot scenario
4. The 340 is just a bunch of nothing, the 13 letter cipher is just nothing, Zodiac is happy since he knows his "ciphers" will never be solved.
Being 42 years down the road has the advantage that we have seen lots of "solutions" that are not valid and lots of creative attempts of interpreting the 340 (did I ever post the "police badge" here? ). Solving ciphers, "real" ciphers, very often involves lots of luck to get it started just right or to find the password that will unlock the next step and therefore prove itself valid.
I am trying to explain everything in a way that anybody can understand. Next step is look again closer at the OTSEL TTEEINAT OTSEL sequence. If anyone has a clue what OTSEL or LESTO (other than the fist jigsaw manufacturer, actually it was sold under the name of LESTO) could mean, please post.
Post also if you have an idea what the unencoded OTSEL can mean: TLFWB / TIFWB
Or if you have a clue what the unencoded TTEEINAT can mean: ILWWPOSH
If you are familiar with solving ciphers, run some tests with the entire 5-8-5 string, wile considering that the value of N has to vary between E and T ( you will need to run 4 variations, EE-TT-ET-TE). Since the repeat is after 13 places, you will most likely have to guess a 13 letter phrase or word(sequence) if you suspect it to be a vignere. But you guys know what I mean.
You can also go ahead and take a closer look at lines 1-3 and 11-13 in the plaintext form (original 340) or the 408 encoded form. If you work with a program doing the permutations for you, it is much easier.
So that is what we are or have been doing. Any questions?
AK WILKS: Once again, very good work by you and all concerned!
Some suggestions/thoughts/ideas, feel free to use any that make sense, reject the rest or reject them all.
1. Your work is very different from mine and I am not yet entirely convinced you are correct, but it was solid work that also matched up in some interesting ways with some prior work of mine and triggered some new thoughts.
2. I would suggest you not "throw away" all the symbols in the 340. Rather, I would suggest this – "put them on the shelf". Right now you are making some interesting discoveries using your method of just dealing with letters. But perhaps the symbols are also meant to be translated, and perhaps they form a seperate message or even a message that goes with or compliments what you are finding. Personally I highly doubt Zodiac wrote all those symbols just to have them be meaningless. I am suggesting your method may be valid, but even if it is there may also be a reason for the symbols.
3. You ask what OTSEL might mean, my only thought is that it could be an anagram for STOLE.
4. You have a very interesting result, your ideas were logical, your work was serious, you document each step and you started with no POI or pre conceived notions. That is great. And the result is indeed very interesting. IMO the key now would be to show that your method works on other parts of the 340, as you yourself say.
5. In the 1986 Graysmith proposed solution to the Zodiac 340, the 4th line translates as SEE A NAME. In my opinion that makes a very interesting fit with your proposed partial solution of POLISH or MY NAME IS POLISH. See how they potentially fit together?
So just hypothetically for a moment, taking Graysmith’s solution on the 4th line we have SEE A NAME, and your proposed solution on the 18th line as MY NAME IS POLISH. They fit very well together. Are these two possible clues Zodiac is giving us? If so it might be that the two possible clues are that he has hid his name in the 340 (SEE A NAME) and also that the name hidden is Polish (MY NAME IS POLISH).
AK – Your work is very different from mine and I am not yet entirely convinced you are correct, but it was solid work that also matched up in some interesting ways with some prior work of mine and triggered some new thoughts.
NIN – Zodiac remains unidentified at this time. We do not really know his intellectual capabilities. If TK is Zodiac I would for example expect the 408 to be complete bogus and actually created like a multi level cipher. The deciphered 4o8 text just seems so immature and irrelevant that it is near comical. Your approach in the 340 thread is more sophisticated and would be more appropriate for someone of the intellectual caliber of TK. But then again, Zodiac sometimes gets lost in silly stuff and I don’t know if it is a cover or an uncontrolled burst of mediocre thinking. You get my point. Therefore I’d like to reengineer the 340 on multiple levels considering an above intelligence individual (of course we may have our own limitations with this one.. ..) or an average individual or someone just in between.
AK – I don’t know, remember the 408 defied efforts of the FBI and Navy to break it. I agree with you that once broken, Zodiac would make the 340 much harder and IMO likely mutli-stage, as was the unsolved 18 from the 408.
AK – In the 1986 Graysmith proposed solution to the Zodiac 340, the 4th line translates as SEE A NAME. In my opinion that makes a very interesting fit with your proposed partial solution of POLISH or MY NAME IS POLISH. See how they potentially fit together?
NIN – Absolutely! Also the C’s! SEE’s! "See" it? There are 14 C’s in the 340, 2-2-2 of the in lines 17-18-19, like in CC or SEE SEE, "doublecheck" Sorry, I like to drift into creativity..
AK – So just hypothetically for a moment, taking Graysmith’s solution on the 4th line we have SEE A NAME, and your proposed solution on the 18th line as MY NAME IS POLISH. They fit very well together. Are these two possible clues Zodiac is giving us? If so it might be that the two possible clues are that he has hid his name in the 340 (SEE A NAME) and also that the name hidden is Polish (MY NAME IS POLISH).
NIN – The 340 may very well be a 2 or 3 level cipher.
1. level: 0-3-6-9 key
2. level: cipher key found in lines 17-19
3. level: cipher key unlocks additional information possible contained in lines 17-19
Something like that. Who knows..
AK – Yes I agree.
NIN: Look closer at lines 11 and 12 of the 340. In the 408 encoded version we find 2 more strings. They are not identical in sequence, but they are identical in characters. The location is very interesting:
340, original ciphertext
11.UREIDYBTMKO
12.RJITMBF
408 encoded
11.IGETNULOHSN
12.GFTOHLS
The strings (BTMK-TMBF in the original version/ LOHS-OHLS in the 408 encoded version) are located next to this middle part ORJI (original), NGFT (408 encoded):
3 letters of the middle part are elements of the 90 degree string I posted about before:
No clue if it means anything or not. One thing that comes to mind, if lines 17-19 were to give us the password (s)/ passphrase for lines 11- 13, then this could be a direct clue about the visual arrangement of either the lines or the password(s) / passphrase. (What really comes to mind now is the xerox from the EUREKA card with the 2 keys. This may be a clue to use 2 keys. The 408 encoding would then not be one of the 2 keys, it would just be something Zodiac provided us from the beginning with.)
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