solo o sólo?

My understanding is that you use "sólo" when it can be replaced by "solamente". That said, I am coming across examples which don't seem to respect this rule. For example, in the book I'm reading (Juego de Tronos): "Solo sé lo que vi cuando llegué aquel día a la sala del trono..."

I guess one translate as "alone" and the other as "only". Solo with or without the accent. I guess the "only" could also be "solamente". I just googled this. On my written tests I find that I miss the accents a lot.

My understanding is that "sólo"translates as "only," while "solo" translates as "alone." Having said that, I recall watching a podcast in Light Speed Spanish where Gordon and Cynthia were discussing the fact that the RAE had removed the distinction between the meanings with and without the accent. Cynthia went on record as being adamantly opposed to the change. Aurora, I used to miss accents a lot also, until I began slowly and carefully writing down every sentence in the lessons and tests, and saying each word aloud as it is written. It has caused me to look carefully at the words for meanings, spellings, and accents, and has improved my learning a lot.

Thanks. I suspected the ambiguity. Here is an example from the course I just came across where the meaning is clearly "only": "¡800 kilómetros! Solo en volver se demorará 9 horas."