I think that's the best solution if you don't re-arrange any pieces until the end, but I didn't say you couldn't..?
I'll just share my solutions for #7 now, since this thread has passed on.
Personally, I normally respond to questions that are philosophic, provide the necessity for people to confer with one another on the answer, have an element of adventure or drama, or are just fun questions. It would be interesting to conduct a poll with this question.