How do I understand a cryptogram clue

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If a cryptogram clue says u equals i do you replace u with i or do you replace i with u?

U with I. Best thing if it is a standard substitution cipher is to run a statistical character count against it and apply most common character frequency to it (ETAONRISH... for standard English), you can also identify structure like missisippi (xowwowwokko <- See the pattern resemblance?) or guess recurring trigrams like "are", "the" and "for" and you should cut through simple sub cryptos like a warm knife through butter.

Some longer words have more uniqueness and can be guessed fast. Polyalphabet substitution cryptos use a sequence of letters to make things a bit more complex, but they can also be broken with pen and paper.