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Subject: Re: If you like to crush easy mate...

Author: Uri Blass

Date: 12:47:02 02/10/01

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On February 10, 2001 at 14:40:37, leonid wrote:

>On February 10, 2001 at 13:27:32, Uri Blass wrote:
>
>>On February 10, 2001 at 12:43:05, leonid wrote:
>>
>>>On February 10, 2001 at 12:00:30, Uri Blass wrote:
>>>
>>>>On February 10, 2001 at 11:08:17, leonid wrote:
>>>><snipped?
>>>>>What is the "ss=10" ?
>>>>
>>>>ss is the selectivity search parameter of chessmaster.
>>>>
>>>>I know from experience that chessmaster is usually faster in solving problems if
>>>>I give it bigger selectivity.
>>>>
>>>>The default value is 6 and the maximal value is 10.
>>>
>>>Probably it is the maximum number of moves to see in each ply. When mine solved
>>>this position this variable was at 6.
>>>
>>>Leonid.
>>
>>It is not.
>>
>>I believe that it is about null move pruning.
>
>If it is really so, my guess is completely wrong. I even feel me sure that null
>move in mate solutions is the wrong way to proceed. It should lead to mistakes.

It can cause problem in endgames when a zunzwang is possible but I do not think
that it can cause problems in positions with a lot of pieces in the board.

Most of the moves in the solutions are checks so searching quiet moves to
reduced depth can help.

I guess that Chessmaster has also mate extensions and it means that it checks if
there is a mate threat to relatively bigger depth before deciding to prune by
null move pruning.
>
>
>>Chessmaster shows two depthes.
>>The first number is usually small(1 in the first iterations).
>>The second number is bigger when the difference between them is not more than
>>the selectivity.
>
>I am lost.

I will give a simple example

if selectivity=6 then depth 1/6 and 1/7 is possible because the difference is
not bigger than 6 but depth 1/8 is impossible.
>
>>I guess that Chessmaster does not use the null move pruning in the first plies
>>but it is using null move pruning everywhere in the tree later.
>
>As I said before, after the description of the null move that I have read here,
>null move should lead to mistakes. Since Chess Master is very good in solutions
>of mates, I presume that he do something different. It could be that somebody
>could indicate what it really is.
>
>>I believe that when chessmaster shows depth 1/4 it means that it looks at
>>everything at depth 1 in the tree.
>
>>It also looks at everything at depth 4 except move that it prunes because of
>>null move pruning and it also does a lot of extensions so it can practically see
>>mate in 10 at depth 1/4.
>>
>>I know from experience that chessmaster waste a lot of time on stupid lines if I
>>give it a low selectivity because it does not prune lines with no threat.
>
>Problem with all those stupid moves is that sometime they are the best one.

When I say stupid moves I do not mean to sacrifices but to move that threat
nothing.

Uri



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