Notation

The letters every alg is written in. Each letter is a face: R right, L left, U up (the top), D down (the bottom), F front, B back. On its own it means a quarter turn clockwise as you look at that face; ' (prime) means anticlockwise, 2 a half turn.

Face turns

One face: a quarter turn clockwise, ' anticlockwise, 2 a half turn.

• R: R
• R': R'
• R2: R2
• U: U
• U': U'
• U2: U2
• F: F
• F': F'
• F2: F2
• L: L
• L': L'
• L2: L2
• B: B
• B': B'
• B2: B2
• D: D
• D': D'
• D2: D2

Wide turns

Lower-case (or w): that face and the middle layer next to it, together.

• r: r
• r': r'
• u: u
• u': u'

Middle slice

The middle layer on its own.

• M: M
• M': M'
• M2: M2

Whole-cube turns

Turn the cube in your hands: nothing gets mixed up, you just look at it from another side.

• x: x
• y: y
• z: z