Can you crack the code used to transform the following numbers and come up with the final number?

2461289=18
11029447=1
6332516=333561
412961044=4141
2234=23
357924242=222
139=9
4344199=?

(hint by levik: the encoding is such that it will only work on some numbers, not all integers)

This problem is kind of old, but I found the solution after reading the first comment.
4344199=4444
The number of digits is equal to the first digit. You read the next digits, with the number you read equal to the first digit. For each digit you read take the nth digit and put it into the answer. n equals the digit you read.
Ex: 34215=143
You have three digits and the digits in order are the 4th, 2nd, and 1st digits of the original number

Posted by Tristan on 2003-09-28 13:05:20